Black Mountain Domino

By Pamela McDermott

Black Mountain Domino is a story of a girl's coming of age and the horse that changed her life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elderberry Press
• Release date: Jan 2, 2012
• ISBN: 9781466184923

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Black Mountain Domino

Copyright © 2004 Pam McDermott

Smashwords Edition

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Chapter 1

Jennifer Brennan was twelve years old. Life on her parent’s ranch was an exciting existence for a young girl who loved horses. She was allowed a lot of freedom, as her parents believed she was mature for her age. Jennifer had a sense of responsibility that most twelve year olds didn’t possess.

She was a slim, dark-haired girl. Though some people thought her quiet and shy, she had the courage of her mother’s Irish ancestors and a great sense of humor. Her laughter, at the antics of a new litter of kittens, could be heard in the kitchen where her mother was busy baking bread.

Jennifer’s dad had taught her, not only to ride a horse, but how to take good care of a horse. He stressed that horses will take care of you if you take care of them. Mr. Brennan, or Steve, was like a character out of a Louis L’Amour western. He could dress up in town finery but could never be mistaken for anyone but a cattle rancher. A cowboy hat was stuck permanently on his head, and beneath it was a sun-beaten face. It was a face of strength and character mixed with kindness and gentleness. Its wrinkles were those of laughter, sadness, wisdom, and caring. He was a man with close friends and few enemies.

Steve’s wife and Jennifer’s mother, Amanda, was a fun-loving homebody. In her role as ranch wife, she was capable. Many a time she had helped pull a calf or sit up with a colicy horse. Yet, she was happiest taking care of her family, home, and garden. Get-togethers with neighboring ranch families were an adventure for her, as she planned games for the children and comforts for the older ones. As much a cook as most ranch wives, she experimented with fresh herbs and other produce of her garden. Steve and daughter Jennifer adored her for her undying patience with them and her fun-loving Irish spirit.

Oak Tree Ranch, south of Santa Margarita, was home to many horses, cattle, and of course, two or three dogs. A large cat, TC, lived in the barn. TC had been delivered with the mail a year or so back. To be more accurate, the rural mail carrier had seen the bedraggled kitten and decided to hand-deliver it to Jennifer. Evidently he had been dumped on the side of the road. TC stood for Top Cat and he surely thought he was. He kept the mice in the hay barn well under control, yet demanded a quite regular feeding schedule from Jennifer.

The ranch had been in the Brennan family for almost fifty years, bought by Steve’s wealthy parents as an investment. Never in their worst nightmares did they feature their son wanting to grow up to ranch in this rural California area. They had been professionals in their separate careers, Mr. Brennan, an oil man and Mrs. Brennan, a pharmacist. The 4,000 acre ranch was bought as a retreat from their busy careers, but mainly to invest money that they needed to diversify.

Steve, the youngest of six children, had taken to the ranch at first encounter like an orphan calf to a nurse cow. It was love at first sight. After that he waited longingly for the vacation trips to the ranch, and when he was old enough, to spend summers there with the ranch foreman’s family. The foreman taught him how to work and to be skilled in his daily ranch chores. Later, he went off to a four year college to major in animal science, of all things. And there he met Amanda, majoring in ag business. His parents wondered how on earth they could have produced such a child, but heartily gave him their blessings to marry. He got a job as ranch foreman elsewhere but he and Amanda were back at home at the Oak Tree Ranch when Jennifer was born. The elder Brennans had passed away and left the ranch to Steve. His siblings inherited companies, stocks, bonds, and homes, but he was the richest of all; his heart was safely home at the Oak Tree Ranch with his family.

Steve and Amanda started out with crossbred cattle, but slowly changed over to purebred Limousins, native to France. They were producers of lean meat, and had good temperments to be around.

For horses, they chose Morgans. That breed had been used a lot in the coastal area in the past, at the William. Randolph Hearst ranch, and the Jack ranch, and even on the Ranchita, in nearby Arroyo Grande, for a number of years. Steve had grown up with a little bay Morgan mare that had literally taught him how to cut and sort cattle in a corral, as well as to gather cattle off the rough mountain ranges. Since moving back to the ranch they had acquired a band of good Morgan mares, but had only leased a stallion so far.

