His Hart's Command (Nothing Special 6)

“What kind are those?” Free asked, watching the healthy brown horses.

“Those are quarter horses. Gorgeous ones, too. Somebody knows what the hell they’re doing.” Hart checked his GPS and saw his turn was in three-quarters of a mile. A slow smile spread across his face. He could see his captain starting to put it all together. “I can’t believe you.”

Free sat there on the passenger side feeling pleased. When Hart made the left at the end of the long road and saw the large sign that read Welcome to Walker’s Farm-Ranch, he let out the funniest hoot of joy he’d ever heard.

“Yeah!” Hart hollered at the first sight of the Walker’s remarkable operation. There were several more horses grazing in large open fields, and other livestock in sectioned quarters of the property. Free craned his neck when they drove past the goat and pig pens. Some employees were inside the enclosures feeding, some looked to be cleaning. The farther they drove up the dirt road, Free recognized llamas, sheep, and lots of interesting fowl roaming openly. Cranes, pheasants—

“Holy shit. Peacocks!” Hart pointed excitedly. “How did I not know this was here?”

“They’ve just recently opened for business, love. Mr. Walker’s son has been rebuilding ever since they left La Vernia a little over a year ago.”

Hart’s mouth dropped open. “Oh man. They must’ve been hit by that flood a while back. Damn. But, shit. I’m glad they’re here now.”

Free’s smile was so wide it hurt his face. His boyfriend seemed ready to jump out of the truck with it still in gear. He was like a big kid again. Free was so glad he’d taken the risk and done this. He’d made the right call.

Buildings spread out across the vast property once they cleared the tree line, including a greenhouse alongside a huge garden. It was obviously a fully functioning farm, but one also open to the public. A few cars were parked on a graveled lot. A young man in a green smock assisted a woman loading several crates of pansies in her trunk. Kids, accompanied by another attendant, petted some donkeys along a bordering fence.

A petting farm, and picnic areas occupied the front of the property. A small country store, strewn with overhead lights, sat off to the side. Its wide porch was decorated with hanging plants and crowded crates of fall gourds. The whole scene was something straight out of a quaint country town.

Hart slowed to turn into the lot, but Free instructed him to keep going through a gateway marked ‘authorized personnel only’.

“Are you sure, Len? Why are we authorized personnel?” Hart asked, following the white fence that bordered the gravel road. The lawn became lusher and the trees expansive the closer they got to the main property. More critters littered the yard, including a few dogs.

“Because we’re staying in the main house. I don’t particularly know what a bunkhouse is, but it doesn’t sound like it’d have many amenities. So, Mr. Walker has graciously allowed us to stay with him and his son. He said they have plenty of room,” Free said, surveying the grounds. He was noting the areas he’d marked on his grid to place his cameras while Hart drove.

Hart pulled his truck into the curved driveway of the beautiful two-story home. A row of colorful Adirondack chairs sat on the wraparound porch, along with a large swing. Just beyond the house stood a huge red barn, its loft doors wide open.

“Wow,” Hart said.

“Yeah, this looks pretty awesome. You wouldn’t expect all this was back here. No wonder he’s stressing about security,” Free said matter-of-factly.

“What? Security?” Hart came to a stop next to the same truck Free had seen Big Bull leaning against at the precinct.

“Okay. I guess I can tell you now.”

“Well, thank you.” Hart turned off his truck and removed his glasses.

“Since Mr. Walker and his son opened for business, they’ve been having some issues with vandals. I ran into him at Mason’s desk a few weeks ago when he was making a report. When he started talking about his place, it all sounded familiar. It sounded like your home. So I thought it’d be a nice place to visit between your infrequent trips to Texas. You always say you miss riding. Well, Big Bull has stock for riding.” Free frowned. “Am I saying that right?”

“Oh my god. C’mere.” Hart leaned over the console and kissed him sweetly. “Thank you so much for this.”

“You’re welcome. You go off and be a farm boy and I’m gonna get started.” Free jumped out of the truck, leaving his boyfriend inside looking confused again.

Hart met him at the back. He dropped the tailgate and lifted the cab’s latch. “What do you mean ‘get started’. Sightseeing?”

“No, love. I’m gonna build Mr. Walker a top-notch security system to catch these rascals that keep coming onto his property, and in exchange, my boyfriend gets to come and play and ride his horses all he likes. That’s what’s in all those crates. A surveillance system.” Free tried his best southern drawl, “That’s the Texan way, right? Bartering.”