Born and raised on a farm, I was the closest thing to a son my dad was ever going to get. Mom almost died bringing me into this world. The doc had to remove from my mother a large part of what made babies after I was out of the way. Mom named me Katrina. Dad wanted that son he was never going to receive. He called me Jake.
Barbie Lee
Horse Talk
&
The Woman Who Loved Them
Copyright Ó 1999
Barbie Lee
"Jake, you know I would use someone else if I could. I hate this more than you do."
I gripped the steering wheel harder as I pushed the little Spyder to its' limits. "No you don't hate it nearly as much as I do. Am I supposed to sleep with him too?"
"How you get it back is beside the point." He put both hands on the dash as the Spyder slid dangerously close to the edge of the pavement.
"For God's sake, Jake, slow the fuck down." He was beginning to perspire as I turned the steering wheel back in the other direction for the next curve.
"Jeeze, David, I thought you liked living on the edge? You sure don't mind asking me to put my neck on the chopping block." I was feeling vengeful as I pushed the Spyder for a few more miles an hour. I really didn't care if we went over one of those cliffs as we raced down the mountain.
"Katrina, I'm sorry for getting you into this! Please slow down. Please? David closed his eyes. He knew we weren't going to make that next curve.
There was a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach as I realized I had pushed the little Spyder too hard. I felt the pavement slip under the tires. Some car or truck had thrown oil out of the engine or transmission as it pushed up the grade and the little Spyder lost most of its traction on the pavement. The edge of the pavement and a three hundred foot drop was rushing at us. I no longer cared about dying.
Born and raised on a farm, I was the closest thing to a son my dad was ever going to get. Mom almost died bringing me into this world. The doc had to remove from my mother a large part of what made babies after I was out of the way. Mom named me Katrina. Dad wanted that son he was never going to receive. He called me Jake. My mother didn't have much choice as the farm demanded everyone had to work. Dolls and soft pink things became a thing of the past by the time I reached six. I was cutting calves by the time I was six. For you city born people that means I was making steers out of baby bulls. I was right beside dad when fence needed mending, driving posts in the ground, or stretching barbwire. When it was time to feed the livestock, he would call for 'Jake' and I'd be there. I wore jeans, denim shirts, and cowboy boots on the farm, to school, and to church. Everyone besides momma called me Jake. She never shortened my name to Cat but always called me Katrina. I guess it was her way of holding onto the little girl she brought into this world.
I was twelve when dad brought him home. Dad said the auctioneers tricked him into buying him. They had the horse in the auction arena, someone in the crowd popped a sack. The horse climbed up on the rail to escape. Dad raised his arm to get the attention of one of the handlers and the auctioneer yelled, "sold". So whether he had bid on him or not, dad had to bring him home. He was a mottled gray stallion with a white blaze off center on his forehead. Everyone called him god awful ugly. I thought he was the prettiest thing I had ever seen. Dad said he was going back to the sale next month. They nicknamed him Gunshy because of the incident in the sale barn.
Dad and a couple of his friends unloaded him from the stock trailer and put him in one of the stalls in the barn. They warned me to stay away from the stallion They said he was a man killer. He wanted to stomp on anyone who got close to him.
Later on that night after the chores were done I sneaked a couple apples out of momma's refrigerator. I managed to walk outside without anyone asking me where I was going.
As the screen door slammed shut behind me dad yelled. "Stay away from that wild stallion Jake."
Of course that was the first place I headed. A new face on the farm needed a looking over. I opened up the barn and walked up to his stall. He was eyeing me suspiciously. I held out an apple. "Hi, big fellow. How you doing?"
Nervously he inched up to sniff the apple and then snatched it out of my hand. He backed up across the stall as he proceeded to eat it. I opened the door to his stall and stepped inside. I held up the other apple. "I have another. You want it too?"
I could tell he was thinking that one over. Finally he inched back up to where I was and took the apple. This time he didn't back away from me. He must have thought there were more to follow. I reached up and petted him. Slowly I scratched around behind his ears.
"They say you like to jump on people. Why would someone as pretty as you want to do that? I scratched under his neck as he sniffed around for another apple.
I held up my open hands. "Nope, all gone. But I bet I can find you some dairy feed. You'll like that. It has molasses, oats, crushed corn, and flaked wheat. The cows love it. Stay there and I'll be right back."
It didn't take me long to gather up a bucket and drop a couple scoops of dairy feed into it. I walked back into Gunshy's stall holding the bucket out in front of me. He backed up as far as he could go. I reached my hand inside and pulled out a handful of feed. I held it out for him to inspect. Again he inched forward until he could smell what I had in my hand. He wrapped his lips around the feed in my hand and started munching it down. I reached into the bucket and pulled out another handful. As he reached for it I let the feed drop back into the bucket.
"Nope, you have to come and get it. I'm not going to hand feed you all of it." I held the bucket up.
He stuck his nose in and tried to drag the bucket back in his direction. I held firm and didn't let him have it. Finally he gave up and stepped forward where he could get his head into the bucket. The sweet dairy feed was pulling him in.
I set the bucket down on the floor and started scratching him all around the ears and neck. "I'll bet no one took the time to get to know you. What did they do? Throw a lariat in your direction and drag you into the trailer? When you protested they called you a man killer didn't they. I'd protest too if someone threw a rope on me."
I checked my watch. It was past bedtime. "I better get back or dad will be out here looking for me. I'll be back in the morning. You be good now and I'll find the best hay in the barn for you come morning."
I made it back into the house without my parents asking me where I had been. I'm sure they knew but they didn't ask. The next morning I was up at four thirty and headed for the barn with dad. A dairy farm doesn't wait for sunup to start. I was feeding and running the milking cows in and out of the barn as dad slipped the milker on them. I managed enough time to find the perfect alfalfa hay bale for Gunshy. I split the twine holding it together and gathered up a couple blocks for him. I walked into his stall and dropped it into the feed bin on the wall. He nudged me out of the way as he stuck his nose in and started eating.
"Hey! Wait your turn you greedy pig. I didn't say it was time to eat." I laughed as I scratched behind his ears again. He was loving it.
I didn't have much time so I stepped out of the stall and was locking the door when I heard something behind me. I glanced over my shoulder and the door to the milk room was closing. Dad must have caught me. I was wondering how I was going to explain being in Gunshy's stall when they had told me to stay away from him.
I finished up my chores expecting dad to say something every time I passed him but he didn't. Finally it was time for school and dad had finished milking. I dropped the milker in the wash vat and headed for the house. I managed to get ready quickly and scarfed down some breakfast as I headed out the door with my school books.
Momma was shouting at me as the screen door slammed shut behind me. "Katrina, you get back in here and finish breakfast. I know you didn't have time to swallow anything."
Running out to the barn, I slipped in and scooped up several scoops of dairy feed. I took it into Gunshy's stall and put it in his feeder. I heard the bus horn as Mr. Grinby, our bus driver, pulled into the yard. I made it out of the barn and onto the bus in less than thirty seconds flat. Mr. Grinby was pulling out of the yard when I found a seat and looked out the window toward the barn. Dad was standing there watching. He usually didn't do that.
The livestock auction was held on the third Thursday of every month. I could feel the end of the month crowding Gunshy and me as it came rushing toward us. I was trying to figure out how I could talk dad into keeping Gunshy rather than running him back through the auction?
It was Wednesday night, the day before the sale when dad brought the subject up at the supper table. He looked across the table at mom. "Katherine, I was thinking bout that horse I came home with last month?"
Momma looked up waiting for dad to finish his question. I was holding my breath as my mind was running a hundred miles an hour working on excuses why we couldn't take Gunshy back to the auction.
"I have too many things to do tomorrow so I won't be able to take him back. He will have to keep for nother month until I get a little time." Dad never looked in my direction so he couldn't possibly have seen the shock and then the relief on my face.
Momma, sighed. "John," Momma only called him John when she was serious, otherwise she called him dad. "John, that horse needs to go back tomorrow. He has to be eating a ton of feed the dairy herd could use instead. I think you should find the time to get him loaded up."
Dad shook his head. "I just can't do it, honey. I really have other things more important. I need to replace a tire on the stock trailer before I go anywhere with it. One of those tires is getting a little threadbare."
Momma looked over at me and then took a second look. She must have noticed that odd look I had on my face. "You have a spare for the trailer. Put it on and then you can fix the other tire later after you've taken the horse in."
Dad looked like he was about to give in for a second. "Nope, can't do that. I need to repack the wheel bearings. I thought I heard one dragging the last time I used the trailer. Nope, just take too long. Can't get it all done tomorrow and get that horse there too. Got too much to do."
I was sure momma had figured out by now that she wasn't being told the whole truth. She was staring at me. Why is it God made parents so they could read their kid's minds? Momma nodded. "No, I wouldn't want you to lose a wheel bearing down the road some place while your were loaded with that wild horse. I guess another month won't really make much difference. You'll get him back over to the auction next month then?"
Dad curled up the corner of his mouth as if he was thinking seriously about it. "Of course. That'll give me plenty of time to get the trailer fixed."
Quietly I let out my breath. Gunshy was mine for another month.
A week before the breakfast discussion, I had been letting Gunshy out his stall and into the corral for a little while. I'd entice him back by whistling and then giving him an apple as a reward for walking back into the barn. It was a week after mom and dad had their talk about taking him back to the auction when I let him out into the yard to graze on the grass. He went crazy trying to gather up as big of mouth fulls of grass as he could manage. We had been there for about thirty minutes when dad walked out of the machine shed. Gunshy looked up and bolted down the road.
"KATHERINE, GET THE TRUCK!" Dad was running for the barn and the lariat.
I waved him off as momma came flying out of the house. "Dad, wait, give me a chance."
As I pulled an apple from my pocket I whistled and held it up. Gunshy's head went up as he dropped out of a dead run into a trot, down to a walk, and then he stopped and looked over his shoulder.
I whistled again as I waved the apple in the air. I'd swear he was trying to decide if that apple was worth coming back for as he looked around. Finally he turned around and trotted back to where I was standing. He gave up his freedom for an apple and a scratch behind the ears.
I motioned for dad and mom to stay put as I put my hand under Gunshy's jaw. "Let's go get some of that special hay."
I led him back to the corral and into his stall by touching him under his jaw.
Dad walked into the barn with some feed in a bucket. "I don't believe it. They said he was a man killer down at that auction."
He opened the door to the stall and Gunshy reared up and pawed the air while he snorted. Dad fell backwards out of the door. He was lying on the floor looking up as Gunshy pawed the air. "JAKE, GET OUT OF THERE!"
I raised my hand and dropped it. "NO! Gunshy, no! Down."
Gunshy dropped back down to all four hooves as he snorted. I shook my finger at him. "Bad boy. He was only bringing you feed. He wasn't going to hurt you. You owe him an apology."
Gunshy shook his head up and down a couple times. Dad finally managed to find his feet. I looked over and there was momma standing in the doorway leading back into the dairy barn.
Dad turned around when he saw me staring behind him. "Katherine, did you see that? That horse would have killed me if he could have."
Momma finally found her voice. "I think he said he was sorry. Katrina, did he say he was sorry or was I imagining things?"
I looked back over at Gunshy. "Gun, say you're sorry."
Gunshy shook his head up and down a couple more times.
"He's sorry, daddy. You startled him. He doesn't like men. You came at him too quickly." I gathered up what feed I could where dad had spilled it and was pushing it back into the bucket.
I offered it to Gunshy. "Here, you big galoot. You would have got more if you hadn't made dad spill most of it."
I don't think dad and Gunshy ever became friends, they only tolerated each other. Dad made sure from then on that he never made any sudden moves around Gunshy. I think Gunshy was the smartest animal I had ever been around. I could teach him something and he seemed to know it before I was finished. That summer we spent a lot of time together. I herded cows with him and he got really good at separating the ones that needed to be vaccinated, branded, or cut. I wasn't very good with the lariat but I was trying really hard. Sometimes I could catch a calf or cow. Most of the time it was left up to Gunshy to give me nine or ten tries before I got the loop over the head of the one I was trying to rope. Sometimes I swear Gunshy would let out his breath in disgust when I missed a throw.
The summers and winters came and went, Gunshy and I were almost inseparable. He followed me around like a puppy dog as I did my chores. I no longer locked the doors behind him and he had free run of the place. He seemed to know exactly where our property ended and he never wondered past the edge of our land.
I was fifteen going on sixteen that summer and getting pretty good with a lariat. Even if I do say so myself. I never missed the ones in the open and I could pretty well get the ones packed into the herd. I could open up a loop and lay it down across the back of several cows that were between me and the one I had picked out, catching the cow I wanted.
Dad and I were working calves one day. Gunshy and I had dragged one up for inoculation when dad stopped for a minute. "Jake, I've entered you in the county rodeo."
I had no idea what I could do in a rodeo. I sure didn't want to ride bulls or broncs. "I'm not going to barrel race. That's a girl's sport."
He wiped the sweat off his face and smiled. "That wouldn't kill you Jake. No, I entered you in the calf roping contest. I think you stand a pretty good chance of winning some prize money. That would help toward that pickup you been wanting when you turn sixteen next month."
Dad stuck the calf in the hip with the needle and pushed the serum home. I loosened up the lariat and let daddy slip it off the calf's neck. The calf ran bawling back to the herd.
"I can rope them dad but I don't know about tying their legs. I haven't done that." I was thinking of how much the prize money could possibly be.
He reached up toward me with something in his hand. Gunshy took a couple steps sideways away from him. I scolded Gun. "He's not going to hurt you or me. Behave yourself."
Gun stood his ground as dad stepped forward. Dad was holding a short small rope. "It's what they use to tie the calves feet together. Try it on the next one."
