CHAPTER TWO
The biscuits had long ago disappeared and Rocky was now working his way through the apple. It was funny to watch the animal put the fruit between his little paws and nibble on it.
His good mood restored, Kid's spirits were high as he tossed another piece of apple up to Rocky. Unlike the others however, this piece fell short and landed on the ground. Curry walked over to pick it up but just as his hand touched the fruit, Rocky flew off the rock and sank his razor-sharp teeth into the outlaw's left wrist.
"Ow!" Curry cried in surprise and jerked his arm back out of reach."Hey - that hurt!" Holding his wrist, he eyed the raccoon with reproach, watching in silence as Rocky grabbed the piece of apple and scampered back up on the rock, still chattering angrily away.
"I wasn't gonna eat it, you silly coon! I was jus' gonna throw it to you - you didn't have to go an' bite me!" Curry pushed his sleeve up in order to inspect the damage. Not much blood, but it sure hurt. He pushed his sleeve back down, "Next time, you can jus' get your own food!" he snapped and shook an admonishing finger at the animal.
Watching the human with a wary look, Rocky continued to gnaw on the piece of apple.
"Aw, c'mon, its okay," Curry said wryly, "I'm not really mad at you. It was jus' a big mistake - one we both made an' one I won't make again. Here, see if you can catch this, it's the last piece." Tossing it high into the air, he grinned as Rocky reached up, nimbly caught it between his paws and without a second's hesitation, began to chew on it.
"Well, my friend, that's it; I'm all outta food. Guess you'll probably wanna take off now, huh?" Kid sat down on a fallen log and while he waited for the raccoon to finish, he glanced up at the setting sun. "It's 'bout time for my supper anyways." Maybe. Heyes has probably forgotten all about me by now; I'd better wash up and go remind him. Curry shook his head. "Knowing Heyes, he's probably gone right back to his book an' lost all track of time."
He turned to say goodbye to Rocky only to discover that the rock was empty. He looked all around, but it was like the animal had just disappeared! "Well, of all the ingrates," Curry muttered. Standing up, he brushed off his hands and headed down to the water. While he was washing up, he took a closer look at the bite, relieved to see there was barely any evidence of it left. He pushed his sleeves back down and buttoned the cuffs.
"I'd better remember to wash it good with soap later, no need to take any chances of it gettin' infected." Yeah, that's all I'd need, to have Heyes fussin' over me like an old mother hen - I'd havta listen to him rub it in an' say, 'I told you so!' His older cousin tended to take credit for all the bad things that happened to him, whether he was responsible or not.
Yep, Heyes would definitely feel this was his fault, especially since he had encouraged him to play with the raccoon. Kid made the decision to keep quiet about getting bit. Why borrow trouble? His stomach growled, a reminder that it was way past mealtime. Before walking up the hill, he stopped and took one last look around for Rocky, but there wasn't any sign of his little friend.
As he stepped into camp, Kid stopped dead in his tracks at the sight that met his eyes. Heyes was lying on his back, fast asleep, his book laying face down across his stomach. He looks so peaceful, Curry thought, think I'll let him rest while I fix supper. He grinned as something suddenly dawned on him. "Guess I'm not the only one who lets people sneak up on 'em!"
When supper was ready, Curry 'accidentally' dropped the empty pot on the rocks near the fire. Their clatter created a racket loud enough to wake the dead...or at least a sleeping partner.
Heyes sat up quickly, causing the book to flip shut. It landed with a loud thud on the ground beside him. "Wha - what - who's - ? Oh, it's you...Hiya, Kid," he said, ineffectually attempting to hide a yawn behind his hand. He grinned instead and inquired, "Suppertime already? I was just going to call you." He reached out and picked up his book, dusting it off. At his cousin's snort of laughter, Heyes scowled up at him. "Well, I was!" he sputtered.
Curry stopped filling his plate to give his partner a look.
"Just as soon as I woke up!"
