Chapter 5: The Past Can Haunt You
"Know what we oughta do tonight…" Jack said, looking across the fire at Ennis who was sitting on a large rock eating the last of his supper.
"What's that? Ennis said, putting his plate down and wiping his mouth.
Shifting on his own rock, Jack said, "I think we oughta go into town… get a beer at the bar."
Crossing his arms in front of him, he waited for Ennis to respond. "We'll see how far this new Ennis will go before he turns back into himself."
Ennis sat across the fire, an expressionless look on his face. Since the morning that he had finally admitted it to himself and told Jack that he loved him, he had been different, softer, less temper, more affectionate. The last two days, Jack had been pushing at him a little bit. Testing him to see how long he could go on being this "new" Ennis.
"Jack…" Ennis started, and immediately heard Jack thinking, "Yup… here we go! Knew it wouldn' last…"
Taking a deep breath and biting back a comment Ennis said, "Jack… I think ya got yerself a good idea."
Jack's shocked look was so comical that Ennis couldn't help himself. He started laughing deep and loud. The sound startled both of them and Ennis fell silent immediately.
A huge grin spread across Jack's face. He could count on one hand the number of times he'd heard Ennis cut loose and laugh like that, and most of them had taken place nearly 20 years ago. "Now there's a sound I could get useta hearin'."
Ennis sucked in a breath and felt that familiar knot in his stomach. "Dammit… how the hell can I say no ta this man when he smiles at me like that."
"Comeon, mister." Ennis said, trying to keep his voice steady and ignore the fact that his jeans had suddenly become just a bit tighter. "Let's head on inta town an I'll letcha buy me a beer." He stood up and walked over to Jack, holding out his hand to help Jack up from the rock.
Jack simply sat there for a minute and stared at Ennis' hand as though he expected Ennis to suddenly punch him again.
Ennis bit back a chuckle, "there… gotcha Jack… think ya know so dern much about me do ya! Ha!"
"You mean it?" Jack asked his voice incredulous. "No way this is happenin'"
"Sure… could use a beer. Whisky's ok, but sometimes I'd jus asoon have a beer."
Jack sat completely still, not sure if he was dreaming or not. "So… you don't mind that when we get ta town there're actually gonna be people there."
"That'll do it… you damn fool… now he's gonna baulk fer sure!"
"Gener'lly are in a town, Jack, 'less you plan ta buy a beer from that tree ov'r there."
"People will see us together… ya sur you're ok with that?"
Shrugging, "I been seen b'fore… now are ya comin' or am I goin' without ya… got my mouth water'd up fer a beer now."
"Jesus… there is definit'ly somethin' not right here!"
"Ennis, are ya sure you're ok… maybe that horse kicked ya harder then ya think… ya jus ain't acttin' like yerself lately." Jack said, confusion and concern in his voice.
"Feelin' jus fine, Bud. Let's go huh, two hour drive inta Signal." Since Jack had still not budged from his rock, Ennis reached down and yanked his arm pulling him up and into his arms for a quick kiss.
"Make sure he knows what he's doin', Twist… don't wanna get all the way there an have him change his mind!"
Pulling back, Jack leaned back enough so he could see Ennis' face and said softly, "Ennis… are ya tellin' me that you're really gonna go into Signal, an walk inta a bar with me, sit at a table with me, and drink'a beer, with me. With all them people seein' us doin' this?
Ennis felt his chest constrict a bit at the idea, and fought back a brief moment of panic. Despite his bravado, the thought of this scared the hell outta him. He wasn't sure if he could handle it actually, but he thought that if Jack behaved himself and didn't do nothing to call attention to them then he might just be able to do this.
"Jack…" his voice caught for a second and then he gave Jack a squeeze, and said, "let's get huh… don't wanna be out all night." Turning Jack in the direction of his truck, Ennis gave him a little shove in that direction, and then as he started to follow him, he reached out and smacked Jack's butt, making him jump and look back at him in surprise.
"Unbelievable!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When Jack pulled his truck into the parking lot beside the small bar in Signal two hours later, Ennis stared out the window and swallowed hard. Signal was not very big, and there was just the one bar in town. Because of this, the place was generally quite busy in the evenings, mostly full of cowboys and ranch owners, good 'ole boys with nothing else to do in a little one-horse town. Tonight was no exception.