I held that rope in my left hand as I curled up my lariat in my right. I picked out a small calf and made Gunshy separate him from the herd. We chased him across the corral as I whipped my lariat out and dropped it over his neck. I pulled back on the reins, Gunshy planted his feet, the lariat went out to its' full length with that calf at a dead run. I was off the saddle and on the ground when that calf hit the end of his rope. His head stopped while his feet kept running. He landed upside down with his feet straight up in the air. I was there before he could regain his senses. I looped that tie rope around all four feet in nothing flat. The calf rolled over on his side trussed up like a Christmas turkey.
Dad walked over with the hypodermic and shot him in the hip. "I knew it. Jake, you're a natural. You and Gunshy can't lose."
I was proud of myself. It was too easy. "How much are the winnings?"
"Pays pretty good for the county rodeo. Two thousand dollars to first place. Second…,"
I cut him off. "We don't care what second place pays. Gunshy and I are only going to settle for first."
What I didn't know was how much of a fluke that first time was. The next twenty four times I never was able to get the calf down to tie his feet. Something always went wrong. I would throw a good loop and get my foot caught in the rope as it snapped taut. I took a nose dive into the dirt. I could get a good throw and my feet would get tangled up in one another as I hit the ground running. I'd take a nose dive in the dirt. I made a thousand and one mistakes. Somewhere around the thirty fifth time I finally got the calf down. I didn't get his feet tied right and he jumped back up. I believe I was up to the sixty something time before I managed to start getting things right. Dad finally took me over to watch another calf roper. Bill Randall was a national champion two times running. He had the chutes on his ranch. He was set up with trip ropes and timers for legal qualifications and calf roping.
Gunshy and I watched and took notes as Bill ran one calf after another out of that chute of his, chased him down, dropped on his lariat, flipped him and tied him. Bill wasn't only good, he was really good. I could understand why he was national champion. He also had one major advantage over me. He was six foot three inches tall and weighed in about two ten. All of it was lean, mean, muscle. I believe Bill could spit on the sidewalk and raise steam.
There were cowboys hanging all over the railings as Bill ran through one perfect calf roping after another. About a dozen calves later Bill rode his big brown mare up beside Gunshy and me. We had been watching from inside the corral. When Bill rode up Gunshy took a couple steps sideways. I knew it wasn't the mare Gunshy was waltzing away from. It was the big man in the saddle.
Bill looked us over. "That horse of yours is kind of skittish isn't he? Jake, your daddy said you can rope?"
I nodded.
"You ready to try? Back your horse into the chute and let's see what you got." He pointed over toward the chute where we would follow the calf out.
I nodded as I urged Gunshy over to the chute. He stopped in front of it. "Back in Gun."
He backed in without me guiding him. I heard one of the cowboys hanging on the fence next to us. "Did you hear that?"
They ran a calf into the chute next to us. I put a knot in my reins and dropped them over the saddle horn. Shaking loose my rope, I coiled up my lariat. I made my loop. I put my tie rope in my teeth like I had seen Bill do. I checked the calf in the chute beside me. He looked like he was ready to run for his life. He had been through this ordeal before. Probably many times. One of the cowboys hooked the trip rope attached to the timer across the front of our chute. When the calf was turned loose he tripped a trip rope in his chute as he bolted for the open. That in turn trips the barrier rope in our chute. If we broke the barrier rope, we were automatically disqualified no matter how fast we caught the calf.
I settled down in the saddle as I got ready. I felt my lariat hanging down beside my right leg. It felt good. I leaned forward in the saddle. Beneath me I could feel Gunshy hunker as he bunched his legs. I nodded.
That calf hit the trip rope at a full run. He was running as if his life depended on it. Gunshy sprang forward before our barrier rope dropped. I had my lariat up and over my head as we hit the open corral. One full swing and I threw. My rope sailed out over the calf's head. Gunshy planted his feet. I was off and running before the rope settled. That rope stretched out before me like piano wire as the calf came to the end. His feet went on while his head came back our way. He was upside down on his back. As I gathered in legs with my left hand, I had the tie rope in my right hand working for the loop. I tied three feet with three turns of the rope and a half hitch.
As I looked up everyone was staring. It was so quiet you could have heard a cock crowing a mile away. Finally Bill rode over shaking his head. I could hear all the cowboys talking among themselves.
Bill looked back at the chute. "Dan, did he break the barrier?"
The cowboy he called Dan was examining the barrier rope. "Nope. Must of passed through it."
Bill looked like he was in deep thought. "That was my second guess."
A smile spread clear across Bill's face. "What's his time?"
"Under three seconds."
Laughing, Bill looked around the corral at all the cowboys hanging on the rail. "Boys, if you blinked you missed seeing a world record."
He reached his hand down toward me. "Jake, lessons are over son. I don't profess to be smart enough to give lessons to someone who can throw like you do and beat every cowboy in the country."
As I shook Bill's hand I wanted to tell him it was a mistake. My foolish pride kept my mouth shut. I turned around and untied the calf. Removed my lariat from around his neck, and gathered up my hat where I had lost it when I came off Gunshy. I wanted to tell them it was Gunshy who had done it all himself but I didn't. He was at a full run before that barrier rope ever dropped. It was his timing that got us there, not mine. He knew when that loop went out when to plant his feet, I didn't tell him. He had the whole thing planned out as soon as he backed into that chute. Some one should tell those cowboys it was Gunshy who did all that work himself. I didn't.
The county rodeo was three weeks away and I kept practicing everyday. I was back to all the mistakes I made when I first started. Nothing was going right. Dad would watch and then walk away. I knew he was disappointed in me but it wasn't my fault. I was trying.
It hurt when he set up three barrels out in the field and told me to practice barrel racing. "I want you to work at something that you can handle, Jake."
That really hurt. "It's a girl's game dad. I'm not going to barrel race."
"Run the barrels Jake or you don't get to calf rope."
I gave in. I'd run his stupid barrels so I could rope. I knew I could handle the calf roping if I had enough time.
Gunshy had no idea what barrel racing was all about so I had to lead him through it. We went out and raced right handed. That means there are three barrels set out in the field in a triangle pattern. Starting out of the chute the barrel racer goes to the inside and all the way around the barrel on her right. It's a sprint toward the second barrel which is placed further out than the other two. The racer again runs around that barrel keeping it to the right. The third and final barrel is back toward the chute. Once again, a run around the barrel keeping it to the right. Thus each barrel has to be passed one full turn. Right handers normally run right. Left handers normally run left. It doesn't make any difference as long as they circle each of the barrels one full turn.
I raced daddy's barrels but I wasn't happy about it. He made me take half a dozen runs at those barrels everyday before he would let me go back and try calf roping.
Finally the county rodeo day arrived. Dad hooked up the trailer. I walked Gunshy up into the trailer. "We're gonna win that top money Gun. You can ride around in that pickup with me and it ain't gonna be in the back end either. You can sit up front just like the rest of us people."
He shook his head yes as I closed the tailgate.
I slid up in the pickup between momma and daddy. Daddy looked in my direction. "You ready Jake?"
"You get us there dad and I'll bring home the money." I was so sure of myself, I knew we were going to win.
They had the bronc riding contest, the bull riding contest, some junior sheep riding contest, and the girl's barrel racing before the calf roping contest. Several of the cowboys were ahead of me and they were doing good. None of them were setting the world on fire. I knew Gunshy and I were home free. It was time to count our prize money.
Gunshy walked out in front of that chute. "Back in Gun."
He backed in to the back rail. He was more than ready. I dropped my loop and shook my rope. It felt good. I put the tie rope between my teeth. Glancing down to my left, they ran the calf into the chute beside us. He looked like a runner. I was glad. I loved those kind. I dropped my reins over the saddle horn. Out of the corner of my right eye I saw something. It was Bill Randall, national calf roping champion. My heart sank. I hoped I wasn't competing against him.
He winked and nodded. "Do it like you did out at the ranch Jake. All the boys are here rooting for you."
I looked past Bill. Hanging on the rail was every cowboy I had seen out at his ranch. I swallowed the lump in my throat. I took a second look down at that calf. I no longer felt so sure of myself. I leaned down and grabbed the saddle with my left hand. Gunshy bunched his legs under us. I nodded.
That calf was out of there like a shot. Gunshy was right behind. It took me a second to catch up before I had my lariat up and over my head. It was taking too long to get the rope out. Finally I had it. I took three precious turns with that lariat before I threw. The rope snaked out over the calf's head. Gunshy planted his feet. I wasn't ready. I fell rather than stepped off. I was stumbling forward as the rope snapped taut. It caught me upside the head as it whipped up. That threw me off to the side as the calf whipped around still standing. Gunshy backed up trying to keep the rope tight on the calf. The calf came at me at a full run and hit me square in the chest. That knocked me backwards on my back. I was lying on the ground trying to breathe as Gunshy ran forward to keep the calf from running over on top of me. When the rope on the calf slacked off, the calf was ready to turn and run. Gunshy was already there. He lowered his head and butted the calf knocking him down. Gunshy planted his legs around me and dared anyone to touch me. The rodeo clowns and cowboys gathered around. They weren't brave enough to want to tackle that mottled gray stallion with wild in his eyes and breathing fire.
"What'll we do?"
"I don't know?"
"I heard that horse was a man killer."
"Someone get a rope and a couple horses out here."
"Where's his dad? Can his dad control that horse?"
I heard dad's voice through that haze I was in. "No I can't control that horse. Jake is the only one who can do that. Jake, you okay? Tell Gunshy we need to take a look at you."
"Jake, can you hear me. Call your horse off."
I finally managed to catch my breath. It felt like I had run into a truck rather than a calf. I lifted my hand in the air. "Gun, it's okay boy. Back off."
Gunshy made a move to his right. Cowboys parted like an ocean wave before him. They had already tackled the calf and removed my lariat. Gunshy stepped off about four feet away. He stopped and waited for me to get up.
"I never seen anything like it. That was worth the price of admission. Is Jake alright?"
I was getting to my feet. My chest hurt like the devil. "I'm alright. A little sore but I'll live."
Bill walked up where he could look me in the eyes. "I think he's okay. He's focusing okay. That was really something Jake. The boys and me are sorry it happened to you. That was some show you put on. Can you do it again tomorrow night?"
I wanted to laugh but it hurt too much. "I don't think so. One time is enough for me."
"We'll pass the hat and take up a collection if you will do it again. That's one smart horse Jake. I'd buy him off you if you could tell me how to control him."
Looking over at Gunshy I shook my head. "He's not for sale at any price."
Bill nodded. "You're a good kid Jake. You have your head screwed on right. Most kids would have sold your horse if they owned him."
"He doesn’t belong to me. I can't sell what isn't mine. He belongs to himself. No one will ever own him." I knew Gunshy could never be owned the way one owns cows or livestock.
We didn't stay around for the rest of the night. Dad got us loaded up and took us home. I didn't have to tell dad I'd take care of Gunshy when we got home. It was a no brainer. Even though he wanted to, dad wouldn't be able to rub him down.
I gave him an extra helping of dairy feed and was scratching behind his ears. "Thanks for looking out after me. Those cowboys thought you were something. Of course I knew that all along. We didn't get that purse tonight but it doesn't matter. We will get it tomorrow night."
I rubbed him down and made my way into the house. Mom and dad were waiting on me. Dad was the first to speak up. "How you feeling, Jake?"
"Like I been run over by a truck. I'll do it right tomorrow, dad." I felt my chest and it still hurt.
"You want me to rub some liniment on it, Katrina?" Mom was wanting to help.
I shook my head. "I want a long hot bath and soak it for awhile. I'll be alright."
I could hear them talking as I walked into the bathroom and begin running my bath water.
"John, in spite of what you and those cowboys think, she's still a girl. She can't do this. You're pushing her into something she isn't strong enough to handle. Calf roping is a man's sport. It takes tall lanky men to get those calves thrown to the ground."
"Now Katherine, Jake is perfectly capable of handling calf roping. She set a world record over there at Bill's ranch. It might not be in the record books but she did it in front of a couple dozen witnesses. She can do this."
"When are you going to realize she's a girl John. She isn't your son, she's your daughter. I only wish…,"
I settled down in the bathtub and stopped listening. I was so sore the hot water hurt.
A SECOND CHANCE
It was past eight when I looked at the clock the next morning. I started to roll out of bed and stopped. I was really stiff. It took me five minutes to finally get my feet on the floor. It took another ten before I had my pants and shirt on. Those feet of mine might as well have been a thousand miles away when I tried to put my socks on. I finally managed by reaching down with one hand, holding the top of the sock open and wiggling my toes and then my foot in. The boots were last and I finally got them on. I had to duck under my hat to get it on. I had a hard time raising my hand high enough to get my hat up to the top of my head.
What would daddy be thinking about me sleeping in like this? I bet he was pissed he had to do all the milking by himself. I was coming down the hall when he walked in the front door.
"Morning Jake, how you feel? You going to try again tonight?" He was headed toward the kitchen before I could answer him.
That kitchen was a mile away as I worked one stiff leg up past the other. In the kitchen I hobbled up to the table and held onto it as I settled my body down into the chair.
Mom and dad were taking glances at each other and then at me. I shook my head. "I'm a little stiff this morning but it will be gone by tonight. I'll catch the number one spot tonight for sure."
I looked up and mom was staring at me and shaking her head. She turned around to scoop some eggs up out of the skillet. "You're as dumb as your father. You don't belong out there."
She set the plate of eggs down in front of me and poured a cup of coffee for daddy. She poured a second cup for herself as she sat down at the table. "We've already eaten. Those are your eggs, Katrina. You want any more?"
I shook my head. "No these are fine momma. I could have fixed them myself. You didn't need to bother."
"I'm sorry I slept in so late daddy. You should have woke me. I'll get the hay out for the cows as soon as I eat momma's eggs."
Dad took a sip of his coffee and then blew on it. "I hayed the cows already. You take care of Gunshy and see if you are able to loosen up enough to throw a rope. There's no need of going back tonight if you aren't able to throw."
