The Battle of the Bull

Ages 10-13

First Place

5 - The Battle of the Bull

 Grace C., age 12

 Grace loves reading, writing, sewing, and her seven wonderful siblings. Her cat, Charcoal, likes to sit on her keyboard while she tries to type.

 

      Mr. Carter glanced up from his plate full of food to his son. “Chad, I want you to bring the cows from the southeast pasture into the north pasture once we’re done here.”

Chad set his cup down on the large wooden table. “Yes, Father. But, sir, aren’t you keeping Prince Reginald in the southeast pasture?”

“Yes, Chad. He generally stays on the outlying edge of the field, so you can leave him there and just worry about the other cows. I don’t believe he will act up, but if he does, just leave the pasture.”

Aunt Rebecca tilted her head. “Who is Prince Reginald?”       

“He’s the bull,” five-year-old Mitch explained, patting Aunt Rebecca’s arm. “Father let Chad and I name him.”

“Chad and me, Mitchell.” Aunt Rebecca pulled away from Mitch with a frown. “Please keep your dirty hands off my dress.”

 “We’re planning on taking a walk to the pond this evening, so you should probably bring the cows in sooner than later.” Elizabeth Carter smiled at her son. “You may be excused if you’d like.”

“I want to help Chad bring in the cows. May I go with him?” Katherine looked at her parents hopefully.

Oh no, Chad thought. His younger sister’s help wasn’t usually very helpful.

“It is quite improper for young ladies to round up cows, Katherine. What makes you want to do such a thing?” Aunt Rebecca sniffed disdainfully.

For once, Chad agreed with his aunt.

“But Mother works on the ranch, and she’s a lady.” Katherine glared at Aunt Rebecca.

Mr. Carter cleared his throat. “Katherine, I think it would be best if you didn’t help Chad tonight.”

Katherine folded her small arms. “Why does Chad get to do it but not me?”

Aunt Rebecca pursed her lips. “Chad is ten, my dear, and a boy.”

“But I’m only two years younger!” Katherine looked from Aunt Rebecca to her father. “Please, Father?”

“No.” Mr. Carter shook his head.

Chad breathed a sigh of relief. He wouldn’t have to put up with Katherine’s antics tonight.

Katherine slumped in disappointment.

“Katherine, if you’d like, you may help me with clothes for the baby,” Mother offered.

Katherine shook her head.

Mr. Carter turned to his son. “You may go, Chad.”

Chad stepped off the veranda of the big, white ranch house onto the dusty ground and started for the barn. He would need his horse to help round up the cows. He grabbed his saddle and led the horse out of his stall.

“Hello, Sky,” Chad greeted the horse. He swung the saddle over Sky’s back and fitted the bridle over his ears. He mounted and began trotting toward the pasture.

As he rode, Chad thought about Mother’s baby. It would be arriving soon. If it was a boy, they would name him Levi. If it was a girl, she would be named Melinda.

The baby wouldn’t just be Mother’s baby, either. It would be Chad’s little brother or sister. He hoped it would be a boy. He had quite enough experience with younger sisters in Katherine.

Chad reached the pasture and opened the gate without getting off Sky’s back, a trick he had learned that summer. Where was Prince Reginald?

He looked around. If Chad knew where the bull was, then he could avoid it.

A snort came from behind Chad. “What was that?”

Chad wheeled his horse around. Standing about twenty yards away was Prince Reginald. The bull looked bigger, redder, meaner, and angrier than Chad had ever remembered him to be.

“Back, Sky, Back,” Chad whispered, pulling on the reins.

Prince Reginald took a step forward. Sky took a step backward.

Sky’s ears were laid flat back, and he was breathing hard. Chad looked behind him, hoping he’d left the gate open so he could make a quick escape.

The bull snorted.

As Chad whipped his head around to face the angry beast, time seemed to stop.  The bull was charging.