Jack shut the motor off and looked over at Ennis in the passenger seat. Ennis' face looked pale in the light from the bar, and Jack could see him swallowing convulsively as though his stomach was trying to escape and he was fighting to keep it in. His hands were curled into fists on the seat on either side of him, and Jack could see his jaw clenching and unclenching.
"Poor guy, he is tryin' so damn hard to prove hisself ta me… least I can do is give'em a break here…"
"Ennis", Jack said and laid his hand over Ennis' clenched fist. He felt Ennis jump a little and pulled his hand back. "Ennis… we don' hav'ta do this. Ya don' need to prove nothin' ta me. Hell, ya a'ready gave me more on this trip then I coulda ever hop'd for."
Ennis turned to look at Jack, and saw the look in his eyes… a mixture of gratitude, disappointment, and love…big blue eyes, hoping for the best, and fearing the worst.
"That's what I done to him… all these years, e'ery time he want'd or need'd anythin' from me I've disappointed him. Done it so much he don' even dare to hope n'more."
Ennis forced himself to unclench and smiled at Jack, a sad, tremulous smile that spoke of how sorry he was for crushing Jack's hopes and dreams all those years.
Misinterpreting the smile, Jack sighed, reached for the key that still hung in the ignition and started to turn it to start the engine back up. "Well… at least he came this far… gotta give'em credit fer that much."
"Hey there, mister," Ennis said his voice soft as he covered the hand turning the keys with his own work roughed hand, his voice cracked a bit on the 'mister' but the next words came out strong and steady, "Whatdaya think you're doin', huh? Ya owe me a beer an I aim to collect on it!" He moved his hand down to Jack's arm and squeezed gently before he opened the truck door and stepped out into the parking lot.
Ennis started across the lot toward the front of the building. When he got about half way there he suddenly realized that Jack was not with him. Looking back at the truck, he saw that Jack was still sitting there behind the wheel. He wasn't moving, just sitting there like a statue, head down staring at his lap.
Walking around the truck Ennis opened the door, and just stood there looking at Jack. After a few minutes, Ennis put his hand on his shoulder, "Hey, Bud, you ok?"
Jack turned and looked at Ennis, and he could see that Jack was fighting not to cry. "I can't believe that you're willin' ta do this fer me, Ennis… makes me realize that ya musta really meant what ya said the other night."
"You didn' believe me?" Ennis said, a little hurt but able to understand given the way he had treated Jack in the past.
"How could I… how could I believe it when I gave up hopin' ta hear it 16 years ago inna shitty little motel on the outsk'rts of Riverton."
"I want'd to… but…",
"I jus' couldn't… seem'd to good ta be true."
"Yeah… I know, but I meant it, and I still do." A look passed between them that said more then the actual words could have and Jack smiled.
"Now are ya gonna get outta this truck and come buy me that beer or am I gonna hafta go in there witho't ya?"
"Nope, I'm comin'," Jack said, and grinned as he noticed the glimmer in Ennis' eyes at that statement.
"Hey now," he said and punched Ennis lightly on the shoulder, "keep that up and I might just change my mind about that beer and drag ya back to the tent!"
Ennis blushed and blustered a bit saying, "Keep what up, I ain't doin' nothin'."
"Oh my god… it ain't possible… hot damn… Ennis Del Mar was checkin' me out right out here in the open!"
Ennis gritted his teeth and for about the hundredth time in the last three days he cursed whatever it was that was suddenly making it possible for him to hear Jack's thoughts.
"Are we gettin' a beer or not, Twist? Time's passin' and we still hafta drive to get back!"
"Let's go then," Jack said, pushing past Ennis and starting across the parking lot, yelling back over shoulder as he went, "Comeon, Ennis, pick it up… time's a'wastin'… last one in is buying!"
"Jack Fuckin' Twist!" Ennis muttered and walked across the parking lot behind him.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The minute they stepped inside the bar, Jack felt Ennis tense up behind him. Nearly every table and most of the stools at the bar were occupied. The men taking up those seats were a pretty well mixed assortment. Ranch owners, and ranch hands for the most part, although there also appeared to be a few redneck types whooping it up at the bar. The minute he walked in, Ennis was hit with a wave of sound. "It ain't jus Jack… I can hear these fellas thoughts to!"
