Elsie ate her supper and talked about whether bears actually slept through winter or just slept more than usual, and whether you'd be able to tell the difference if you were a bear. Neither of them had a definitive answer, and Elsie went to bed unsatisfied on the subject. He sat by the window after Elsie was down and watched the storm develop. By 8:00, the visibility was already down to 20 yard and falling. The world outside compressing itself into a white chaos that was beautiful in the way that genuinely dangerous things are sometimes beautiful.
The temperature had dropped hard and fast. He could feel it through the glass. He was going over the morning in his head. What would need doing? In what order?
In what conditions? When he realized something he should have thought of earlier. He'd moved the cattle to the near pasture. But the bull, which he'd been keeping separate since it had gotten into a temper the week before, was still in the north field. He sat with that for a moment and worked through the options, and they were not good options.
The north field was a/4 mile out up the grade with no rope line and no shelter between here and there in the dark in this storm. He stood up and went to get his coat. Viven looked up from the mending she'd been doing. She read his face. "What's wrong? " he told her.
He was already pulling on his coat while he said it, stuffing his scarf into the collar, pulling his hat down. I'll be back. You can't go alone in this. I've done it before. Gideon, she said his name with a particular weight.
If you fall out there or if your horse spooks in the white out, the horse will be fine. What if she isn't? He looked at her. He did not have a good answer for that because it was a real risk and he knew it was a real risk. He'd been trying not to look at it.
Stay with Elsie, he said. Don't open the door for anyone unless you hear my voice. You understand me? Anyone? She understood.