Many Mansions
Chapter 3
By Pharoah'sCat
Author's note: In the spirit of 'another county heard from,' Manolito makes an appearance and maybe a difference.
A week or so after some new furniture and a modest increase in warmth arrived at High Chaparral, John waited with 2 horses and growing impatience for Manolito to join him on a trip scouting mustang herds. John hadn't really known what to make of Mano when he accompanied Victoria from the Montoya ranch. Protector? Spy? Something else? John hadn't decided whether his new brother in law was a blessing or a curse or just a horse thief. He had quickly learned, however, that the seemingly feckless young man who seemed to prefer laughter above everything, also possessed an unwavering courage, as well as an invaluable ability to speak Apache, and a keen eye for horse flesh. Which is why he had specifically asked Manu to join him scouting the wild horses.
The other thing about Mano, John reflected as he waited, was how much the younger man seemed to have in common with his own brother Buck, including but not limited to an inordinate thirst for whiskey or tequila, and women of a certain…well, really ALL women when it came to that…and an overall tendency toward carousing. As patience was not his long suit, John was just coming to the end of his when Mano finally emerged from the house…walking slowly, squinting into the morning sun and making soft moaning noises.
He made his way over to his horse but made no attempt to mount, simply clinging to the pommel and swaying slightly.
"Rough night in Tucson?" John inquired sarcastically.
"Ow…Señor Cannon…please do not shout." Mano responded, wincing dramatically. "The night in Tucson was fine, it is the day that I find…painful."
"I'll try not to shout " John whispered as he swung aboard his horse.
With an exaggerated sigh, Mano managed to clamber aboard his horse as well.
A half hour later, after a brief stop at a watering hole where Mano dumped an entire hatful of water over his head, the younger man's usual ebullient spirits where beginning to reassert themselves. His moaning was replaced by bird calls and random comments and snatches of songs. John simply couldn't ever stay annoyed at Mano for long...he was too good a companion.
"Ah…the señoritas of Tucson…they do require so much attention." Mano said apropos of nothing.
"Seems to me the wine gets almost as much attention" John commented drily.
"Si, Si…well one must be a generous companion, no? And wine is so relaxing, is it not?"
John just snorted in reply.
"Si… I like the señoritas and they like me. I am as a" …Mano considered his metaphor… "como se dice, 'abeja'?"
John laughed. "Bumble bee."
"No, no. The other one…um…miel?"
"Honey Bee…going from flower to flower?"
"Honey bee! Yes…I like this." Mano agreed enthusiastically, laughing as the two men rode side by side.
One of the things that John found most disconcerting about his brother in law…for all his charm and good qualities…was his ability to switch instantaneously from the mundane to the profound, the frivolous to the deeply serious, and Mano now took just such a turn.
"Of course," he said in a completely different tone of voice…. a voice somehow both serious and slightly sad…"someday I hope to have a different sort of relationship with a woman; someone I can love and honor…cherish and protect. Someone who feels as deeply for me as I do for her. A great love," he finished softly.
As usual, Mano's turn on an emotional dime left John totally flummoxed and he could only mumble…"Well, I am sure you will find that some day."
Mano had ridden slightly ahead of John as they talked and now, without warning he reined his horse directly in front of him, so abruptly that John was forced to pull up hard.
"My sister is a very beautiful woman is she not?" He demanded of John.
And again, John found himself two steps behind and utterly baffled by what seemed a totally different topic. And a totally obvious question.
"Of course she is," he responded indignantly.
Mano pushed his hat back and looked thoughtfully at John. "You know, she had many, many suitors." He put his hand up to ward off any interruption. "Some my father ushered to our door…many others found their own way there. Rich, poor, everything in between, young and not so young…peons and aristocrats."
"Most of them she dismissed with a flick of her wrist. With a few, there was a flirtation; the possibility of something more"
"Like Tony Gray," John managed to interrupt.
Mano smiled. "Si, like Tony Gray. But even those who she deigned to flirt with, even the passionate day dreams of a young girl, she soon set away. But John," and here Mano's use of his first name, as well as the way the younger man was now gazing at him with utter seriousness, threw John even further off balance, "never once did I see Victoria look at ANY man the way she looks at you. Or," he continued after a brief pause, "the way you look at her when you think no one sees."
John narrowed his eyes at Mano, about to protest his sense of privacy being invaded, but Mano went calmly on.
"I do not know if it is a sin against God to turn your back on such love, but I do know that it is a crime against nature. And an unforgivable waste. If you cannot love my sister the way she loves you…the way she deserves to be loved, then I beg you to let her go."
The two men simply stared each other for a few moments. Mano's face now impassive while a range of emotions moved across John's normally stoic features; anger, surprise, and fear. For in truth, even the idea of letting Victoria 'go' filled him with near panic.
Suddenly Mano smiled broadly and pointed off to the north. "Look…there are the horses…ah, look at them run! We should go have a look, no?" And with that and a cry of delight, Mano kicked his horse into a gallop, chasing after a herd of mustangs that had appeared over the horizon.
John's horse wanted to join the chase too, and John had to fight to keep him reined in while he tried to catch his breath and force his emotions back down to where he most always managed to keep them. Finally, he was able to give his horse his head and gallop after Mano and the herd.