Walking through the crowd, he picked up a bit on thoughts of some of the guys they passed.
"Betta have Marshall start on the uppa field tomorrow."
"Ma damn hands'll hurt for a week causa that dumb ass mule."
"Damn city folks… oughta fuckin' well stay w're they belon'."
Ennis jumped a bit when he realized that last thought was aimed at Jack. He had seen him wear that jacket dozens of times, and he had never noticed how expensive and 'city' he looked in it.
"Easy there, Bud," Jack said in a low voice. He could feel the waves of tension coming from Ennis.
"Wanna sit at the bar?" Jack asked in an effort to help Ennis relax. There were several empty stools way down at the end, and Jack headed in that direction. Once they were seated, he could turn his back to the other people in the bar and tune out their thoughts along with the jukebox in the corner and the rest of the chatter. Once they had ordered a couple of Buds from the bartender, Ennis started to relax a bit and looked around.
The bar looked pretty much the way he remembered it. He and Jack had come here the first day they met back in '63. Jack had reckoned that since they were gonna be working together they might as well start drinking together.
Thinking back on it now, he remembered sitting here at this bar listening to Jack talk and feeling an odd sort of emptiness in his stomach, along with a desire to talk to the man sitting next to him. He would have too… except he couldn't find the right words to say, so he sat quietly and listened to Jack talk about his first summer on Brokeback and only talked when Jack asked him a question.
After their beers came, Ennis leaned back in his chair and asked, "'Member the last time we was here?"
Jack snorted around the mouth of his beer bottle, and said, "How in th'hell could I forget!"
It had been their last day together in '63. After they had left Aguirre's with their meager pay, Jack had insisted on buying Ennis a beer before they moved on. They had sat at the bar barely speaking and fully conscious of the terrible tension that had sprung up between them since they had started down the mountain.
Jack had sat in unnatural silence, his cheek smarting from Ennis' punch, and his heart smarting with the fear that Ennis might have really meant it when he said they were a "one shot deal". Frankly, so much had happened since the second night they were together… the night that Ennis had come timidly but willingly into the tent and Jack's arms… that Jack had begun to believe that Ennis might just have changed his mind about that 'one shot' business. During the weeks that passed after they became lovers, Ennis had truly opened himself up to Jack, physically as well as emotionally.
They had some of the best conversations that either of them ever remembered having, and had spent many evenings snuggled together against the log seat talking. About their families, horses they had owned, poker games they had won and lost. Almost anything that came to mind was fodder for new conversation, and both jumped at the chance to begin a long discussion about anything because it gave them a good excuse to stay together as long as possible.
Most of the time these evenings ended with both of them retiring to the tent and Ennis finally riding away just before dawn, a contented look on his face, and an equally satisfied look on the face of a still sleeping Jack.
When Aguirre had told them to bring the sheep down early, he had felt no particular fret about it. He had assumed, given how close they had become, that they would remain lovers even once they left Brokeback. Ennis' anger had confused him, and he thought for awhile that it was because of the money. After Ennis had punched him, he had come to the sudden realization that Ennis was mad about leaving the mountain. Jack had begun to worry at that point about the future of their relationship.
He knew then that he was in love with Ennis, though he wasn't fully sure how Ennis felt about him. He had thought he knew, but that punch knocked him around in more ways then one. He worried what Ennis was thinking, though for himself he saw no real reason why they should stop being lovers.
Thinking about it, Jack chuckled and remembered that he had only used the word 'lovers' out loud once in their entire relationship. Ennis had been livid, and had ridden away and not come down, even for meals, for three whole days. When he finally did come down, he was sorry, full of apologies, and had obviously missed Jack terribly. They had spent that entire evening sitting very close together, and Ennis had been unable to stop looking at Jack, as though he were afraid that if he did Jack would disappear.
"Ya know, Jack," Ennis said, breaking in on Jack's reminiscing. the thoughts becoming too painful for him to listen to, "when I think back on it, worst mistake I ev'r made was lettin' you drive away. I shoulda told ya how I felt then… kept right by ya… who knows what mighta been different, huh."
Ennis glanced over at Jack who had said nothing, he was sitting with his head down looking at his hands again, finally after a moment or two, he looked at Ennis and said, "I've lost counta the numb'r of times I've kicked myself fer getting' in that truck and drivin' away from you. Wish like hell I'da just grabbed ya an not let go..."
