Best Friend's Ex Box Set

I held up my hand to stop Rick, and that’s when he heard the rattle as well. He slowly approached me before he rounded the corner, and that’s when I felt his hand come down onto my shoulder.

“Don’t move. That thing’s ready. I’m gonna go grab our snake stick.”

“Hurry,” I whispered.

I kept my eye on it, waiting for it to pounce. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do if it did, but I had on rubber boots and I had better aim with my feet than I did a gun anyway.

Though shooting its head off didn’t seem like a bad idea right now.

I felt as much as heard Rick walk back up behind me with a snake stick and a bag. I panned my gaze over to him, and I saw how intently his eyes were locked onto it.

“Rick, you gotta be careful, alright? If it gets away from you and gets after one of these horses, all hell is gonna break loose in here.”

“I’ve got this, alright? Just don’t make any sudden moves, and pray one of those horses doesn’t kick up,” he said. Honestly, we were very lucky I had just fed the horses because I knew their eating was what keeping them pretty preoccupied. They were on alert, but still reasonably calm. I just couldn’t get past the fact that it was even happening; my mind was frantically trying to find a logical explanation.

The moment the snake stopped rattling its tail was when Rick lunged. It dodged him the first time and flared its fangs, and when it snapped back at Rick, one of the horses started to kick up. I turned and ran to try and calm the excited horse, praying that Rick could get it under control.

“It’s alright,” I cooed as I patted and scratched the horse. “Just calm down. Everything’s fine.”

Rick grunted and shuffled around, and at one point I thought he slammed his back up against the barn. That sent another horse over the edge across the way, and it immediately starting bucking in the stall, which I knew was likely to cause a chain reaction.

“Ho. Down, boy! It’s alright. Come here, come here, come here.”

“I think I got it,” Rick called it.

“You sure?”

“Yeah. If you want, just let that horse run before he’s gets them all fired up.”

I threw open the stall and let the horse go, and he scurried out of the barn and into the pasture. He raised such a ruckus in the process the rest of them started kicking up a fuss, so I let them out as well. None of them were done with their breakfast, but I figured I’d let them run off their nervous energy and let them back in after a bit.

“These poor horses are going to develop anxiety issues,” I said, with a sigh.

“I’ve got it in the bag. I’m gonna go drive it on out to the other side of the field and let it go.”

“Just keep it away from the horses,” I said. “God, how in the world did a rattlesnake that size get itself into the barn? It’s too cold for them to be out here, Rick.”

“Well, it’s uncommon, but not unheard of. Happened to Colt and Tiffany a couple years back. I didn’t tell them about it because it was just a baby at the time, but if they wander off and find somewhere warm to curl up in, they’ve been known to survive entire winters in barns and lofts and stuff.”

“Seriously?” I asked.

“Yep. It’s why people tell you to check your attics around here before winter settles in. They love attics.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said with a grumble.

Rick smirked at me, and I felt relieved to have someone here. I knew I could have wielded that snake stick on my own, but I wasn’t sure if one of the horses or I wouldn’t have been bit had I left them alone with a snake in that barn.

“My God, what would’ve happened had that snake been in one of the other stalls, Rick?” I asked. I felt tears welling up once my adrenaline started wearing down. My hands began to shake, and my knees felt weak. Never in my life had I felt so helpless and powerless when around horses, but it was like I couldn’t keep them out of danger any longer. Being the horse whisperer and having a sanctuary did me no good if I couldn’t keep my horses safe.

“Don’t worry yourself with stuff that didn’t happen,” Rick said. “We got the snake, and once I dump this one, I’ll check the barn for more. The last thing we want is to have a nest of them and not know it.”

“You think they could’ve been living in those rotted out beams?” I asked.

“Nope,” Rick said with a chuckle. “But I’ll check the horse’s hay that’s in their stalls as well as the feed room. That place stays pretty warm in the winter because of how insulated we keep it. It’s actually built that way to keep animals out, but if a snake gets in, it’s easy living.”

“Thanks,” I said with a smile. I knew if that rattlesnake had been in one of the other stalls, the vet wouldn’t have gotten out here in time before permanent damage would have been done. At best, the horse would’ve limped for the rest of its life. At worst? Well, I honestly didn’t want to think about that.

“Why don’t you go get yourself another cup of coffee? These horses will run for a bit longer, and then you can take them in one by one to finish their breakfast while you groom them,” Rick said.