something similar to a bee-sting. A wave of dizziness over took her. She saw The Colonel.

“Get the white one,” He ordered and men rushed to the stables.

Charlie whinnied at the top of his lung at he was haltered and seduced. Eve listened as Charlie whinnied one finale time, this time weak and tired. And then her eyes rolled back in her head and blackness over took her.

Chapter 10

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Eve finally awoke. She was so cold.Her skin shivered and she let out a long breath and watch mist swirl in front of her nose. She tried to take in and tried to pick up her heavy head. Her head felt heavy, like their were weights on it, but she knew their wasn’t. She picked up her head and finally looked around. She laid in a small pen, next to another. She watched as men on horses and some walking flooded around the outside of her corral. Their were tents everywhere, and she suddenly heard the loudest noise she had ever head. It sounded like some kind of bird, a scream. She breathed in a strange scent. She smelled smoke, which was never good, and the smell of men and horses.

Eve heard a weak whinny from behind her. She put her feet under her and tried to pick herself up, but her body felt to heavy and felt back down. She turned her head around and found the white stallion laying on the ground past another fence. Charlie picked up his head, which fell back to the ground and let out a soft nicker. It sounded so soft and painful. Eve didn’t reply and tried to pick herself back up, this time successful. She stood shaking in the cold as small white dots floated down from the sky. Charlie nickered once more, lifting his head once, then it fell back to the ground. He was in pain. Eve slowly and carefully made her way to the fence the separated them. She stared at him over the fence, her chest pushing agents it. She never liked to see another horse hurt, and this was just awful. She heard a the loud whistle again. She saw smoke burst from a metal tube. This scared her.

Men approached the corrals and entered them. One in Eves, one in Charlies. The man that approached Eve spoke soft and calm. Eve stood shaking. He extended a hand to her and tied a rope to a halter. He had fooled her with strange noises. Eve pulled back once, and he kept speaking low and soft, and it seemed to put Eve in a trance and she followed. She stopped and looked back at Charlie. He let the human tied the rope to his halter, and struggled to his feet. He was wobbly when he stood, then was led behind Eve. Eve was led past wooden crates on wheels, easily holding five horses. When she past one, she saw a buckskin walking up a ramp into a wooden crate, head hung, legs dragging. She threw her head once and snorted. He deserved what he was getting. She bared her teeth and tried to lung at him, but a man on a horse walked past and she lost sight of him.

She and Charlie were led into a smaller crate on wheels, this one only fitting the two of them. Eve pulled away when the mans hand touched her cheek when he untied her. He patted her back and startled Eve and she startled into a canter for a pace, ears laid back for a moment, then walked in. Charlie walked with his head hung, and his feet dragging. She didn’t want to see him like this. Before he was so spirited and wild. What happened to that stallion? Charlie seemed to crawl. He crawled to a corner and collapsed there. Eve jerked back as the train took off with the blow of a horn.She took a step back, then watched Charlie. His beautiful white coat was filthy. It looked grayish brown. Eve looked threw the cracks in the crate and watched snow swirl threw. Wind blew on Charlie and he shook, obviously cold. Eve took careful steps towards him, and lowered her muzzle to him. She blew warm air on his shoulder, which twitched. She took a closer step and blew out again, this time on his neck. Charlie blew out from his nose and moved his head. Eve was also cold, but a crazy idea popped into her head. What if she laid beside him? She walked near his rump, and Charlie positioned himself so she could lay beside him. She did. She walked behind him and laid down, folding her legs beneath herself. Charlie blew out once again as Eve laid her head on his withers. She let out a gentle whicker. “Now we’re even,” She seemed to say as she settled herself and closed her eyes. Wind and snow continued to blow on the two, but they didn’t move. They were cold and laid motionless, and were happy to have each others warmth threw the long ride.

When the train finally lurched to a stop, Eve had leaped to her feet earlier. Before it had stopped, she sensed their ride coming to an end. Charlie still laid resting in the corner, and he did not wake. He stared out the small cracks in the wooden boards. She breathed in and cold air rushed in her nose. She throat closed and she pulled away from the wind.The train stopped, the whistle blew out above all the noises.Eves ears pinned back and Charlie finally awakened. His head picked up at the door opened, and Eve turned her head to see a man stand in the door way. A small rope held in his hand. The man walked in towards Eve and grabbed her rope halter. She jerked back when his gloved hand touched her cheek, but he had a grip and did not let go until the rope was tired to the halter. He led her out, and her head was held high. She watched men cross their path leading strange horses, and men on horse back, men running hear and there.

A man came in and got Charlie, who he led behind Eve. He led Eve to a post where other horses stood, and when the horses turned their heads at Eves presence, she jerked back. Her hooves dug into the dirt and he legs locked. She wasn’t going towards them a step farther. The man gently pulled on the lead, but she wouldn’t budge. One horse bared his teeth at Eve, all of them, their ears pinned. Eve repeatedly pulled back on the rope, and when the man looked at the other four horses, he understood. He led her to a empty rail and tied her there, Charlie tied at her side, then the men disappeared.

Eve shied away from Charlie, her ears pinned like the geldings. She swung her hind quarters away from Charlie, and stared at him, eyes like daggers.

Charlie stood, neck arched. He blew out threw his nose and his head dropped little more.

Eve looked away from Charlie to take in her surroundings. Her head swivled left and right, her ears perked. She saw many men, on foot and horse, tents, corrals, and other things. Many men gathered around a hole. They piled bundles of something a dark red into a hole, then a man pushed on a box and the red bundles exploded, causing dirt to fly into the air, along with a large amount of dust. Eve pulled at the end of her rope, ears pinned, legs dancing nervously beneath her. When the dust settled, a man waved his hands. A group of men began to talk, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying. “Well that’s it,” I heard one say. “We’re gonna have to haul the steamer over the mountain.”

Eve was attached with a large harness and chains, surrounded by many other horses. Charlie was hooked up beside her, and he looked like he was dieing. He head hung in a tired arch, and his legs nearly folded beneath him.

All of the horses were hooked up to the large metal machine.Eve scanned all the horses she could see. She found the buckskin. She just wanted to run at him, but she knew she couldn’t. As she looked, one horse caught her eye. It was a large bay. His muscles rippled under his coat. He was dark, yet also light. When the stallion turned towards Eve, his eyes were filled with hate. Eve took a step back, ears laid back. She remembered this stallion. He tried to kill her, to run her until exhastion. She trembled with fear.

When the men finally finish hooking the horses up, he pulled out a long, snake like thing. He yelled to the horses, snapping the whip into the air.

Eve lunched forward, pulling with all of her strength. Charlie tried his hardest, but he was stuggling. His body trembled with effort. Eve pulled up the large hill, and she would have told it on her life, but it seemed like it took forever.

When they finally made it up the rise, Eve watched the buckskin. He was terrified. He whinnied and pulled back. Before you knew it, he dropped to the ground. Eve thought he was dead, and her ears perked. That would be her dream, seeing her enemy die right before her eyes. A set of mules hooked up the bucksin and pulled him away while everything was perfectly still and silent.

Suddenly the stallion came alive. He kicked and got out of the chain, then burst into a run to the metal machine. He reared and bucked at the chains, and the horses were free. They whinnied and burst into gallops for freedom. Eve watched as the bay reared at the top of the hill in victory.

Eve suddenly felt the weight of the chains lessen. It felt so good. She threw her head and the harness flung from her neck and she galloped up and over the hill to freedom. The wind blew in her face as she ran past the men working on the railroad, and disappeared into the horizon...