Chapter 10

The Right Ingredients

Flattened to the ground by the blow, Jess placed his hand near his mouth and worked his jaw back and forth to affirm that it hadn't been fractured, while wiping the blood that had already started to pump through the broken skin. He looked up to the livid face of Slim, uncertain what the darts his eyes were throwing at him meant.

"Get up," Slim growled his words. "I'm not finished with you yet!"

"Slim?" Andy's quiet voice came from behind his brother. He stood still, stunned by what he'd just witnessed as he held a bowl of chicken feed in his hands. He watched Slim turn sharply around and saw his face go from hatred to joy in an instant.

"Andy!" Slim picked his brother up while dropping the chicken feed on the ground so that the whole barnyard of frenzied foul came rushing to peck the ground at their feet.

"I'm all right, Slim," Andy pulled his head out of Slim's shoulder to look at Jess, still on the ground with Jonesy blotting his bloody face with a kerchief. "But why did you do that to Jess? He saved my life."

"He did?" Slim carried Andy through the squawking bunch beneath him then set his brother down and leaned against the hitching post. The whirlwind of emotions he'd felt in the last day and his wounded head that hadn't yet stopped aching, along with the near hysterical chickens were making him dizzy.

"Yes, Slim," Andy explained. "Jess saved my life. Jonesy too. He didn't just save my life, but Jess risked his own, running out into the open where the men who kidnapped me could have easily shot him. He shielded me with his body before tucking me safely behind a boulder. If it wasn't for all that Jess did for me, I know I wouldn't be here right now."

Slim's eyes trailed from Andy to Jess then landed on Jonesy who looked him in the eye and nodded to confirm what Andy was telling him was the truth and not just a fabrication to build up the hero image of Jess that Andy already held in his mind.

Slim felt the shamefulness as it flamed his ears and face. He walked over to Jess, reached out a hand that Jess readily took and helped him onto his feet. "I'm sorry, Jess."

"I guess I had it coming," Jess winced slightly as he touched his jaw. "After all, I slugged you pretty hard the other day when Carlin was calling the shots."

"I definitely swung with all my might," Slim said as he rubbed the fist that had done the damage.

The comment brought a smile to Jess' face but Slim couldn't quite share in the same mirth. His remorse for how he'd acted, the words he'd said to Jess and the false accusations he'd thrown at him made such a regretful ache inside of his chest, he knew he needed to set things straighter than just a single apology for striking him.

"Jess," Slim waited until the eye contact was made before he began, "there's more to my apology than just knocking you down. I'm sorry for everything that I said to you. I was wrong. I shouldn't have exploded like that. Not before, not now, not at all."

"It's all right, Slim," Jess said, feeling more relief in Slim's apology than he let on. "That's how I usually react. I blow up first, and then feel sorry for it later. Well, sometimes I do, anyway. Having a short fuse comes in handy sometimes, especially when you're stuck in the wrong crowd."

Jess looked over at Andy who stood close by and nodded, affirming his own declaration. His gritty nature had taken on Templeton in a flash in order to get the ransom money. It also played a role in fighting the lowlifes that had taken the boy in the first place. For Andy, his temperament had played a vital part and for it he was thankful, but he also knew that it was such a temper that had severed relationships in the past, and this one he was beginning to learn, was one he didn't want broken.

Jonesy was the only one who knew the entire story as it had been relayed on the ride to Red Canyon, but what also had transpired between the two before they took on the kidnappers was a promise. That for the time being, how Jess obtained the ransom money would remain a secret. It would be better that way, for Andy's sake as well, since when he asked about the ransom money the outlaws picked up, Jonesy had simply told him, "it was just a bunch of paper."

Slim took it easy most of the day as Jess and Jonesy did the majority of the chores and stage duties as they pulled in and out that afternoon. He had to take a bit of ribbing when the stage coming from Laramie stopped and both the driver and shotgun man had to tease Slim about his misadventures that put him in jail.

When evening rolled around and darkness overshadowed the daylight, Slim found himself back in his favorite porch chair with Andy close beside. "You feel like talking about it?" Slim asked as gently as he could. "I don't want to dig into your wounds if it hurts too much to remember."

"I don't mind talking about it, Slim," Andy replied honestly. "All my fears went away as soon as Jess carried me to safety. They didn't really hurt me, only with words. Threatening to kill me, you, Jess and Jonesy."

