"Ouch!" I winced as Wishbone tightened the bandages around my head.
"Sorry
Cinnamon," he said.
I winced in reply.
"He hit that melon of yours pretty
hard," Wishbone said. "Give it about a week
though and you should be
alright."
"Thanks Wish," I said, slowly standing up.
"I'll help you to your bedroll," Mushy said, putting an arm around my shoulder.
I leaned heavily up against him as he pretty much drug me to my bedroll. He laid
me
down, and I'd pretty much fallen asleep as soon as he did.
A week ago,
Mr. Favor had sent Rowdy into town to hire on a couple new drovers.
He had
walked up to a large group of men and asked the two in the front if
they
wanted the job. Well, as it turns out, all ten of them were brothers,
and the
ten began to desperately fight it out for a spot on the drive. Rowdy,
knowing
that if he didn't stop it, there wouldn't be anybody left to hire,
hired all
ten.
Mr. Favor had given everyone a week, and the next morning
when I woke up,
the week was over. In situations like these, Mr. Favor never
really fires the
men who have been on the drive for a long time, just the
newbies he's not very
pleased with, but still, when announcements like these
are made, no one sits
easily.
I'd made a point to be last in line for
coffee, to make sure nobody grew
suspicious, as I pulled my hat down tighter
on my head. My head pounded as I
took a cup from Wishbone.
"How ya
feeling?" he asked.
"Not too well," I answered. "But I'll get better."
"I
hope so," Mushy said.
"Alright everybody, gather round," Mr. Favor yelled,
taking a sip off of his
coffee. I plopped down beside my rolled up bedroll,
and Mushy sat down beside
me.
"What I have here," Mr. Favor said. "Is a
list. And on this list are the
names of the boys," Mr. Favor looked at me.
"There's a hint by the way," he said
with a smile. We all laughed nervously
as Mr. Favor continued. "And on this list
are the names of the boys who will
not be with us anymore. It's been a very
impressive week, but we have to let
some of you go. When your name is called,
please collect your things and a
week's worth of pay, and you'll be on your way.
Sorry for any
trouble."
And Mr. Favor began to call off the names. "Roy, Calhoun, Chris,
Donny,
Mike, " Mr. Favor began to wrap up the list. "Dave, Jack,
and...Mushy."
Everybody froze, and I looked at poor Mushy. "Pardon me, Mr.
Favor?" Mushy
asked, looking confused and hurt.
"I'm sorry Mushy," Mr.
Favor started. "But these are hard times we've fallen on,
and a cook's
assistant is expendable. I'm really sorry Mushy, I really am."
"But Mr.
Favor!" I stood up to protest, and Mr. Favor had seen it coming.
"Cinnamon, I
know-"
"No you don't know!" I said. "Mushy does his job and he's good at it
at
that! He's not just a cook's assistant, but he's a pretty good drover too.
And
he's my friend. He does his job and stays out of trouble! And isn't that
what
you expect out of all of your men? After all the bullying and name
calling
that's sent Mushy's way, the least you could do is let him keep his
job. Instead
you take it away. That's real professional!"
"You don't have
to-" Mushy started, tugging at my sleeve. But I'd already
been riled up, and
the boys knew it. My face grew redder and my voice grew
louder. My head
pounded, and the pain made me even more frightening. I plowed on
head first
into dangerous territory. I was nearly screaming. "This is a gang!
Bullies!"
I shouted. "And I don't wanna be a part of it."
"You better watch it Missy,"
Mr. Favor warned, or else your name will be on this
list too," he held up the
list of fired boy's names. I winced. I had warned him
when I signed on to
never call me Missy. It was something my parents had called
me whenever I was
in trouble, and I wanted to get rid of all those memories as
quickly as
possible. I was tired of Mr. Favor thinking he could use my past
against me
to keep a close hold on me. I wouldn't let him do so.
"Oh, don't you worry
about that Mr. Favor." I said, picking up my bedroll
and standing up.
"Because I quit!"
Mr. Favor stood with his mouth wide open, along with the
other boys. "You can't
do that!" he said.
I slung my saddle on my horse.
"Watch me!"
Mushy, not knowing what else to do, and being fresh out of a job,
got his
pay, and swung up on his horse beside me. I had known that would be
bad for Mr.
Favor, because I had overheard him saying that I was one of the
best. And I was
also a pet to all the boys on the drive. Let them tell Mr.
Favor he made a
mistake, because it seemed as though he wasn't going to
listen to me. Besides,
Mr. Favor owed me one. I had helped him out of a
couple jams in the last few
months.
As I looked back at all the boys, I
was afraid I was making a mistake. I
really did like it here. But for Mushy's
sake, and for the sake of pride, I too,
like Mr. Favor, held my ground. I
looked back at the boys with anger still
flaming in my eyes. "Come on Mushy,"
I said. "Let's get outta here."
And together, we rode off.
TO BE
CONTINUED...
Thanks to my little brother Nick, for all the help.
Enjoy!
And look for Part III coming soon!