Jack's right hand was resting on his thigh, and without thinking about it, Ennis reached out and covered it with his own.
"Well I'll be damned!" A voice boomed from behind them, and Ennis yanked his hand back as though it had been bitten.
"Lookee' what we got here! If it ain't Twist… an Holy Shit… Del Mar hisself… now ain't this a treat! Damn Del Mar... whatha hell happen'd to yer face?"
"Shit! Jus' ignore em Ennis… just… aw shit!
Ennis turned on his stool and looked up at Joe Aguirre. He didn't look much different, a bit older, a lot heavier, and a lot wealthier but he still had that mean, narrow eyed look.."
"Sir." Ennis said and tipped his hat. He didn't particularly like Joe Aguirre, after all, he had cheated he and Jack out of a month… a months pay and also a month together, but he was raised to be polite and civil to his elders. "Bit of a tangle with a horse... nothin' big... just grazed me..." Ennis' voice trailed off as he noticed that Jack had not turned, nor had he bothered to acknowledge that Aguirre was behind him.
"Lucky fer ya I'd say... 'nother inch and ya woulda lost yer eye!"
His words said one thing, but Ennis sensed that Aguirre couldn't have cared less what happened to him, was in fact disappointed that the horse hadn't kicked his head clear off.
"So what all brings you boys to this necka the woods, don' tell me yer still doin' summer cowboy work?"
"No sir," Ennis replied. He could sense a tension in Jack, and somehow that tension bled off into him. That coupled with the waves of animosity coming from Aguirre was making him nervous and he felt himself tensing up, fear curling in his belly. "Just passin' through and decided to stop fer a beer."
"Jus' passin' through," Agurrie sneered, "interestin'."
"Fuck… shut the hell up Aguirre… just shut yer fuckin' mouth you bastard…"
Suddenly, Ennis realized that Aguirre was not alone. Standing behind him were three or four large ranch hands. They all wore identical sneering looks and were glaring angrily at Ennis and Jack. He could hear their thoughts, and what he heard wasn't good.
"Shit," he thought, a knot of fear beginning to coil up in his stomach, "what the hell is this?"
One of the men behind Aguirre stepped forward suddenly and grabbed a fistful of Jack's jacket. "I think you and mista fancy here oughta get the fuck outta here if'n ya know what's good fer ya!" He spat.
"Aw shit… shit… shit… what the hell was you thinkin', Twist… shoulda know'd better then ta come here…"
There was panic in that thought, and Ennis felt the blood drain from his face as a single thought went through his mind. "He knows!" He started to rise from his stool, bracing himself to fight if he had to.
"Ennis..." Jack said, his voice low and put his hand on Ennis' arm. Ennis yanked his arm away, and took a step forward, "Christ, Ennis, let it be..."
"Ain't that sweet..." Ennis heard from Aguirre and fought the urge to cringe, instead keeping a steady glare with the man who had ahold of Jack's jacket.
Aguirre looked at Ennis' face and smirked, "Now, now Jerome," he said, amusement in his voice, "these here boys are just havin' a friendly drink… ain't that right, Twist." He didn't wait for Jack to answer, but simply pulled his man back and patted Jack's jacket where it was bunched up from being pulled.
Ennis heard the sarcasm in Aguirre's voice when he said 'boys' and he felt his temper rising slightly.
"You boys have a good evenin' now." Aguirre said, and turned to walk away. The other men stood there for a second Ennis glaring them down before they sneered at him, spat on the floor at his feet, and followed their boss back to their table.
Pulling out his wallet, Jack slammed some bills down on the bar, and said, "Let's get outta here."
Ennis, his whole body shaking with fear and anger, said nothing. He clenched his jaw, wincing at the twinge of pain in his temple, and followed Jack quickly through the crowd. As they were stepping out the door he heard a chorus of voices behind them jeering, "Have fun boys!" He never even paused, just kept on walking as though he had heard nothing. He walked straight to the truck and yanked the door open.
"Goddam fuckin' assholes!"
They drove back to Pine Creek in silence. Neither saying anything, both seething about what had happened. Ennis' mind churned with the same thought over and over, "He knows… fuckin' Joe Aguirre knows!"
