Death at the Bar X Ranch by Marlene Chabot

Author:Marlene Chabot
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: North Star Press of St. Cloud, Inc.
Published: 2014-06-15T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

At the Crack of Dawn

Mary, are you all right?” Aunt Zoe asked with serious concern.

I could barely manage to lift my head off the pillow, let alone answer her. My poor head ached so bad it felt like a five-ton truck had just run over it. “Just give me a 2 Ginger Whiskey straight up, and I’ll tell you in a couple hours,” I said, trying to make a joke.

“Always the silly one even when you’re hurting.” My aunt leaned over, brushed my bangs aside and kissed me on the forehead. “I’m so glad we found you. When the sun popped up and you still hadn’t come back yet, I thought the worst.” Her voice grew shriller. “I just don’t understand. Why didn’t you say ‘Yankee Doodle’? I waited all night to hear those two little words.”

My speech was slurred as was my thought process. “I . . . I tried to contact you.”

“You did?”

“Ah huh. But you didn’t respond.”

“Oh, dear. I must’ve dozed off.”

I clutched her hand. “It’s okay. I don’t blame you. I was pretty tired too.”

She swiped some loose strands of hair away from my mouth. “Reed called a doctor. He should be here shortly.”

“For what? I just got wonked on the head.”

Aunt Zoe pulled her hand from my tight grip. “Don’t worry.”

“Easy for you to say. I don’t have any insurance, remember, Zoe?”

The owner of the Bar X quickly joined Aunt Zoe by the thick, deep-chocolate-brown leather couch I was resting on. “Mary, don’t be upset with Zoe. After I saw how jangled her nerves were, it was me who suggested calling a doctor. He just lives down the road.”

“Troy treats horses,” Aunt Zoe added, “so I’m sure he won’t charge that much.”

My mouth flapped shut at that news flash. Wonderful! Another man to see me at my worst—an equine veterinarian at that. Why couldn’t the vet at least have been a woman?

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