"I'll be ready. You make sure the trailer is hooked up. Gunshy and I are going to collect that prize money." What I didn’t know at the time, there was an entrance fee for each night one wanted to compete. Daddy was paying for my failures so I could have another chance.
It took me all day to finally get where it didn't hurt to move. By six that evening I had helped dad with the evening chores and we loaded up Gunshy. I was going to get that number one prize money.
Most of the evening I received a lot of good natured ribbing from the cowboys about which end of the calf I was supposed to throw. Then they'd make some remark about my horse was better at throwing caves than I was. All I had to do was teach him to tie their feet. I'd smile and answer. "Yeah, you guys watch and learn because when I get my technique down I'm gonna be faster and better then any of you. All of you will want me to teach you how and I'm gonna remind you how mean you were."
It usually got a good laugh. They were good fun loving cowboys for the most part. They played hard and worked harder. The rodeo organizers rotated the events and calf roping came up before bull ridding tonight. I was fourteenth on the list. Those cowboys were hot and some of them were turning in real good times. It didn't make any difference. Gunshy and me were going to do it right tonight.
Finally it was our turn. We got ready. I looked over to my right. There was Bill Randall again along with all his crew. He gave me an okay sign. I nodded back. I was out for blood tonight. I got my lariat ready with my tie rope in my teeth, I dropped the reins on the saddle horn, leaned down and grabbed a handful of saddle. I checked the calf. Gunshy hunkered down. I nodded. That calf ran out of the chute at full throttle. Gunshy was already at a full run. I brought my rope up over my head to spread the loop. The calf plowed to a stop. Gunshy stopped. I didn't stop. I went up and out over Gunshy's head. With a thud, I landed on my back, eight feet out in front of Gunshy. I had the wind knocked out of me. I would have sworn I saw a disappointed look in Gunshy's eyes as he walked up and stood looking down at me.
I reached up and grabbed the stirrup to pull myself up before the rodeo clowns or cowboys could get out there. "Why didn't you tell me you were going to stop? What we have is a lack of communication. Next time yell out."
He had his head turned watching as I dragged myself back up into the saddle. I didn't feel like it nor did I want to. It's what cowboys do to show how tough they are. Right now I didn't feel so tough. I would have rather walked or limped out of the arena, thank you.
The rodeo announcer was talking to the audience. "Ladies and gentlemen, this has to be a big disappointment to Jake. This is the second night he has failed to qualify for this event. Please give him a big round of applause to show him we care. These cowboys put in a lot of hard work and sometimes it just doesn't come out right no matter what they do."
I didn't care what the audience thought. I knew I was a big disappointment to my dad. As I rode back through the chutes leading from the arena, Bill was waiting. "Tough luck, Jake. We all know you can do it. Stop trying so hard. Relax and enjoy it. It's only a game. No matter if you win or lose, you and a lot of others know you are the best in the world."
I reached over and offered my hand. "Thanks Bill. You don’t know how much that means to me."
He took my hand and gave me a firm handshake. "I'll see you tomorrow night."
Dad and I were up at four thirty milking cows the next morning. After chores I worked with Gunshy for a few hours. I didn't feel like roping so I raced those barrels dad set up. Gunshy was pushing them over most of the time as he raced around them. I tried pulling him a little further out but he would have none of it. He wanted in as tight a corner as he could manage. I knew he was frustrated with me and was wishing I'd get my act together.
We did our evening chores and loaded up for the last night of the county rodeo. There was very little discussion on the drive over. That was all right by me. I didn't feel like talking either. They did the bronc riding and the calf roping came up after that. I was placed last in the calf roping event. I don't think it had anything to do with the luck of the draw. I felt the judges had placed me there because I had embarrassed everyone. There were fast times turned in that night as the cowboys seemed to be extra hot.
Finally it was our turn. Gunshy and I backed into the chute. They hooked up the trip rope and the barrier rope. I heard someone call "Jake" over to my right.
Bill was leaning across the rail. "Relax Jake. It's no big thing. Tomorrow all these cowboys will be a hundred miles down the road riding in another rodeo. No one will care how you rode last night or the first night. The only thing they will be thinking of is how they are going to ride in the next rodeo. So enjoy tonight. They can't eat you, they can't throw you out, and they are all rooting for you. It's just between you, that smart aleck horse of yours, and an ornery calf who thinks he can outsmart you. Can he outsmart you, Jake?"
I looked down at the calf in the other chute. NO WAY! I was smarter than that calf. "I'm…," I looked up to my right, Bill was gone.
I dropped my loop down by my right leg. Reins on the saddle horn, tie rope in my teeth, I checked the calf. He was a runner. I checked my rope and grabbed a handful of saddle horn as I leaned forward. Gunshy hunkered, I nodded. They tripped the gate and that calf was out of there like a bullet. Gunshy was right behind. I had my right arm up and over my head swinging a loop. Every thing slowed down to slow motion. I could see the calf making a move to his left away from us. I adjusted my throw and my position in the saddle. I snaked that loop out where the calf was headed. Gunshy planted his feet when the loop passed out over his head. I was already swinging my left leg up and over the back of the saddle. The fastest way off is to swing the left leg backwards and roll off the saddle as the right foot is pulled from the stirrup. When Gunshy hit the brakes I was out of the saddle and had my back to him as I rolled out. I used his momentum and kept it going as I hit the ground running. The loop settled in over the calf's head. Gunshy already had it in reverse as he was taking up slack on the rope. The calf hit the end of the rope at a full run. That rope stretched two inches as the calf did a complete summersault backwards. I had three legs gathered up in my arms. I dropped the loop over the first and did three turns and a half hitch. I threw my hands up to indicate I was finished.
It was then I noticed the whole world had become deathly quite when it went in to slow motion. A flood of noise rushed in to great me as the audience rose to their feet and screamed. I heard the announcer as the flagman moved into to time the event to its' conclusion. "Not a world record but close if the calf can't work lose in ten seconds."
The flagman dropped his flag. The time was up and the calf was still tied. The crowd screamed again. I motioned for Gunshy to loosen up on the rope so I could turn the calf lose. Gunshy walked forward to where I was standing. I took the lariat off the calf and then my tie rope. The calf jumped up and ran. That was okay. He was supposed to.
I heard the announcer again. "Cowboys, and cowgirls, we saw some of the finest roping I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. Jake made it into number one with his time tonight. Congratulations to a top rodeo hand."
I looked at Gunshy who was really the reason for me being as good as I was. "Take a bow Gun."
He bowed his neck. I picked up my hat were I had lost it and waved it toward Gunshy. He deserved all the credit. The audience shouted their approval.
Coiling up my lariat, I tied it with my tie rope and then fastened it to the saddle horn as I settled into the saddle. "Up Gun."
Gunshy reared up and stood on his back legs as he pawed the air. I didn't spoil the party by falling off the saddle. That was my contribution to the act.
Bill Randall was there at the chute leading out of the arena. As Gunshy walked out he held up his hand. "To the number one calf roper in America."
I reached out and shook his hand. "I don't think so Bill. I'm shaking hands with number one. It doesn't make a cowboy number one to do it right one time. It takes a lot of times doing it right. Check over your shoulder on your way to the national finals this year. I may be getting it right more than once every month."
He gave my hand a firm squeeze. "You would have gone into the record books tonight if the calf hadn't run sideways on you Jake. You're number one in my books. I'll take you on the road with me anytime."
Gunshy and I walked on out to the trailer. I was ready to go home. We had done what we intended to do. I was busy rubbing down Gunshy and talking to the cowboys who happened by. The rodeo ran through the bull ridding and still mom and dad didn't show up. The barrel racing event came up and I heard my name mentioned by the announcer.
"No, it's not true." I got up on Gunshy and rode back over to the chutes. All the cowboys were eyeing me suspiciously wondering what was going on. The cowgirls were protesting about a "cowboy" riding in the barrel racing event.
The judges had backed away from the microphone but we could hear them discussing it among themselves. Finally the announcer stepped back up to the mic. "Jake, you're up first in barrel racing. Would you please take your place in the chute?"
I hated my dad for doing this to me! I guided Gunshy into the chute. Cowgirls are allowed to be at a full run by the time they clear the end of the chute. A timer picks them up as they pass the gate and clocks them when they come back through after running the barrels. It was a girl's game. I hated it!
As bad as I hated being in the event, dad and mom had always taught me if it was worth doing then it was worth trying with all your skill possible. I leaned down on the saddle like I was getting ready to calf rope. I reached up and patted Gunshy on the neck. "This is bad enough, don't embarrass me."
He snorted as if to tell me not to embarrass him. I touched him with my heels. Gunshy was a sprinter if nothing else. He was flying when he passed that timer. He closed in on that first barrel. I knew he was going to cut it his way which was too close. I leaned over in the saddle and held the barrel with my right hand as Gunshy raced around it rocking it over. I pushed it back up as he raced on to the second barrel. Again he cut it too close and again I managed to push it back up as we raced toward the third barrel. The third barrel was a repeat of the first two. I looked over my shoulder as Gunshy raced toward the chute and the timer. The last barrel was still wobbling around like it was going to fall over. I didn't care. I didn't want to be in this event anyway. Tail flying straight out behind, his neck stretched out in front, Gunshy was flying as he passed back through the timer. He also never did anything halfway. It was either all or none for both of us."
I heard the announcer as Gunshy braked to a stop once he was past the timer. "Would Jake please report to the judge's stand."
All the cowgirl barrel racers were grouped up in a cluster glaring daggers at me. I had horned in on their sport and didn't belong. I thought it was funny because I agreed with them. I didn't think I belonged either. As I walked past them to the judge's stand one of them spit in my direction. "You think because you're too small to be a cowboy you can get in our event? Why don't you put on a dress and play the part, dear?"
All of them laughed. I started to say something and then decided not. I didn't want to be a girl. My name was Jake. Daddy told me so. I climbed the steps up to the judge's stand.
They were all looking at me. One of them cleared his throat. "What's your name?"
"Jake." That was a dumb question since I was registered as Jake.
"No, what's your real name?" He wasn't going to give me an out.
"I like Jake." I knew what he was wanting.
"What does your mother call you?" He was going to nail me down so I couldn't squirm out of the question.
I looked at all the strangers in front of me and then down at my old scuffed cowboy boots. "Katrina."
"Is that the name on your birth certificate?"
I hated this. "Yes."
"What's your full name?"
Why did dad enter me into the barrel racing? I hated him too. "Katrina…, Katrina Ann McDonald."
I looked up at a bunch of shocked faces. "May I go?"
One of the women judges walked up and put her hand on my shoulder. "What sex are you?"
I felt them coming and I couldn't stop them. Tears were rolling down my cheeks. I hated the whole world for doing this to me. "I'm a damn girl! Is that what you wanted to know? You want me to drop my pants and prove it? I HATE YOU! I HATE ALL OF YOU!"
Cowboys don't cry! I spun around as I wiped the tears away. "I don't care about your damn ol barrel racing or your damn calf roping. You can keep your money and give it to someone else."
I ran back to Gunshy and mounted up. I was crying too hard to care what anyone thought. We raced out of there like the devil was behind us. It was several miles later I pulled Gunshy down to a walk and we cut out across the fields. I was going home and pack my clothes. I was going to run away. Gunshy and I would ride the rodeo circuit and make a living calf roping but I'd never barrel race again.
Chapter III
YOU'LL NEVER BE A COMPETITIVE CALF ROPER
It was over twenty-six miles back home. Gunshy and I weren’t in any hurry, it took us most of the night to get there. Dad's pickup and the stock trailer were in the driveway. The lights were on in the house and the barn. I could see shadows on the curtains as mom and dad walked the floor in the living room.
I guess they could hear Gunshy's hooves on the driveway as we walked up to the barn. They both came out of the house. They waited until I put Gunshy up and fed him. As I was walking out of the stall, dad put his arm over my shoulder.
"Jake, I'm sorry. I wanted you to win something. I didn't think you would win the calf roping so I entered you in the barrel racing. Please forgive me. I didn't mean to hurt you. I won't do it again."
Mom walked up. She put her arms around me and dragged me into her breasts as she squeezed the life out of me. "Katrina, it's no big thing to be good if you don't like what you're doing. You showed them you could be both a cowboy and a cowgirl. Cowboys and cowgirls come and go but they will always remember you."
"Bill Randall said he wanted you riding with him. He had never seen anything like it in all his years in rodeo. He suggested you come over and talk to him sometime. He thinks you might be better off trying head and heel roping rather than calf roping. You're never going to get big enough to toss those calves like the cowboys do. In head and heel roping the horses do all the heavy work while the rider does all the trick roping."
I was feeling better. Maybe I wouldn't run away from home. "Did Bill really say he would ride with me?"
Dad reached out and put his arm around my shoulders as we walked back toward the house. "He not only said he would ride with you, he couldn't wait for you to come by and talk to him."
My head was starting to swell as I forgot about earlier this evening. 'Me' riding with the National Calf Roping Champion, Bill Randall. And he had asked for me.
Momma put a check for twenty five hundred dollars in my hand. "It's from the Rodeo Association. You made first in calf roping and first in barrel racing. They said it was the only time anyone could recollect someone had won both events. The cowboys and cowgirls won't forget you Katrina. They might not remember all the rodeos they rode in. They will always remember this one."
I turned around and held the check up so Gunshy could see it. "Look Gun, we have the down payment on that pickup."
He shook his head yes as mom and dad laughed at the both of us.
The next day after we finished the chores, dad drove Gunshy and me over to Bill's ranch. I was wondering what kind of treatment I was going to get from the cowboys now they knew I was a girl? It didn't take long to find out after I got out of the pickup. They all looked like statues as I was getting Gunshy out of the trailer.
Bill walked up and looked me over as if he had never really seen me before. Finally he spoke. "It doesn't seem right to call you Jake. It's either going to be Katrina or Cat. What will it be?"
I shook my head. "I would rather be called Jake."
A smile slowly spread across his face. "Okay, Cat it is."
