A Better End
He found them in the barn, laughing. Lennie looked as if he was about to reach out and touch her, then pulled back as if shocked. George was standing in the doorway, a scowl on his face. Lennie had done a bad thing, and George was angry.
"Come on, Lennie," he said in a gruff tone. "We've got to get back to the bunk." Lennie started up, looking like a guilty dog with its tail between its legs.
"Please don't!" Curley's wife jumped up and ran to George. "Don't leave. You don't know how nice it is for me to talk to somebody for once."
"I know very well how nice it is for you," George snapped.
Curley's wife flinched. "I wasn't doing nothin' to Lennie," she said quietly. "Honest I wasn't. We were just talkin'. I need somebody to talk to, you know." She looked up and George saw tears in her eyes. He felt sorry for her, suddenly; she looked so lost and hurt.
"You've got Curley," he said gently. She gave him a look. "Oh... um, right."
"George?" Lennie said suddenly. George looked at him. "George, do I still get to tend the rabbits? Do I still get to feed them alfalfa from the fields? Are we still gonna live off the fatta the lan'?"
George laughed. The look on Lennie's face was just so pitiful. "Sure, Lennie."
Lennie smiled. "I get to tend the rabbits," he said to Curley's wife, pride in his voice. As they left the barn, George thought he had seen Curley's wife staring after them, a look of longing in her eyes.
"Are we ready?" George whispered to his two friends. Lennie and Candy nodded.
"We're gonna do it, George! We're gonna--"
"Shhh!" George clamped a hand over Lennie's mouth, glancing over his shoulder at the sleeping figures of their bunkmates. Only Carlson stirred a bit, but then lay still. "We've got to be quiet, Lennie, you hear?"
Lennie nodded. "Got to be quiet. Got to be--"
"Shhh!" George said again. "Come on. Let's go." The three of them slipped out the door and made their way quickly away from the ranch. George felt a tinge of nervousness, as if a pair of eyes might be watching him from the shadows, but he shrugged it off and they disappeared silently into the night.
The horizon was beginning to turn a shade of deep red, lined with a bit of magenta. The three men had been walking for several hours already, not saying a single word to each other.
"What do you think the boss gonna do when he sees three men've up and gone?" Candy's voice sounded extra loud in the silence of the air.
George took a moment to answer, near whispering when he did; getting used to the sound of his voice, "I suppose he'll be real furious. Probably take it out on Crooks."
"No doubt," Candy chuckled, though feeling sorry for the stable buck.
"He'll be real mad!" Lennie obviously had no qualms about his own volume. "He'll yell!"
"'S not like we wasn't gonna be around for long, anyway," George said. "I don't think Curley'd keep his promise to keep quiet no matter how we blackmailed 'im. He's too mad at Lennie. An' if anybody laughed at his not being able to take down Lennie, he'd take them down instead."
"Takes down his own wife enough, as it is," Candy sighed.
George remembered his conversation with her a few weeks before. "Pity she has to live with a guy like Curley. Wonder if she'll be there forever?"
"No she won't," Lennie said, shaking his head.
"Yeah?" George laughed. "How d'you know?"
"'Cause she's right behind us."
George and Candy whirled around, nearly getting a whiplash. A few feet behind them was Curley's wife, carrying a small bindle.
"What the hell're you doin' here?!" George cried, the blood draining from his face.
"I've run away. I wasn't gonna stick around with a guy like Curley forever, you know." She smiled. "I just thought I'd follow you a while."
"Do you realize what Curley'd do if he tracks you down here, with us?" Candy's voice was angry.
"He ain't gonna find me." She held up her bindle, "I've got everything I own with me. Besides, I'm not going to follow you for too long. Just 'till we get to the next big town."
"Whenever that is," George said.
"What do you plan to do then, huh?" Candy asked her. "Where do you plan to go? A young girl like you, all by yourself..."
"I'm perfectly capable of takin' care of myself," she retorted. "I'm going to go somewhere where they'll put me in the pitchers. I'm going to have myself a real life. I'm going be independent."
George and Candy looked skeptical, but decided not to argue with her.
About two hours later, they arrived at a fairly large town.
"This big enough for you?" George asked Curley's wife.
"Guess this is it," she said with a smile.
"Yep," Candy said, not unhappy that she was leaving. He still didn't like her much, as ok as she turned out to be.
"Just wait an' see," she said as she went. "Someday soon you'll see my face on the screen. The newest star of the decade."
"Alright," George said, amused at the idea, though not a far-fetched one. They watched her go. After a few seconds, Candy shrugged and yelled, "Good luck!"
The sun shone brightly on the acres of green. For a while, they just stood, looking at it, imagining what it would look like after at least a year.
"The rabbit hutch can go right over there!" Lennie exclaimed, excitedly. "Not too far from the house so we can get to it easily."
