“Get out of the way!” “Get out of the way!”
Alex could hear barking, and pounding hooves coming at her. She pushed the roan close to the canyon wall.
Bobbie and Wolf shot past her. Seconds behind them was the ugliest, meanest-looking animal Alex had ever seen in her life. The bull was enraged and obviously bent on destroying Bobbie.
Bobbie jerked Sonny up short behind a boulder. The bull stopped, snorted at Wolf, pawed the ground, and prepared to charge.
Alex put two fingers in her mouth and blew. The whistle pierced the air. The bull raised his head and looked around. For the first time he noticed the cows standing off to the side. He looked back at Bobbie, bellowed, and blew snot on the ground. Then he turned and trotted over to inspect the herd.
“I thought you were supposed to bring him in. Alex led the roan to the boulder. “Looks like it worked the other way around.”
“That was close.” Bobbie wiped sweat off her forehead with her sleeve. “Thanks for distracting him.”
Alex’s eyes widened. “Do my ears deceive me, or did I just hear Bobbie Walker say thank you?”
Bobbie ignored her. “I surprised Diablo in the brush just up the trail. He didn’t care for it much and started after us. Figured if he was going to chase me anyway, I’d lead him back here.”
Alex looked over at the big bull, which was now standing quietly with the rest of the herd. “How do we convince him to go with us to the pens?”
“As long as he’s with the cows, we won’t have much trouble from him. But don’t crowd him. We’ll edge around and start them out of the canyon. Then I’ll move up to the side. You and Wolf stay behind and push them out. Just remember—take everything nice and slow.”