//------------------------------//
// 34. Of a Stallion's Whereabouts 
// Story: The Rock Farmer's Daughters 
// by Sketcha-Holic 
//------------------------------//

"Headache" was an understatement; describing the pain in his head as "his pickaxe driven through his skull" would be closer to accuracy. He could feel just how swollen his hind leg was, and for some odd reason, the other one was numb. Nausea had his stomach caught in a tight grip, and his throat was dry. And the harsh burning sensation that was spread across his back was not going to cease anytime soon. A blindfold was over his eyes, so he little idea of where he was. All he knew was that the gang used the tar on his back to stick him to a wall, and that the place smelled like dusty straw. 

Igneous heard the clamor of voices below, reasoning that he was not on the ground floor of wherever he was. He caught snippets of the conversation of those thugs, which mentioned somepony on a trip to some relative's house, and some crude joke. There was no clue as to where he was, and he believed his family would be none the wiser, thinking that he had actually boarded that train. He could only imagine their shock if they saw him now.

Still, he couldn't help but wonder why the gang didn't just kill him when they had the chance. The railroad had been right there; just stick him to the tracks, wait for a train, and the job is done. Did they not want to have to clean up the resulting mess? Were they touchy crossing into the territory of murder? Did Cortland have other plans for him?

Cortland. The name made his blood boil. That colt had sunken to a new low, all over the bitterness that he couldn't have Igneous' daughter. He had that Apple Family stubbornness, but there was little, if any, of that honesty and dependability that were characteristic of that family. Why couldn't he just let it go and leave it alone? The more he thought about it, the more he believed that he got off light for the other things he did. 

He started to cough, silently cursing the air in his prison. Each inhale brought forth dust and bits of hay that tickled his throat and burned his lungs. A violent sneeze finished the coughing fit, and he groaned, his stomach churning and awaiting the time to spill its contents. The muscles in his swollen leg twinged, and he clenched his teeth.

"Haralson, you moron... couldn't you have nipped that problem in the bud? None of this would have happened if you had been stricter with him."

Sweat ran down his forehead and started to dampen his blindfold. His entire body perspired, and the dryness in his throat had spread to his mouth. He was feeling especially hot on his back, where he couldn't sweat thanks to the tar. In a desperate attempt to cool down, he took a deep breath and started blowing on his barrel and forelegs, though he could not lean very far. It was getting tempting to try to lap up his own sweat, and his stomach was begging to empty itself.

He was also very tired. But tired as he was, he was certain he couldn't take a nap with how he was feeling. Plus, he was afraid that should he shut his eyes, he might not wake up. Still, his eyes were heavy, he was weak, and was propped up in an uncomfortable manner. 

He couldn't help but wonder what he did to end up in this mess. Giving Cortland the benefit of the doubt, allowing the younger stallion to stab him in the back, was quite obvious. Going to the train station in the first place? He had a good reason--Pinkamena ran off. And her reason for running off? He had fired Cheese. Igneous had fired him for disobeying him, breaking his promise not to woo any of his daughters, and the implication that he had invited a scoundrel to the farm. 

But that pony he had smelled during the fight smelled exactly like the letter. That pony couldn't be Tomato Sandwich--who would name a brown-and-white paint "Tomato"? Wouldn't it be more fitting to give that name to a pony who was red? The more he thought about it, the more he suspected that the letter had been forged. And if anything, it had fooled him. 

He sighed. Not only did it fool him, it made his paranoia go over the edge. He wondered if he had only been looking for an excuse to get Cheese off the farm as to avoid the situation of one of his daughters in a so-called romance followed by a terrible heartbreak. Wondering if he was right to trust him, trying to deny that he had been growing fond of the lanky colt, conflicted about reading his smile as genuine or a mask, wary about the bonds he was developing with the girls, and letting misgivings he had about stallions like the convicts he knew, Windswept Goldenmane, those thugs in town, and Cortland influence his judgment of Cheese.

