Billie and Brandon: Untamed

18

Thomas Mitchell enjoyed a peaceful life on the outskirts of town, away from all the craziness and wild happenings. Though he was not particularly associated with or technically lived in any of the towns around his plot of land, enough people knew him in several towns and trusted him.

He'd long since given up his position as mayor several years ago and now opened his home to weary travelers on the route to new homes or even fugitives on the run from the law. His wife, Alice Mitchel, was trained as a town doctor and cared for many nearby people who needed medical attention for their illnesses. Their home was considered a safe haven, even for the most notorious of criminals and outlaws.

Most people would not attempt to rob him or attack his home.

So as he had been trying to sleep, he had found it weird that he thought he heard the creaking of his stable doors opening from outside. He ultimately figured it was just a trick of his mind, since the horses were known to make noises through the night. He had thought nothing more of the incident and allowed himself to drift of into his slumber.

But that was before bloodcurdling screams had rung out from outside.

He originally thought it had been his wife waking from a nightmare, but when he glanced at her in alarm, she was staring at him with an identical look of shock on her features.

"Thomas...Thomas, I think there's someone in our stables..." Alice said, her voice still drowsy from being prematurely roused from her sleep. "Do you think it's a horse thief?"

"I don't think so" He climbed out of bed, putting on his glasses from the bedside dresser, "Let me go take a look."

"Be careful Thomas."

He left his house carefully, a lit lantern in his hand. The screams were intensifying quite a bit, and once outside, he could clearly make out that they were the distressed cries of a woman. Fear hit him momentarily. Many of these townsfolk were not know for their chivalry or courtesy towards women. Whatever was going on inside his stables was alarming his horses as well, who were whinnying loudly.

When the agonized cries suddenly died and the night became quiet and alarmingly still, he rushed over to the stable faster, pushing past the aches in his joints. He honestly hoped what he was imagining in his mind was not occuring.

There was a midnight black Mustang perched outside, eating some of the grass in front of the stables. He lifted his head when Thomas walked by, but lost interest shortly after and went back to grazing.

Thomas pushed open the doors of his stable, expecting something deplorable to be occurring. That kind of behaviour would not be tolerated in his home, and he would pull out his shot gun to scare off any bandits if he had to.

"Who's there?!"

But there was nothing he could have done to prepare himself for the image that lied before him.

The first thing he registered was blood.

Blood everywhere.

It was all over the ground forming little rivulets and splashed on hay.

The other thing he registered were the two heavily bleeding young adults.

A woman was passed out on the hay and caked in blood, the wounds obviously still fresh and blood pouring out of the wound he could see on her leg. And a man in a black cowboy hat was crouched next to the unmoving, bleeding leg, staring blearily up at him with hazy, unfocused eyes. His hands were soaked red with blood, never mind his clothes which were almost entirely painted red. His arm was gushing blood, but he didn't seem to notice it whatsoever. He didn't even seem to be registering anything at all. Thomas couldn't even tell whose blood was whose.

"Dear God..." Thomas said in complete disbelief, right before the man's eyes drifted shut, and he passed out.

He ran his hands through his hair, swallowing thickly.

"Alice!" he called out towards the house, "Alice, I'm gonna need your help with this one!"

Thomas turned back around and stared at the almost unbelievable sight.

What the hell had happened to these people for them to be so badly injured like this?

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Sorry for the short chapters. Next chapter will be a lot longer:)