He turned and looked at the other ranch hands. "Boys, you are looking at the world's top calf roper. HER name is Katrina or Cat. I catch any of you yard birds calling her anything else and you'll answer to me."
Bill pointed out toward the corral. "Cat, let's see if you can be one of the team members on a head and heel roping team."
I never did get the heels of those calves that day nor the next. The head was easy. Laying that rope down on the ground in front of the back feet of a running calf, letting him step into it, and pulling it up at the right time was a new experience. It took me two weeks before I caught my first one. It wasn't long before it was working like clockwork and I was catching every one of them. Bill said it was time to show off in the arena.
Bill taught me a lot about judging people as I rode the rodeo circuit with him that summer. He already knew most of the cowboys by name and by their nature. Most of them were good ol boys and would give you their last dime and the shirt off their back if they thought you needed it. A few were so down right mean they would go out of their way to try and pick a fight.
We had traveled all day and night to compete in the rodeo in Tucson. The prize money was over four thousand dollars for head and heel roping. There was a like amount for calf roping. I wanted to enter the calf roping along with Bill but the entry fee was too steep for me to stomach. It cost two hundred dollars to enter each event. I pooled my money with Bill for the head and heel. When it was our turn we scorched the ground with our mounts and our time. Bill's big bay mare and Gunshy were flying that night.
When Bill went to the arena for the calf roping event, I took Gunshy back to the trailer. I was going to rub him down and take my saddle off him to give him a breather. I had plenty of time to do what I wanted and make it back to the arena to watch Bill. I had dropped the saddle and bridle off Gunshy while he was still outside the trailer. My hand was resting on his flank. I felt Gunshy shiver before I heard the voices.
A couple of cowboys had walked up behind me. "Someone said you were a girl. I don't believe it. Prove to me you aren't a midget posing as a girl."
As I turned around, three of them were standing there. "You're drunk, why don't you go sleep it off."
They crowded in a little closer. The middle one was smiling. He was missing some teeth up front. "Why don't you come sleep with us if you're a girl?"
The one to my left reached out and grabbed my arm. "I want to see if he's a she."
I wasn't prepared for that. It took me a second to start my mind thinking again. "Let go of my arm, you asshole."
"Asshole huh? I'll make you think asshole." He was reaching for me with his other hand as the others closed in.
I swung as hard as I could with my right hand. I felt my fist plow into soft flesh on his cheek as his head snapped over to the side.
The one on my right lunged for me. Gunshy caught him with those powerful hind legs of his and the guy went flying six feet through the air.
The middle one had no idea what just happened. He was finally getting his alcohol soaked brain engaged and he was coming at me. Gunshy nailed him in the chest and I heard a hollow drum whump sound when he connected. The drunken cowboy went backwards about eight to ten feet before he hit the ground. The one I had socked turned and ran. I figured we were through with them.
I turned and begin scratching Gunshy behind the ears. "Thanks Gun, I don't think I could have handled three of them by myself."
I heard a shout behind us. I turned to look. The third man had returned with a policeman. "There, right there they are. That's a killer horse. He stomped my two buddies and tried to kill me but I was too fast for him. You have to put him down. He's a killer."
"What…,?" I couldn't believe what the guy was saying.
"Arrest him officer. She was the one who turned the horse lose on us. He's guilty too."
The policeman took out a pair of handcuffs. "Hold out your hands mister."
My left hand was on Gunshy's shoulder. I could feel Gunshy gathering his legs under him. "No, Gun. NO!"
The officer panicked at the mention of "gun". He pulled his from his holster. "YOU HAVE A GUN! PUT IT DOWN NOW!"
The shouting was too much for Gunshy. He only knew I was being threatened. He let loose. I heard a shot as the policeman threw his left hand up to ward off the two hooves coming at his face. Gunshy's aim was a little lower than that and he hit the policeman in the chest. There was a second shot as the man's arms went up as he went flying backwards. He hit the ground and there was a third shot as he bounced on the dirt.
The cowboy who had brought the policeman to arrest us scooped up the pistol from the stunned policeman. "I'm gonna kill that horse."
He was bringing the gun up to take aim when a lariat settled down over his shoulders. There was a shot as his arms were gathered in to his sides under the loop as it tightened. There was another shot as he was pulled over backwards. He was lying on the ground and trying to bring the gun up to take a bead on Gunshy or me. It didn't make him any difference as long as he shot one of us. The rope jerked tight and he was dragged along the ground as he shot again. I heard the bullet whiz by my left ear and rattle around in the trailer. The cowboy lost his hold on the gun as he bounced along the ground behind Bill's big bay mare.
Bill dropped out of the saddle and trussed him up like a calf in less than world record time.
The policeman was holding his chest as he tried to sit up. "oooooh!"
By now a crowd had gathered around us.
Bill walked up beside the policeman and stopped as he looked at the other two men lying on the ground. "What the hell is going on here?"
The policeman opened his shirt to examine his bullet proof vest before he pointed in my direction. "oooh, he tried to get that horse to kill me."
Bill shook his head. "Mister, if that horse wanted to kill you then you wouldn't be talking right now."
Bill glanced down at the handcuffs lying on the ground at my feet. "You tried to arrest her! Count your lucky stars you're still alive. Gunshy doesn’t let any one touch her except him."
The policeman rolled over to his hands and knees as he tried to get his breath. "Who?"
"That horse of hers, Gunshy. She belongs to him. He will make a believer out of you if you doubt it. You're fortunate he didn't come over here and stomp your head in. What were you thinking? Why in the world would you want to put handcuffs on her? What do you think she has done?"
The policeman was up to his knees and halfway up by now. He pointed over to the two men on the ground. "That horse killed them and then she turned him loose on me."
Bill was shaking his head as he walked over and grabbed one of the men by the shirt. He heaved and stood him up. The guy was wobbling around. Bill looked over at the policeman. "And you're an ass not to get all your facts straight before you go off half cocked. These cowboys are drunk."
Bill turned to look at me. "What happened here Cat?"
I pointed toward the one Bill was holding up. "They were going to undress me to see if I was a girl or not. I decked the one you trussed up and Gunshy took care of the other two. That one you caught brought the policeman back over here and was shouting Gunshy was a man killer. The policeman started to handcuff me, Gunshy started getting skitish, and I tried to calm him down. That policeman pulled his gun and Gunshy nailed him. The cowboy you stopped was going to see if he could finish us off when the policeman didn't."
Bill turned loose of the man he had been holding up. The guy wilted back down to the ground in a heap. Bill sighed as he looked at the policeman who was finally on his feet. "Don't you feel a little stupid? Why didn't you get your facts straight before you pulled that gun of yours and started trying to shoot every body?"
The policeman pointed at me. "You're under arrest allowing a dangerous animal to run lose and for resisting arrest."
Bill was silently laughing. He closed his eyes and shook his head. He looked down at the ground before he looked back up. "Mister, I've seen some dumb critters in my time but you are head of the class. I tell you what. You go get in that little buggy of yours and scat before I lose my temper."
"You can't tell me what to do. I'll arrest you too." He was reaching for the gun in his holster which wasn't there.
A group of cowboys closed in on him. They had him by the arms dragging him off. He was screaming. "All of you are under arrest. I'll haul all of you down to the jail. I'll kill that damn horse. Get your hands off me. What do you think you're doing?"
I was looking at Bill. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get you in trouble. Are we going to jail? I can't let him hurt Gunshy. He didn't do anything wrong. He was only protecting me."
Bill walked over and put his arm around my shoulder. "I know Cat. No, by the time those cowboys let that idiot loose we will be long gone. I know most of the law in this neck of the woods. I'll tell them what happened and get enough of the cowboys to testify to how it was, there won't be anything come of it."
He looked back over at the guy he had wrapped up with his rope. "You loan me your lariat? I think mine is busy right now and I have a calf to rope."
I pulled it off the saddle and handed it to him. "You think you can rope with a strange lariat? All of them throw a little different."
Bill uncoiled it and coiled it back again. "Cat, you know, most cowboys never realize that fact. But yes, it feels fine. I think it feels easier than my own rope. If I set a record tonight you going to let me use it from now on?"
I nodded. "As long as I'm not using it. Anytime for you."
We left Tucson behind us right after Bill roped his calf. We found out later Bill didn't set a record that night but he did turn in the highest score. Never did hear what happened to that policeman who wanted to shoot everyone. But then, it was a year before we went back to Tucson. I looked Gunshy over for bullet holes but he didn't have any. Bill told me later that he had three bullet holes in his horse trailer. He thought they were kinda neat. He never had a shot up horse trailer before. Said he might just shoot up any new trailers he bought just for the heck of it. He told the other cowboys who asked about the holes, his trailer was shot up in a running gun battle with some horse thieves. Made a good horse story. Bill might have never lied but he sure could stretch the truth until it squealed.
Fall came along with school and I had to quit ridding with Bill. It was back to chores every morning and night. I also quit roping calves until the next spring. When spring came Bill asked me if I would ride team with him again. I asked dad if it was okay. Dad agreed to a limited extent. I had to help with the planting. So again, Bill and I ran the rodeo circuit as a head and heel roping team. I won't say we always came in with top honors but we did a whole lot better than our fair share. I tried some calf roping at a few of the little county fairs where they only charge fifty dollars for entry fee. I should have saved my money. Gunshy would get me out there in record time. I always caught my calf but I never could get them laid down to tie their feet. I didn't have enough weight to throw them like Bill did.
It was our third year and I was going to be a senior come fall. Bill brought the subject up while we were waiting our turn in the Cheyenne rodeo arena. "Cat, what's your plans after you graduate?"
"I guess I'll help dad on the farm. I have six thousand saved up in the bank thanks to you but that isn't going to get me through college." I was checking my lariat and scratching Gunshy on the neck.
Bill nodded as he looked across the bleachers where all the rodeo fans were seated. "You want to make enough money to go to college? What do you think you want to be?"
"A veterinarian. I want to work with animals. I guess after I get out of school, if you let me ride with you, we could team all year. I might make enough to go to college for a year."
"That would work but it's not good enough. I know a guy who ships horses all over the world. He's looking for a horse wrangler. I happened to mention your name and he was interested. He's heard of you Cat. Of course that's not saying a whole lot. Everyone around the rodeo circuit has heard about you." Bill was watching me to see how I would react.
"I don't know. I've never been anywhere except with you. It takes a lot of money to be on the road away from home. Would it eat up my paycheck trying to survive all that traveling?" I had no idea what it cost to live in some of the foreign countries but I had heard it was expensive.
"Kevin said he would pay for room along with your meals when you were escorting his horses. He offered forty thousand and I told him you wouldn't even consider it for less than eighty." Bill looked to see if he had my attention.
He did. "Eighty? You mean eighty thousand? You're pulling my leg? Aren't you?"
"Well, I didn't get your eighty thousand but Kevin said he would think about it. I told him not to think too long because you had an offer where you could make twice that working with Phoenix Corporation."
"What's Phoenix Corporation?" I wasn't holding onto all the pieces in this conversation.
The team we were behind stepped up into the chute for their turn. Bill shook his lariat out. "They do the same thing as Kevin. They ship horses all over the world. I only told Kevin that so he wouldn't wait to long to make a decent offer."
The other team was out of the arena and it was our turn into the chutes. Gunshy and Bill's mare walked in and waited. "So what did he offer?"
The gate flew open as Bill answered. I didn't hear what he said as Gunshy and I flew out of that chute. I was running on pure instinct because I sure didn't have my mind on the head and heel roping. Bill let his lariat fly as I dropped my rope under the belly of the steer. We had him as Gunshy and Bill's mare tightened up the ropes. It was over and I was coiling up my lariat never thinking about what we had done. I was dying to hear what I missed as we rode out of the chute.
I rode up beside Bill as he walked his mare out of the arena. "What did he say?"
Bill looked around. "What did who say?"
"The guy that ships horses all over the world. What did he say?" I wasn't getting the proper response from Bill.
We were out of the chute and past the arena, Bill turned his mare away. His back was to me when he mumbled something.
"Wait, I didn't hear that again. Did you just answer me? Repeat that. What did he say about the salary?" I turned Gunshy and sprinted up beside Bill.
Bill shrugged his huge shoulders. "I told you twice now. I usually don't repeat myself more than once and never three times. I guess you will have to wait and ask him personally."
"BILL! That's not fair. What did he offer? Tell me." I was dying of curiosity.
Chapter IV
From a Tomboy to a Princess
Momma asked me to wear a dress for her on my high school graduation night. We went to town and she picked out the most DRESS she could find. I'm sure I had other dresses before I could remember and before daddy claimed me as his son. This was the first dress I could remember putting on. I HATED IT! All the ladies in the store oohed and aahed over how beautiful it was. I wasn't thrilled by any means. The final straw was when momma had me take off my boots and try on some heels. I almost broke my neck when they asked me to walk across the floor in those things designed to torture girl's feet.
The heels matched the dress and momma was thrilled. We stopped at the beauty parlor before we left town. I felt like a goat in a barnyard full of horses. I didn't belong. The only thing that made it tolerable was the other women called me Jake. It was the only name anyone knew me by. They put a rinse on my hair and teased it to make it look like some picture in a magazine. Donna, filed my nails which wasn't much. I never kept any fingernails to speak of. My nails were always getting broke loading hay, driving fence posts, or fixing a broken tractor. She glued those artificial nails on me. Immediately I hated them. If momma hadn’t been there they would have come right back off. Until the graduation ceremony was over about ten or so that night, I was going to have to watch what I was doing. When they were done I tried to untie the bib they had around my shoulders to keep the makeup off my shirt. I couldn't do it. Already those damn long nails were causing me more trouble than necessary.
I knew my dress and make over had cost momma a small fortune in milk money. Something we could ill afford. We were in the old Ford pickup headed out of town when I finally got my temper under control. I was driving and staring at the road to keep from having to look at anything else. "Thank you, momma. I love you."
