Chapter 7



“Hey! Come over here, Mike!”

Mike hears the voice of Jack calling him over. He wondered what he wanted; he hadn’t done anything wrong on the job, so there was really no reason for him to be concerned about him being angry. “Maybe, he just wants a favor” Mike thought to himself.



Mike walks into the house where Jack is waiting for him.

“Hey Mike, I have an idea.”
“What is it?”
“I’ve really paid attention to what you said earlier about it being a shame that we can’t help the stallion. But now, I thought of a way that could possibly, and I mean POSSIBLY tame him.”
“Yeah? Let’s hear it!”

Jack pauses for a few seconds.

“Mike, I want you to tame the horse.”



Shocked is the only word that could describe how Mike felt at that point in time. Is Jack trying to get him killed? Had he gone completely off his rocker? Although he never mentioned this, even though he was sympathetic to what happened to him, Mike had become genuinely afraid of the stallion.

“Are..you...KIDDING ME?! You said it yourself, Jack! That horse is a killer! I’m sorry but even though I have done plenty of dumbass things in my life, trying to break that...untamed demon of a horse is something that I just cannot do!”
“MIKE! That horse is not a demon! I had to do a background check on you when you got the job and you know what? Believe it or not, you and that horse are not all that different! You are both very spirited, but can be very dangerous and aggressive.”



“You.....really think that?”
“My friend....I know that.”
“Ok....I’ll try...Anything that could save that beautiful horse’s life.




Just minutes later, Jake and Michael meet up near the quarentine pen where the stallion is kept. Both of the glance at each other in agreement and Jack says...

“You know what to do...”



Michael starts to walk very slowly, like a wolf stalking its prey. Mike doesn’t hesitate, but at the same time, he doesn’t want to risk spooking the horse.

“Easy boy....I’m not gonna hurt you....”



Unbeknownst to both Mike and Jack, there is a small audience watching them, Julian, Karilla, Jennifer, and Marissa, who raced to the stable’s large door to see what is going on.

“I can’t believe Mike is doing this...” Karilla whispers..
“If he can touch the horse without it killing him, then he is my hero.” Said Julian.



As soon as Mike gets too close for his comfort, the bay stallion perceives this as a threat. He freaks out and rears on its hind legs, the hooves missing Mike’s face by mere inches.

“WHOA!!! Easy there!! Now calm down!”



He appears to have calmed down. Mike then continues to stalk the horse at every foot step. Again, he gets way too close to the stallion and he bolts. Mike then gets angry and yells at the top of his voice at the stallion as he canters around the corral in circles.

“I know that you blame us for whatever happened to you....BUT WE’RE ONLY TRYING TO HELP YOU!!!!!”


Then, the horse stops absolutely dead in his tracks. Jack then tells Mike what he did.

“Good....you made the stallion realize who’s boss. The next step is to have him realize that you’re not trying to hurt him.”




Mike then approaches the stallion quietly and slowly and in fear because he doesn’t exactly know what the stallion may do next. Instead of freaking out though, the horse stays right where he is. Mike extends his hand and actually is able to pet the horse on the head.

“I......I understand why you’re so dangerous and aggressive. You don’t really hate humans, but you’re afraid of them...The cruel, heartless bastard that hurt you, he’s gone now, forever. You’re with us now, you’re safe here....”



“Very good, Mike...now...ride him.”
“What?”
“Jump on his back and ride him. You’re ready for this, I know it.”



Michael has ridden enough times to know what it’s like to ride bareback. He did have some concerns riding a horse that was just tamed without a saddle, but he jumped on the horse’s back anyway and the animal didn’t move at all.


“Ready? GO! Atta-boy! Faster!!”

Mike then kicks the side of the animal and the stallion darts through the corral, seemingly at the speed of light. Jack would have expected him to fall off, but no. Mike seems to be in total control of the horse’s actions.



Mike dismounts the horse right near Jack, who is in absolute awe.

“Mike..... There is no other way to say it; you were born to ride that horse. I...don’t even know how you did it. You’re a true horse whisperer...”



“What should I name him Jack? I was thinking about naming him ‘Killer’ but I kind of think that’s a little inappropriate. Should I just call him by his original name, ‘Tornado’?”
“You can name him whatever you want, man. Incedentally, have you ever heard of that old western TV show from the 50s named ‘Fury’ It’s about a little farm boy that tames a wild black stallion and is the only one that can ride him...”
“THAT’S IT! That’s his name!! Fury!”

And so, the stallion was now christened “Fury” by Michael Schaefer, who in turn is the only human being that has earned his trust.


Mike walks back to the stable where Karilla, Jennifer, Marissa and Julian were waiting for him. They were all absolutely starstruck.

“MIKE!! HOW THE HELL WERE YOU ABLE TO DO THAT?!” the four of them screamed simultaneously. Mike’s only reply was....

“I guess I have that special talent to earn a horse’s trust.”