Chapter 14

Charlie

We watched the water come down and then Gordy rescuing that mutt for Andy. I just stood watching, 'cause Maddy sure had everything under control. She was a good 'un.

We got horses and tack and I looked for a hackamore. I hate puttin' a bit in a horse's mouth. I found a bosal on a peg. Looked like it had hardly been used, so I took it. Maddy noticed, started to say something, and just closed her mouth. Better all the time.

The river was bringing stuff downstream. Gordy said:

"strange and several noises
Of roaring, shrieking, howling, jingling chains,
And more diversity of sounds, all horrible."

"More Shakespeare?" asked Weena.

"The Tempest," he responded.

I got up on my horse, saying "I know that play:
I'll break my staff,
Bury it certain fathoms in the earth,
And deeper than did ever plummet sound
I'll drown my book."

"Charlie, you amaze me."

"Hey, Gordy. I may be a dumb Texan, but I c'n read, and when you're punchin' cattle or ridin' the border, you got lots o' time to read. I useta carry a Shakespeare in my saddlebags." Maddy was just starin' at me. I guess it's a good thing to keep some stuff held back.

Gordy

I felt guilty. I ... we ... had been treating Charlie as though he were some dumb cowpoke out of a bad western. He was just "displaced." He was nearly 20,000 kilometers from 'home' and in a totally alien culture. As though I'd been dropped in the middle of Saskatchewan or ... in fact ... West Texas.

"I'm sorry, Charlie. I mean it."

"I understand, Gordy. An' you kids bin real good to me. I'd a never found my way through them desk jockeys in Alice Springs. Likely, I'd be on my way home. Or already there. Or in jail waitin' to be shipped off."

"But I was bad, too, Charlie," Weena added. "I pushed Reynolds; and I told you what to do; and I really tortured Henderson."

"All true. But you did what needed getting' done. An' now we're here. An' the cattle are here. So, we oughta be gettin'." He rode a few steps towards Maddy. "Right, girl?"

Weena took my hand, leaning over. "What do you think of me?" she asked.

"You're a strong, aggressive, driven, beautiful, gentle, loving, and intelligent woman. I got it all in one package," and I squeezed her hand.

"Let's go," said Maddy. "We'll trace the Horseshoe up to Charlie's lease an' come back along the fence lines." And she started out.

We rode fairly slowly along the bank, though well in from the water. It was carrying a lot of brush and wood, it was a reddish color, so it must have been carrying a lot of soil, too. After about 20 minutes, we came to a fencepost with two strands of wire leading off west.

"My land ends here," Maddy said. "Mr. Grant, may we have your permission to ride on your land? I wouldn't want to be trespassin'."

"You ornery bitch," Charlie replied, grinning. "I'm gonna spend some time thinkin' o' ways to punish you!"

"I sure hope so, Mr. Grant. I sure hope so." Maddy had a twinkle in her eye.

"You guys sure we should be here?" Weena asked. "We could follow this fenceline inland. That's where the cows are, right?"

"No, you jes' come along, Weena. She may need a woman's help here an' there." Charlie was in fine shape, Maddy had turned maroon.

We edged around the post and were now on Charlie's side. After another fifteen minutes, we could see a dilapidated shack with a corrugated tin roof. Off to one side was a windmill and further still the remains of what must have once been a cookhouse. The cast iron stove was visible under the debris.