The Brennans had searched for a stallion to head their broodmare band. They had written to Morgan farms, gone to see Morgans, and it was finally back east where they had found what they were looking for. A stallion named Domino.

Domino was a truly beautiful blood-bay with no white markings. He was an animal of extreme presence; a natural show horse.

He was also an athlete, displaying balance and agility. Domino had a very masculine head; heavy jowl, small muzzle with large nostrils, and finely-chiseled ears. His eyes showed a docile disposition. Also, he was extremely intelligent. It took only one glance to see that.

As soon as he was unloaded from the horse van, Jennifer fell in love with him. She whistled and his ears came up and his eyes sought her out. He snorted at her. She went to him and without even on bit of fear laid her face against his. It was love at first sight for both of them.

The Brennans hoped to raise horses that could survive in the rugged terrain where they lived. They wanted their horses to have even temperments so they would be a joy to work with. All their hopes and dreams rested on Domino, and they were well-founded.

He was a sensible horse, yet he had all the heart any cowboy needed in a working cowhorse.

In no time, Domino had become almost a pet to the whole family. They loved to watch him move as he did, lightly yet so quick on his feet when working cattle. Domino could work cattle all day, then return home fresh as a daisy.

Jennifer knew he would always answer to her whistle. In the evening she’d slip out to the barn with a pocketful of carrots from the kitchen for him. He’d look forward to her arrival and would snuffle her pockets until, with a laugh of delight, she’d give them to him.

Then he would crunch contentedly while Jennifer played with his foretop. He would look at her with his liquid brown eyes as though to verify a special bond between them. She loved him and he could sense that.

Having no brothers or sisters to play with, Jennifer and Domino became close companions. Her dog, Shep, usually accompanied her to the barn or corral. Shep knew Jennifer loved him, but not like she loved the stallion. Shep was old and he was content being second in Jennifer’s heart.

There were times when Jennifer’s dad would let her ride Domino.

Those were special times. He seemed to realize the youth and relative inexperience of his young mistress and could be depended on to be well-mannered.

As Jennifer’s mother and dad watched the young girl on the horse, they felt a thrill of pleasure at the picture they made. Domino would walk slowly, then break into an easy jog. The young girl would urge him on and the two of them would finally be flying down the dirt roads between the fields.

Jennifer’s long hair streamed out behind her and she laughed in youthful glee. Eyes were bright with excitement and her face was flushed as she and Domino returned to the barn.

Then she would help her dad take care of Domino’s unsaddling.

Finally, she would curry him with hands that were soft, gentle, and full of love.

Everything changed when Jennifer’s dad hired Cyril Ames. Unbeknownst to Steve Brennan, Cyril had become a drunk.

Years before, Cyril had made quite a name for himself among the top bridlehorse men in the country. He’d trained and shown cowhorses that would long be remembered among horsemen. Something had happened to him though, something he wouldn’t share with anyone.

He seemed to have given up.

It began to show with the horses he rode. At first he just seemed to have slowed down; no more victorious show wins or long campaign seasons. With that, he began to lose clients. As time went on, his ability to train seemed to vanish altogether. He spent more time at local bars and less at his job.

Finally the day came when he could no longer train; no one would hire him. He could only get on as a stud manager. One such job was on the old Oak Tree Ranch. He applied for the position and was consequently hired. He would be in charge of the daily care and oversight of their band of twenty Morgans.

Cyril convinced Jennifer’s dad, Steve, that children shouldn’t be around breeding stallions. Though Jennifer begged and pleaded, her dad felt Cyril was the one who knew best. After all, he had quite a reputation as a great trainer. His new reputation as a drunk hadn’t yet caught up with him in this region of the country.

The new stud manager, Cyril, isolated the stallion and set to work teaching him what Cyril considered proper discipline for a stallion.

Domino no longer lived in comfort and tranquility, but with constant tension and rough handling. He couldn’t understand why Jennifer had deserted him. If now he saw her in the distance or heard her voice, he would nicker and paw. Cyril soon put