Taylor perked up when she heard the sound of the train coming to a stop in the town's station. It wasn't often that anyone came to town. Hardly ever happened, in fact. A smile spread across her face as she thought about what that might mean. She set the brush she had been holding aside and patted the horse's muzzle softly but quickly. "I promise I'll be back," she whispered. "But this is an opportunity I can't miss out on." The horse only neighed in response.
Taylor rushed out of the stables and in the direction of the town she lived on the outskirts of. New folks in town probably needed a horse. And if they needed a horse, there was no one better suited for selling them than her. She had been raised on the farm, taught to ride and care for the horses, and she had spent her whole life learning the ins and outs of what made a horse tick. When her parents had died, she inherited the family business. She was able to make due on the things that she had, but she always leaped at an opportunity to make a sale. Life was just easier with a little extra cash on the side.
She walked briskly through the town, glancing briefly at the buildings as she walked past. A church, a bank, and a bar all sat together in a row. Across the street was the sheriff's office and the local prison. There weren't often many criminals inside, large or small, but you always felt a little safer knowing that if any did come by, there was a place to lock them up in. It was no large town, this Acanston, but it was homely, and it had the things you needed. Good people. Good foods. But that wasn't enough to drive a crowd.
That's what made new people so exciting. They could bring a whole new dynamic to these folk's lives, even if they only stayed a day. Especially for Taylor. She had a number of horses that she was ready to sell. She would mis them surely. She always missed a horse when she was able to sell it. But selling a horse meant being able to better care for the ones she had left, and that was always a venture worth taking.
She made it to the train station about the same time as the train came to a stop. She waited patiently, grin pushing her cheeks up high, as she waited to see who got off. The doors opened and, for a long moment, there was no one. She wondered if stopping had been a mistake. But then a man walked off, his eyes narrow and distant.
He was a young man, with an air of power and danger around him. He had two pistols hanging from either hip, and a rifle slung across his back. A number of scars on his face and the tightness of his stance suggested that he knew well how to use them. His clothes were dark and ragged, well worn, and his emotions were hidden away behind a mask of unfriendliness.
But Taylor was undeterred.
"Howdy there!" she called out. The man turned to her immediately, eyes tight, an eyebrow raised in question. "Y'all look like you're new in town! Name's Taylor. You look like you might be needing a horse."
The man looked her up and down, his expression never moving away from the rough blankness. He was clearly attempting to intimidate, to keep people off of his back and from asking too many questions, but no such attempts would work on Taylor. She was too tough skinned.
Finally he spoke, his voice deep but surprisingly smooth. "Yeah," he said. "I could use a horse."
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