She had been riding with her back to the door so she could look at me without turning around each time. "Katrina, I love you with all my heart. I know you don't like what I've done to you. Please be my little girl for one night. In two weeks you are leaving home for the rodeo circuit again. I don't know how much I will get to see you again before you start college. You're a young lady now, Katrina. Please let me enjoy that much of my baby girl."
I glanced in her direction. She had tears in her eyes. I don't guess I turned out quite like what momma expected when the doctors said her baby was a girl. "I won't make a fuss, momma. I'll practice walking in those heels when we get home. I'll walk across that stage like you always dreamed about. I'll keep the dress on after graduation, until I go to bed. I'll be your girl tonight, momma."
"You're a beautiful lady, Katrina. I'll always be proud of you no matter if you're wearing jeans or a dress." Momma turned to look out the window as she wiped the tears from her eyes.
Those long nails were more trouble than they were worth. I had a terrible time holding onto that steering wheel. I'd keep them on for as long as they lasted just for momma. I pulled off the highway and headed down the country road toward home. It was another ten miles down a dirt road before we would be at the house. "Momma, if we leave by six, you can get a seat close to the stage. The air conditioners in the gym only halfway work. It's a lot cooler up by the stage."
"You sure you don't mind, Katrina? I know you don't want to be seen any more than what you have to in a dress." She glanced over at me and smiled.
"I could stand on my head in the cow lot for as long as it took if I knew it made you happy, momma." A skunk ran across the road and I dodged it, missing him by inches.
Momma glanced up in time to see what it was we almost hit. "If that had been me driving, I would have hit him and them we would have had to walk or drive the tractor to your graduation. We would all smell like skunk if I had run over him with the pickup."
"Tractor would work. I could hook up the wagon, put a couple chairs in it, and daddy could pull us to town while I waved at all the people. They would think we were part of the parade they missed." I could see the farm down the road.
Momma laughed so hard she cried. "You little nut. I bet you would too. It would embarrass the devil out of your dad and me. You would put on an entertainment show and make everyone think it was them who were out of step."
She wiped the tears with the back of her hand. "I love you Katrina. You are going to go far in this old world. You've never seen an obstacle you couldn't go over or go around. You've never run into a situation you couldn't figure out and never met a person you couldn't out think. In spite of your dad trying to make you his son, there's a young woman in there who will greet the world head on and come out a winner."
I didn't feel that confident but momma always was good at building up my ego. I turned into the drive. Dad was finishing chores and coming out of the barn. He looked up as I stopped the pickup. I knew he was trying to figure out who was in the pickup with momma. With a rinse on my hair, along with the lipstick and makeup, he didn't recognize me.
I had changed back into jeans and denim shirt before we left the beauty shop. The dress was on the front seat of the pickup along with those heels I was going to have to learn to walk in before tonight.
I killed the pickup, opened the door, and dropped out on the ground. "Hi pops. Did you have any trouble getting Doris in the milk stall? Has Roan dropped her calf yet? She looked darn close to me before we went to town."
Dad's mouth opened. He never said anything nor did he move, he only stared.
I was afraid of this. Dad hated what he was looking at almost as much as I hated being the object of what he was looking at. To him and the rest of the world I was Jake and I would always be Jake. Katrina was a name my mother used every now and then to talk to her invisible daughter.
Momma had already gathered up the boxes with my heels and dress. She shook her head as she looked at dad. She turned and walked into the house without saying a word.
I felt sorry for both of them. I wanted to tell daddy that I would be his boy tomorrow but tonight I had to be Katrina for momma. "I have to get ready. You lay out your black suit already or you want me to ask momma to lay it out?"
He was still staring as I walked into the house. I wondered what was going thorough his mind? I thought I knew him but obviously not. I had never seen him act like that. I beat everyone to the bathtub. Fifteen minutes later, I was standing in my room looking at the dress and heels momma had laid out on my bed earlier when she walked in.
"May I help, Katrina?"
"I don't know what to do momma."
"It's a natural thing honey. Sit down on your bed and pull your nylons on."
I sit down and gathered up two nylon stockings.
"The garter belt goes on first dear." Moma pointed to the thing with straps hanging down from it.
I knew what a girdle looked like. What momma was pointing at looked like a small girdle with clips. I slipped my feet into it and slid it up over my hips.
"Now the stockings, Katrina. Roll them down from the top. Slip your toe in and slid them on. The seam goes in the back."
I did as she told me.
Momma helped me fasten them up with the straps.
She backed up. "Slid your hands down the stockings, Katrina. It will smooth out the stretch and they won't wrinkle or bag when you sit down or stand up."
"I think all the girls are wearing pantyhose momma." I was sure most of the girls were wearing pantyhose. I NEVER heard any of them talk about wearing a garter belt and nylons. I was sure I had never seen any of them wearing nylons when they flashed a leg for the boys. I was positive, I had never seen any seams on any pantyhose the girls wore.
"I'm sure they are Katrina. Nylons are for real ladies. They are from a time when ladies knew what turned a man's head. Trust me Katrina, you will turn heads tonight. Now the heels."
I sit back down on the bed and slipped on the black velvet heels. I stood up. I did real good as long as I didn't try and walk. "Maybe we should have started with a shorter heel?"
"No dear, the dress demanded four inch heels." Momma handed me a black bra.
I really didn't need a bra. I was a thirty two B but I was going to be momma's girl tonight. The bra had a lot of padding to push me up and out. It made me look like I really had something. I managed to get everything adjusted and dropped the black satin slip over my head.
I was beginning to feel something I had never felt before. I wanted to show off not in a funny way like I always did before but in a sexy way. I dropped the velvet dress over my head and turned my back to momma.
"Hold in your stomach, Katrina." She ran the zipper up the back.
"Turn around and let me look at you."
I took one step away from her and slowly turned around. Momma was crying. "Oh my god. My little girl is all grown up. You're so beautiful. My god, look at you. You're a woman now."
She put her hands up beside her eyes to wipe the tears. "Where has my little girl gone? Oh Katrina, you're so beautiful."
She turned and fled the room crying. I felt strange, different, and something I had never felt in my whole life. Sexy. I walked, if one can call what I was doing in those heels, over to the door and pushed it shut so I could look in the mirror attached to the back side.
There was a stranger in the mirror looking back at me. I didn't know her. She was the woman my mother was crying over. The black velvet dress fit me like a second skin. The low scalloped neckline was showing plenty of breasts those padded cups were pushing up. The side walking slit was more than I could believe. It was showing the top of my nylon stocking where it hooked to the garter straps when I twisted my body. The hem was four inches above my knee. I hadn't shown that much leg since I went swimming in the creek.
I was still studying the woman in the mirror when momma came back in holding jewelry in her hand. She held it up for me to see. It was the only diamond jewelry momma owned. A simple little gold necklace with a tiny little diamond drop on the end. A couple clip on earrings with a little tiny diamond in the middle of a small gold flower.
"These were given to me on my wedding day by my mother. You get to wear them tonight and when you get married I will give them to you." She held them up for me.
I picked up the earrings and clipped them on. I tried putting on the necklace and couldn't get the clasp with those long fake fingernails I was having to contend with.
"Turn around Katrina. Please, let me do it."
I turned around and momma snapped the clasp shut on the necklace.
"You have an hour to learn how to walk in those heels Katrina. Watch me." Momma walked across the bedroom and back again swinging her hips and placing one foot exactly in line with the other. I had never seen her walk like that before.
"Okay." I gave it a try and wobbled across the floor and back again.
"It's okay Katrina. You will get the hang of it before we leave." She turned and left.
I was dressed for graduation. Now all I had to do was learn to walk in those four inch heels momma had bought me. Simple enough. Or so I thought. I stumbled across that bedroom floor a hundred times before I found the trick to wearing heels and walking like a lady.
I heard a snort at my bedroom window. I knew who it was before I opened the window and looked out. "Look Gun, what do you think?"
Gunshy was eyeing me suspiciously. I walked across the room and back again just for him. "Well?"
He shook his head up and down. I felt a whole lot better knowing I had his approval. "I'm going to pick up my diploma tonight. I'll be back to show you."
Again he gave me his approval. I turned and walked into the living room where momma was putting daddy's tie on for him. I saw him swallow as his eyes got as big as egg whites when I walked into the room.
Holding out my hands I turned around for him. Momma was looking too by the time I finished my audition. Daddy got a lopsided grin, started to say something, bit his lip and tried again. He still couldn't get it out. He smiled as his lip quivered. I saw a tear trickling out of his right eye before he turned and walked out the front door.
That scared me. "Momma, is he mad at me?"
She walked up and put her arm over my shoulder. "No Katrina, he has seen his little girl for the first time and she's a young lady. He's so proud of you he can't tell you how beautiful you are."
She checked her watch. "It's time to get going. You ridding with us or you taking your pickup?"
"I'm ridding with you. I don't have any reason to stay around after graduation ceremonies. It will save some gas."
"Good enough." She picked up her purse and shepherded me toward the door.
We made the school parking lot in good time. Dad found a decent place to park. As we got out of the pickup daddy turned and took a good look at me. "You're the prettiest girl here Katrina. I guess I lost Jake tonight. I'm not sorry. I picked up a beautiful daughter instead."
"Don't worry daddy. Jake will be back in a couple hours. Besides, I'll always be your Jake."
Momma gave me a hug as she checked her camera. "We're going to find some seats up front. We'll wait on you after the ceremonies."
A couple of boys, Ricky and Eddie, from my class walked by looking me over. I could hear them talking as they walked on by. "Jeeze, did you check out that blond? I wonder whose older sister she is? Find out who she came to see graduate. Why couldn't I have been in her school?"
Ricky looked back over his shoulder. "I think I know those people she's with. Isn't that Jake's parents?"
Eddie took a second look. "Yeah, I think so. You think that's Jake's older sister? Nah, can't be. She couldn't be kin to Jake. She's too good looking."
That scared me, I wanted to be back in my jeans and boots. I turned to momma.
"Hold your head up Katrina. You will be all right. It's like building fence, milking cows, calf roping, or all those other things you do. Take it one step at a time. Don't take so much of it you can't handle it. What do you do when you build fence? You set your corner posts first. This is the same thing. When you walk into that auditorium you hold your ground. You aren't the kid they sit in class with everyday. The others will come over and look you over. People are no different than those cows you work with. Some are bullies, some are friendly, and some will be indifferent. When they get where they scare you then name them with the names of the cows that have their personality."
Momma laughed as she was already doing in her mind what she told me to do. "Those two boys who walked by? Who do they remind you of?"
I gave it some thought before it came to me. "Lucy is always curious and getting into things she shouldn't. Ginger is usually tagging along with her and doing the same."
"Exactly. And I'll bet there isn't a single one of those classmates of yours who doesn’t have a counterpart in the dairy herd."
"Thanks momma." I wasn't scared any more. I gave her a hug and then gave daddy a kiss on the cheek.
He was getting all choked up again. I turned and walked toward the auditorium. That black dress momma had picked out for me wasn't a short miniskirt but it wasn't far from it. Four inches above the knee was showing a lot of leg, especially for a girl who had grown up in blue jeans. Other kids were arriving and most of them were talking about the lady in black as I walked into the auditorium.
My English teacher, Mrs. Inman stopped me at the door. "Students and faculty only in this door. Parents and guests are supposed to go in the front entrance around on the other side."
"Yes, I know. Thank you for reminding me." I waited to see if she was going to recognize me.
Her eyes closed slightly as she was trying to match up something in her mind. "I know you aren't a regular teacher here. Are you one of the student teachers?"
That got me tickled thinking she thought I was three to four years older than I really was. "No, I didn't student teach here Mrs. Inman."
Not all the students had arrived but those that had were sure staring. The whole room was whispering and pointing in my direction. Mr. Cuff, our principle had walked up by this time. From the look on his face, he was ready to tell me I had to leave.
Mrs. Knight, my Algebra teacher had a smile from ear to ear as she walked over to our little gathering. "My, my, and how we have grown up since I saw you yesterday. I wouldn't have known you if I had been looking before I heard your voice."
She took my hand as she studied me. "I see a beautiful woman before me where a child stood only yesterday. You look absolutely stunning." Mrs. Knight was enjoying herself to no end as she had figured me out and no one else knew.
Mr. Cuff was getting a little peeved over the whole situation. "Mrs. Knight, you know this lady?"
Mrs. Knight was laughing as she looked at all the faces gathered around us. "I sure do. Mr. Cuff, I would like for you to meet Miss, Katrina McDonald."
That still didn't ring anyone's bell. It was a name on an enrollment slip and nothing else. How many people ask to look at your enrollment slip after the first day? None! I was surprised Mrs. Knight would remember it.
Laughing out loud, she couldn't keep it to herself any longer. "This young lady is Jake. You know? Jake McDonald? Imagine cowboy boots, jeans, denim shirts."
Mr. Cuff looked shocked. "Jake McDonald? Jake McDonald? Jake is a…, This is a Jake? No? It can't be!"
He glanced at my breasts where those padded cups were giving him something to look at. "But I thought Jake was a…?"
He was checking my height. "No way…, Jake is shorter."
Mrs. Knight was crying she was laughing so hard. "Miss McDonald is wearing heels."
By now I was getting tickled and beginning to see the humor in all this. "I still get to graduate, right?"
"Sure, if you're Ja…, If you're the McDonald who has been coming to my school for the past three years, then you get a diploma same as all the others." Mr. Cuff wasn't too sure how he should handle this situation. He had been handed something he had never had to face in his whole career. He turned around and left with a quick purpose in his stride. I knew what he was going to do. He was going to check that enrollment slip to see whether he had enrolled a boy or a girl.
Mrs. Knight put her arm around me and gave me a hug. "Katrina, you're the prettiest girl in our school. I wouldn't have missed this for a million dollars. Have fun tonight and let me know if you need any girl support."
