Lightning struck only a few yards away, and as though waiting for just such a signal, the horses and longhorns took the cue. As one, they struck out in a gallop, back toward the east. Lonnie and Dallas were in the lead, trying to get ahead of the stampede. Mindy leaped into the saddle of Becky’s horse, kicking the animal into a run. Lonnie and Dallas were directly in the path of the herd, waving their hats and firing their Colts.
The fury of the storm, with its rolling thunder, drowned out the sound of the shooting. There was no stopping the stampede, and Lonnie galloped out of its path. But Dallas continued firing. Frightened by the shooting and the oncoming herd, his horse nickered, rearing. Dallas was flung from the saddle, while the frightened horse tried to get out of the path of the stampede. Dallas stood there as though stunned. The leaders of the stampede had already galloped past Lonnie, and while he kicked his horse into a gallop, there was no way he could reach Dallas in time. Then from the other side of the charging herd—just seconds ahead of the leaders—came Mindy on Becky’s bay horse. It seemed for a moment that Dallas and his rescuer were lost, but Mindy extended her hand, Dallas took it, and swung up to the saddle behind her …