The laughter of both men rang out in the camp.
"So where's your friend…uh, Rocky?" Heyes asked as Kid handed him a plate.
"I invited him to join us for dinner, but it seems he had 'other' plans."
"Well, guess he's not so smart after all, passin' up a good meal like this."
Curry grinned, enjoying the light-hearted banter with his cousin, "Probably had a wife or girlfriend back home; I was just someone givin' away free food." He eased himself down on the ground across from Heyes. "Boy, he sure high-tailed it outta there fast enough after it was all gone." He took a bite of sage hen and closed his eyes and slowly began to relax as he savored the taste.
"Well, you know, he's just a wild animal. You can't trust 'em or turn your back on 'em like you can a person; you've gotta be real careful around them. They're unpredictable creatures; you just never know when they might turn on you."
All thoughts of relaxing vanished in an instant. Curry stopped chewing and gulped. Busy with his own meal, Heyes missed the startled look that crossed his friend's face.
"Yep, a wild animal's just that - a wild animal. You can only be so friendly with 'em before they just up and walk off, leaving you to go back to where they came from." When he became aware of the silence, Heyes glanced over and sent his partner a curious look. "What? Something wrong?"
With a quick duck of his head, Curry looked down at his plate. "Uh, no; nothin', nothin' at all."
With a sharp look at his cousin, Heyes tried again. "Did you think I was picking on you for playing around with the coon? I wasn't, you know. Why, just think of the story he's gonna have to tell his family and friends...'I spent the day with Kid Curry and lived to tell about it!'" Heyes grinned. When he saw the answering grin on the other man's face, Heyes turned his attention back to his own plate.
After Curry had spooned the last bite into his mouth, his glance slid over to where Heyes had laid his book and he cleared his throat. "Uh, Heyes, I've been thinkin'..."
"All this fresh air and good company sure must agree with you, Kid," Heyes teased, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Giving him a pained look, Curry doggedly continued, "Anyways, I was thinkin' maybe you might read some more of that book to me. I didn't give it much of a chance before..."
"Sure, in fact, I'm at a really good part right now, they're -"
"Would it be alright if we waited until after supper tonight, you know, like you did with that pirate story? It's kinda...uh, more interestin' when you read it when it's dark. Reminds me of when my ma used to read to us at bedtime -" Kid broke off and shot his partner a worried look. "Sorry, Heyes, I didn't mean -"
"Its okay, no need to apologize," Heyes brushed it aside, "I'm glad it's a good memory for you. And, its fine with me to wait until after supper tonight. Why, I'll be glad to read you a bedtime story, Kid," Heyes teased with a laugh.
"I guess it does sound kinda silly when you put it that way," Curry acknowledged ruefully.
"I wasn't trying to make you feel that way; I'm just agreeing it's a good way to end the day. And who knows, you might even end up liking the story."
"Maybe." Curry stood up. "Guess I'll go ahead and wash these plates; that way you can get on back to your book."
"I think I've had enough reading for a while. What do you say about playing some cards after you're done?"
"Now you're talkin', Heyes!" Even without words, Curry's smile would have given the other man his answer. "How 'bout some Blackjack? An' you know what? Since you've been practicin' with me, I bet I can even win more hands than you!"
Heyes waved him off. "Go on, hurry up and get finished - we'll see if you can back up those words - we'll just find out how much you've been paying attention. Maybe you've even managed to learn a few things from me."
Kid carried the dishes down to the water and once they were clean he even remembered to scrub the coon bite with soap. I doubt anyone, even Heyes, would notice if they weren't lookin' for it, he thought as he inspected the bite. It's not even a tiny bit sore anymore, neither. With a sigh of relief, he gathered up the dishes and headed up the hill, whistling as he walked.
Heyes had already spread out a blanket and was busy shuffling the cards when he paused to listen. Whistling? Surprised, he cocked his head to one side, not sure he'd really heard it. Yes, there it was again, the unmistakable sound of whistling. How long had it been since he'd heard the Kid whistle?
