Destiny

The morning sun streamed in her window. Keeley had been semi-awake, laying in bed pondering her latest dream. It had been at least three years since she had last thought of her mother's horse, and a full six since she had seen him. He had been one of the first to be sold. Keeley could not help but wonder where he was now, and what he was doing.

As she stretched preparing to crawl out from under her covers, her foot encountered a solid mass that was quite warm. She had forgotten Bad Ass had spent the night with her, and by all appearances, he had slept in one spot the entire time.

"Hey sleepy head- time to get up. Did you sleep good?" Keeley gently poked the old cat with her toes, trying to wake him.

Bad Ass, who had not slept much at all, yawned, stretched, and tried his best to wake up a bit. To say he was un-impressed with the idea of getting the day going would be an understatement of epic proportions. He rolled over onto his back, one ear poking out, twisted like a pretzel, and purred at Keeley. His tail seemed to have a mind of it's own, as it once again began it's ritual wagging. The happier BA was, the faster his tail wagged. Some days Keeley thought he had a little bit of dog DNA infused in there somewhere as fast as his tail would get going.

"Look at you! Silly old cat. OK, you can stretch out for a bit, but when I go out, you go out. Deal?" Keeley rubbed the old cat's exposed belly, knowing she was risking life and limb to dare touch the soft tender fuzzy spot. Bad Ass opened one eye and peered at her, clearly telling her she was pushing his limits of tolerance.

With a laugh, Keeley got up and started her day. First on the agenda, now that she had tortured the cat, was a phone call to Mrs. Evans. Setting up a couple hours time to let Keeley slip off the farm and into town for supplies was high on her list of Things To Do. Grocery shopping to some might seem mundane and a bother, but Keeley reveled in the moments away from the memories that surrounded her at the farm.

Bad Ass lounged on the bed, half listening to Keeley on the phone making plans for the day. It occurred to him that there might be a bonus to sleeping in the house- not only could he be closer to Keeley and keep tabs on her, but her bed was down right comfortable. With a final stretch, he lightly hopped off the bed and strolled to the living room where Keeley was putting on her boots. He made his way to her, tail wagging, looking for all the world like he was extremely pleased with himself.

"If I didn't know better Bad Ass, I'd say you were up to something. Just look at that smug expression on your face. Does this mean you are planning on moving in full time now? Hmm? One night on a comfy bed and you are corrupted. Who knew you'd be such an easy conquest!"

Keeley opened the door, and she and Bad Ass trooped out. After pausing long enough to put the old cat's breakfast out, she made her way over to the main house to check on her Dad and get his breakfast going too.

"Morning Dad! How did you sleep last night?"

Her Dad was up, quietly puttering around in his pajamas. He seemed quieter this morning. As if he was lost in memories of the past again. His bright blue eyes smiled up at Keeley though, and he reached out to her to give her a strong hug.

"Keeley girl. I had such dreams last night, Keeley. Such dreams. They were wonderful. Do you remember when...."

Keeley smiled, knowing today was going to be a good day. A bit of worry slid off her shoulders then, knowing it would be OK for Mrs. Evans to visit with Dad. She listened to his voice, with the faintest lilt of his homeland touching his words. The memories rolled off his tongue, making him smile and laugh. He paused, shaking his head and laughing a bit. Then he asked, "Have you heard anything of Legacy?"

"No Dad, I haven't. Not in about three or so years. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, no reason.. no reason. Just wondering I suppose."

Keeley watched, remembering her dream all too well from the night before. Her Dad made his way to the sitting room and his favorite chair, where he could look out over the paddock that had once housed Legacy.

"Dad, I'm going to have to run to town and get groceries today. Mrs. Evans has said she can come and visit with you for a bit. Is there anything you would like special for supper?"

"Oh no girl- I'm fine. Whatever you fix will do me well. Mrs. Evans- now she's a character! Her husband, God rest his soul, had his hands full with her when she was younger. She and your mother.... oh my Keeley, the two of them were quite a pair. You should have seen them, flying about the countryside together, seeing who could out ride, out jump, and just out do the other. It's a wonder they didn't break every bone in their bodies!" He let out another soft laugh, yawned, and closed his eyes. It wasn't long before he had nodded off.


