Winter's Refuge
Chapter Twenty-Nine
JED 'KID' CURRY
Frustrated, I pushed my chair back and went to look out the window. I had started to tell Heyes what he needed to know, but I don't think he understood. We used to talk so easily. We knew what the other was thinkin'. Well, that's gone. Heyes gets lost in his thoughts easily and when he does, the rest of the world is shut out. At least he understood that Chrissy is at the ranch. He thinks my main point was to stay out of her room. That's important, but there are so many other things he's got to assimilate (another Heyes type word.) now that he's out.
I was so happy yesterday when we walked out the prison door, but it got harder from there. I realize now I thought gettin' Heyes out of that place would change everything. It did. I thought we would fall back into our easy relationship immediately. We didn't. It's there but I'll have to work to get it back. Heyes is inside his head. I have no idea what he's thinkin' sometimes. I'm not sure he can recognize reality totally. He doesn't believe some of the things I told him about Chrissy. I've got to keep tellin' him, I think. I've got to tell him about the threats on her life. Lom brought me one of the "An eye for an eye, A sibling for a sibling" reward posters. I'll show that to him. I was hopin' he'd think up a Hannibal Heyes plan to end the standoff at Devil's Hole. Maybe he still can. If he believes it's real.
Heyes was awake and sittin' on the side of his bed waitin' when I woke up. I didn't sleep much. I was tryin' to work out what I need to do to balance everything, but I slept a few hours before dawn. I can do it. I'm strong.
"You ready for breakfast, Heyes? We got some time before our train."
"Y…yes, s…sir," he said.
Instead of pride that he had spoken, I felt anger rise in me that he, of all people, would call me sir. But I know it was beaten into him in prison, just like it had been with me. "Not sir, just Kid," I told him.
As I got ready, there was a knock on the door and Heyes jumped and moved further onto the bed, as if he was tryin' to make himself smaller.
"Probably just Lom. Can you get the door, please?" I asked and went back to shavin'.
He didn't move. The knock came again, accompanied by Lom's voice. "You up in there?"
I looked at Heyes, but he hadn't moved so I opened the door and went back to the small mirror.
"Only got a few minutes to join you boys for breakfast." Lom was smilin', but studyin' Heyes.
"Sounds good. You ready, Heyes?" I asked, not lookin' at him. I heard him movin' around and knew when his feet hit the floor.
"Well, let's go." Lom went out the door first. Heyes shuffled behind him, eyes down as if he still wore shackles. I hated his submission. I had fought against it, even in prison. But now I stayed quiet and followed behind them, shuttin' the door behind us. One of the first things I was gonna work on with Heyes was to walk beside me, not follow behind.
ASJ*****ASJ
Heyes was quiet in the diner. I thought he'd want to sit near the windows and watch the people outside. He always enjoyed observin' people, tryin' to figure out where they were from, what they were doin', learnin' things about them. But today the window seemed to alarm him. He had left the chalkboard in the room, but I understood from the look of panic in his eyes that sittin' by the window unnerved him. I didn't ask him twice, the three of us sat in a far corner, near the kitchen. Lom and I talked. Heyes watched everyone in the room. He cowered as the waitress came to take out orders. "Well, hello, Mr. Curry, sheriff, and you brought a friend today. The specials and coffee as usual?"
Heyes had insisted on wearin' his hat and I understood. A bald head screamed recent release to everyone. His actions said it anyway as he looked down at his hands and said nothing.
"Three specials, Julie. How're the kids?" Lom answered for all of us.
"Growin' like weeds and eatin' like food was free." She smiled, went to the kitchen, and came back with the coffee pot.
The cups and saucers were already on the table, and she efficiently poured three cups and left with a smile.
When she'd gone, he started lookin' around the room again, scared.
"No one here'll hurt you, Heyes."
At my voice he turned to me. For a moment, his eyes were blank, but then gave me a small nod of recognition. I finished my food before Heyes had eaten three bites of his eggs. He pushed the food around his plate aimlessly as he watched me and Lom finish.