Lost in thought, cards momentarily forgotten, Heyes realized that he couldn't recall a time since that day so many years ago, the day neither of them hardly ever spoke about...Heyes was brought swiftly back to the present as his cousin's whistling grew closer. Shaking his head to banish the traitorous memories, he drew a deep breath and concentrated on shuffling the cards instead, welcoming the familiar feel of the deck in his hands.
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As Kid approached the camp he caught sight of his partner's smile. I bet Heyes thinks he's gonna be the winner this time; guess I'll jus' havta show him a thing or two! A grin on his own face, he called out, "I hope you've got those cards shuffled real good, Heyes; you're gonna need all the help you can get!"
"Is that so?" Heyes countered. "You really think you've improved that much, do you?"
"Well, let's jus' say I had an excellent teacher - a real genius some might say."
"Only some, huh? The teacher may have been a genius, but it all depends on how well the student learned his lessons; that'll be the real test."
"I think the teacher's gonna be real surprised; yep, he might even lose a few hands to his student."
"You care to back up those words with a small wager?"
"As a matter of fact, I don't mind putting up a pretty good-sized wager."
"You sound serious. You sure about this?"
"Yep, never been more serious. Told you, I had a good teacher; he made sure I learned all the right things."
Throughout the bantering the two men continued to grin at each other.
"Well, guess you know what you're doing..." Heyes said, continuing to shuffle the deck.
"I'd be real glad to show you, Heyes." As he settled down on the blanket and seated himself across from his partner, Curry added, "It'd sure be a heck of a lot easier though, if you quit shufflin' an' deal the cards!"
"Okay, Kid, I was just giving you some time to reconsider. It'd be a shame to take...I mean, I'd hate for you to lose all that hard-earned money."
"What makes you think I'm gonna lose? You think you're that bad of a teacher? C'mon Heyes, put your money where your mouth is! You're gonna be sorry you ever took the time to work with me!"
Looking up from the cards, Heyes caught and locked eyes with the man seated across from him. Pulling his money slowly out of his vest pocket, he tossed it down on the blanket, never blinking once.
Curry tossed his money next to his partner's, then looked down and grinned. "You're still holding all the cards, Heyes. If we're gonna play, you have to let me have a few!"
Heyes shuffled one last time and dealt out the first hand. As time passed, he had to acknowledge the truth that Kid's game had indeed improved. Enough so that Heyes realized he couldn't relax his guard like he usually did. He had fallen back on his normal course of action with his cousin, only to find he was on the losing end more times than he cared to admit. When he glimpsed the smile that tugged at the corners of Curry's mouth, he decided he wouldn't go so easy on him in the next hand, after all, this was a matter of pride - his reputation was at stake!
Nonetheless enjoying this new challenge, Heyes discovered that he had to devote all his energy into outwitting his partner, a task that didn't prove to be as easy as he'd thought. The pile of money in front of Kid slowly grew as the one in front of Heyes dwindled. A frown puckered his brow and his eyes narrowed as he realized that today Lady Luck had turned a cold shoulder to him and was indeed smiling on the Kid.
Tossing another losing hand down on the blanket, he was forced to admit defeat. While he was playing logically, Kid was relying on pure gut instinct and it was proving to be a learning experience for Heyes. "Okay, so you were right - you DID have a genius for a teacher! I hate to admit it, but you've got a real feel for it tonight. I look forward to our next game, only I won't make the mistake of underestimating you again."
And, although Kid did allow a big grin to spread across his face, his words were sincere. "You can still take all the credit, Heyes. All that time you spent teachin' me, showin' me where I made my mistakes an' workin' with me until I 'felt' like part of the game - that's why I was able to win today. Not because I'm the better player, but because you taught me how to play like you. The only thing is, you can't teach me to 'think' like you do. That's always gonna make us play differently; but that's a good thing, ain't it? That way neither of us is gonna get too full of himself; we'll both jus' keep gettin' better an' better."
