O'Brien's Lady - By Marsha Doss Page 0,43

allowed him to maneuver the large animals with great agility. Within seconds he had injected the medication.

"How much longer will she be like this?" Sonny asked.

"With the colic you can't be sure. She may have ingested too much grass, or had a large amount of

cold water…there are several things that can cause this reaction."

"Will she be all right?" Sonny had to pull from somewhere deep in her stomach for that question and she was almost afraid to hear the answer, for even now Lady paced and moved about, only showing the least bit of calmness overcome her anxiety.

"I think she will, Sonny."

"I'll stay with her," she said, as she walked him to the door of the barn. "And thank for getting here so quickly."

"Anytime. Remember, call me if there's a sudden change. She'll quiet in a bit."

There was a stillness that surrounded her and she felt detached and strangely comfortable at the same time.

Almost as if she belonged here. Like a bird who's flown all over the country and finally comes to roost in the same spot from where he started. Perhaps there was that homing instinct in all of us and she was only becoming melancholy because exhaustion was setting in.

Lady was slowing now, her eyes were no longer expressionless and she had stopped making the sad noises of pain. Sonny wiped her down with the towel, talking to her in quiet words that only she and the horse could understand.

She did not notice when Michael and Will returned and suddenly she felt the warmth of Michael's hand against her elbow and she turned around.

"Michael… it was awful," she stammered.

"I know, we met Walt on the way in. He told us everything."

"You did a fine job," Will said giving her an affectionate pat on the shoulder, "Now, I'll go make us a cup of coffee unless Katy had beat me to it," "Will, please tell her what happened," Sonny added hastily. "She stayed at the cottage, hoping you'd call in again,"

"You can go on back to your party," Michael said, "I'll stay with her now."

Sonny turned to Lady and then back to Michael, whose face was like an expressionless mask. She had not seen the look of longing that had passed before his eyes when he first saw her, standing there in her torn white gown, dirt smudges on her feet and her hair hanging loosely over her shoulders. She looked so vulnerable and insecure that he had fought the urge to wrap her in his arms.

There was so much Michael wanted to say to her, but there was no guarantee she would even listen. The party and Pierre were waiting up at the house and he had nothing to offer but his soul and the heart that beat beneath his chest. He wanted her to stay, but he knew she couldn't.

Michael was certain that she and Pierre had already made plans to return to Paris. That meant the fight was over, and he had lost."I don't want to leave her." She looked out into the darkness, wanting to be here and not with Pierre's groups of faceless strangers. How could she just walk away from Lady?

"She'll settle down soon. Go on." Michael's eyes were looking past her now, and she could not see the far away expression in them. He didn't understand or comprehend what she felt now or how much the chestnut horse meant to her. If he had known he would not have asked her to leave.

Sonny walked slowly back up the gentle slope of the pathway, her eyes on the ground and not on the house that glowed with light. A strange sense of detachment filled her thoughts, and with that came the realization that her life would never again be the same.

The gown she wore and the ring on her finger were grim reminders that Pierre had given her everything but himself. She had been too busy following his madcap adventures to take notice of the truth that had existed in her heart. And Michael had been the one to unlock the emotions and needs that she had tried to hide.

Sonny came through the back door, hoping she could somehow go upstairs to change without being seen. The tear of the gown had lengthened, and bits of lace ruffling drug at her feet. She crept into the dining room, and then saw Pierre's face as he looked up. His eyes narrowed and his cheeks colored as he graciously excused himself and came toward her.

Ernestine