The body of the huge animal was lunging forward, more quickly than a cow should be able to go, it seemed. His hoof beats shook the ground.

“I’m not wearing red, Prince Reginald. I’m really not,” Chad screamed, hoping somehow he could make the bull stop charging.

Sky reared, and Chad flew off backwards. He landed with a thud on the dusty ground. His hat flew off and landed on one of Prince Reginald’s horns.

Prince Reginald slid to a stop. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the new irritation. He stomped with one foot and stopped shaking his head, looking from Chad to Sky, and then from Sky to Chad.

He lowered his head, locked eyes with Chad, and once more began charging across the pasture.

Chad felt smaller than he ever had in his life. For the first time, he noticed how big the sky above him was, how much ground there was to cover between him and the safety of the other side of the fence, and just how easily that giant bull could crush him.

Was his life over?

Would he miss his family when he was in Heaven?

Would he never get to see Mother’s new baby, or see his mother and father again?

Would he never see his siblings again?

Funny as it felt, Chad even began to miss Aunt Rebecca.

“Will it hurt very much to die, I wonder?” He didn’t know who he was asking, but he asked anyway.

He tried to stand up and run, but it felt like his legs were frozen to the ground.  He couldn’t watch the bull advance anymore.

Chad squeezed his eyes shut. God, help me, he prayed silently.

The bull’s hooves shook the ground as they pounded nearer and nearer. One step closer, two steps closer, three steps closer—

Woof! Woof, woof, woof! Was that a dog?

Chad slowly opened his eyes. Splash, his dog, was racing toward Prince Reginald, snarling.

Grrr! The dog sprang at the bull and sank his teeth into its leg.

Chad found he could finally move his own legs. He leaped up and sprinted toward the fence, which Sky had jumped. He quickly clambered over it as his dog distracted the bull.

“Sky!” Chad looked around for his horse, but Sky had long since left for the safety of the barn.

He looked back at the pasture. Splash was chasing Prince Reginald, and Prince Reginald was chasing . . . Chad!

Chad ran and ran until he felt like he could not run anymore. He finally stopped, breathless. He didn’t think he could beat Prince Reginald to the house, but maybe he could hide from him.

Chad looked around for a suitable hiding spot. There weren’t any good trees, and the barn was a ways off. He would have to run for the house.

It seemed like an eternity before the welcome sight of the ranch house came into view. Breathless, he turned around, looking for Prince Reginald.

Just as he spotted the bull, a flash of pink caught his eye. His sister!

“Katherine!” Chad yelled.

Katherine cupped her hands to her mouth. “I’m gonna help you round up the cows!”

Prince Reginald snorted and turned his head toward the girl.

Katherine skipped toward Chad, clearly oblivious to the danger.

“Katherine, no! Watch out!” Chad spun around and dashed into the house, banging the door behind him. “Father! Mother!”

He heard no response. “Justin, Sid, anyone! Where are you?”

“Don’t yell in the house, Chad.” Aunt Rebecca’s gaze traveled up and down Chad’s filthy, torn clothing. She pursed her lips and frowned. “How could you get so dirty rounding up cows? You were off somewhere playing, weren’t you?”

Chad ignored his aunt’s question. “Where is everyone? It’s important, Aunt Rebecca.”

 “Your family went down to the pond. They said

you could join them when you got back from the cow pasture. I personally do not think it proper to go gallivanting around outdoors in the evening air, so I stayed behind.”

“Prince Reginald’s chasing Katherine. I need help!” Chad blinked hard. He was ten years old, much too old to cry.

“Prince Reginald?”

“The bull. He’s loose, and he’s with Katherine.”

Rebecca Carter sat down heavily on the bottom step of the stairs, fanning herself with her hand. “Goodness gracious! Mercy on us! Why on earth did you let that beast out of his enclosure?”

“I need help getting Prince Reginald back in. Please, Aunt Rebecca! He’s still angry, and he’s going to go after Katherine. She can’t hear me.” 