"Thanks, Mrs. Knight. I appreciate it."
She backed up and looked me over. "You look better than nice. I haven't seen stockings like that since my mom wore them. I must have the name of the place where you found them. You look soooo…, wow."
The seniors who had arrived earlier and those who had come in after me had been grouped up discussing the "hot chick" who was talking with the teachers. They had heard Mr. Cuff and Mrs. Knight mention Jake McDonald and Katrina McDonald. Most of them didn't make the connection any better than Mr. Cuff. I never socialized in school as I always had chores to do. I didn't have any real friends as none of the girls liked Jake and most of the boys didn't want anything to do with Jake either. The only kid in that whole school who would accept Jake, was a boy named Ernie Stover. Ernie was a computer and electronics geek. Those were the two things I never understood but received a whole lot of information about because I hung around Ernie during school hours. The only mutual friendship we had was, there weren't any other kids in school who would give either one of us the time of day. So, we kind of looked to each other to have someone to talk to. Ernie didn't understand horses, farming, or any of the things I did. I didn't understand ohms, resistors, capacitors, or any of the things he did. I'm sure I gave him as much education about the rodeo and farming as he gave me about circuits.
Ernie had arrived before I did. He was one of those kids hanging back watching when I walked into the room. Slowly he edged over one shy step at a time as he intently stared at me. Finally he got up within four inches of my face. He studied me as he adjusted his glasses. "Jake? It's you isn't it? What did you do to yourself?"
I backed up a step so I didn't have him right in front of my nose. "Hi Ernie, this is me. What do you think? Be pretty hard to rope a calf in this outfit don't you think?"
Ernie's eyes were blinking as he tried to digest the fact his best buddy had turned into a girl. "Golly, Jake, you look real nice. I don't guess you want to hang around me any longer. You're the prettiest girl in this school. You'll want to hang around all the football studs and talk girl talk with all the other girls now."
Ernie was a real good looking boy in his suit and tie. I knew the boy inside all those dress up clothes. I certainly didn't think I could stomach any of the football studs, as Ernie called them. I stepped up and put my arm over his shoulder like we usually did the past four years. "I don't have anything I want to say to the other boys Ernie. You and I have always been and always will be best friends."
Ernie's Adams apple was bobbing up and down as he was swallowing. That tickled me to think I had shocked someone who had been a close pal since junior high. "Ernie relax, it's only me, Jake. I'm not going to eat you. If girls scare you that bad, imagine me in boots, jeans, and my old cowboy hat. I'm still the same guy you always knew. Nothing's changed except a little outside cover."
He still wasn't buying me as his old friend. I figured I needed to get him thinking about something else besides me. "You said you were going to get a five watt ham radio set up in the basement this week. How did it go?"
That was the icebreaker. For ten minutes I listened to Ernie explain something I knew nothing about. But he was in familiar territory and talking about something he knew better than anyone else in school. Katrina had been put out of mind as Ernie talked to his best friend, Jake, about his latest electronics experiment. The boy-girl thing was forgotten for a little while.
The other girls didn't want anything to do with me. I was a social stigma they weren't prepared to handle. Some of the boys who thought they were hot jocks tried to edge in and push Ernie off to the side and strike up a conversation. Ernie was too meek to protest but when he was edged over, I would edge over with him. I really didn't care to be discussing what evers with the boys who thought they were god's gift to the girls. Let the girls who had played that game the past four years giggle and laugh when the jock said something totally not funny to anyone but him.
Finally it was time for the graduation ceremony. From the time I first arrived that was the longest fifty-eight minutes I had ever lived through. Ours was a rural school and the only part of the cap and gown we wore was the cap. There weren't any gowns. I tried to put mine on my head as we were lining up to take our places in the auditorium. Ernie was trying to help. Placing that cap on top of a full hairstyle that had been teased and sprayed until it was like steel wool wasn't working.
Mrs. Knight walked up and took the cap from me. "Here Katrina, let me do it."
She pulled some bobby pins out of her left hand, put the cap in place, and pinned it. "There, it will stay where it belongs now."
I felt with my hands if it was where it should be. It was cocked back. "Is that right?"
She put her right hand on my left shoulder and looked me in the eye. "It is perfect for a young lady. You look lovely Katrina."
The band was playing and the first students were walking into the auditorium. I straightened up. I was going to do my best to make momma and daddy proud. "Thanks Mrs. Knight."
After we took our seats on stage, there was plenty of time to look over the audience as the special awards were passed out to the kids who did something extra special. I finally found momma and daddy in that sea of faces looking at us. What shocked me was, sitting beside them was Bill Randall and his wife LeAnn. I didn't think Bill had any kin in this school.
They finally came to the end of the awards ceremony and it was time for the seniors to cross the stage and pick up their diploma. I was waiting for the first name to be called when I heard my name. "Miss Katrina Ann McDonald to the stage."
Looking around at all the other faces who had turned toward me, I expected someone to say it was a joke. I slowly rose out of my chair and walked down to the stage where they handed out awards. Mrs Knight was at the microphone. "Tonight, we have an unusual award to present to an outstanding student. This award is normally presented at the national rodeo finals. However we were contacted by the National Rodeo Association and asked if we would honor this fine student who has made such an impression on the cowboys and cowgirls of America."
She pointed down toward Bill Randall. "Ladies and gentlemen, we are honored to have the National Calf Roping Champion from our audience to present the award. Would you please welcome, Mr. Bill Randall. Three time winner as National Calf Roping Champion."
There was a rousing applause as Bill walked up on stage. He was dressed better than anytime I had ever seen him. A dark, shiny, brown, western dress suit and tan cowboy boots. He was the most handsome man I had ever seen. He adjusted the microphone to his six foot seven inch height. "Thank you Mr. Cuff. Every year one cowboy is honored as being the most congenial, the best all around, the one person who exemplifies what a cowboy is. The cowboys vote for their favorite cowboy for this honor. They decide who defines by example, the best all around cowboy. The cowboy of choice normally scores consistently in the top honors of his field. He is usually on the rodeo circuit all year. By a vote of their peers, the cowboys pick whom they want to honor. After the final tally was in, the NRA had a small problem. The cowboy wasn't a cowboy. This year has been quite a challenge to the judges of the National Rodeo Association. "
There was a murmur from the audience. It had soaked into my brain where this was leading and my hands were shaking. Bill smiled as he continued. "The cowboy nominated rode the rodeo circuit only part of the year as school demanded the rest of his time. However, he performed consistently at the top in the events in which he entered. The cowboys knew him by the name of Jake McDonald. From my understanding after talking to the faculty here at Webster High, all his classmates knew him as Jake McDonald."
"Like I said, the National Rodeo Association had a small problem. The All Around Cowboy was a cowgirl. After learning about the situation, the NRA judges sent the nomination back to the cowboys for consideration. Jake picked up even more votes as the All Around Cowboy when the tally was counted again. It was my privilege to be half of the head and heel roping team with the young lady whom I am going to present this award tonight."
It was like the night I had roped that calf in the county fair, a rush of quiet dropped on me. Everything went into slow motion as I looked out across the sea of faces in the audience. What were they thinking of me now? Surely they hated me!
Mrs. Nickles walked out on the stage and handed Bill a trophy of a horse with a man standing beside the horse holding the reins. Now I understood how Mrs. Knight knew who I was when I walked in earlier. Obviously the secret wasn't shared with Mr. Cuff.
Bill turned around and held the trophy out to me. "To an All Around Cowboy, Cowgirl, Katrina Ann McDonald. You will always be a top hand in our stable."
As I took the trophy, my hands were shaking so bad I almost dropped it. I was so hot I was about to faint. Bill adjusted the microphone back down to my level and indicated I should say something. I couldn't think of a thing to say. Even if I had I wouldn't be able to say it. My mouth was cotton dry.
I leaned toward the microphone as if it was a rattler and cleared my throat. "Uhhhh, thank you. Thanks to all of you. Thanks to Gunshy, the best horse a cowboy ever had. Thanks to my mom and dad who told…, who taught me to always do my best."
I looked over at Bill. "Thanks to the best person a…, a…, a girl could ever team up with. Bill Randall."
I was through. I said more than I thought I could. Mrs. Knight indicated I should follow her and I did. We walked off behind the curtains on the side of the stage. She held out her hands. "Let me take care of your award Katrina. I'll give it to Mr. Randall or your parents. They will make sure it gets home for you."
I walked around behind the stage and back up to my seat. I could feel everyone staring at me. Thank goodness it was only a minute before Mr. Cuff indicated the diplomas were to be handed out and they forgot me again. We walked across the stage as our names were called. It was quickly over.
Before I could make it from the stage down to where my parents were waiting Donna Snyder stepped in front of me. She had always been the most popular girl in school and had been voted into everything that was going on. She was homecoming queen, student body president, head cheerleader, you name it, she was in it.
She was giving me the once over as she put out her hand to stop me when I started to walk around her. "Jake…, I mean Katrina, some of the kids are getting together for a party in a little while. Won't you come?"
I shook my head. "No thanks. I have things to do at home. I rode in with my parents. I don't have a way back unless I ride home with them. Thanks anyway."
She wasn't letting me get away as she held her position in front of me. "I have my Corvette. I'll drive you home after the party. It's not going to last too long. There's refreshments and pop. We thought we would get together one last time before all of us scatter from home."
I was thinking how Donna reminded me of the way Gunshy and I separate the cows. She was blocking my path. "I don't know."
"Just for old times sake? It's probably the last time you will see most of the other kids you went to school with." Donna wasn't taking no for an answer.
"Who all is going to be there?" I was considering her offer.
"All the seniors and a few of the juniors. Come on, I'll take you home when you want. It will be a lot of fun." She was willing to do everything to get me to the party.
"Okay. Ernie Stover is going to be there too, isn't he?" I was willing to see the other kids for one last time if my old school chum was going.
Donna hesitated. "Sure, all the kids will be there. Tell your parents you're going to a party and will be home later. You can ride over with me. Meet me out in the parking lot. You know my car. It's a red Corvette."
She stepped out of the way. I walked down to explain to my parents I was going to a class party for a few hours. Ten minutes later, I found Donna waiting in the parking lot. We were out of there in a flash. With all the people leaving the ceremony Donna was driving carelessly. I was wishing I hadn't agreed to ride with her. She was an accident looking for a place to happen.
Donna drove quite a ways out of town. The driveway she pulled into I recognized as being Lana Mortner's place. Lana was one of those women whose husband died when she was fifty-one. He left her a ranch, money, and tons of insurance money. She was always off some place like Florida, Colorado, or Europe, seeing if she could spend it all before she died. Her ranch was also only a couple miles down the road from Bill Randall's place.
There was one other car in the driveway when Donna pulled in. I was wondering where the rest of the kids were. "Are we early, or what? It doesn't seem like much of a party yet."
Donna killed the car and got out. "I guess we beat the others here. They'll show up."
I walked into the house with Donna. Kyle Adams, Donna's steady for the past three years was there, along with David Mercer and his girlfriend Ronda Alder. I didn't like the way they were looking at me when we walked in. I heard a car drive up out front. I was hoping it was Ernie and some of the other kids I knew. As I turned to look out the door I saw Ronnie Talsman and his date, Sherrie Henson getting out of a car. I was disappointed. So far I wasn't seeing any of the kids I cared to say goodbye to.
"Where's the refreshments?" I turned to look around the room. It didn't look like much of a party. There was only beer and liquor sitting on the table.
Donna pointed toward the table. "There's enough to go around. You want a beer, brandy, whiskey, or tequila?"
"Neither. I don't drink." I was wishing the other kids would get here and where was Ernie? Donna said he was coming.
Kyle turned on the CD and some acid band was playing some really wild, screeching music. I hated it. He picked up a couple glasses and poured some hard liquor into them.
He handed one to Donna and offered me the other. I shook my head. "I really don't drink."
"Sure you do. Here, it will get you in the mood." He forced it into my hand.
I took it rather than dropping it. "Thanks."
The others begin filling up glasses and drinking while dancing, if one could call it that, around the room. I felt totally out of place. I sure didn't like the drinking. I had a different kind of party in mind than this. I caught Donna as she swirled past me. "I think I'd rather go on home."
Kyle wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me in close. "Dance with me Ja…, Katrina."
He laughed as I tried to follow his steps. It wasn't possible as he didn't have any rhythm nor style. He was moving and that was it. "Kyle, I think…,"
“That's the problem, Jake. You're thinking too much. You need to loosen up. If you'd drink up then you'd feel better." He took the glass out of my hand and held it up to my lips trying to force me to take a drink.
I pushed him away. "I don't want any."
I turned toward Donna. "Take me home now."
Kyle grabbed me from behind wrapping up my arms and lifted me off the floor.
"Kyle, I said I don't want any. Put me down." I tried in vain to struggle free.
He threw me down on the couch and fell on top of me. Squeezing under my jaw he forced my mouth open and poured the liquor in. Clamping his hand over my mouth stopped me from spitting it back out. I held it in my mouth until he clamped my nose shut and I couldn't breath. I was forced to swallow it. It burned all the way down my throat.
Kyle was laughing as he took his hand off my mouth. "There, now you have joined the party."
Chapter V
Lies, Lies and More Damn Lies
Gathering my arms and knees under him, I pushed with all my strength. All those years of growing up on the farm gave me strength a girl wouldn't normally have. I heaved that two hundred pound brute off onto the floor. He landed on his back with a thud. The floor wasn't carpet it was tile. He had the wind knocked out of him as he hit pretty hard.
Before I could sit up, Ronnie Mercer jumped on me. He grabbed the top of my dress and ripped it open. "You put out for those cowboys, you can put out for us. I know that's why they gave you that All Around Cowboy award. I bet you're really an all around fuck."
