cracks in the fence
743 Words
The next week was worse.
Much worse.
Because Damien and Ethan had settled into a routine of irritating each other.
Professionally.
Almost expertly.
By now Damien could predict exactly how Ethan would react to certain comments.
And Ethan had learned exactly which buttons to push.
Neither used this knowledge responsibly.
"You're late."
Damien looked at his watch.
"It is six o'clock."
"Exactly."
"I was here at six."
"You were supposed to be here at five-fifty."
Damien stared.
Ethan stared back.
The cowboy wasn't joking.
Damien sighed.
"I miss normal people."
"Good."
The horse lessons continued.
Unfortunately.
Titan still hated Damien.
Damien still hated Titan.
The feeling appeared mutual.
"Sit up straight."
Damien adjusted his posture.
"Not like that."
Damien adjusted again.
"That's worse."
"I hate you."
Ethan smirked.
"Get in line."
Despite everything, Damien was improving.
Slowly.
Painfully.
Annoyingly.
By the second week he could actually ride without falling off.
Most of the time.
Ethan hated admitting it.
But the city boy was stubborn.
Very stubborn.
The kind of stubborn that kept showing up every morning despite sore muscles and endless failures.
Ethan respected that.
A little.
Very little.
Things got complicated on Friday.
Claire arrived at the stables while Ethan was teaching Damien.
Her expression wasn't happy.
Which immediately put Ethan on edge.
"We need to talk."
Ethan sighed.
Not now.
Claire's eyes flicked toward Damien.
"Alone."
Damien immediately climbed down from Titan.
"Trust me, I want no part of this."
He headed toward the barn.
Fast.
Very fast.
The argument lasted almost an hour.
Damien wasn't trying to listen.
Really.
But voices carried surprisingly well across ranches.
Especially angry voices.
When Ethan finally returned, his mood was awful.
The worst Damien had seen yet.
"Trouble in paradise?"
The words slipped out before he could stop them.
Big mistake.
Ethan's eyes narrowed.
Dangerously.
"Mind your business."
"Touchy."
"I said mind your business."
Damien held up his hands.
"Fine."
The rest of the lesson was miserable.
Even more miserable than usual.
That evening Damien found Claire sitting alone on the porch.
She looked frustrated.
Exhausted.
The kind of exhausted that came from fighting the same battle repeatedly.
She glanced at him.
Then looked away.
Neither spoke.
Finally Claire broke the silence.
"You drive him crazy."
Damien laughed.
"He drives me crazy."
"Fair."
Silence followed.
Then Claire sighed.
"He wasn't always like this."
That got Damien's attention.
"What do you mean?"
Claire stared into the distance.
"He's gotten worse over the years."
She immediately looked annoyed with herself.
As if she'd shared too much.
Then she stood.
"Forget I said anything."
And walked away.
Leaving Damien wondering what exactly had happened to Ethan.
The answer arrived sooner than expected.
The next day.
A storm rolled over the ranch.
Not a dangerous one.
Just enough rain to force everyone indoors.
Damien ended up trapped inside the equipment barn with Ethan.
Alone.
Which was unfortunate.
For everyone involved.
The rain hammered against the roof.
The silence stretched.
Neither seemed interested in speaking.
Until Damien noticed an old photograph sitting on a shelf.
A younger Ethan.
A woman.
And an older man.
All smiling.
The Ethan in the photo looked different.
Happier.
Lighter.
Less angry.
Damien picked it up.
"Who's this?"
The change was immediate.
Ethan crossed the barn in seconds.
Snatched the photo from Damien's hand.
And looked furious.
Real fury.
Not annoyance.
Not irritation.
Fury.
"Don't touch my stuff."
Damien blinked.
"Okay."
Ethan placed the photo face down.
His jaw tight.
The silence that followed was heavy.
Then Damien noticed something.
The older man from the picture.
Same eyes.
Same smile.
Same face.
His father.
The realization hit instantly.
The ranch.
The land.
The stubborn refusal to sell.
The anger.
The grief.
Everything suddenly made a little more sense.
But Ethan wasn't ready to talk about it.
That much was obvious.
The cowboy grabbed his jacket.
And headed toward the door.
"Ethan."
The man stopped.
For a second Damien considered apologizing.
Instead he asked quietly,
"How long ago?"
The question hung between them.
Rain pounded outside.
Ethan didn't turn around.
Didn't look at him.
When he finally spoke, his voice was rough.
"Three years."
Then he walked out into the storm.
Leaving Damien alone in the barn.
And for the first time since arriving at the ranch...
Damien wasn't angry.
He was worried.
Because beneath all the hostility, stubbornness, and anger...
Something was hurting Ethan Hayes.
And it was much deeper than a land dispute.
- Writer