“Who do you propose you should find to help you?”

“There’s no time to get Father.” Chad looked from Aunt Rebecca to the door. He couldn’t waste any time, but he wouldn’t be able to help Katherine by himself.

“You’re going to have to help me, Aunt Rebecca. Get on Mother’s horse and go around the edge of the barn. If we can charge up to Prince Reginald from both sides, we should be able to scare him back into the pasture. Here.”

Chad pulled a bandana from his pocket and handed it to his aunt. “This will confuse him.” I hope, he added in his head.

There wasn’t much a small bandana could do against a large bull.

“You want me to ride a smelly, dusty horse? I am a lady, and ladies do not chase angry bulls on horseback.”

Aunt Rebecca shook her head decidedly. “The very idea! It’s preposterous.”

“Aunt Rebecca, Katherine will die if you don’t.” Chad took a deep breath. He was getting angry. “Lady or not, you run and get on Mother’s horse. Now!”

Chad dropped the bandana on his aunt’s lap and took off toward the barn, praying his aunt would listen to him.

A ripping noise came from behind Chad. He looked over his shoulder as he ran. His aunt had torn her silk skirt from top to bottom.

And . . . probably for the first time since she was a girl, she was running.   

Chad rushed to the barn and leaped onto Sky, who was standing in the middle of the barn. He pressed Sky faster and faster, breaking around the edge of the barn at the same time Aunt Rebecca did.

Katherine was pressed up against the back side of the barn.

Prince Reginald was about a dozen paces away from her, pawing the ground.

Yelling and flapping their bandanas, Chad forced Sky toward Prince Reginald.

The big, red bull turned and ran for the pasture.

Chad pulled his horse to a trot and followed after him. “Ride along the fence so he doesn’t try to break through it,” he yelled to his aunt.

She was a much better rider than Chad had expected her to be.         

Prince Reginald’s charge slowed to a halt. He stood in the middle of the pasture, his sides heaving.

Chad swung himself off Sky and turned the latch on the gate.

Aunt Rebecca joined him. “The cows wandered out.”

Chad nodded. “I’ll find them, but we need to find Katherine. She must be terrified.” He turned the corner of the barn. Katherine was sitting on the ground, her shoulders heaving with sobs.

She looked up as Chad and Aunt Rebecca approached. “I was so scared, Chad. I thought he was going to kill me. I should have stayed with Mother and Father.”

“You’re safe now.” Chad sat down beside his sister.

“Katherine? Rebecca? Chad?” Shouts came from the house.

“Your parents must be looking for us.” Aunt Rebecca scooped Chad’s shaking sister off the ground.

Chad gaped. It was hard to believe Aunt Rebecca was strong enough to carry his sister.

“Rebecca! What on earth happened?” Mr. Carter leaped down the steps of the ranch house and took Katherine from his sister.

Aunt Rebecca smoothed her dusty skirt with a grimace. “Ask Chad. I must change out of this dress. This skirt is not at all decent.”

Later that evening, the family assembled inside the house. Chad, Aunt Rebecca, and Katherine took their turns describing the events.

After thoroughly praising Chad for his heroism, Mr. Carter turned to Aunt Rebecca. “Thank you, Rebecca, for helping to save our daughter’s life,” he said with emotion, holding his children close to him.

“No, James. It is I who must apologize to you. I have been so utterly selfish. I nearly stood back and let your daughter die.”

Was it just Chad, or were Aunt Rebecca’s eyes slightly wet?

“Besides, Chad was the one who stood up to Prince Reginald and led the battle with the bull.” The corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

“But you did help him, Rebecca, even though you didn’t want to, and that is what we’re grateful for,” Elizabeth said, hugging her sister-in-law.

Chad trembled to think how close he had come to losing his family. He felt sure he would never be unappreciative of his family again—not even of Aunt Rebecca.