sighed. “A few days ago, a stray dog scared the kids at school and …”
“Cilla talked to the dog and calmed him down in front of the whole school. The kids talked about it for days,” Imke interrupted.
“Anyway,” Cilla tried to continue with her story, but Imke continued as if she hadn’t been interrupted.
“One of the matric boys mentioned the incident to his dad. His dad is a manager on a farm near Villiersdorp and the owner has a difficult stallion. The manager asked Cilla whether she’d have a look and … I don’t know the rest, you’ll have to explain,” Imke said.
“Oh, may I really talk now?” Cilla asked sarcastically.
“Come on, you don’t talk fast enough, I just gave the background. So, what happened then?” Imke asked.
Cilla laughed. It was no use getting angry with Imke. When things didn’t move quickly enough for her, she took over.
“I went there early this morning, but the owner doesn’t believe in what I do, he doesn’t like the fact that I’m a woman and … well, he basically has a problem with everything. He thinks I’ll cast a spell on his horse. Apparently, he didn’t know I was visiting. Ken, the manager asked me to have a look at the horse and the owner was very angry when he found out. His vocabulary is … explicit.”
“Did you look at the horse?” her dad asked.
“Yes, I did and I can help him but if the owner doesn’t believe in what I do, there isn’t much I can do. You know how it works.”
“What is wrong with the horse, do you think?” her dad asked.
“He …” Cilla shook her head and laughed. “You won’t believe me, but the stallion has a picture of a mare in his head and I … well, it sounds bizarre, but I could swear it was of Maggie.”
“Our Maggie?” her dad asked, clearly amazed.
“Yeah – a chestnut mare with a black mane. I know, I know. There are probably lots of other mares who look exactly like that, but what are the odds? The only way it’s even remotely possible, is that he probably caught her scent, but how? I should have asked them where he came from. Anyway, he is also very bored and wants to be able to run free.”
Her dad nodded. It was never necessary to explain in detail what a horse’s problem was, but her dad knew what she meant.
“Who is the owner?” her mother asked.
“Cameron Rahl, he farms −”
“… near Villiersdorp. On the farm Yonder Hill,” her mother murmured.
Surprised, Cilla stared at her mother. “Yes, do you know him? I did wonder …”
“No, you won’t remember, you were a baby at the time but I knew his mother well. We were at school together and after we moved here, I visited her once or twice but we lost touch. Her death was such a tragic event. They farmed with horses, she adored them. They had two sons. The youngest was about ten years old, I think, when she was thrown off a horse and died instantly. We visited once or twice afterwards, but the husband was completely devastated, I don’t think he ever recovered from his wife’s death. I remember being so sorry for the two little boys who had to grow up without a mother. You say his name is Cameron?”
She looked at Cilla’s dad. “He was the younger of the two, I think. I wonder why the older brother hasn’t taken over the farm.”
Her dad nodded. “I don’t know. From what you’re telling us, it sounds as if Cameron has decided to breed horses again. I remember that his dad got rid of all the horses when his wife died.”
“Yes, one of the few things he did manage to get out was that he renovated the stables about two years ago and began buying horses right after that,” Cilla said.
Cilla’s cell phone rang. It was not a number she knew but she didn’t want to ignore it. It might be someone phoning about one of the children. “Excuse me,” she said and got up.
“Cilla Stevens.”
“Hi,” a gruff voice answered.
Cilla stopped in her tracks. It sounded very much like Cameron Rahl, if she wasn’t mistaken.
“Good evening,” she greeted him formally. What did the man want with her?
He cleared his throat. “I …” He swore softly and she smiled. So he did know swear words that didn’t begin with an f.
“Yes, sir?”
“My name is Cameron. And what I’m trying to say is that I … about this afternoon … I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that. I know I was …” He uttered a few more swear words.
“Rude? Bad-mannered? Overbearing? Insufferable?”
“No … I was … okay, yes, maybe, but …”
“I was there, there is no maybe about it,” Cilla insisted.
“Dammit to hell, will you stop interrupting me?” he shouted over the line.
“Don’t yell at me!” she shouted back.
The line was silent for a few minutes.
It was obviously very difficult for him to apologize, if that was what he was attempting to do. But she really wanted to end this conversation; she didn’t want all these bad vibes spoiling the rest of her day. “Look, it’s fine. I accept your apology. Anything else?”
“May I please finish my sentence?” he growled.
Stunned, Cilla inhaled sharply and clamped her teeth together. The man made her so mad!
“Mr Rahl, it’s been a long day, I’m enjoying a glass of wine with my family and friends, and frankly, you are spoiling the mood. I don’t know if anyone has ever had the guts to tell you, but you are extremely rude and unpleasant. If you want to talk to me, that will have to change. Until then, goodnight,” she said and ended their conversation.
“And?” Imke asked, little devils dancing in her eyes. “Who phoned?”
“It’s that …” Her phone rang again. Sighing, she answered.
“I’m sorry about this afternoon, I wasn’t expecting you and you …” He stopped talking.
“I what?” she asked, by now very irritated with the infuriating man.
“It doesn’t matter. I … want to apologize for my behaviour and want to know if you’d be prepared to have another look at Bravo. Please.”
Cilla gasped silently. Wow, when he finally got round to apologizing, he really turned on the charm. Her silly heart had started beating erratically, her blood had heated, and she was actually smiling!
“Are you still there? Cilla? Can you hear me?”
Her name had never sounded quite so sexy.
“I-I