Unable to find any fault with Curry's logic, Heyes stood up, held a hand out and pulled his partner to his feet and their eyes met.
"Next time," the look silently promised.
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After the card game was over and the horses had been bedded down for the night, Kid flopped down on his bedroll. Stretching out, he tucked his arms under his head. "Okay, Heyes..." a huge yawn interrupted him. He covered his mouth, unsuccessfully trying to stifle it. "I'm ready," he finished sleepily.
"You sure you're going to make it through a bedtime story? That yawn sounded mighty convincing..."
"You jus' worry about readin', Heyes, an' I'll worry 'bout listenin'." He tried to smother another yawn and both men laughed. "Sorry, it's been a long day. I really do wanna hear about that man an' the baloon an' the elephant...I mean it."
"I know you do. Okay, let me just find my place and we'll get started." Heyes thumbed through the pages until he found the place where he'd put the leaf to mark the place where he'd left off. Turning the book so that the fire reflected its light on the written words, he began to read aloud...
It wasn't long afterward that Heyes' voice trailed off and he let the book fall forward onto his chest. He watched the steady rise and fall of his partner's chest and grinned. "I have to give you credit, Kid; you lasted a lot longer than I thought you would." Using the leaf to bookmark his page, he pulled his blanket up and stared thoughtfully into the star-filled sky above.
Today had been a real interesting day, one full of surprises and revelations. Tomorrow they'd be leaving the peace and quiet and heading to Medicine Bend to start that new job. He looked forward to being back in the hustle and bustle of a town, not to mention a nice hot bath, a meal they didn't have to hunt down and a good poker game with a few beers – and not necessarily in that order.
Although he was relaxed and knew that the time here had been good, Heyes was getting restless. While Kid was good company, sometimes he felt as if he needed something more; a diversion of sorts. Things had become a little too quiet. Yes, it was definitely time to move on. Turning onto his side, he closed his eyes and his breathing became regular as he dreamed of a town full of poker players who loved to draw to inside straights...
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At first light, Heyes crawled out of his bedroll, pulled on his boots and headed towards the campfire. After stoking it, he walked over to Curry and nudged him with his boot. "C'mon sleepyhead, time to get up. We need to get an early start if we want to make it to Medicine Bend on time."
A muffled groan answered him from somewhere beneath the blanket. "Dontcha think we could at least wait until it's daylight?"
Heyes reached down to yank the blanket away from his partner's body and deepened his voice as he intoned, "And let there be light..." Returning his voice to normal, he added, "See how easy that was? Besides, it's your turn to cook; I'm heading down to check on the horses and wash up."
"Better watch out, Heyes, you jus' might get hit with a lightnin' bolt if you keep on talkin' like that!" Grumbling as he stuffed his feet into his cold boots, he watched his partner walk away with an unconcerned expression. "At least we don't havta drink your coffee on top of everythin' else!" Curry muttered and set the coffeepot on the fire, glad he'd remembered to fill it up with water last night. Still yawning, he trailed his partner down to the water. After washing up, he made his way back to camp and had breakfast ready by the time Heyes returned. "You sure we have to leave? It's been kinda nice -"
"Kid, we've already been over this - you know we have to. It's a big paying job, we're low on funds and it's time to eat someone else's cooking for a change."
"I know," Curry sighed, "it's jus'...well, it's jus' that it's been kinda nice not to have to keep lookin' over our shoulders all the time."
Heyes leaned back and then set his plate down on the ground beside him. "You're right, it has been good, but we can't just forget about that job either. The money we make should be enough to tide us over for quite a spell. We can always take another break afterwards, right?"
Curry didn't answer right away. When he did, his reply was far from enthusiastic. "If you say so, Heyes."
Heyes stood up. "Good, let's break camp and get going; we're burning daylight."
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