When Saturday morning came, Charlie was up with the sun, dressing in her jeans and a button-up shirt. She clattered down
the stairs, and went to the dining room. Maria was setting a large platter of scrambled eggs and ham in the center of the
table.
She ate heartily, as the talk at the table was about Teresa's time of estimated arrival home, and the auction that
morning in town. When they were preparing to leave, she and Johnny, Scott stood by as they saddled their horses.
"Sure you don't wanna come with, Scott?" Johnny asked.
"I've got a few things I want to get done this morning," Scott told him. He reached out to run a hand over
Charlie's hair. "Maybe I'll come into town later on, and meet up with you two. How's that?"
Charlie nodded with enthusiasm, and Johnny said, "Sounds good."
The town was busy, teaming with people and activity. They went to look over the horses that were
in the corrals. There were so many of them, all colors it seemed to Charlie. She stepped up onto the second rung of
the corral, resting her arms on the top, so that she could see better.
She began to exclaim over them all, pointing out certain ones to Johnny.
"Johnny-look at that one," she said, in excitement. "It looks like a giant paintbrush came and painted him with dots!"
"It sure does, that's a good way to describe it," he said.
After a few minutes, Johnny gave Charlie a nudge. "Come on."
Charlie hopped down to follow him. They walked around, mixing in amongst the other people, and looking at the horses in
the other enclosures. When Charlie spied something, she tugged on Johnny's sleeve.
"Johnny, look-it's root beer," she said.
Johnny grinned at her. "You want some?" he asked.
"Yes, please," Charlie said. She reached into her pocket to touch the coins there. "I have my allowance from
Scott. I can buy it," she offered.
"I'll get this," he said. "You can buy me a piece of pie later on."
"Okay," Charlie agreed, happily.
Sipping their root beer, watching as the auction began, Charlie hoped that Johnny would bid on one of the horses.
Finally, he did bid. Charlie watched with avid interest as he raised his hand, once, and then twice. The auctioneer called out
so fast that Charlie couldn't make sense of what he'd said.
When Johnny shook his head at the auctioneer, Charlie leaned in and said, "Did you get him?"
"No." Johnny nodded across the crowd. "The fella over there in the black hat got him."
"Why did you stop bidding?" Charlie asked, curiously.
"When the bid gets to the point that you don't want to go any higher, then that's when you stop, and it goes to the other
fella," he explained.
"Was that too much money for that one?" Charlie asked.
"That all depends on each person's outlook. Too much for one might not be too much for another. I didn't wanna go any
higher on that one."
"Oh," Charlie said. She took another drink of the cold root beer, enjoying as it went down her throat. She watched, and bobbed up
and down on the bench. "I like it," she told Johnny. "Seein' everything."
Johnny grinned at her. "I'm glad you're havin' fun, pequeno."
After thirty or forty minutes, though, Charlie was weary of sitting there. The bench was hard and uncomfortable, and it
was hot, with the sun baring down, and no shade to speak of.
"Johnny, can I go walk 'round for a bit?" she asked, leaning close so he could hear her over all the noise.
When he turned to her, Charlie went on, "I'm tired of sittin'. I'm almost numb."
"I don't want ya walkin' far," he said. "There's alot of strangers in from out of town."
"I won't walk far, Johnny, I promise! I just want to stretch my legs a little."
"Alright. Don't make me have to come lookin' for ya."
"Okay," Charlie said, and stood up. "Can I go to the mercantile?"
"To the mercantile, and then back," Johnny said. "That ought to be enough to stretch your legs."
Charlie nodded in agreement, and worked her way thru the crowd. Once she was away from the auction crowd,
she walked towards the mercantile. She was overjoyed to find Rebecca there with her Ma, and spent the next few minutes
talking to her friend.
Outside, on the sidewalk, in the piercing sun, the girls decided that to go wading or swimming would be such fun.
"The water would be so cool," Charlie said, longingly.
When Rebecca's mother came out of the store, carrying her basket of groceries, Rebecca asked if she could go, but her mother
said no, that they had things to do that afternoon.