Maybe Pinkamena was right. He was overprotective.  

His lip trembling, he thought about the cruel irony that had happened in his life. He lost his sister because he wasn't protecting her enough; he lost his daughter because he was protecting her too much. He wondered what his mother would have thought of this if she were still alive. And now, he was certain that his wife and daughters were going to lose him soon. 

He regretted not kissing Cloudy goodbye when he had left. 





"Ah haven't seen hide nor hair of him," Haralson said. "Don't ya think yer gettin' a little worked up about this?"

Standing on the Apples' doorstep, Cloudy snorted, and was crouched in a position ready for attack. "Look, this apple orchard is big! Some crooks could've dragged him here and hid him somewhere among the trees!"

Haralson backed up. "Calm down, calm down! You know Igneous is a tough pony--Ah don't see any way he'd lose a fight."

Blossom came to her husband's side. "Haralson, we could check just to be sure."

Stayman and Idared popped out from in between them. "Check what?"

Haralson sighed. "Cloudy Quartz here is worried that her husband mighta been attacked last night, and is looking for him... even though he could've gone on that train..."

Cloudy glared at them. "There was a fight in that spot, all right." She held up Igneous' hat. "And if anything, he wouldn't leave his hat behind."

Stayman gasped. "A murder mystery! Igneous could be dead in our orchard and it's up to us to find the body and find the murderer!"

Idared stuck out her tongue. "Eeeewww...." 

Haralson shook his head. "Ah don't think a rock farmer could be beat that easily. Still, Ah'll look, just in case."

Stayman jumped and pumped a hoof. "Murder mystery!" With that, he took off into the trees. 

Blossom gasped and ran after him. "Stayman! There ain't anything fun about findin' a dead body!"

Haralson stared as his wife chased after their youngest son and shook his head. Cloudy stared in that same direction, wondering why the hay that colt would want to find a dead pony. She had Marble's reaction to that skeleton at the rock farm in mind, and figured that Stayman would have nightmares should he succeed in his quest. 

Idared poked Cloudy's foreleg, and asked, "Cloudy, why'd ya fire Cheese?"

Cloudy turned to her and sighed. "Well... he broke our trust."

"How?"

"He snuck out of the house with three of my daughters, kissed one of them, invited a criminal to our home, and he broke a Pie promise! And you should know that we Pies take promises very seriously."

Idared stamped her hoof. "He's in love with another mare?" She put a hoof to her head dramatically. "Oh, the curse of being just a filly!"

Haralson chuckled. "Ah told Igneous that his 'no romance' rule made for a difficult promise ta keep. Colts are often attracted ta forbidden fruit, yanno. Why do ya think that Cortland got interested in Pinkamena?"

Said colt came in the doorway and groaned. "Are ya still goin' on 'bout that? Ah'm done with that!"

Haralson nudged him. "You mind checkin' the orchard, see if Igneous is dead or unconscious in there? Cloudy says he went missin'."

Cortland's eyes widened. "Missing, you say?" His brow furrowed. "Do Ah have to go look fer him? It ain't like he didn't just take the train and take off somewhere. And why our orchard?"

Cloudy narrowed her eyes. "My daughters and that blue unicorn are looking in other places, too."

"Huh... and what do Ah get if Ah find him?"

Haralson snorted. "Cortland..."

Cloudy stomped her hoof. "Nothing in return! Except maybe just a little more respect from us... after all, aren't you going to prove yourself a real Apple?"

Cortland rolled his eyes. "Well, if he's dead, might as well go find him before he scares mah brother." He walked out the door, and started to walk into the grove. 

Cloudy could have sworn she heard him snickering. 