There was a lamp on the end table above my head. I managed to get hold of it with my right hand while fighting Ronnie with my left. I came down, not with all my strength because I would have split his skull wide open. I tried for a little more of a sideways blow than on top his head. That big old porcelain lamp clunked when it made contact. Ronnie collapsed like a rag doll. Then the pain set in, he was crying as he held the side of his head. He was through. I pushed and he rolled off me onto the floor onto Kyle who was starting to rise up..
I jumped up as David lunged toward me screaming. "YOU LITTLE BITCH!"
Bringing the lamp up in an underhanded swing, I stepped into him and met him head on. I heard a crack as the lamp caught him under the chin. His charge was stopped dead in its' tracks. He wilted to the floor stunned. He didn't know whether to cry or whimper as he held his face. Eventually crying won out. Kyle had pushed Ronnie off and was struggling to his feet when I swung the weapon I had and connected up beside his temple. He went back down screaming and writhing in pain.
I dropped the lamp on the floor as I turned toward the door. I was sure the boys weren't going to be an immediate threat. I also knew I had better put some distance between us before they found their senses again.
I felt her coming as much as I saw her out of the corner of my eye. I spun around. Donna was at a full run with her arms spread and her claws out. I had never been in a cat fight in my life. I wasn't about to get into one now. I was turning at the same time I leaned into her. I was swinging with all my strength. My fist plowed into soft flesh around the cheek and nose. Her head snapped over to one side and she went down on her right side. She skidded across the floor, not yet understanding what happened. She laid there moaning in a stupor.
Ronda jumped at me from four feet away. I grabbed a handful of dress and rolled down backwards as I gathered my knees under her. I pulled her down on top of me and heaved with my knees as I held onto her dress. She did a complete summersault over the top of my head and crashed through the front door feet first. I still had a large portion of her dress in my hands. Ronda curled up in a little ball, crying.
Sherrie was scared to death as I got back to my feet. "I didn't have anything to do with it Jake. I didn't know what they were planning. This wasn't my idea. Don't hurt me."
It was on my mind to leave but I had second thoughts. I walked back over in front of Sherrie. Her eyes were as big as egg whites and she was crying. "Please Jake, I didn't do nothing."
I slapped her as hard as I could. It probably shook some of the marbles loose she had lying around inside that tiny little skull of hers. She dropped to her knees on the floor. She was holding her face and crying.
It was over fifteen miles back home. I started to walk it before I decided the heels I had worn weren't for walking that distance. Donna's purse was on the lamp table. I pulled her keys out of it. I was beginning to feel sick. I walked past the destruction I had caused. The kids were lying on the floor crying or moaning. Picking my way around a shattered front door and a crying Rhonda, I walked out the door Rhonda had busted open as she went through it.
Donna's Corvette started right up. I started to turn toward home and then thought better of it as I looked down at the new dress momma had bought me. It was torn clear down to my waist. There were extra jeans and shirt in the locker in the front of the horse trailer at Bill Randall's place. I'd change before I went home. The three miles to Bill's place was the longest drive I ever made in my life. The road became fuzzy the first half mile. Then things started getting darker. I turned the headlights on bright and that didn't help. I was losing the road as it disappeared and then reappeared in front of me. It seemed like hours and then days before I saw the cattle guard and Bill's driveway. That cattle guard was trying to dodge me as I aimed the Corvette toward it. It kept moving back and forth. I was lucky as I hit it before it could get completely away. Staying on Bill's driveway was impossible as it fell off to one side and then the other. The stock trailer was out in front of his house. I planned on parking beside it. It jumped in front of me before I got by it. I rammed Donna's Corvette into the back of it.
It was impossible to remember why that stock trailer had been so important to me? I sit there in the car for a little while. When I looked down at my dress I remembered I needed a blouse. I opened the door and the ground jumped up and hit me in the face. I reached up and got hold of the doorframe on the Corvette. Pulling myself back up I started toward the trailer. There was nothing else in my mind besides getting a blouse.
The whole world was in a whirl. The horse trailer was trying to run away from me. I reached out to grab the trailer but it eluded me. The ground was in motion and rolling like ocean waves. I lost my balance again. A pair of hands caught me before I hit the ground a second time. I tried to throw a punch and knock Kyle off. "Get your damn hands off me!"
"Katrina, what's the matter with you? You drunk?"
I shook my head. "I don't drink and I don't fuck. Get your damn hands off me."
"What's the matter with you? What have you taken?"
"I beat you already. It's not fair. I beat you alr…," I was caught in a whirlpool of darkness. It pulled me into its' vortex.
Slowly a light formed at the end of the vortex. I could see a silhouette where someone was standing at the end. They were calling my name. "Katrina, it's going to be alright. Hold on Katrina and you will be okay."
"Grandma, is that you? I thought you were dead? Momma said you died two years after I was born. Wait till I tell momma you're okay."
"You will be fine Katrina."
It was getting harder and harder to make her out as the light around her dimmed. "Grandma, don't go. I want you to stay and visit. Wait a minute. I'll find momma and tell her you're here."
The light faded completely. "Grandma? Someone turned out the light. Grandma?"
"She's breathing again. We got her back. LeAnn get the truck. We'll take her to the hospital. It will be quicker than calling an ambulance."
"What's the problem with her?" The voice was shrill and it hurt my head.
"I don't know. She stopped breathing about twenty minutes ago. We did CPR on her and got her back."
"I want a blood sample now. Put her on oxygen. What's her vitals?" It was a strange voice.
"They drugged her. She'll be alright but she's gonna be out for a few more hours." The voice was distant. I was swimming through a haze.
I cried as I shook my head. "i'm okay. i'm okay. i'm okay."
My throat was so parched I couldn't swallow. I licked my lips. My tongue was so thick it didn't fit in my mouth. "water."
Someone touched my mouth with ice. "Suck on this Katrina. It will help."
It felt cool and refreshing. I fought to open my eyes and lost the battle. Things went black again.
"How you feeling?" It was LeAnn Randall's voice.
"Tell Bill I'll get that calf tomorrow night." I knew I had been run down by a calf again.
I heard laughter. "Sure you will Katrina. Give it a little time and it'll be okay."
I didn't think the twilight zone would ever end. I couldn't get awake as I fought the demons who were keeping me there. "Daddy, is Gunshy okay? I don't think I gave him any feed before I left. BILL! WE HAVE TO GO BACK! I FORGOT TO LOAD GUNSHY UP IN THE TRAILER! NO, PLEASE DON'T!"
Finally things begin to get real again as the demons receded into the dark. That night I had been run over by the calf was a lark compared to what I was feeling now. As the room came into focus I noticed I was in bed. Then I noticed I was in a hospital room. Bill, LeAnn, and Bill's foreman, Frank, and several others were there.
Two faces were noticeably absent. "Where's mom and dad?"
LeAnn picked up my hand and rubbed it. "We called them a little while ago. Things were kind of hectic for a little bit. We were trying to sort out the situation before we called them. How you feel?"
"Stupid for being here. What happened? Was there an accident?" I couldn't remember anything from the point of telling my parents I was going to a party.
Bill stepped up and took my other hand. "I'd say there was an accident. Do you remember Kyle Adams, David Mercer, Ronnie Talsman?"
"Yeah, they're kids in my graduating class. Were they in an accident?" I was looking inside my mind for a filler for that big blank. Nothing was there.
"Well, I guess you could say they were in an accident. They and their girlfriends are in jail right now. Do you remember them giving you a drink?" Bill was watching me for a reaction.
"No." I had no recollection of what Bill was talking about. The last thing I remembered was the graduation ceremony at the high school.
He studied my eyes and took my hand. "You barely made it over to my place. At first we thought you had been drinking. When you passed out it scared all of us. We brought you into the hospital. Dr. Brown checked you over and said you had a smell of whiskey on you but nothing in you. It didn’t even show up on the blood test. What did show up was a drug. I knew you would never do it on your own unless someone forced you. Your torn dress and Donna's Corvette was pointing toward a problem. I called Larry Gunther, the country sheriff."
Bill was waiting to see if any of this registered on me. It didn't. He shook his head. "It seems Larry had an all points bulletin out on you Cat. The other kids had called in to complain about you beating them up and stealing Donna Snyder's car. Well, in the couple hours you have been out, Larry was busy. He went out to the house where they drugged you and accessed the situation. Larry said it wasn't right. They were all downstairs in emergency so they weren't hard to find. He separated the kids and took a statement from all of them, one at a time. Their stories didn't hold together."
"Word spreads pretty quick in this little community and several of the other kids started dropping by to see what was going on. Larry found some of them saying they overheard Donna inviting you to a class party. After that, Larry charged them with destruction of property and took them down to the pokey. He got a warrant and searched their cars. They had drugs and alcohol in them. Donna’s Corvette had a drug known to be a date rape drug under the seat. There aren’t any real labs for testing those kind of things here but Doc Anders said all your symptoms were constant with you being drugged with what Larry found in Donna’s car."
Bill smiled. "They are waiting on their parents to come down and bail them out. I don't think anyone came out of this a winner Cat, but you sure come close. Those six kids look like a herd of buffalo ran over them."
It was only a story to me because I had no recollection of anything Bill was talking about. I only knew that if that was what Bill was telling me then that was the way it happened. I glanced around the room. "Thanks everyone. I don't know what I would do without you."
Mom and dad arrived about ten minutes later. Everyone was talking at once and I lost out on most of it because as soon as I stopped struggling to stay awake I would fall asleep. I'd wake up and it would be the same thing all over again. The next morning, Dr. Brown discharged me from the hospital.
I was getting dressed in the jeans and shirt mom brought me. Mom was picking up my things when she held up the new dress she had bought me the day before. She looked at it for the longest time before she would look in my direction. "I don't think I can mend it, Katrina. It looks to me like it's ruined."
"I'm sorry, momma, I didn't do it on purpose. I should have stayed with you guys. I'll pay you back out of my savings." I noticed tears were forming in her eyes as she looked at the dress.
She shook her head. "No, it's not your fault. You shouldn't have to pay for something when it couldn't be helped. I'm glad nothing else was lost."
I knew what she was talking about. "It would have been over my dead body."
She dropped the dress as she pulled me into her breast. "Oh, Katrina, I love you so much. I'm so thankful you got away when you did. I should have checked on that party they said they were having. It was my fault, honey."
Putting my arms around her neck I hugged her back. "No momma. I'm big enough to check on those things myself. I should have asked a few more questions and talked to a few more kids about the party. I would have figured it out when none of the other kids didn't know anything about a party. I should have asked a few more questions is all."
My problem with the whole conversation was, I really had no idea what I was talking about. I didn't remember being invited to any party. I certainly didn't remember a party. I had a torn dress and everyone's explanation about what happened that night.
The day after I left the hospital, Gunshy and I were in the front yard working on the stock trailer. Dad was in the tool shed working on a planter when the county sheriff, Larry Gunther, and Bill Randall came driving up. Bill and Larry sat talking in the car for a few minutes before they got out.
Larry walked over to where I was putting the bearing back in the wheel. "Hello Katrina. How you feeling?"
Picking up a rag off the ground, I wiped the grease off my hands as dad walked out of the shed and up to where we were. I stood up. "I'm okay."
Larry glanced at dad, over at Bill, and then back at me. "What do you remember about the night the other kids drugged you?"
"Nothing except what Bill and the others have told me. I don't remember anything between the graduation and the hospital." I was wondering what this was leading into.
He glanced over at Bill again. "Well, I've got some bad news. The other kids and their parents have banded together and hired a lawyer. They are going to sue you for attacking them, beating them up, and destroying the house and the car. They say it was all your idea. Their story is, you invited them out there to a party and then started taking drugs and drinking. You tried to get them to do the same and when they wouldn't, you became violent. You started breaking things and throwing things at them. Said you stole Donna's Corvette and wrecked it."
I was stunned and didn't know what to say. How could they be blaming me for something I had no recollection about?
"Is any of it true?" Larry was looking at me for an answer.
"I don't know. I can't remember that night. I don't think it's true. I never drank alcohol in my whole life. I'm sure I haven't ever taken any drugs. I can't remember." As hard as I tried there was no memory of that time.
He sighed. "I can tell you it's going to get damn ugly with that lawyer they hired. There are six of them telling the same story now and only you with no memory of it. I have their original stories and tapes of the place but a good lawyer will twist the whole thing around until you seem to be the guilty one. Especially since you have no memory of what happened. It is six of them against you. Because you don’t remember any of it, the tapes may not be admissible."
"Are you going to arrest me?" My heart was beating so loud I knew everyone could hear. My knees were knocking so bad I couldn't stand it. All I wanted in the whole world was to be held by my daddy and have him tell me he would protect me.
Larry shook his head. "No, I know who the guilty party is. It isn't you Katrina. I arrested the other kids that first night but it isn't going to make any difference. They filed a lawsuit in civil court. I don't care if you are Snow White. In civil court anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason."
My nerves were beginning to calm down just a fraction. "What do I need to do? I don't have any memory of that night."
He pulled an envelope out of his back pocket. "I have a summons for you to appear in court."
As I reached for it Larry pulled it back. "Just a minute. Bill and I talked it over. I'm going to go for a walk."
Sticking the envelope back into his pocket, Larry walked out toward the pasture as Bill glanced over at dad and then me. "Cat, right now you are your own worst problem. They get you in court they will eat you alive because you don't remember that night."
He pointed toward Larry who was disappearing behind the barn. "Larry is ready to swear he couldn't deliver the summons to you today. Technically he hasn't as he had to put it in your hand for it to be delivered. He is going to give you an opportunity to leave the country until your lawyer can get this situation under control."
"I don't have a lawyer." I was furiously thinking of who I knew as a lawyer. I couldn't think of anyone. I didn't think my parents knew anyone either.
Bill nodded. "Yes you do. Brenda and Elliot Kendell out of Wisconsin are going to take your case. They are the best lawyers for this situation. Brenda was a judge herself at one time. She isn't intimidated by them and she knows all the angles. She eats judges and lawyers for breakfast every morning. Elliot is the best research lawyer in the business. He can find that obscure law or judgment no one else ever thought of. Between the two of them they will win your case. It has to be on their terms."