Even though Charlie hadn't known that she would have been able to go, either, she was still disappointed. She said goodbye to
Rebecca and went on into the store. She chose a couple licorice sticks, and some jelly beans. She looked over the books
to see what new ones were in.
It was while she was doing that, that she heard Monte's voice from behind her.
"Hullo."
"Hi."
"What're you doin'?" he asked.
"I came in with Johnny to see some of the auction," Charlie explained.
"They got some nice lookin' horses over there."
Charlie agreed that they did, and then Monte said, surprisingly, "The rabbits are near about to be able to tend to
themselves."
"They are?"
At his nod, he added, "I been keepin' a watch on 'em."
"That's good."
They stood in silence and then Charlie went to pay for her candy, and Monte followed her outside onto the
sidewalk.
"My uncle's got a new foal. Wanna go see?" Monte offered.
"A foal?" Charlie asked, thinking longingly of going.
"Yeah. Just born two days ago."
"I've never seen a foal that young," Charlie said.
"Well, come on," Monte invited, starting off down the sidewalk.
He looked back to see Charlie pausing there.
"You comin'?" he asked.
"I'm not supposed to be gone long. I told Johnny I'd be back-"
"My uncle lives just on the edge of town. It's not far."
"Well-" Charlie considered. The temptation was too great.
So, she went along with Monte. The streets were full but it wasn't far to the house and barn where the new foal was
at. The foal was just as cute as Charlie could have expected. It was scampering around the pasture, and it made Charlie
laugh just to watch.
"My uncle's gonna let me work with him," Monte bragged. "Maybe ya can come over and watch me."
"I'd like to," Charlie said. "Maybe I can help you."
"Girls can't work trainin' horses," Monte scoffed.
"Who says they can't?" Charlie demanded, immediately feeling riled.
"Everybody knows that," Monte said, sounding superior.
"Well, it's not true. I've helped Johnny-he even taught me how to clean the horse's hooves-"
Monte was standing there, grinning. Like an idiot, Charlie thought. He looked as though he was going to burst
out laughing at her.
"He did!" Charlie said. She put her hands on her hips, glaring at Monte.
Still, Monte was grinning widely.
"Stop laughing at me!" Charlie said, and reached out to give Monte a shove. It caught him off balance, and he
sprawled in the dirt.
"Hey!" he protested, no longer laughing.
For a moment, and only a moment, Charlie wondered if he was going to push her back, like the pre-nice Monte would
have done.
But, he didn't. He got to his feet, and they stood in silence, looking at each other. Charlie supposed she should apologize
for shoving him. She was debating that when Monte pushed his hands into his pockets and said, "You're the darnedest girl, Charlie."
"What does that mean?" Charlie asked him.
"You're different than other girls, that's all," he muttered.
Still not sure if he was insulting her, Charlie met his eyes, until he said, "Do ya wanna pet the foal?"
Instantly, Charlie forgot her ire at him. "Can we?"
"Sure," Monte said. They squeezed under the fence and walked out to where the foal stood with its mother.
"She's used to me," Monte said, and, sure enough, Charlie was able to reach out and touch the foal.
"He's so soft," Charlie said, breathless. "Like velvet."
The moments flew by, into minutes, until Charlie was jolted, wondering how much time had actually passed.
"How long have we been here?" she asked Monte.
He shrugged. "I dunno. An hour, maybe."
"An hour?" she said, in horror.
"Aw, maybe not," Monte said.
"I told Johnny I wouldn't be gone too awful long," Charlie said. She rubbed her hands on her jeans, and said, "I've got to
go."
"Okay," Monte said. "I'll walk back with ya."
He fell in step beside her as they walked back towards the center of town. They were crossing between the alley past the
newspaper office when John and other boy from school, Tommy Carmichael came running up. They began taunting
Charlie and jabbing at Monte.
"With your sweetheart, huh, Monte?" John teased.