Jack's thoughts also churned through his head, but mostly they were simply a long string of curses and foul names.
When they got back to the camp, Jack parked the truck and just sat there, his head resting on the steering wheel.
Ennis got out of the truck, went to the fire pit, stirred up the still hot coals, and threw a few small pieces of wood into the red glow. When there were flames flickering in front of him, he threw in a few more logs. Standing up, he glanced around and saw that Jack was still in the truck. His head was longer resting on the steering wheel. He was watching Ennis through the windshield.
Ennis went and sat on his usual rock. After a few minutes he heard the truck door open and close. Jack approached the fire and stretched his hands out to warm them. Ennis watched him for a few minutes and then he said in a tight voice that even he didn't recognize, "He knows don' he… Joe Aguirre knows about… us."
Jack noticed the hesitation before the 'us' and winced. "Why did this hafta happen now… things were goin' so good... it was beginnin' to look like he might… aw shit!"
"Yes." Jack said quietly, "Aguirre knows.'
"How, Jack… how the fuck does he know?" Ennis asked, his voice rising angrily.
"I don' know fer sure… but I think he mighta seen somethin'… that summer." Jack replied, his voice low.
"You knew… didn' ya! You knew that he saw us!"
"Yes." Jack said, finally raising his head to meet Ennis' eyes. There was pain there, and fear. Fear that this would set everything back and Ennis would close himself back up in that shell of his again.
When Ennis stayed silent, Jack continued. "'Member me tellin' you that I went back to Brokeback that next summer and went to see Aguirre 'bout a job? Well, he said that he didn't have nothing fer me, and then I asked if you had been around, he told me that we was not hir'd to leave tha dogs to baby-sit the sheep while we 'stemmed the rose' and told me to leave."
"You nev'r told me that, Jack. You told about going' there, but you didn't tell me that he knew!" Ennis sounded angry, but there was something else in his voice… shame. That was why… that was why they had been brought down early. It didn't have anything to do with the weather… it was because Aguirre had seen them and didn't want them working for him anymore. Even more... that was why K.E. had ...
"What good would it have done… if I had told ya then you would have curled up in your shell and I nev'r woulda seen you again. I nev'r thought that we would see the asshole again, so I saw no need to tell ya!"
"You saw no need to tell me… nice fer you to decide what I do and don' needta know, Jack! I think it woulda been nice to know that there was someone in town who knew b'fore I walked inta a bar full of good 'ole boys with him as the leader. Mighta made a big difference." Ennis was now pacing back and forth between the fire pit and the rock.
"Fine!" Jack said, raising his voice for the first time. "I fucked up, that what ya wanna hear… well ya gotit!" Spinning around, Jack stomped over to the tent and unzipped it so hard that he pulled both of the front pegs out of the ground. The zipper closed behind him with a loud whine.
Ennis sat back down on the rock, and listened to Jack flailing around inside the tent, his thoughts coming fast and furious.
"Fuckin' jackass… gettin' all mad 'bout somethin' that happened 16 damn years ago… fuck you, Ennis Del Mar, Mr. Prefect always does the right thin'… ha! Self-righteous ass! Who the hell cares what Aguirre knows… don't mean a fuckin' thing to me and should't to him neither…how inthe hell was I s'pposed to know that fuckin' asshole would be there with his goons… hell I thought the old fucker musta snuffed it years ago!
On and on Jack went, silently cursing at Ennis and damning Aguirre for having a big mouth.
Finally, after while he quieted down and Ennis guessed that he must have fallen asleep. Staring into the fire, Ennis ran over the events of the evening in his mind. He cringed when he thought about the look on the faces of Aguirre's goons, but when he thought back on it, none of them had even a fleeting thought about anything physical.
Sure the threat was there, but only verbally. Even after Aguirre's loud insinuation, Ennis had not heard one person thinking about tire irons. Yes, there had been some disgusted thoughts and a few, "damn fags from tha city…" but not one thought about actually doing anything to them, just thoughts of making them leave.
Ennis knew that there were people out there that would beat a man if they thought he was queer, but he was starting to think that maybe Jack was right when he insisted that not everyone was like that. Yes, they faced a great deal of ridicule and bigotry should anyone find out, but maybe the tire iron wasn't as definite as he always believed.