ASJ*****ASJ
The only things Heyes had to call his own right now were two books, the chalkboard and chalk, and the clothes on his back. I took him to the general store and picked out a travel bag for him. I wanted him to pick out a pair of boots, but he was concentratin' all his efforts on avoidin' every customer in the store. I picked out a black leather pair and bought them. I found Heyes sittin' on a chair just inside the back door of the store, eyes dartin' from customer to customer.
"Come on, partner, got you a new pair of boots. Want to break them in now or wait until we get home?"
He looked at me for a moment, then fished out a piece of chalk. 'Now," he wrote.
I knelt down in front of him and reached to take off the soft prison shoes he'd been wearin' for years. I felt him tap me on the shoulder. He showed me what he had written. "Socks? Okay, if none."
I reached into my pocket and handed him a new pair of socks. "Of course, I got you socks. What did you mean okay if none?"
He took the prison shoes and placed them on top of his books. "Don't want to be trouble. $$."
I looked at him and I think he felt my exasperation. "Heyes, you need socks with boots. You aren't any trouble. Tryin' maybe, but not trouble," I tried to tease him, but he pulled back.
"Sorry, tryin'. Will be good," he wrote. It made me sad because he meant it, just like a ten-year-old in trouble, he regrets his actions and means he'll be good, sincerely."
"Heyes, I was teasin'. And we got money for what we need and some more."
"Wait until I see books. I'll tell you if there's money for something more." he wrote. I was gonna object until I saw the teasin' grin on his face.
ASJ*****ASJ
I realized he was frightened of almost everyone. And he was frightened for me when people were around me. Another thing to work on. I'd bought the tickets in advance, so we stood on the platform ten minutes before the train was due. Heyes took up a position behind me, subservient again. I stepped back next to him, so we stood shoulder to shoulder. In a heartbeat, he tried to slip behind me again. "Oh no, Heyes, we're partners. Partners stand next to each other as we always have."
I know he understood because he caught my eye and nodded. But when the train pulled in, I found him behind me.
He looked at the seats confused.
"You want the aisle or the window, Heyes?"
When I got out of prison, I wanted the window. I wanted to see the world I was rejoinin', but Heyes was not me. He sat in the middle seat and placed his bag on the aisle seat, leavin' me to climb over him to get to the window seat.
"Hey, ain't you Jed Curry?" a man a couple of rows away asked me.
I could feel a shudder go through Heyes.
"Sure am, mister. Who might you be?"
The man had stood and come down the aisle. He now made himself comfortable in the seat facin' Heyes. "Name's Ernie Carvers." He held out his hand to shake and kept talkin'. He'd been drinkin' from the smell of his breath, but he wasn't drunk. "Got a brother-in-law who's a guard in the Yuma Territorial Prison. He swears you caught a snake that fell through a hole twenty feet over your head and flung it away. That true?"
That story had been passed around until everyone had heard about it. It had even worked its way into a dime novel, but in a more spectacular settin' than the solitary cell of Yuma prison. But I doubt Heyes had heard it. I thought he might find it amusin'.
"Sure is. Did it twice."
"Twice?"
"Twice." I realized I had a larger audience than just Mr. Carvers. "Both happened in what they call the dark cell at Yuma prison. Ever heard about it?"
They were shakin' heads all around. A boy about eleven was lookin' at me with large eyes that seemed not to blink he was so enthralled.
"The dark cell there is carved into a mountain. Inside the room, there's a metal cage in the center with bars that reach to near the ceilin' twenty feet above. It's got a dirt floor you share with scorpions and other things that crawl. I was caught fightin', again. I was always fightin' at first. So, they gave me five lashes and put me in the dark cell. 'Cept it ain't dark durin' the day or if there's moonlight. There's a hole cut through the rock of the ceilin'. When the sun's out, you think you're gonna die of the heat and when it goes down you freeze. No bed. No blanket. Just the dirt to sleep on. If you dare to sleep with the scorpions.
"First time, this snake, about five feet long I think, fell through the hole on accident. I heard something happenin' and looked up just in time to catch that snake right behind the head. Then I threw him out of the cell against the far wall of the cell. I sat and watched that he didn't move until the guards brought me dinner. Told them to be careful of the snake I'd thrown in the corner. Didn't want to be responsible for no guard gettin' snake bit. Somehow it would turn out to be my fault."