Monte's face turned as red as his hair. With a swiftness that shocked Charlie, Monte turned and tackled John to the
ground, and they rolled and tusseled their way into the dusty alley.
Tommy Carmichael obviously thought that he should make a quick departure from the scene of trouble. He took off running,
while Charlie watched the two red-headed brothers rolling and fighting. She stepped into the alley, and tried
to break it up by hollering at the boys.
Too close for comfort, it seemed, because one of the boy's flying feet caught her and landed her on her rear
end, there in the dust. Knocked breathless for a moment, Charlie moved just in time, as they came rolling back
in her direction, nearly kicking her in the face.
Charlie hollered out at them, and then, suddenly, the boys were being plucked apart, and Val's hands were the
ones on each boy's shoulder.
He held John and Monte by their collars, shaking them.
"That's enough," Val ordered. Something in the sternness of his tone must have gotten thru. At least to Monte, because
he stopped struggling. John attempted another jab or two at Monte, but got another hard shaking from Val for his effort.
Charlie stood up, watching as Val gave the boys a narrow-eyed look.
"What's going on here?" he demanded.
Both boys began talking at the same time, until Val said, impatiently, "Hush up. One at a time. You-" he said,
pointing at Monte. "You go first."
"John's my brother," Monte said, as if that was explanation enough for Val.
And, it must have been, because Val nodded his head, and said, "Uh huh. Well, no more nonsense on the street. If you
want to fight, do it at home." He gave them both another shake. "Understood?"
John nodded, and Monte mumbled, "Yessir."
"Alright," Val said, releasing their shirt collars. "Get on home."
John took off on a run, and Monte threw a glance at Charlie before he did the same.
There, alone with Val in the dusty alley, Charlie looked up at him, brushing her hair from her face with
a dirty hand.
"Well, Miss Charlotte," he said, "How did you come to be involved with their shenanigans?"
"I was talking to Monte, and John decided to be a ratbag," Charlie said.
For a moment Val looked vaguely amused. "Hmm," he said. "Well-who are you in town with?"
With a start, Charlie remembered the auction, and Johnny, no doubt wondering where she'd gotten to.
"Johnny. He's at the auction," Charlie told him. "I better go."
"I'll walk with you to locate him," Val said.
They didn't have to walk far. They were nearing the mercantile when Johnny came out onto the sidewalk. He was
looking up and down the street. Obviously, Charlie realized, he'd been searching for her.
When Johnny saw she and Val approaching, he walked to meet them. The expression on Johnny's face gave Charlie
pause. Uh oh.
"Found your girl," Val said, in greeting to Johnny.
"I see," Johnny said.
The two men talked for a few minutes, about the auction, and how many horses had been brought in, and things along that
line. Charlie stood, quietly, between them, sneaking glances up at Johnny, and trying to gauge his mood and the extent of
his aggravation with her. She was feeling sort of chokey, and when Val said his goodbyes, and said he needed to get back to
making the rounds, what with all the extra folks in town, Charlie hated to see him go.
Standing there with Johnny, Charlie did her utmost to have her brown eyes meet his blue ones.
"Did you buy a horse?" she heard herself asking him.
Instead of answering that, Johnny gave a brief motion of his hand, in an indication that she should follow him. So, Charlie followed
him up the street, weaving amongst the people. Once off the busy sidewalks, where it was less congested, Johnny pulled her
'round a corner, just past the cafe.
"I told ya not to cause me to come lookin' for ya," he said, quietly, looking down at her.
"I'm sorry," Charlie said, humbly.
"I've been huntin' ya for a good while," he went on. "You said you were comin' to the mercantile."
"I did," Charlie said, taking the bag of jellybeans from her pocket to show him.
Johnny raised an eyebrow, waiting, and Charlie knew he expected more.
"I was talking to Monte, and then he and John got into a fight-" Charlie's voice trailed off, as she watched
the varying expressions on his face.
"I'm sorry," Charlie said, again.
Johnny looked as though he was going to say more, but he paused, and then sighed. Looking around, he
said, "Let's get some lunch, if we're able to find a table."
