Jesse's Song
Chapter 11
Just a short chapter that doesn't seem to go with chapters on either side of it.
The next day dawned bright and clear but with a biting cold in the air: fall was making its presence felt. Festus and Billy ate breakfast quickly and strode down the sidewalks, gazing about them in amazement. The years had changed Denver and Festus remembered the town he had visited all those years ago with fondness. He'd never been quite sure Denver would survive once the mining booms were over but was pleased to see the town that once was in the middle of nowhere thriving.
"What are ya gonna do with all that there money, Festus?" Billy asked in excitement, interrupting Festus' musings.
"Well, first thing I need to do is get me a warm coat, then I thought I'd buy my friends back home some gifts and have them shipped to Dodge. After that I'll see what I got left. What about you?"
Billy shrugged uneasily. "I dunno. I wanta buy some stuff but my folks need this money."
Nodding, Festus remembered Billy telling him the reason he had come along on the trip in the first place was because his father had been hurt in an accident and their crop had been wiped out by a tornado. They sorely needed the money he had made on the trail to get the family through the coming winter and buy the seed corn they would need to plant in the spring. A smile crossed Festus' face as he began to plan what he would do with what would be left of his money.
"Come on, boy. Help me spend my money."
The two unlikely friends fairly flew down the street, looking in one store after the other till they had found everything Festus wanted: a new coat for himself, a few gifts for his friends back home and a new hat for Billy. The remainder he had plans for but didn't want to divulge them to Billy. That would come later.