Lookin' around, I saw I had the attention of the crowd, includin' Heyes and the conductor. And Heyes was truly listenin', not lost somewhere in his head. But he was watchin' the people carefully. I was standin' by my seat and the crowd was pressin' in closer. They were making Heyes nervous. "Can you move back and give me some breathin' room and I'll finish the story."
"Second time was different." I lowered my voice to seem more dramatic. I have told this story so many times that the phrases are all memorized. Although I do have to be careful not to embellish it. "The second time the guards dropped a snake down there for fun. Nobody would much care if a prisoner died of snakebite. But I heard footsteps up above me, so I had a warnin'. They dropped a big ole snake out of a pillowcase and watched while I caught it before it hit the ground. I spun around and flung it between the bars, out of my cell, and into the entrance hall. I was so mad. I hadn't learned how to control my temper without my partner around to help me yet, so I yelled up at them. "This time I ain't stayin' awake to tell you where the snake is hidin'." But I didn't mean it. I could never let any man, even a guard, get snakebite. So later, when they came in with my food and water, they had lamps and proddin' stocks and were walkin' real slow, lookin' everywhere for that big snake.
"I called out and told them where it was all curled up and they got it out without it hurtin' anyone. Turns out one of the guards had shown me a kindness earlier so I was glad I warned him. Guards and prisoners ain't friends, but I guess we were as close to it as we could get."
The people had gasped at the appropriate times. Now a young boy asked, "How big was that ole snake, sir?"
I bristled at the sir, but the boy meant nothing, but respect with the term so I didn't say nothin'. "Two feet longer than the first one so well longer than six feet."
"Snakes in Arizona are poisonous." I turned to an older man, shakin' his head at the story.
"Yes, they are. Saw some good men die of snakebites when I was there."
"Good men? Pshaw. They were convicts. You're an ex-con." A rotund gentleman in an expensive suit said, as he turned and waddled back to his seat.
"Sometimes convicts are good men. And I have a pardon and an amnesty," I said to his back.
"That's quite a story, Mr. Curry. My brother-in-law was one of those guards that dropped that second snake. Good to get another firsthand view from your perspective. Details pretty well matched up, except he said the snake was ten feet long and hissing. Said you had the fastest reactions he ever saw. Thanks for sharing it with me." He looked at the crowd around him. "With us," he added with a chuckle. "Let's give the man some peace now," he said to help the crowd disperse.
Heyes looked at me when I sat down and forced his chalkboard into my hand. I settled into my seat and put my leg up on the opposite seat before I read it. It was scrawled but legible. "Kid has silver tongue now. Story true? I would have missed you if you died."
I smiled. He had been engaged with the whole story. "Not a silver tongue, but I've had to tell that story so many times I got it all memorized. It's true, with both snakes. Killed a couple of scorpions, too. Ain't like where you were. Seemed like we were bein' attacked from all sides, all day, every day. I know you would have missed me if I died from that snake." I hesitated and then told him how I felt that day of the prison riots. How I had tried to get out there even when Arden told us that he was alive and not involved. How I felt when the wagons brought the dead guards into the city and their families mourned them. And, how I figured no one mourns the eleven dead inmates.
"Yes, mass grave. No markers. More than eleven…fifteen or sixteen," he wrote on his chalkboard.
I smiled. Even though this was mostly me talkin', it felt like a conversation with my partner, my cousin, my friend. I told him how much I needed him, but I don't think he believed it. Finally, he stopped writin' answers and picked up one of his books. I just watched the landscape change to Cheyenne County, Nebraska and tried to think of nothing.
ASJ*****ASJ
I told Heyes to wait on a bench outside the train station while I went and got our horse and wagon, but he followed me, one step behind. Every time I turned around, he was lookin' at my heels. First time I tried to wait and walk next to him, but he refused. I will try again next time.
I always tipped the liveryman well to stable my horse when I went to Cheyenne and this time was no different. He'd started gettin' the horse and wagon ready when he saw the train arrive.
"Sorry, partner, no fancy buggy today, just our plain ranch wagon."
