It Had to Be Him(31)

Two of them sneered but the other two lifted their chins in greeting. After figuring out Josh wasn’t a threat, they all went back to fixing the fence. The big guy told the others what to do while he watched.

Mr. Jennings tilted his head and started walking toward the barn. “There’s a boy I’d like you to meet. Reminds me an awful lot of you.”

Josh wanted to ask about Charlie, but he’d know soon enough if he was still there.

Jennings lowered his voice. “This kid lost his mother in a car accident. Father was a cop killed in the line of duty a few years before his mom died. Eric is older than you were when you first arrived, though. He’s ten. His grandmother is his only relative, but had a stroke and is rehabbing, so she can’t care for him. We’re hoping it’s just temporary. He had a little brother and sister who died in the accident too. Talks about his family in his sleep sometimes. The others tease him for it, as you can imagine.”

It was always harder on the kids who knew what it was like to come from a nice home. Josh didn’t remember the details much, but somehow knew his mom must’ve cared.

Jennings said, “He’s only been here a few months. Hasn’t had time to develop the hard shell, you know? Since school got out for summer he spends all his time out here with Buck, my manager, and the horses. I suspect he’s getting bullied more than he lets on, but whenever I draw him aside and ask, he says he’s fine. I’d appreciate it if you could talk with him. You’d understand better than anyone else.”

“I can try.” The barn needed a coat of stain, but otherwise was just as Josh remembered. Two long rows of stalls, a hayloft, and tack room. Metal feed buckets stacked in the same corner on the dusty earthen floor. All the stalls were empty, their gates standing open. Dust motes hung in the air above the last stall on the end, and the clang of a shovel against a wheelbarrow meant the mucking out was almost done for the day. He used to hate that part of caring for the horses, but now his hands itched to help.

A skinny, dark-haired kid bobbed his head in time to whatever his earbuds played as he leaned down for the last of the mess.

Mr. J said, “These kids. Pump music into their ears so loud they’ll be deaf by the time they’re twenty. Can’t ever get their attention anymore without scaring the crap out of them.” He tapped on the kid’s shoulder.

The boy’s thin frame stiffened before he slowly turned around, his grip tightening on the shovel. The quick flash of recognition in his eyes had the kid quickly lowering the shovel before he tugged his left earbud out.

“Hi, Mr. J.”

“Hey, Eric. Like you to meet Josh. He used to live here too. He knows his way around horses.”

Eric’s right hand instantly extended for a shake. A kid this polite would struggle with the thugs he’d met earlier.

Just like he had.

He returned the shake. “Nice to meet you, Eric. Can I give you a hand with something?”

Eric shrugged his slight shoulders. “I’m done now, but thank you.”

Mr. J cleared his throat. “Well, in that case, I’m sure Josh would like a look at the stock. Mind showing him around?”

“Yeah. Okay.”

Jennings gave Josh a quick eyebrow hitch before he disappeared. It was now his job to try to get the kid to talk.

Josh followed as Eric led him to the pasture behind the barn. There were a few horses nearby, quietly grazing. They all picked up their heads as Josh approached. They scented a stranger in their midst.

Eric climbed up and stood on the second rung of the fence, his eye level even with Josh’s. “So, we have a few boarders. That big brown one there, the black one, and then the spotted white one. The other two are rescues.”

The rescues were thin and forlorn. “Never understood how people could let a horse suffer like that. Any others?”

Eric nodded. “Yeah. Some out in the far pasture. I’ll go get them a little later.”

“Is Charlie still here?” It was probably ridiculous to think he’d still be here after all this time. The ranch made money by boarding and selling horses. Josh had raised Charlie from a colt, but he’d belonged to Mr. J, so maybe?

“Yeah.” Eric smiled for the first time. “He’s one of my favorites. Mr. J told me he used to come if he was whistled to just right, but I haven’t been able to get him to do it.”

Josh stuck two fingers in his mouth and blew out the long then short whistle he’d trained Charlie with. It wasn’t long before he saw him. A big caramel-colored Arabian thundering toward them at top speed.

Josh’s lips stretched into a big smile as all his trepidation about coming back to the ranch instantly faded away. Amazing that Charlie still remembered the whistle.