THE LOTTERY
CHAPTER 7
Bobby's graduation went off without a hitch and the next day he headed for Cheyenne promising to keep in touch often. They spent one more day while Ennis ran the baler for Mr. Twist, and stacked his barn full of fresh bales of hay.
Home again the next day and they were giddy with excitement. "You know, we don't have to hide out here any more if you don't want to." Jack said as Ennis helped him into the house.
"Is that what you wanna do? Leave this place?" Ennis asked as he put a pot of coffee on.
"Not really. But I watched you out at the ranch. You seemed like you were really enjoyin doin ranch work."
"I needed somethin to do while we were stayin there, and it seemed like your dad needed some help. I figured it'd be a way to pay 'em back for takin us in for a spell. And that new tractor you bought him works like a dream."
"Are you gonna miss all a that?" Jack asked.
"If I get to missin it, we could always go visit your folks. I'm sure there'd be some work I could do around the place."
"That's true." Jack agreed, wondering how it was that Ennis had managed to work with the old man when he never had been able to without coming away mad. "You got a letter from Jenny." He said as he
sorted through the bunch of mail they had stopped in Sheridan and collected on their way home.
"Letter from Jenny?" Ennis took a seat at the table and read it.
"Jesus!" He tossed the letter up in the air.
"What?" Jack asked. "Is Jenny all right?"
"Jenny's all right; it's Alma. She's gone completely round the bend. She's buggin Jenny to get me to give her some kind of what she's callin a settlement."
"A settlement? What the hell for?"
"It's the money, Jack. She's still tryin to think up a way to get her hands on it."
"Shit. What does she think Jenny'll do?"
"Sounds like Jenny's just laughin it off; but it ain't no laughin matter, Bud. She's tryin to get Jenny to ask me for the money I was tryin to give her and Junior that they both refused to take. She thinks since the girls didn't want it, it should go to her."
"She's round the bend alright. You wanna go see a lawyer? He could probably draw up some kind a papers to make her understand once and for all that she's got no claim on that money."
"That wouldn't stop Alma from botherin the girls about it."
"I don't see as there's nothin we can do about it then." Jack said. "You're not thinkin a givin her some kind a settlement, are you?"
"Oh hell no! I wouldn't give her a nickel even if I'd a won a hundred million. She's got all she's ever gonna get outta me. I just wish I could could think a some way to get her to quit botherin the girls about it."
"Well, it don't seem like it's botherin them all that much if they're laughin about it." Jack said.
"True enough." Ennis picked his letter up off the floor and returned it to the envelop. "I'll just write Jenny and tell her to ignore Alma when she starts in on it. Maybe she'll give up and let 'em be about it."
"Good plan." Jack reached over and gave him a hug. "Ain't it about bed time?"
"Jack, it ain't even dark yet." Ennis grinned but nestled closer into the hug. He missed this. Life at the Twist ranch had been comfortable enough, but he missed their intimate little moments that they so often shared.
"That's cause it's still summer and it don't get dark until late. How about we close the curtains, turn off the lights. It'll be dark then."
Ennis grinned and closed the curtains while Jack turned off the lights.
September
"It's rainin again." Jack sighed.
"What's a matter? You don't like the rain?"
"Nah. It's cold, and wet, and muddies everythin up." Jack pouted.
"I don't know about that. I kind a like the rain. It's good for our vegetable garden and the fruit trees we planted; makes everythin smell sweet and clean afterwards. And all that mud gives us a good excuse to jump in the tub and take one a those bubble baths we're both so fond of; maybe doin a little foolin around on our new bed. And then there's the wrappin up in our new quilts afterwards, maybe poppin some corn and just spendin the rest a the day layin around. Yep, I kind a like the rain all right."
"You got a great way a lookin at things Mr. del Mar." Jack chuckled.
"Best part is, we can do it all any time a the day or night we want. It ain't like we gotta worry none about neighbors droppin in and botherin us."
"I do like the way you think." Jack grinned. "Come on. Let's go outside and get muddy so we can get back inside and get our day started off right."
"Every day I wake up next to you is startin my day off right." Ennis nuzzled kisses along Jack's jaw line.
"I always knew if I could just get you to talkin, that you'd turn out to be a real sweet-talker." Jack leaned into the kisses.
"That's me all right – Mr. Sweet Talker." Ennis huffed. "Now get that sweet ass a yours in gear. We gotta clean out the barn, and we best saddle up and take a ride to check and make sure last night's storm didn't take down any trees near our fence line. We got a lot to do before the snugglin starts."
x x x x
Several years into the future...
Bobby graduated from the University and returned to Lightning Flat with his new wife and purchased the property next door to the Twists. He, Ennis, Jack, and Mr. Twist when he was able, worked both ranches, while Mrs. Twist taught Bobby's wife all she knew about being a ranch wife. Bobby never spoke to his mother again or communicated with her in any way.
Lureen sold the business, all her real estate, and spent the remainder of her days roaming around Europe. She considered herself the country belle, the life of every party. The European's considered her the drunken American whore. She died penniless and alone, on a backstreet third-floor walk up in Paris.
Jack and Ennis stayed at their place in the Big Horns until they were in their seventies, then moved into the Twist ranch as the senior Twists had long since passed. They lived comfortably there another twenty years before passing. Jack first, then Ennis a few weeks later. Bobby saw to it they were buried side by side in the old Lightning Flat cemetery. Ennis' will left everything equally divided among Jenny, Junior, and Bobby.
THE END