Kathryn Mofley

“Heaven Has Horses” by Kathryn Mofley

Submitted to Contest #132

The night was not just snowy, but a blizzard. Jenny, a very old woman, was driving on a curvy mountain road and slid off down a steep ravine. She was shaken but unhurt, saved by her seatbelt and the six feet of snow that cushioned her landing at the bottom. Even though the car had settled mostly level and upright, she knew she was in big trouble. She’d never gotten a cellphone—her rotary-dial worked just fine—and she hadn’t told anyone where she was going. Jenny figured she’d be warm enough for awhile, but only awhile since the blizzard...

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“Layover at the Charming and Slightly Haunted Old Faithful Inn” by Kathryn Mofley

Magical! There was no other way to describe it. On a sunny winter day in January of 2005, I was back-country skiing in Yellowstone National Park.—-My friend, Bonnie, and I had come to Yellowstone for a winter adventure. Something we had both been missing since moving to the Midwest after living and playing for many years in Alaska. From Oklahoma and Missouri, we met up at the airport in Bozeman, then shuttled to our cozy cabin at Lone Mountain Ranch outside Big Sky, Montana.Big Sky was a quaint and unique place in winter, and proudly dubbed ...

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“The Cowgirl Wears Rios” by Kathryn Mofley

Submitted to Contest #127

There was no getting around it, Luke did not like Britney Logan. He was old-fashioned, and it was his opinion that a cattle drive was no place for females. He didn’t care if she was the daughter of the largest and wealthiest cattle ranch in the state. That’s what his gut told him and he was sticking to it.Wrangling is hard work—men’s work. A big part is the camaraderie among the cowboys sitting around the campfire at night, drinking beer and telling a few raunchy jokes. Now they’d been warned by the boss to be gentlemen, all because of her.L...

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“Not Since the 1890s” by Kathryn Mofley

Submitted to Contest #124

Maybe it was the approaching darkness, a low flashlight battery, deafening thunder, or sheer terror that blurred my vision, but the park map was unreadable. Yes, it’s December, but mine is no Christmas story.Although I’d been on this trail many times, in my panicked state of mind, a fork in the path confused me. I was being stalked, preyed upon, and hoped I’d chosen the best way forward.Only a few hours earlier, I’d been happily setting up my campsite. My husband was away on one of his frequent fishing trips with his buddies; a no-girls...

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“Sophie and the Seagull” by Kathryn Mofley

Submitted to Contest #95

Yesterday, Sophie’s fussy and overbearing mother left her at the train station, pressing a Hershey bar and an orange into her palm. The chocolate was an extravagant treat 100 years ago, even among the well-to-do. She wished her daughter well and walked with her to the platform to board the train heading north, promising to be waiting for her in this very spot one week from today. Sophie couldn’t remember a time in her young life when she had ever defied her parents, but this time she decided she had to grab the opportunity to prove to her ov...

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“SLOT CANYON PREY” by Kathryn Mofley

Submitted to Contest #78

SLOT CANYON PREYJessica Lorraine Thornton had a new hobby—inspired by a friend who had escaped lockdowns and confinement in a manner unconventional to Midwestern norms. Ever since the depressing loss of a career she loved left her feeling shaken and insecure, she longed for just such an escape. Would Jesse’s newfound hobby restore her natural traits of rock-solid self-confidence? Or, would she once again find herself caught between a rock and a hard place? . . . Seventeen—eighteen—nineteen—twenty. Exhausted by my third set of twenty push-ups...

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