Wild and Unruly

Chapter 5

"What... now?" Louis's breath was coming in ragged bursts, his whole body still vibrating from his ride on the four wheeler. Rain lashed at him as he dropped to his knees and placed his hand on Jolene's warm flank. It was hard as a rock, mid-contraction. "She's... can we move her to the barn?"

His last words were swallowed up in a deafening thunderclap, lightning splitting across the sky. Like the pop of a flashbulb, it illuminated the scene for a moment. The laboring heifer, the swollen creek. The two men kneeling at her side in a halo of suspended raindrops. Then the world was once again engulfed in gloom, and all Louis could hear was the sound of Harry's horse spooking.

"Shit."

It galloped off into darkness with a jerky stride. Harry stood up, his lean body throwing shadows on the sodden grass. Louis saw him in the unsteady circle cast by his Maglite, his wrist already shaking with the weight of it. Jolene was groaning beside him. His hand slipped off her wet flank as she struggled to stand, knees almost buckling. She swayed back and forth on the gentle slope of the hill.

"Harry!" cried Louis. He was terrified she was going to topple and roll head over hooves into the creek. He tried to wrap his arms around her, steady her, but she was so big. So big and heavy, and he was so small, his wellies slipping in the mud as he tried to brace himself. Visions of the Dodge Caravan came back to him, rocking, the sheer power of the cattle on either side practically lifting it off the ground. "Harry!"

Harry had made an aborted, almost instinctive move to go after his fleeing horse, but he shook his head and turned around. "She's... that's normal, Louis. Let her go. Don't want to disturb her."

Louis stepped away gingerly, keeping his hands up as he backed off. "I don't know what I'm doing!" he shouted. She swayed again, and his heart lurched. "What if she falls over?"

Harry lifted his Stetson and ran a wet, dirty hand through his hair. "She won't," he said. His features were drawn, face somehow dark and pale at the same time. "She knows her own body. She'll probably lie down on her own again before long. We'll -- damn it."

Jolene had started to walk slowly down the hill toward the creek. Louis could see the whites of her eyes, rolling in pain.

"Louis!" Harry barked. "Get me the rope from the ATV." His voice was rough, commanding.

Louis didn't think, just bounded over to the four wheeler and dug around in the storage compartment. There was a rope inside, the blanket Niall had given him, a chain, a pair of gloves and some bottled water, Harry's fence stretcher, and a few other odds and ends. None of it looked very helpful. Louis grabbed the rope and slammed the compartment shut, running back to Harry. He was standing with a now stationary Jolene, his big, sure hands stroking behind her ears as he murmured to her.

"I know you want to go see the crick, darling. But it's not a safe place right now. Come with me. Come back with me." Harry was able to get her to take a few steps toward Louis before she sank down to her knees again. Louis could actually see the contraction hitting her, all the muscles in her belly seizing up.

"Oh, God." Harry looked even more worried, now. Louis recognized the fear in his eyes as he took the rope and started fastening a slip knot. "Those were pretty close together. I thought we had a couple hours to get the trailer up here, get her brought down to the barn..."

Louis almost felt like crying as he watched Harry apologetically slip the simple halter around Jolene's neck and secure it loosely to a nearby fence post. "Heifers usually take longer to get going," he muttered. He gazed at her grimly for a moment, then raised his voice. "I'm gonna report to Niall. Tell him to wake up the vet and get her out here to us as soon as he can. But if they don't come in time, you're going to have to help me deliver the calves."