He walked around it slowly. When he got to the horse, he patted the Winter's Refuge brand before layin' his cheek against the horse's neck. Heyes never admitted it, but sometimes I thought he liked horses better than most people.
I threw my bag and Heyes' new bag in the back and climbed up into the seat. "Ready, partner?"
He nodded, but instead of climbin' up to the seat next to me, he got into the back.
"Heyes, you wanna sit up here next to me and we can talk?" I tried to ask casually, gently.
Violently he shook his head. Pullin' his knees to his chest, he rested his head on them and looked down, so I let him stay in back. If that's where he felt comfortable to ride, he could ride there…for now.
Even though he was in the back, I kept up a one-sided conversation with him. When we turned up Old Cummings Road, I told him we were home.
I stopped in front of the blacksmith shop. He started to climb out. I think he thought that was our house.
"Heyes, stay in the wagon. Just wanted to show you my blacksmith shop. I'll open it tomorrow. You can come down and watch any time you want."
He was on his knees lookin' over the side of the wagon at the buildin'.
"Wanna come up and sit with me? We're on our land now."
He found his chalkboard and wrote, "No sign?"
"No, ain't had time to make one. Besides she doesn't have a name either."
"Sign and name better for business," he wrote in capital letters. He climbed from the back into the seat of the wagon.
"When there's time, I'll work on both."
I didn't let him see the smile I was fightin' at havin' him beside me again. It felt right. When we got to the gate, I started to get out, but he did first. He opened the gate and closed it behind the wagon.
"Noisy," he wrote.
"Built it that way on purpose so we can hear if anyone is approachin'."
"Why?"
"I'll tell you the whole story later, but there are people who want to get to Chrissy, kill her. There is an illegal dead or alive bounty out on her."
He looked shocked. Then smiled and wrote, "Teasing again."
"No, Heyes. Was thinkin' maybe you could come up with a plan to stop it when you're settled in and feelin' better."
But he wasn't listenin'. Rudy was walkin' toward the wagon and Heyes was tremblin'. Finally, he touched me with his elbow and pointed to him. Writin' quickly, he showed me his chalkboard. "Careful. Man here."
"Heyes, that's Rudy Ortiz from Winter's Refuge all grown up. Do you remember him, one of Jose's sons?"
He shook his head no and moved to sit closer to me as Rudy held the horse for us to get out of the wagon.
"Hi Mr. Curry, welcome back. Welcome home, Mr. Heyes."
I had thought I saw Chrissy on the porch when we turned onto the road, but her rocker was empty. Chrissy, Lom, and everyone found the rockers so invitin' I'd ordered two more. They should arrive next week.
Heyes climbed over and exited the same side of the wagon as I did rather than walk near Rudy.
HEYES
At first, I thought that the Kid's blacksmith shop was our home. I was alright with that. As long as I ain't in a place with bars on the doors, I'll live anywhere he wants me to. It throws me off when he talks about home. We ain't had a home since we lost our families in Kansas. Guess Devil's Hole's about the closest thing to a home we've had. A strange man greeted us. He knew me by name. The Kid said I knew him at Winter's Refuge. Truth is, I don't remember much about that place or the mining we did after. The memories turned to nightmares and the reality of places that probably were pleasant is gone. Sometimes I lose the memories of what happened yesterday. Dr. Arden said these are not lost memories, but that I wasn't listening; I got lost inside my head, so I don't really make the memories. I don't trust this Rudy. He doesn't look like a ranch hand. I'll watch him and make sure he doesn't hurt the Kid. I've got his back.
There are two rockers on the porch. The Kid said he bought them so we could sit here and talk and smoke just like we used to. I remember doing that with him on the porch at hotels. I used to enjoy it. Now that the Kid has his own front porch, I'm sure I'll like it better. I sat in one of the rockers and the Kid seemed happy. But I was watching Rudy try to steal our bags from the back of the wagon. I stand up and nudge the Kid and point this out to him. Oh, I want my words back!
"Hey Rudy, thanks, I'll get those. Where is she?" The Kid said nothing about him stealing, just got our bags from him.
