Benny slept until almost noon the next day. Me and Bret talked about how long ago it was that we slept out on the trail – it must have been when Dandy and the two of us came back from Mexico. Of course, we had a herd of horses to drive back to Little Bend.
Doralice had joined me for lunch out in the kitchen before he emerged from the guest room, sleepy-eyed and yawning. Lily Mae was busy with the stew she was cooking for supper, but as soon as she saw Benny, she set a cup in front of him. "Tea or coffee?"
"Coffee, thanks, Lily Mae."
"Breakfast or lunch?"
"Breakfast, with lots of bacon, if you have it."
I had to laugh. Yep, this was a Maverick, alright. He had the appetite.
Doralice knew just what I was laughin' about. "Eats like your brother, doesn't he?"
"And his father. Sorry, Benny."
"It's alright, Uncle Bart. He's still my dad. And I still love him."
"Bart, Benny. We don't need the Uncle around here."
"That's good to hear."
"I got a question to ask if it's alright."
"Sure. Go ahead."
"Did you sit down and try to talk to him about his change in attitude towards you and Abby?"
"I did, several times. We never got anywhere, because no matter what I reminded him of, he insisted I was wrong. I even had Abby sit down with us. It didn't do any good. That's when I knew I had to leave. Does that answer your question?"
"Unfortunately. I have the feelin' your grandpa is gonna wanna talk to him, and that's gonna involve a trip back there."
"I hate to see Grandpa go all the way to Baton Rouge, but if that's what he has to do, I wish him well. He' s going to run into the same thing I ran into. Denial."
"Did you talk to Ben this mornin,' Bart?" Doralice asked me.
"I did. He's already fixin' to buy a stagecoach ticket. He wants to get to the bottom of this."
"Is Miss Ellie going with him?"
"Looks that way. Since school's out for the summer she's got plenty of time, and she figures if he gets upset she can calm him down."
"Bart, Pa's gonna drive Grandpa crazy. If mama doesn't do it first."
"I wouldn't worry about it, Benny. If Pappy hasn't driven him crazy after all these years, I don't think Beau's gonna do it."
Lily Mae put the biggest plate of food in front of Benny that I'd ever seen. "Are you gonna want seconds, Mr. Benny?" she asked.
"I don't think so, Lily Mae. But thank you for asking me. I will take some more coffee."
Just then Maudie came in the back door, fresh from working with Dandy Jim and Spreckles. Jim had made quite a difference with that horse, and Maudie was really pleased. "Benny!" she cried, and practically jumped into his arms.
He picked up a piece of bacon and put it in her mouth. "Here, eat this so I can finish breakfast," he told her.
"Benny!" she cried again after pulling the bacon out. "Finish your food. I can wait to hug you."
He pushed his plate aside and hugged her. "You little scamp. Where were you last night when I got here?"
"Belle and me went down to the river and jumped in. We've been promisin' to do that since we were little. Then we had to come back to the house and change clothes. We must have just missed you. Are you just now gettin' up?"
"I am. Last night was the first decent night's sleep I've had in more than a week."
"Want to go for a ride when you're done with breakfast?"
"You bet. Who's out there for me to ride?"
"Didn't you ride in on your own horse?"
"Yes, but he's plum worn out."
Maudie paused for a moment. "You can ride Zanzibar, I suppose."
"Isn't he your horse?" Benny was trying to talk to Maudie and eat at the same time.
I reached over and grabbed his arm. "Slow down, son, or you'll get indigestion."
"No, I ride Spreckles now. He's all grown up, just like me."
Benny looked confused. "Wasn't he a wild little thing?"
"That was before Uncle Jim got his hands on Spreckles. Now he's the sweetest little gentleman."
"Spreckles or Jim?"
Maudie and me both burst out laughing. "Both," was her reply.
"Don't let Jim hear you say that."
Of course Jim came in the back door with Belle. "Don't let me hear you say what? This must be Benny. My goodness, old boy, you are a tall one, aren't you?"
"Lily Mae, could you fix Uncle Jim some lunch, please? Our training session ran long and I promised him something to eat."
I was surprised to hear that Belle was workin' with Jim. She hadn't shown much interest in riding before now. "When did you decide to ride again?" I asked her.
"When I didn't have to go to school anymore. I've got the whole summer to learn how to handle a horse, and Jim's the best teacher. Hi, Benny. When did you get here?"
Maudie answered for the poor boy, who was still tryin' to finish his food. "Last night when we were in the river."
"Then that must have been you a saw ride in. You look considerably cleaner than you did then," Belle remarked."
"Mister Jim, I've got leftovers from last night. Will that do for lunch?" Lily Mae asked Buckley.
"Anything will do, Miss Lily. I'm famished."
Doralice looked at me. "This room is gettin' too crowded. Let's go outside on the porch."
I took her hand and we went out on the back porch. I hadn't been on the front porch since . . . well, since the Travis Cole incident. I might never go out there again. "The kitchen sure filled up fast. Did you really talk to Uncle Ben this morning?"
"Yes, ma'am, I did. I found him putterin' around in the barn, lookin' at the latest batch of puppies that Miss Betty Lou the fourth had. He wants to hear what happened from Benny himself, then he'll decide what he's gonna do. And if he goes to Baton Rouge, Miss Ellie is goin' with him. He could raise quite a ruckus in Baton Rouge."
"I hope he does. Somethin's not right, there."
My darling wife had hit the nail on the head.
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