"Sure," George said happily. His spirits were soaring. Here was the ranch-- their ranch-- standing before them. Here was their dream, come to life at last.
Candy was afraid to blink, or it might all disappear and he might find himself back at the bunkhouse, nothing but an old sweeper again.
They spoke with the previous owners for a bit, exchanged a few laughs and some glasses of beer, then bid them good-bye.
"Hey Candy, this mare's got a lame foot," George commented.
Candy glanced up from his shovel. "That's the second one this month."
"Didn't think, with havin' all these horses here, we'd have so much trouble taking care of 'em."
Candy stared off into space. "What was it Crooks used to put on their feet?"
"A bit of tar and a good bandage," said Crooks.
Once again, George and Candy found themselves whirling around in shock. There stood Crooks, hunched over in the doorway.
"How'd you find us?" Candy whispered.
"I just walked and walked for a long time until I saw a big ol' ranch and thought, 'Maybe that's the one they livin' on now.' Y'know, I didn't really think you guys could do it. Thought you were all crazy, but look at you now." He laughed, "Saw that big guy goin' off to the shed over there. I reckon that'd be the rabbit hutch?" It was the first time they'd seen him really laugh. There was a sure air of happiness about him, as if a great load of worries had been lifted away for the first time in his life.
"Yeah," Candy rolled his eyes. "That'd be his fifth time today."
"How'd you get the boss to let you go?" George wondered. "Or were you canned?"
Crooks laughed. "No, no. He doesn't know I'm gone."
Candy whistled. "Must be one helluva year for 'im. Five people just up an' leavin'."
Crooks laughed again. "I was mighty surprised when I saw that Curley's girl was gone. Man, you shoulda seen 'im. He was in the worst kind of rage you could ever see him in-- and that's sayin' something. He was off, giving ever'body hell. Ever'body on the whole ranch was the suspect of crime. Save his old man, that is."
"What about you?"
"Yeah, me too. Gave up quickly enough, though. Probably realized there's no sense thinkin' the girl'd have anything to do with a guy like me."
"Mmm." George didn't know what else to say to that. He finally decided on "So what is it you're doin' here anyway?"
"Well... I said a while back that I might want to help you guys out, just takin' care of the horses." He was looking at Candy. "I just thought I'd ask again. I can just be your stable buck, just like I was at the other ranch. I'd do a real good job. I sense you boys need a helpin' hand."
There was no arguing with that point. George scratched the back of his neck, thinking. After all that had happened... "Sure. Why not?"
He found them in the barn, laughing. Lennie looked as if he was about to reach out and touch her, then pulled back as if shocked. George was standing in the doorway, a scowl on his face. Lennie had done a bad thing, and George was angry.
"Come on, Lennie," he said in a gruff tone. "We've got to get back to the bunk." Lennie started up, looking like a guilty dog with its tail between its legs.
"Please don't!" Curley's wife jumped up and ran to George. "Don't leave. You don't know how nice it is for me to talk to somebody for once."
"I know very well how nice it is for you," George snapped.
Curley's wife flinched. "I wasn't doing nothin' to Lennie," she said quietly. "Honest I wasn't. We were just talkin'. I need somebody to talk to, you know." She looked up and George saw tears in her eyes. He felt sorry for her, suddenly; she looked so lost and hurt.
"You've got Curley," he said gently. She gave him a look. "Oh... um, right."
"George?" Lennie said suddenly. George looked at him. "George, do I still get to tend the rabbits? Do I still get to feed them alfalfa from the fields? Are we still gonna live off the fatta the lan'?"
George laughed. The look on Lennie's face was just so pitiful. "Sure, Lennie."
Lennie smiled. "I get to tend the rabbits," he said to Curley's wife, pride in his voice. As they left the barn, George thought he had seen Curley's wife staring after them, a look of longing in her eyes.
"Are we ready?" George whispered to his two friends. Lennie and Candy nodded.
"We're gonna do it, George! We're gonna--"
"Shhh!" George clamped a hand over Lennie's mouth, glancing over his shoulder at the sleeping figures of their bunkmates. Only Carlson stirred a bit, but then lay still. "We've got to be quiet, Lennie, you hear?"
Lennie nodded. "Got to be quiet. Got to be--"
"Shhh!" George said again. "Come on. Let's go." The three of them slipped out the door and made their way quickly away from the ranch. George felt a tinge of nervousness, as if a pair of eyes might be watching him from the shadows, but he shrugged it off and they disappeared silently into the night.
The horizon was beginning to turn a shade of deep red, lined with a bit of magenta. The three men had been walking for several hours already, not saying a single word to each other.
"What do you think the boss gonna do when he sees three men've up and gone?" Candy's voice sounded extra loud in the silence of the air.
George took a moment to answer, near whispering when he did; getting used to the sound of his voice, "I suppose he'll be real furious. Probably take it out on Crooks."
"No doubt," Candy chuckled, though feeling sorry for the stable buck.