"How did they find you in the first place?"

"I was out," Andy hesitated with his words because in telling the truth would reveal some of his secrets. But then he remembered Jess, sharing with him like he was his own brother, something he'd yet to do with his real brother. The time was right, just as Jess had said there would be. "Slim, I have somewhere I go when I want to be by myself, to think and to daydream. I guess that might seem sort of silly."

"Of course not," Slim smiled. "All boys have a right to do that. In fact, we big boys like to find some quiet time too."

"There's a cave not far from the west side of the lake, you know, where the hills slope down near the water? That's where I go, and that's where I was headed, when I ran into those men. They wanted me to tell about you, but they got confused thinking you were the stage boss, and not just running a relay station, that's why they thought they'd get a ransom. I don't know exactly how Jonesy and Jess tricked them into thinking they'd been paid, but it worked. The youngest member of that gang wasn't as rotten as the other two, cut my ropes and freed me at once. I knew Jess must have been there somewhere, but I didn't know where. As I walked I expected at any moment to have a bullet take me down, but before they started shooting Jess jumped out of nowhere and pulled me to safety."

"I've already told Jess at least a dozen times how much I appreciate what he did," Slim smiled in gratitude. "But he's never really said anything in return, as in an explanation for his actions and motive."

"I know why he did it," Andy answered thoughtfully. "Because we're brothers. And I'm not just meaning you and me. He rescued me, without any thought of his own self, just like you would do."

"You love him, don't you?" Slim had already seen the truth in his brother's eyes, but he wanted to hear him say it.

"Yes, I do," Andy admitted.

"You know we don't know everything about him," Slim said. "I'm sure he's only told us a fraction of his past. With the way's he's lived, likely some of the things that he's done will come back to haunt him and potentially ensnare all of us into his troubles."

"That doesn't matter to me, Slim," Andy spoke with full honesty. "After all, families support one another through thick and thin, just like you, me and Jonesy have always done."

"You want him to be a part of this family too, don't you?"

"Don't you?" Andy quickly tagged his question onto Slim's.

"He's growing on me," Slim smiled as he caught a view of Jess walking from cage to cage visiting with Andy's large variety of animals. He felt more for the man than he was willing to admit. Andy wasn't the only one starting to think of adding onto the family. Another brother sure would make the ranch more lively, or dangerous, or both.

"You're not mad at him anymore, are you?"

"No, Andy," Slim replied honestly. "I can't stay angry with someone who saved your life. Besides, I really wasn't all that angry with him in the first place, I just let my anger at my own self and those men that kidnapped you cloud my judgment."

"I'm glad you're not angry with him," Andy smiled in relief of Slim's words. "I could never be mad at him either."

"Would you get mad at me?"

"What do you mean, Slim?"

"I have something to talk about too," Slim rubbed a sweaty palm on his leg. "You see, I didn't just jump to conclusions about Jess, I used poor judgment on you as well. You see, I heard you and Jess talking in the barn about your secret, and I thought you and Jess were planning on running off together, just like that first day. But I was wrong. Wrong about Jess, wrong about you, wrong about everything. Can you forgive me for not being the understanding big brother I should have been?"

"Of course," Andy nodded, "but you've never stopped being my big brother, and I wouldn't want you to be anything but what you are. I love you."

"Thanks Andy," Slim felt his throat tighten. "I needed to hear that. I love you, too."

"Slim?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I hug you?"

"I was hoping you would," Slim took Andy's hand and pulled him into his arms.

"It seems like all I've done since I was rescued is cry," Andy wiped his eyes then looked up to see the drops coming from Slim's as well and smiled. "I guess I'm not the only one."

"Happy moments shared between family members are bound to bring a tear or two," Slim patted Andy on the back then took a deep breath and wrinkled his nose. "That or a horrible smell. What in the world is Jonesy up to?"

"He's been tinkering in the barn since I got home last night," Andy shrugged. "I thought at first he was making his liniment since he has his boiling pot and all his herbs lying around but when I asked he said he was cooking up something new."

"Oh no," Slim got up and strode to the barn with Andy close at his heels then stopped near Jonesy and placed his hands on his hips. "Not again Jonesy!"