"Ran in her room when she saw you weren't alone. I been doing like you told me and telling her you would bring Mr. Heyes home today."
"Give her time to process it. We know she listens and understands. She just needs time."
I listened carefully to their conversation but didn't understand what they were talking about.
The Kid was holding the front door open for me, so I hurried after him. The large front porch was more than I ever dreamed in a house. This house was old but clean, with a warm welcoming feeling about it. The main room was large, furnished only with an old couch and one chair. Maybe I could find money in the books for more furniture.
The Kid was standing by the kitchen table and. by his tone. was saying something important to me. I stopped thinking about the furniture and started listening. Walking to the large table, I realized it was covered in stacks and loose small pieces of paper all pushed to the center of the table. The Kid moved some of the loose bits aside and showed me an open ledger. Picking up one of the pieces of paper, I suddenly knew what I was looking at. Each one was a sale or a receipt. There was a calendar drawn onto a larger piece of paper. When I leaned closer, I saw there were names, probably horses' names since I don't know no ladies named Princess or Beautiful Bell. This must be the breeding calendar.
"I got this thing all messed up, too. Double booked some days, but Rudy says our boys can handle it. This stack of letters are all from people wanting to send their mares here for stud services." The Kid handed me the letters. I judged there must have been twenty unopened. "Stopped openin' them after I mixed it up. That's the first thing I'd like you to straighten out."
I just stared at the mess. How could the Kid get it this bad in six months? Especially since I told him the simple way to do it? I looked at the ceiling and forced out the word I was practicing. "Oh!" It wasn't a practical word like yes or no, but it had been easier to learn.
The Kid was in the kitchen, telling me not to make coffee. He did that each morning. "Rudy's makin' chicken stew and cornbread for dinner and we have some canned peaches for dessert." The stew smelled good and my stomach made a loud sound in response. The Kid smiled and added, "He's a good cook, almost as good as his ma, Marina. You remember her?"
I shook my head no. If Rudy had made the stew, I wanted to see him eat some himself before I touched it. I don't trust him.
He led me down the hallway to the bedrooms. He pointed to the first room as him. Didn't have much furniture in it. His shaving mirror was cracked. I'd have to shave myself now, I thought happily; no trustee with a not quite sharp enough blade running the razor over my face and head.
The Kid tried to guess what I was thinking. "I know it's not a fancy house, but I'll work and fix it up. Bought it furnished so everything is old but functional."
I was getting used to the Kid using longer words.
The next door was shut. "Chrissy darlin', you want to come out and say hi to Heyes?" he asked the closed door.
I didn't hear any movement from inside the room. We continued to the end of the hall.
'And this is your room, Heyes." Now he seemed ashamed of the furnishings.
I smiled at him and put my hat on the headboard. I sat on the bed and the mattress was welcoming. The pillows were fluffed. The windows had fresh curtains that looked new. I wrote, "It's perfect," and handed him the board.
I saw the old Kid smile then. "Best thing, partner, ain't no bars on the windows or shackles on the beds."
I would need to remember his last comment and ask him later. But for now, it was perfect.
I opened the dresser drawers and saw some shirts and bandanas. "B…b…" I said then grabbed my chalkboard. It was just one word. One simple word I wanted to say and I couldn't.
"Books?" I wrote.
"They're here. Most are in Chrissy's room. Did you know Lom sent each of us a book every month? Usually, the same one to all of us.?
I looked at him astonished. "Where are yours? And hers?" I scribbled.
"I donated mine to the prison library each month. Only kept the ones on blacksmithin'. Knew I could always get them back again as long as I kept my privileges. Lost them for the first six months, though. We had to get Chrissy out of the prison in Colorado quickly. Me and Lom and Colin, from the governor's office, rescued her. She left everything behind."
All I needed to know was that all the books here were mine. "My books in here?" I wrote and waved my hand around the room.
"I was thinkin' of workin' with Rudy and buildin' a bookshelf in the main room for them so we could all enjoy them."
He was serious. He wanted me to share my books. "No in here," I wrote again.
"We'll see," he answered. "Let's go get some dinner."
ASJ*****ASJ
The Kid knocked at Chrissy's door as we walked to the kitchen.