"He'll be real mad!" Lennie obviously had no qualms about his own volume. "He'll yell!"
"'S not like we wasn't gonna be around for long, anyway," George said. "I don't think Curley'd keep his promise to keep quiet no matter how we blackmailed 'im. He's too mad at Lennie. An' if anybody laughed at his not being able to take down Lennie, he'd take them down instead."
"Takes down his own wife enough, as it is," Candy sighed.
George remembered his conversation with her a few weeks before. "Pity she has to live with a guy like Curley. Wonder if she'll be there forever?"
"No she won't," Lennie said, shaking his head.
"Yeah?" George laughed. "How d'you know?"
"'Cause she's right behind us."
George and Candy whirled around, nearly getting a whiplash. A few feet behind them was Curley's wife, carrying a small bindle.
"What the hell're you doin' here?!" George cried, the blood draining from his face.
"I've run away. I wasn't gonna stick around with a guy like Curley forever, you know." She smiled. "I just thought I'd follow you a while."
"Do you realize what Curley'd do if he tracks you down here, with us?" Candy's voice was angry.
"He ain't gonna find me." She held up her bindle, "I've got everything I own with me. Besides, I'm not going to follow you for too long. Just 'till we get to the next big town."
"Whenever that is," George said.
"What do you plan to do then, huh?" Candy asked her. "Where do you plan to go? A young girl like you, all by yourself..."
"I'm perfectly capable of takin' care of myself," she retorted. "I'm going to go somewhere where they'll put me in the pitchers. I'm going to have myself a real life. I'm going be independent."
George and Candy looked skeptical, but decided not to argue with her.
About two hours later, they arrived at a fairly large town.
"This big enough for you?" George asked Curley's wife.
"Guess this is it," she said with a smile.
"Yep," Candy said, not unhappy that she was leaving. He still didn't like her much, as ok as she turned out to be.
"Just wait an' see," she said as she went. "Someday soon you'll see my face on the screen. The newest star of the decade."
"Alright," George said, amused at the idea, though not a far-fetched one. They watched her go. After a few seconds, Candy shrugged and yelled, "Good luck!"
The sun shone brightly on the acres of green. For a while, they just stood, looking at it, imagining what it would look like after at least a year.
"The rabbit hutch can go right over there!" Lennie exclaimed, excitedly. "Not too far from the house so we can get to it easily."
"Sure," George said happily. His spirits were soaring. Here was the ranch-- their ranch-- standing before them. Here was their dream, come to life at last.
Candy was afraid to blink, or it might all disappear and he might find himself back at the bunkhouse, nothing but an old sweeper again.
They spoke with the previous owners for a bit, exchanged a few laughs and some glasses of beer, then bid them good-bye.
"Hey Candy, this mare's got a lame foot," George commented.
Candy glanced up from his shovel. "That's the second one this month."
"Didn't think, with havin' all these horses here, we'd have so much trouble taking care of 'em."
Candy stared off into space. "What was it Crooks used to put on their feet?"
"A bit of tar and a good bandage," said Crooks.
Once again, George and Candy found themselves whirling around in shock. There stood Crooks, hunched over in the doorway.
"How'd you find us?" Candy whispered.
"I just walked and walked for a long time until I saw a big ol' ranch and thought, 'Maybe that's the one they livin' on now.' Y'know, I didn't really think you guys could do it. Thought you were all crazy, but look at you now." He laughed, "Saw that big guy goin' off to the shed over there. I reckon that'd be the rabbit hutch?" It was the first time they'd seen him really laugh. There was a sure air of happiness about him, as if a great load of worries had been lifted away for the first time in his life.
"Yeah," Candy rolled his eyes. "That'd be his fifth time today."
"How'd you get the boss to let you go?" George wondered. "Or were you canned?"
Crooks laughed. "No, no. He doesn't know I'm gone."
Candy whistled. "Must be one helluva year for 'im. Five people just up an' leavin'."
Crooks laughed again. "I was mighty surprised when I saw that Curley's girl was gone. Man, you shoulda seen 'im. He was in the worst kind of rage you could ever see him in-- and that's sayin' something. He was off, giving ever'body hell. Ever'body on the whole ranch was the suspect of crime. Save his old man, that is."
"What about you?"
"Yeah, me too. Gave up quickly enough, though. Probably realized there's no sense thinkin' the girl'd have anything to do with a guy like me."
"Mmm." George didn't know what else to say to that. He finally decided on "So what is it you're doin' here anyway?"
"Well... I said a while back that I might want to help you guys out, just takin' care of the horses." He was looking at Candy. "I just thought I'd ask again. I can just be your stable buck, just like I was at the other ranch. I'd do a real good job. I sense you boys need a helpin' hand."
There was no arguing with that point. George scratched the back of his neck, thinking. After all that had happened... "Sure. Why not?"