"Don't go to fretting," Jonesy casually waved his hands, a gesture he often used trying to convince Slim there was nothing to worry over. "I know what I did wrong last time. I used too much molasses, too many dandelion blooms and not enough cobwebs. Good thing I found a spider making a nuisance of itself up in the loft. It obliged me plenty of its sticky particles."

"What's cooking?" Jess walked into the barn that reeked of Jonesy's new formula.

"I'm trying to recreate something I mixed up last year, a substance that will stick anything together when applied. Unlike traditional glue that's limited to the type of things you can fix, like ceramic, but with this magic potion, anything big or small can be repaired. Think of how much easier it'd be to fix broken parts on the stages or anything that's out of shape on the ranch." Jonesy tipped the pot slightly testing the consistency of his potion and broke into a grin. "It's almost ready."

"Sounds interesting," Jess reached out his finger to feel the texture of Jonesy's recipe.

"Stop Jess! Don't touch it!" Slim's shout stopped Jess' finger from going any further as it was just millimeters from Jonesy's foreboding substance.

"What's wrong?" Jess asked as he pulled his finger away from the pot.

"There's a good possibility of that junk being permanently attached if got on you," Slim frowned at Jonesy as the older man shifted his feet back and forth. "Isn't that right, Jonesy?"

"That was the last batch," Jonesy held up his hand for Slim to examine. "We got it off, remember?"

"You mean I might not have ever gotten that stuff off my finger?" Jess took a deep breath then loudly exhaled the air from his lungs. He held his finger up in front of his eyes, making sure he didn't see even a tiny drop of the sticky stuff on him, then took his gun out of its holster and held it like a prized possession. If his finger couldn't work the trigger, the gun would be useless to him.

"Don't go getting your druthers all worked up," Jonesy waved his hands again towards Slim and Jess. "It only becomes permanent after it sets up. And it takes two or three days at the least for it to get to that phase."

"That's a relief," Jess whistled. "I rely heavily on this trigger puller of mine."

"We've noticed," Slim winked at Andy who was trying hard to hold in his laughter.

"Well," Jonesy put his hands on his back and stretched slightly, "my bones say I need to put them to bed. You boys better not fool around with that stuff or I'll put liniment in your coffee. Coming Andy?"

Jonesy led Andy out of the barn and towards the house but didn't go all the way in. With the lamps not lit in the house, the dark shadows hid their presence from where Slim and Jess still stood. Jonesy held up a finger to his lips to plead for Andy's silence as Jonesy waited in anticipation for what was about to happen in the barn.

"You're not gonna let him keep that stuff around here are you?" Jess stood close to Slim as they both eyed the full pot.

"Not at all," Slim answered while putting his arm over Jess' shoulders. "I think we need to perform a burial."

"Where at?" Jess looked at Slim's face and smiled, glad to see the man had a mischievous side to him.

"The same place I buried the last batch," Slim started to laugh. "Behind the outhouse."

"You know what I see, Andy?" Jonesy leaned against the open doorframe of the house while looking towards the barn where he could see Slim and Jess standing side by side, Slim's arm draped over the other man's shoulders.

"I see Slim and Jess," Andy answered uncertain what Jonesy was getting at.

"Yes, you do," Jonesy pushed his hat back on his head and grinned. "And I see two men sharing in a bit of tomfoolery, the kind that shows they're compatible with one another. I see a growing camaraderie, the kind that leads to something more than a friendship, a brotherhood perhaps."

"You see all that?" Andy gazed at the two men sneaking around the barn, whispering to one another, sometimes almost giggling like schoolboys, unaware they were being watched. "They do look like they're finally enjoying one another."

"Yup," Jonesy nodded. "I figured me cooking up a batch of nothing in particular could draw them together."

"You mean that's not that awful stuff you made up last year?"

"Nope," Jonesy chuckled as he watched Slim and Jess cautiously carry the potent potion out of the barn and around the outhouse. "I just threw a bunch of stuff together to make Slim think that. Those boys needed something to bond them together. What better than with my gluey failure? As it turns out, it looks like I used all the right ingredients anyway."

"Oh, Jonesy," Andy shook his head and laughed quietly to not attract the attention of Slim and Jess as they worked together, shovels in hand to do their secret deed. "Do you think it's working?"

"I do," Jonesy nodded his head. "But the bigger question is, do they know it yet?"