Bluejinx walked out of the candy shop and sighed. Lemon Drop didn't know anything; and when he had visited Sugar Glider at their home earlier, she didn't know anything either. They had been asleep at ten-thirty the night before, and they had not seen any suspicious activity at all. Both had suggested the possibility of Igneous having not missed the train, to which he replied that Maud was taking care of that. He looked up at the sky and shielded his eyes, figuring that it was midafternoon. 

He gazed at the saloon across the street. If there was anypony who'd have any idea what happened to Igneous, it would be the thugs that hung out there. But whether or not they'd tell was a problem, and Bluejinx could hardly call himself in fighting form. They'd laugh at him and beat him to a pulp. The only way he'd survive in there was if he had one of the Pies with him. 

Almost against his will, he started to cross the street. He could hear the crashing sounds of a fight in there, and winced at the howls of pain coming from inside. His mind screamed, wondering why he was heading there, why he was planning to ask about Igneous, why he wasn't just leaving that part of town to Limestone or Marble, and why he ended up roped into this mess. He snorted upon remembering that he was the one who found the hat.

Of course, when he reached the doors of the saloon, two familiar mares were shoved out, being called "troublemakers" by the bartender. 

Limestone and Marble stared at Bluejinx for a moment, as if they were expecting him to ask why they were in there. Limestone cleared her throat, and answered, "Crooks wouldn't answer, we tried to beat answers out of them, and we got in trouble."

Bluejinx gave them a funny look. "I thought you ponies were generally non-violent."

Marble rolled her eyes. "They started it."

"Uh-huh."

"Well, they did! We just simply asked them where they got their cuts, bruises, and the like, and then they backed us into a corner and threatened us. We did the only thing we could."

Limestone huffed. "You'd think they'd just answer with 'bar brawl'. Defensive much."

Bluejinx pursed his lips. "Do you suppose we go to the sheriff?" 

"Already went to him," both mares answered. 

"He laughed us off, told us that he more than likely caught the train, and that everypony knows that a rock farmer could crush you easily," Limestone deadpanned. 

Marble sighed. "He didn't even consider letting us show him the site... lousy sheriff."

Bluejinx shook his head. "Lousy sheriff indeed; he blew me off when I told him that some of my letters were stolen." He sighed. "I'm having just as much luck as you girls. I might as well go back to the print shop and start making some missing posters. We might have to offer a reward for finding your father. Maybe spread the word to other places in Equestria. I'm hoping that this is all just a big misunderstanding that we're making a big fuss about." He shrugged. "I guess we'll find out when Maud returns."

"You think Ma had any luck?" Marble asked. 

It was at that moment Cloudy Quartz dejectedly interrupted the conversation with a simple, "No."



 

Cortland had taken the opportunity to stuff the letters in his hat before his father, his brother, or Cloudy Quartz decided to search his treehouse. The search for Igneous Rock in the orchard was a wake up call to getting rid of the evidence that the letter Cheese had received was a fake. And if anypony figured that out, it wouldn't be much of a jump for them to assume that he had something to do with Igneous' disappearance. 

Now, as evening fell, he was strolling through town, on his way to Mr. Green's boarding house, where Riffraff and his gang were staying at. Between his teeth was the handle of a lantern, and his hat was pressed firmly against his head by his hoof. The letters underneath were making his head itch, but he couldn't afford to release them. He had a goal to burn them as soon as possible.

Not to mention he had to get rid of Igneous as soon as possible, lest the crazy Pie mares start breaking into homes and ransacking them just to find him. But he needed a way that would not leave him messy, not have any clues pointing to him, and would ensure that Igneous was done for in the quickest manner possible.

The sound of a train whistle blew, and he idly glanced at the train station, where a train was now pulling out. With a grunt, he continued on, looking for the alley that led to the boarding house just on the outskirts of town.





Back in Nickerlite. Cheese never thought that he'd return to a town within a day of leaving it. 

Still, news of Igneous' disappearance spurred him to join Pinkamena, Seddie, and Maud on the train ride back. He didn't care that Igneous didn't want to see his face again; if Igneous was in trouble, there was no way Cheese was going to let that slide. His attachment to the Pies was stronger than any orders into exile.

