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Ripple nosed at her shirt.

“No treats.”

He checked her pockets anyway.

Arden laughed. “He knows better than to believe that.”

They walked him toward the new handling area. Ripple followed willingly until he reached the entrance to the chute, then stopped. Jodie stopped with him.

“Fair,” she said. “I wouldn’t go in there either.”

“Hey now! Traitor.” Arden took a handful of pellets from her pocket.

“I prefer experienced negotiator.”

Ripple stretched his neck toward the feed, thought about it, then stepped inside. The chute sat inside a heavy circular steel frame, allowing the entire center section to rotate if they ever needed better access to an injured animal. They wouldn’t need that part today. Arden secured Ripple standing and took her time closing each section without banging anything or rushing him.

Once Ripple was settled, she ran her hands down the left leg from knee to hoof.

“No swelling,” she said. “Here, feel.”

Jodie felt Ripple’s leg, then automatically moved to the other side and did the same with the right for comparison.

“Nothing here either.”

Arden looked over at her. “It’s been a while since you’ve worked with horses.”

“A while, yeah.” She’d been busy with the office, and the animals she’d worked with for the past few years had been the dogs there.

“You remember more than you think you do.”

Jodie smirked. “Don’t sound so surprised.”

“I’m not. Not at all.”

Jodie crouched carefully, keeping her healing ankle beneath her, and ran her fingers along the pastern. No heat that she could detect. She found the pulse at the back of the fetlock and held it for a moment.

“Left feels stronger.”

Arden checked right after her. “Yup.”

She lifted Ripple’s foot. Jodie shifted closer, watching as Arden cleaned packed dirt from the sole. The smell of horse and dust soothed her, as did watching Arden’s hands moving with complete confidence as she checked the hoof.

Dogs and cats had been most of Jodie’s vet-tech work, with the occasional livestock emergency growing up on the ranch. But she remembered how much she’d loved the puzzle of it. An animal couldn’t point to what hurt, but they could still tell you in their own way. You just had to pay attention.

Arden pressed carefully along the sole. Ripple jerked his leg.

“There.”

Jodie leaned closer. Arden checked the spot again, lighter this time.

Ripple flinched.

“Could be a bruise. Could be an abscess starting.” She set his foot down. “Nothing I’m panicking over yet. I’ll soak it and keep him in tonight. If he’s worse tomorrow or that pulse gets stronger, Harper can have the vet out.”

“I can do the soak.”

Arden handed her the lead. “I figured you would.”