"Chrissy darlin', dinner time, chicken stew," he said to the closed door. I don't know why he didn't open the door to call her.
We didn't wait for her. The kitchen table was covered with the accounting books so I wasn't sure where we would eat. But I sat down on the bench side and folded my hands in my lap.
"We dish up our own food, Heyes. No one here to wait on you." The Kid wasn't mad. He kept talking, but I was looking at the breeding calendar in front of me. I wonder how much he charges for stud fees.
"Heyes, you listenin'?"
I looked up at him and tried to remember what he said. We dish up our own food. I could do that. Something I could do to take care of myself. I walked to the open board shelving with two stacks of bowls. The Kid said something about the bowls. Did he say to use the one with the flowers or not to use that one? I stared at the bowls trying to decide.
"Just use the blue one on the top. It holds a fair amount of stew." The Kid didn't seem annoyed at my hesitation.
Rudy came in the front door. "Mr. Curry, this door wasn't locked," he said as he walked to the bowls.
"Lock it!" the Kid said urgently. He thought for a moment. "Heyes, you were the last one through. My fault. I forgot to tell you. We keep every door locked all the time. Do you understand?"
The Kid keeps all the doors to the house locked. I was right to be afraid. Someone is trying to get us, to hurt us. I nodded and forced out one of my three words that I practice. "Y-yes." The other words are no and oh.
"In fact, Heyes, I want you to do that. Be sure the front door and the back kitchen door are always locked. Just make sure you don't lock Chrissy out. Me and Rudy have keys. I'll make you and Chrissy keys when I have time. Can you do that?"
He wants me to make sure the doors are always locked. He kept talking but I'm thinking of a schedule to check the doors. Should I check the windows too, I wonder.
"Heyes," he says louder.
I must have been thinking again and missed something he said.
"Can you do that?"
I nod and say, "Y-yes" again. Then I make the motion of turning a key in the lock with my hand.
"Good."
Rudy gave himself two big helpings of the stew and sat down to eat. He and the Kid just pushed the nearby accounting papers more to the center of the table. No wonder it is such a mess. Rudy is eating the stew so it must be okay. The Kid seems to like him. I don't trust him. I hear a door open and close but neither the Kid nor Rudy says anything. The woman they say is Chrissy comes into the kitchen looking down. She goes to the shelf and takes the bowl with the flowers. Should I warn her that the Kid said not to use that one? Maybe it leaks. But by the time I decide to warn her, she has gotten her stew and a roll and sits on the bench next to the Kid. I used to decide things so fast, not anymore. She sits so close to him that their legs must be touching, but he doesn't move and he doesn't look at her. No one greets her so I don't either. When she looks up at me quickly, I see the green, green eyes. Yes, those are Chrissy's eyes. I wonder what happened to her. Maybe she's been sick. The Kid told me something about her, but I don't remember. Maybe I'll ask him later or maybe I shouldn't. I don't want to make him mad. But now his voice is irritated.
"Heyes, can you listen to me?"
I put my spoon down and try to look at him with my eyes and my head bent.
"Heyes, don't do anything in the morning. Just wait in your room until I come for you. I know this is all different for you. You'll come down to the blacksmith shop with us after breakfast. You can watch how we check the work in. Just observe. When I finish for the day, about noon, you can offer some suggestions for the bookkeepin'."
I nod. I had concentrated on what he said. Rudy must help him with the blacksmithing because he said us.
JED 'KID' CURRY
Chrissy ate quickly. She took a few quick peeks at Heyes but otherwise concentrated on her stew, looking only at it. I felt her leg shakin' next to me. I leaned closer to give her some comfort, but I didn't say anything. When finished, she washed her dish, returned it to the shelf, and retreated to her bedroom. She closed her door. I don't know if she locked it. Rudy finished, washed his things, and moved what was left of the stew to the back of the stove and put a lid on the pan.
"Anyone want another roll?" he asked.
I shook my head. I don't know if Heyes heard him. He had pushed his bowl to the side and started to pick up the papers on the table. He was puttin' the little ones, which were our notes from the shop, in a pile after he studied each one. I'd have to explain Chrissy's writin' to him. But that's for tomorrow. Tonight, I'm tired.