He leaned on the side of the train station, where he would have a good view of the town if the train wasn't in the way. Irritation ran through his body every time his eyes were drawn to the crack in the corner of his glasses. He adjusted the hat on his head and brushed his poncho to try to distract himself from that. And he was stumped on what to do next.

The fact that Seddie had her face in the dirt, sniffing each grain of sand, each pebble, and each dab of tar on the ground was frustrating. The tar was alarming, that's for sure, but Sedimentary was wasting time smelling the dirt. Maud had left to gather the others, leaving him and Pinkamena with the aunt who, while she undoubtedly had better smell receptors than he, was definitely no bloodhound. She had been doing this from the moment they had gotten off, and the train was now leaving. 

Still, Seddie did bring about some tidbits--the fact that Igneous had indeed been in the very spot behind the train station, and that he was attacked by a gang, if the various smells were anything to go by. He was amazed that she still recognized her brother's scent after all those years, and wondered how anypony could develop such a keen sense of smell. Still, she didn't seem like she was going to move anytime soon. He wondered if she was just waiting for the train to leave before they went any further, or if she was aware that Maud had left and she was just waiting for her and the others.

"...oh, and this thug smells like daisies!" Seddie exclaimed. Her face fell into a frown. "Dead daisies that had been burned at the stake."

Pinkamena gave her a funny look. "Uh... who'd burn daisies on a stake?"

"Oh, who knows? Somepony crazy, that's for certain." Seddie took another whiff of the ground. "Goodness! From what I've smelled,  we not only have the lynched daisies, we also have tar--pfft, obviously--and skunk mixed with roses, not to mention the smell of manure dipped in ink--oh, disgusting! And we also have rotten tomatoes, a stinkbug, slimy moss mixed with ketchup..."

The train had passed, and Cheese could see few ponies out and about. One of those ponies just so happened to be Cortland, and he was holding his hat against his head for whatever reason. Cheese scoffed at the sight of him, still bitter about the fruit pelting thing from the day before. However, not much thought was put into that colt. 

At least until Seddie said, "...and the smell of apples..."

Cheese's eyes widened. "Apples? Did you say apples?"

Seddie raised an eyebrow. "Yes... why?"

Cheese narrowed his eyes and looked at Cortland, who kept on holding his hat down and eyeing the alleyways on one side of the street. "Pinkamena, name a colt who'd smell like apples and want to get rid of your father."

Pinkamena blinked curiously, and walked to where Cheese was in order to see what he was seeing. While she did glare at the Apple stallion, she muttered, "Look, I know he's annoying, but he's too much of a coward to be involved in this. I mean, he knows Pa could break him in half. Besides... getting involved in a gang is low, even for him."

Cheese recalled the night when they had dinner at the Apples' house, and how Cortland had pinned him to a tree and threatened him. Either Cortland was blowing hot air, or he really would go to any length to claim Pinkamena as his own. Or in this case, enact revenge on those he felt were responsible for his failure to win over the mare, although it was mind-boggling that he didn't even attempt to do anything to Cheese, especially after that threat.

Still staring at Cortland, who was looking more and more suspicious by the second as he slipped into an alleyway, Cheese whispered, "Can't hurt to see what he's up to. He looks like he's hiding something under that hat."

Pinkamena nodded and turned her aunt. "Do you think you could stay here in case Maud returns? Don't want to confuse her, you know."

Seddie grimaced. "Pinkie... are you sure about that?"

Pinkamena waved her hoof. "Don't worry, a slap from me bruised his cheek. I can handle him in case things go bad. We'll come back once we find out if Cortland had anything to do with Pa's disappearance or not." She turned back to Cheese. "All right, let's go. We can't lose him."

Cheese nodded, and the pair cantered to the alley that Cortland had gone into.