Keeley stepped out to sit on the porch in the sun for a moment. Mrs. Evans rolled up about the same time, and came to perch beside her, soaking up the sun.

"And how is your father this morning?" She asked, her tone bright and cheerful. Keeley loved to listen to Mrs. Evans- she had the lightest, happiest voice that was perfect for story telling and soothing troubled souls. Days when she came to sit with Dad were always good ones, as Mrs. Evans could charm him into smiling and laughing like no one else could.

"Oh, he is great this morning. Napping in his chair at the moment. Full of memories and stories- I heard some about you and Mom racing about like wild march hares even."

Mrs. Evans blushed and giggled, "Yes, I suppose Katherine and I were a bit on the wild side in our younger days. We had our share of fun! Now speaking of fun young lady, you head on out for a bit and let me tend your Da. Young as you are, you need to get out and about a bit more and enjoy yourself!"

It wasn't long after that Keeley had given Bad Ass a rub, and climbed into her pickup and rumbled off the farm. Looking forward to a bit of time alone, Keeley quashed the feelings of guilt and rolled on down the highway, windows down, radio playing, a bit of happiness in her heart.

She soon pulled into the local market. She had not taken more than five steps inside the store when an old familiar voice called to her.

"Why if it isn't Keeley Cullen! How are you young lady? And how is your father?"

Keeley turned, excited to see one of her favorite people in the world- their old horse vet, Dr. Mike. It had been quite a while since Keeley had seen him, and she was shocked at how he had aged. His smile had not though, nor had his sprightly manner.

"Dr. Mike! How great to see YOU!" Keeley exclaimed with joy. "Dad is having a great day today, thank you for asking! How have you been?"

"Oh, we're rolling along. Time for me to retire though, I'm getting too old to be tending horses in the middle of the night. So the Mrs. and I are packing it in, and heading a bit south. My son, Liam, will be taking over the practice. In fact, he's here with me. You've met him before, but it's been a while." Dr. Mike scanned the store, looking for his son.

"There you are! Come on over here Liam and meet Keeley. The big bay horse you were asking about the other day was raised on her farm- he used to be her mother's horse. Might be she can help out some with him."

Keeley's heart stopped- Legacy? Keeley was a firm believer there was no such thing as coincidence, and she wondered what could possibly be going on. She looked at Dr. Mike's son, and a vague memory of him stirred.

"Didn't you used to ride along with your Dad on calls?" she asked.

Liam laughed a bit. "Yes I did! I remember you. You used to torment me about my freckles when we were at your farm."

Keeley blushed deeply. She had indeed teased Liam mercilessly. "I'm sorry about that..." she stammered out...

Liam and Dr. Mike both laughed, and Keeley joined in. "Oh, it's alright. We were kids, and kids do some mighty strange things at times. I'm glad we ran into you though. Dad and I were on a call two days ago for a horse he is pretty sure was your mother's horse. And frankly, the horse could use some help."

Dr. Mike nodded sagely, a serious expression on his face. "That he could. Poor bugger has had a rough go of things by the look of him."

Legacy. Near by, and apparently in trouble. Keeley was having a tough time wrapping her mind around this.

"What happened to him Dr. Mike? And how can I help?" She might regret the last part, but it slipped out before she could stop it. The last thing she needed right now was added worry over one more living thing. But this was different- this was Legacy.

"Well, if you've got a few minutes, we can swing by and I'll show you. I'm due to check him in about half an hour. Come on with us, and take a look for yourself. I'll warn you though- it isn't pretty."

Keeley's heart, which had been light and happy this morning, settled somewhere in the vicinity of her left boot. The thought of Legacy hurt or sick made her stomach twist and turn. Taking a deep breath, she nodded and said, "Sure. I've got time. Let's go take a look."


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