HEYES
I woke up early and laid in bed, making sure all this was real. The Kid said we have a cow and chickens, lots of chickens. People pay him in chickens. That's not right. He's too nice. I'm sure it takes a lot of money to run this place and pay the mortgage. I'll make sure no one takes advantage of the Kid. I want to help him succeed. I want him to need me. I need him.
Since I was up early, I checked the doors to make sure they were locked. I had done this twice before during the night. Chrissy's door is closed. The Kid is sleeping on his stomach without a top. I can see the scars on his back from the hallway. It's morning so I thought I'd help by milking our cow. I don't know her name. I can't remember if anyone ever told me her name. Doesn't matter. I couldn't say it out loud anyway. Last night I dreamed I spoke to the Kid with my words, told him how proud I was of all he was doing. No nightmares, just dreams. There are two lamps in my room. I left them both on last night. And I slept with the door open, a symbol of my freedom. I saw new lights in the hallway. I'm thinking he added them for me.
The sun was just up when I went outside quietly so as not to wake the Kid and the girl. He said she was Chriss McWinters, but she doesn't look like the Chrissy McWinters I knew, except for her eyes. I found the milking stool and a bucket. I haven't milked a cow since I was young, but you never forget. I think it's something I can do to help. The cow is sweet. I can't say words, but I make sounds she seems to find comforting. I feel someone is watching me from behind. In prison, you are always watched. I know when someone is there. I position the milking stool by the cow and pat her as I go to sit down.
"NO!" Chrissy rushes over and pulls the milking stool out from under me. Surprised, I could not stop myself from landing on my bottom on the ground. She swung it around like a weapon. "My cow!"
"What's going on here?'' The Kid was at the barn door quickly. He was yelling. I was still sitting on the ground on my bottom. Chrissy was swinging the milking stool near my head. I feel myself trembling. I did something wrong from the look in the Kid's eyes, but I don't know what. I was trying to help.
The Kid watched for a moment then got himself under control. He even almost grinned. "Heyes, you try and milk Chrissy's cow?"
"YES!" I said, pointing at Chrissy and then at the cow who was standing patiently waiting to be milked. She was giving us humans a quizzical look.\
"Chrissy named the cow My Cow. It's her routine to milk the cow and gather the eggs each morning. Thought I asked you to stay in your room until breakfast."
As I stood up, I shrugged my shoulders trying to say I was just trying to help.
Chrissy stamped her foot. When I didn't move from the cow, she threw the milking stool to the ground. One of the legs split open and broke. She marched to the house as the Kid watched. I thought he was deciding which one of us to talk to first. But I was wrong. He was waiting until she got out of earshot to accuse me.
"Heyes, wipe that smug, pompous look off your face. Don't tell me it's not your fault; it is." Even though he spoke quietly, I could tell he was mad. I looked down and folded my hands in front of me, waiting for my punishment.
"She ain't comin' back to do her chores. Get that cow milked. Put the milk in the kitchen and go help Rudy with the horses. Do what he says, please. I'll gather the eggs and make breakfast."
I wasn't sure if he was finished. None of that sounded like punishment. So, I stood still and waited.
'Now, Heyes. And get that stool to Rudy. See if he can fix it."
JED 'KID' CURRY
I really wanted this morning to be easy. I've got so much to do, and everything feels like it needs to be done now. I know I need patience, as much with Heyes as with Chrissy. When Chrissy threw the milkin' stool, it felt like I threw it. Relieved some of my tension and I almost laughed. Made me feel better because some of my feisty girl was showin'. But Heyes had that 'it's not my fault' look on his face.
I made eggs and oatmeal for breakfast. Leavin' the milk in the kitchen, Heyes went out to help Rudy feedin' the horses and lettin' them out in the corral. We had two mares comin' in tomorrow from the Lucky Deuce Ranch down south, so their stalls had to be prepared as well as the breedin' corral. Heyes does not have a poker face anymore, even though I could usually read him well when he did. Now I know he doesn't like Rudy. Don't think he remembers him at all. I thought last night he remembered Chrissy, but this mornin' he looked blank at her again. He and Rudy came in just as the food was ready. I left it on the stove hopin' Heyes would remember to dish it up himself. First, he turned and very deliberately locked the door, then he went to the front door and checked it was locked. Satisfied we were safe, he went and sat in a kitchen chair, hands folded in his lap.