Ennis glanced over at the now silent tent. Inside that tent was a man that Ennis had known for over half his life. Granted, they had been together a pitifully small amount of that time, but the time that they were together stuck in his mind as though that were the only thing in his life. He lived on auto pilot most of the time they were apart, only coming out when he was with his girls, but when he was with that man in there… then he knew what it was to be alive… to feel happy and whole.
The more Ennis thought about it the more he realized, now that he was able to admit how he truly felt about him, he didn't think he could deal with having to part with Jack Twist again. If anything, those feelings had grown even stronger since he had let them come out into the daylight. He wanted Jack, needed him, and if that meant taking some risks to have that feeling all the time, to be alive… well, maybe it was time for Ennis Del Mar to take a few risks!
He tried to picture his life, find something in it that kept him living it the way it was. There were of course his girls, but he didn't have to live in a tiny shack on the outskirts of town for them. He could see them from anywhere. Both of them would be off to college soon, Junior had left in September for a school out in California, and Jenny would be leaving in the spring for a school up in New England somewhere. His child support obligation would end in March when Jenny turned 18. After that… what was there to keep him living a miserable life alone in Riverton?
His mind felt too full for a moment, and he closed his eyes, blocking out the light of the fire. A face came immediately to fill the darkness, black hair, big grin, and blue eyes.
Eyes that shone with a promise… a promise that had lived there in those eyes for 20 years… a promise that he had refused to listen to, but had never wavered no matter how much pain there was there to go with it. Standing up, Ennis walked over to the tent and quietly unzipped the door. Peering in through the opening, he saw Jack laying on his side his face relaxed and peaceful. Ennis couldn't help but smile when he saw that Jack was lying in the far right of the sleeping bag and facing toward the empty part where Ennis would lay when he crawled in. Before going to sleep, Jack had turned down the open side of the sleeping bag for him.
He undressed quietly outside the tent so he wouldn't disturb Jack, put his clothes in the left corner of the tent and quietly zipped the door back up. He climbed as carefully as possible into the sleeping bag and turned so he lying on his side facing Jack. He lay there looking at him for a moment, and then leaned forward to brush his lips against Jack's.
Jack opened his eyes to a smiling Ennis. There was still anger, there, but Ennis also saw sadness, and maybe a trace of defeat.
"Jack," Ennis began, "I want ta tell you that I'm sorry fer acting like that. You had no waya knowin' we would ev'r see Aguirre again… I can see that you mighta fig'ered there was no point in tellin' me."
Jack reached out a hand and brushed back a few stray strands of hair that had fallen down onto Ennis forehead. "I couldn't stay mad at ya if I tried... you jerk…"
"I'm sorry too, Ennis. You were right, I shoulda told you about it 16 years ago, it jus nev'r pass'd my mind that there was a need fer you ta know."
"I ain't been totally innocent here neither," Ennis said, "You 'member that first time we met up after Brokeback."
"Like I could forget…" Jack snorted, "you damn near broke my nose and I want'd to toss you to the ground right then an there!"
Ennis smiled at that, and winked before he continued, "Well, a coupla years ago, Alma told me that she saw us that day."
Jack blanched and said, "She what?"
"Damn… that poor girl… that had to a hurt… can't 'magine how I'd feel if I saw Ennis kissin' someone else!"
"Yup," Ennis said, his face coloring slightly, both from the admission an from Jacks thoughts, "said she walk'd out on the landing to see what was keepin' us and saw us kissin' at the bottom of tha stairs."
"Damn!"
"Guess we haven't always been as careful as we shoulda, huh?" Ennis added, his face still a little pink.
Jack drew Ennis to him and they kissed for several moments, saying with their lips and hands everything they couldn't say with their mouths.
Finally, Ennis drew back and said in husky voice laced with desire and pride, "Know what… those guys weren't so tough… you and me, we coulda taken em easy… so fuck Aguirre and his goons!
Jack laughed out loud and then suddenly rolled on top of Ennis and placed his hands on either side of his face, his eyes shining with mischief and full of that look that never failed to make Ennis' stomach knot and blood surge. Grinning at Ennis he swooped down and bit Ennis' ear, laughing at Ennis' yelp and pressing his hips forward so Ennis could feel his arousal, before he said, "Sure, fuck Aguirre and the whole damn town… but ya know what, Ennis Del Mar… I think I have a better idea."
14