But, there was no tables that weren't already occupied, with others waiting for their turn.
They settled for getting a sandwich each, and when the sandwiches had been wrapped in brown paper, and they
were on the sidewalk once again, Johnny said, "I'm of a mind to head back to the ranch."
"What about the auction?" Charlie asked.
Johnny was silent for a moment, and Charlie felt her stomach clinch.
"You're not leaving because of me?" Charlie said. She knew how Johnny had been anticipating the auction for over a
week. "Ah, Johnny, don't." She looked up at him earnestly. "I'll stay put. I won't cause you any more trouble."
After a long few moments, with him standing there, one hand on his hip, gazing her down, he gave a brief
nod, and said, "Alright. Come on, then."
They went back to the auction. It didn't seem as crowded as it had earlier, at least to Charlie.
They found a place to stand and watch again, eating their sandwiches, of tough beef and cheese that Charlie found
tasted strange to her. She ate half the sandwich, and found that the rest did not appeal to her at all.
She looked up at Johnny. "Do I have to finish?" she asked.
He shook his head, both in answer, and also to her next question of whether he would like the remainder of
the sandwich.
So, Charlie tossed the leftovers to one of the stray dogs that was walking on the fringes of the crowd.
The rest of the time Charlie stood with Johnny, or sat with him, as seats became available. She stayed quiet,
not wanting to vex him with questions or try his patience any more than she had already.
There was a small break, a lull, while more horses were brought into the pens, and the auctioneer gave his voice a
rest. Johnny took Charlie to the 'facilities' that were nearby, waiting outside until she was finished. They walked
back, then, and Johnny bought a lemonade for both Charlie and himself.
When he handed it to her, Charlie said, 'thank you' in a small voice. Sitting again, and waiting for the auction to
begin once more, Charlie took glances at his profile.
He hadn't been curt, or abrupt, or said any more in admonishment to her. He hadn't, Charlie realized, said anything at all of
consequence to her since he'd come upon her and Val earlier. Even when he'd offered her the lemonade, he'd only done it, not
asking if she wanted any, but just purchasing it.
"Are you mad with me, Johnny?" she asked, as quietly as she was able, and still be heard.
Johnny gave her a brief sidelong glance, and then looked back to the center of the arena, where horses were
being brought in. "You did wrong, pequeno."
Charlie blinked in confusion first, and then wariness.
"I went to look at a foal-at Monte's uncle's. It's just on the edge of town," Charlie admitted. Johnny was giving her
the benefit of those blue eyes again.
"The foal was just born, two days ago. I've never seen one that small-" Charlie's voice trailed off.
"Mmmm," Johnny said, his eyes not leaving her face.
"I'm sorry I was gone long, and that you had to come looking for me," Charlie said, humbly.
"If you won't mind me, then ya can't come along with me places," Johnny said.
Charlie could hardly swallow, such were the emotions at his decree. It actually hurt her heart, thinking that
she wouldn't be able to tag after Johnny and go with him. She felt tears well up in her eyes.
"I will mind you," Charlie managed, before she looked away, at her hands, trying to bid the tears to stay at bay.
After a couple of moments, she heard Johnny sigh, and then felt his hand resting on the back of her neck.
The gesture was comforting. "Alright, pequeno," Johnny said, softly. "No need for tears."
Charlie looked at him, hopefully, and Johnny's felt the last remnants of his irritation fading.
Later, after the auction had gone forward another hour or more, Scott and Murdoch both arrived. Charlie spent
the remainder of the time clustered with the three men. When Murdoch said he was heading to the train depot,
to wait for Teresa's train to arrive, he asked Charlie if she'd like to go with him.
Charlie said that she would, and got gladly to her feet.
"We'll see you both at home, then," Murdoch said, to Scott and Johnny. "We'll have a nice supper, with all of us
together again." His voice was filled with satisfaction at the prospect.
"I think he's missed our Teresa," Johnny said, to Scott with a grin.
"I think he has," Scott agreed.
L