Chrissy hadn't come out of her room so Rudy dished up two plates and left one outside her door. Next time I looked, her dirty plate was there. I followed Rudy and got my food and sat down. Heyes looked confused. I just ate and watched. Finally, he stood, walked around the table, and stared at the shelf. Finally, he chose a plate and got some eggs and bacon. He sat on the bench next to me and started eatin'.
"You be back by noon, Mr. Curry?" Rudy asked.
"Yeah. Heyes is comin' with us to observe. He'll help you after lunch. We ready for the two ladies tomorrow?"
"We will be." He gave Heyes a look that I didn't understand, but I'm not goin' to get involved if I don't have to."
"My potatoes?" I asked.
"Not a big crop, but a few. Miss Chrissy covers the sprouts with dirt each day, just like you showed her."
Heyes' eyes went from one to the other of us when we spoke but didn't seem involved. Me and Rudy stood at the same time. He took my plate and cleaned it with his.
"Heyes, finish your breakfast and clean your plate. Be ready to leave in ten minutes," I told him as I went to my room to shave and put the bandana around my head.
I knocked on Chrissy's door and said, "Ten minutes."
She stood at my door in less than ten minutes, with a new pink bandana over her hair. She had ordered it from the catalog. One box of things had arrived while I was gone, including the curtains.
In the main room, Heyes was standin' near the door in his new boots, eyes down, head bent, chalkboard in his hand. This was goin' to be interestin', I thought. Every mornin', I still offered my arm to Chrissy. Every mornin', she ignored it and followed me to the smithy. Heyes has so far refused to walk next to me, trailin' a step or two behind.
Out on the porch, I offered Chrissy my arm. "Darlin'?"
She didn't change her routine. She took a step back and waited for me to start down the road. Heyes waited patiently, not raisin' his eyes.
"Well, let's get goin', I can see a line formin' from here." Chrissy followed me closely, closer than usual. Heyes waited and then followed behind Chrissy. I could see Rudy shakin' his head watchin' my little parade.
"Heyes, you can go to the backroom. Please stay in there unless I call you. Chrissy's got a routine I don't want to disrupt."
He seemed to understand. He sat at the table in the back room and put his chalkboard on the table. I put the three sides of the buildin' up,
"Howdy, folks! We'll be with you in a few minutes." I knew Heyes was watchin' as I started the fire in the forge. It takes a while to get hot enough to use.
Chrissy entered the back room and froze. I know she was processin' the changes Heyes' presence meant. Finally, she put her book on the bed and joined me out front.
"If your horse needs shoein', form a line on the right. Everyone else I'll handle here."
I kept a watchful eye on Chrissy as she checked in the horses and slipped a piece of paper under each saddle. There were four horses today, most needin' only one shoe. I had two shovels to repair and a cookin' pot to patch.
Heyes stood where he could look from the backroom into the forge, but not near the door. When I glanced at him, his eyes were searchin' each person.
When Chrissy was finished, she went to the back room and sat at the table. Heyes stood awkwardly to the side. I left them to work things out between them. When the first horse was shoed and her hooves cleaned, I stretched my back, walked back, and gave Chrissy the slip. She made an entry on her list in her own written language before putting it on the table. It said:
1 hors 2
I would have to explain that it meant first horse of the day, two shoes. I made a mental note to ask Dr. Arden if he thought I should work with her on her spellin'. When the owner came to pick up the horse, I'd write what I charged on the slip, if I had time. Those slips got thrown on the table. I don't think even Heyes could match them all up.
Keepin' his distance, but standin' close enough to see, Heyes watched us do this. He was interested, engaged in learning the process.
When the first horse's owner arrived, he asked, "How much?"
I pointed to the new sign Luke had designed for me.
"That's very reasonable, Jed."
"Buildin' a business, Mr. Blake. And makin' a home in this community."