"I can't afford any high priced lawyers, Bill. I don't have that kind of money and mom and dad sure don't. I'll…,"
"It's taken care of Cat. A lot of the boys in the rodeo think you're number one. They passed the hat and said you can repay them when you are able. I talked to Kevin, the man who I mentioned a few months back. He ships horses all over the world. You pack your bags and go pick up one of his horses in Atlanta tonight. You'll get your instructions when you get there."
Bill pulled an envelope out of his pocket and took out a sheet of paper. "This is your application for a passport. Fill it out on the flight down to Atlanta. Hand it to the driver who picks you up at the airport. Wear your western jacket and cowboy hat. That is how your driver will know you."
To say I was stunned was an understatement. "I'm leaving home tonight?"
He shook his head and held out some tickets. "No, you're leaving home in an hour. You have to drive over to Elmwood to catch the commuter flight to Carson City and then to Atlanta."
"I can't!" I turned to look at daddy who was as stunned as me.
"Cat, if you stay and they get you in court, your parents will probably end up losing everything. I know what happened the other night and it isn't right. Their lawyer will eat you alive and it will go against you. When they get a judgment against you it will include your mom and dad. Is that what you want? You want them to lose the farm?"
"It's not fair. I don't remember." A tear trickled down my cheek as I looked from dad to Bill.
"No, it's not fair but it's the way the system works. Brenda and Elliot will handle this. You have to give them a chance to get on top of it. If you stay, Larry will be back later this evening to hand you the summons he has in his pocket. That is out of his hands. He's giving you the chance to let your lawyers take care of this. They can't do it if you end up in court in a couple days. Judge Garrison isn't going to give you an extension. He likes to settle things on the spot. If they can't serve the summons on you it will have to be delayed whether Judge Garrison likes it or not. Give us a chance to help you Cat." Bill thrust the papers in my direction.
"An hour? I have to pack in an hour? Where am I going to deliver the horse?" I was having a hard time concentrating on what I needed to do. This was so sudden.
Bill shook his head. "I don't know Cat, and I don't want to know. Kevin said you needed a passport so I figured it was out of the country. That was more than I needed to know. Pack your suitcase for an extended trip. He said he was going to keep you busy if you were half as good with horses as what he had heard."
Tears were running down both cheeks as I realize I was going to have to leave everything I loved behind. I turned toward daddy. "Daddy…?"
He took me in his arms and held me close and tight like he used to when I was little. "It's okay, to cry Jake. We can handle things on this end. Gunshy and I will take care of the chores. Katherine will take care of all of us like she used to do before you came along."
Bill glanced at his watch. "You don't have much time, Cat. Get your bags and go."
He whistled and Larry came back around the barn. Larry never looked at me as he and Bill got into the car and left. I figured he didn't want to know what was said. I was sure of one thing. He would be back to serve that summons he had in his pocket.
Daddy walked with me back into the house. He told me to go pack as he was going to explain it to momma. I dragged out the old blue suitcase that had been with me for the past three years as Bill and I hit the rodeo circuit every summer. It was sure beat up but it was sturdy and had a lot of miles left in it. I had jeans, shirts, and panties packed when momma came into the room holding a bag.
"Here Katrina, you will start needing these."
I looked in the bag and there were some bras. "I don't need them momma."
She put them in the corner of my suitcase. "Yes you do. You're starting to fill out, Katrina. It took you a lot longer than most girls but it's beginning to happen. I can see it when you walk out to the barn or when you climb up on the tractor. Most girls have already changed into young ladies by the time they get into high school. I believe you put it off because of all the farm work and rodeoing you were doing."
Momma was wrong. I knew she was wrong. I didn't need any bras. I dropped the last of my clothes in the suitcase and closed it. "Thanks momma. I have to go tell Gunshy I'll be gone for a few days."
Picking up one of momma's apples off the kitchen table, I stepped out the front door and whistled. I could hear him coming at a full gallop from around the backside of the house. I held out the apple in my right hand, Gunshy slid up to me, stopped, reached out and picked the apple out of my hand.
Rubbing his ears and scratching under his neck, I gave him a hug. "Let's go down to the barn and get some feed. I have something I want to tell you."
I gave him a couple extra scoops of dairy feed in his feeder as I explained I was going away for a few days. Every time I started out of the barn he would follow me instead of eating his feed. It was the only time Gunshy didn't have his nose pushed down into the bottom of the feeder after I dropped some dairy feed in it. He knew this wasn't one of my usual trips. I hugged his neck and cried. I didn't want to leave him either.
Daddy was honking the pickup horn. It was time to go. I walked Gunshy back to the stall and dropped the latch. It wouldn't hold him long as he had figured out a long time ago how to work all the latches. I ran out to the pickup and climbed in front with mom and dad. Dad had thrown my suitcase in back. Two miles down the road I turned to look back at the farm. A mile back was Gunshy running for all he was worth. It was the first time he hadn't stopped at the edge of our property.
"Daddy, Gunshy isn't staying on the farm. We have to go back."
Dad glanced into the rearview mirror. "He'll be alright, Jake. He knows where home is. He'll go back when he gets tired."
"No daddy. He won't go back. He knows it's not right. Stop and let him ride in the back of the pickup. Please, daddy. Stop. He won't go back home. Let him ride to the airport with us. Please, daddy. I'll drop a halter on him so he will have to ride back in the truck but please let him go with us."
Dad let up on the gas as he looked at momma. " Katherine?"
She was looking at dad for an answer. "I guess?"
Dad braked to a stop. I hopped out and dropped the tailgate on the pickup. Gunshy was there in less than the time it took for me to move my suitcase over to the side. I hopped up in back and motioned for Gunshy to climb in. "Come on Gun. You can't run all the way."
It didn't take a second for him to hop up in the back with me. I could hear dad talking to momma as we started off down the road again. "I never saw anything like it. She treats that horse like a dog and he does everything she asks."
"No, she treats him like a brother. They understand each other better than we'll ever know." Mom turned around in the seat to take a look at Gunshy and me ridding along in the back of the pickup with the wind blowing in our faces.
Dad pulled up in the parking lot there at Elmwood like he was somebody. Everyone was staring at us. A horse in the back end of a pickup without any sideboards was a novelty even in cowboy country.
I hopped out of the pickup and Gunshy dropped out beside me after I let the tailgate down. It didn't make any difference, he was going to get out one way or another. I didn't want him to hurt himself going over the side. "You wait here. I'm going to go get a ticket and I'll be right back."
There was only one desk inside that terminal. As I walked up to it the man behind the counter looked up. "Can I help you?"
"I need a ticket to Atlanta." I handed over the instruction sheet Bill hand handed to me in the yard.
The man looked at it for a second and turned around. "Carol, this…,"
He turned to study me for a second as he looked down at the instructions. "…, lady needs a ticket to Atlanta."
I looked over the desk at the instructions Bill had written. There at the top of the page was Katrina McDonald. I guess with my old cowboy hat and jeans I still looked like I normally did. The man behind the desk was checking to see if he had read the name right.
The lady handed me a ticket and took over twelve hundred dollars out of my hand. "Here you go."
I almost choked. I had never bought a twelve hundred dollar anything in my whole life. Much less a ticket for a few hours flight. I tried to assure myself it wasn't a total loss. "I can win it back in calf roping if nothing else."
Carol and the man looked at me. I shrugged my shoulders. "I'm a calf roper. Bill Randall and I took state championship in head and heel for the past three years."
The man squinted as he gave me a harder look. "Bill Randall? Bill ropes with Jake McDon…, No, no, unuh, ain't no way. You aren't Jake McDonald?"
My smile gave me away. He shook his head as he looked out the window at Gunshy standing outside the door. "Well, I'll be damned. You're a girl! Carol, look at that. Jake McDonald is a girl. She's the best roper this country has ever seen."
Turning in his chair he pointed out the door. "And that's the smartest horse I've ever seen. I was there three years ago when that horse ran over and knocked that calf down after you were on the ground. He is the one they call Gunshy isn't he?"
"Yep, that's him. He makes me look pretty good too. All I have to do is stay on top and he gets me in position to throw the rope." It was funny I had run into someone who was a big rodeo fan and knew us.
He walked around the desk and held out his hand. "I'm your pilot into Carson City. I'd like to go out and say hi to Gunshy if that's alright."
"Don't get too close to him. He doesn't like people."
The man looked at me like he thought I was lying. "You're kidding?"
I crossed my heart. "Nope, honest truth. He doesn't like people. There are only three people that can touch him and not get stomped. Bill Randall is one, my mom and dad are the other two."
The man was headed out the door. "This I gotta see."
As he walked out the door, Gunshy backed up. The man slowly walked toward him with his hand out. "Hi there old man. How you doing? How about if you let me pet you?"
Gunshy kept backing as the man approached him. Finally Gun had enough. He stood up on his back legs, pawed the air and whinnied. It was a warning to the man he wasn't backing up any further. Luckily the man had enough sense to realize he had gone far enough.
He turned and looked at me. "What a magnificent horse. I'm glad he can't fit into the cockpit of my plane. He would probably take my job away from me."
Everyone around us laughed. The man glanced in my direction. "We leave in ten minutes. I'll carry your suitcase on. When you see that second engine turn over you better be on board because that plane is leaving."
"I'll be there." I walked out to Gunshy. Scratching behind his ears and under his neck I cried as I told him goodbye. I gave mom and dad a hug and cried some more. I hated this. Why should I be the one who had to leave when I didn't do anything wrong?
Too soon it was time to go as I saw the pilot get on the plane and one of those engines turn over. I motioned Gunshy up into the pickup bed. He jumped in knowing I was leaving him. It broke my heart. I was crying as I pointed toward the floor of the pickup bed. "Stay Gun. Daddy is going to drive you back home. You go back and take care of mom and dad and the rest of the place okay? I'm depending on you to watch over things while I'm gone. I'll be back as soon as I can. I love you with all my heart. Please be good while I'm gone."
Dad pulled me in as I turned to walk back into the terminal. "Jake, you didn't put the halter on Gunshy."
Mom pulled on his arm as she wrapped another arm around me. "He'll stay John. Katrina told him to."
I couldn't bear to look at any of them as I walked back through the office and out to the field where the airplane was waiting. As I climbed the steps up into the plane I heard him whinny. Tears trickled down my cheeks as I buckled in. I wiped my nose and eyes on my jacket sleeve. Looking out the window as we picked up off the ground I couldn't see the pickup or Gunshy as they were behind the building.
Crying, I pressed my nose to the glass as the plane banked to the left. We circled the airport once as mom, dad, and Gun watched from down below. The plane leveled out as we headed up toward the clouds.
The lady called Carol walked back and handed me a handful of tissue. "I don't know if it's the first time or what but you'll be back Katrina. Everything will be okay."
Screwing up my mouth I tried to thank her but it didn't work. I couldn't say anything between tears. She walked back up to the copilot's seat and sit down again. That little commuter plane only had room for twenty passengers. It didn't make a lot of difference. There were only nine others on that flight besides me and the two pilots.
The flight into Carson City took a little over thirty minutes. Carol asked me to wait until the others had left. She walked with me into the terminal and guided me up to the ticket counter. She handed the lady behind the counter a ticket. "Jan, this young lady is Katrina McDonald. She is Montana's number one roper. I want you to see to it personally that she gets to Atlanta safely. All the cowboys would take offense if anything happened to Montana's number one roper."
Jan looked at the ticket. "I'll take care of her Carol."
She motioned for me to follow. "This way Katrina."
I turned toward Carol before I followed the lady named Jan. I held out my hand. "Thanks, Carol. If you see mom and dad and that old horse, tell them I'm okay."
"I will. Jan will show you which plane you are going to get on." Carol reached out and shook my hand.
I followed Jan for what seemed like miles before she pointed me toward a tunnel. "Get on that plane and don't get off until the pilot tells you you're in Atlanta."
That suitcase of mine was about to stretch my arm off. "I will, thanks for showing me the way."
She was gone.
Chapter VI
Big City, Small Country Girl
We made several stops before we reached Atlanta. After the plane pulled up to the terminal, I put my hat on and dragged my suitcase down from the overhead. I was walking out of the off boarding tunnel when I saw a tall skinny guy holding up a sign with Cat McDonald on it. I waved in his direction. "I'm Katrina McDonald."
He took my suitcase for which I was very thankful. "So you're the famous horse person. Funny, but you don't look anything like I thought you would."
I was hurrying to stay up with those long legs of his. "What am I supposed to look like and who said I was a famous horse person?
He took a quick look in my direction. "Oh, I don't know. Tall, squinty eyed from looking into the sun too much. Older for sure. More cowboyish or something. Where's your spurs?"
Laughing, it took me a second to respond. "I don't wear spurs except for show. I never use them on a horse. Horses don't care how big you are or how small you are. They only care whether you are smarter than them or dumber then them."
We were in the parking lot and he dropped my suitcase in the backseat of an Explorer. "You have some papers for me?"
"What kind of papers?" I didn't know what I was supposed to hand him.
"Papers you were supposed to fill out on the flight. Papers to get your passport." He held out his hand expectantly.
"Oh, yes." Lifting my jacket I pulled an envelope out of my belt. I handed him the papers I had filled out on the plane. There was also my birth certificate mom handed me before I left home.
He checked them over. "Okay, they look good. We will drive by the office. They will take your picture and send everything down to the passport people. You should be ready to take that devil down to Brazil the day after tomorrow."
"What devil?"
Backing the car up he pulled out into traffic. "They handed you a shitty job Miss McDonald. You have to get Heater ready for the flight down to Brazil. He's crazy. He has already put four people in the hospital. He will kill you if you give him a chance."
He looked in my direction. "They didn't tell you did they? Nobody would get on the plane with that wild horse. He's mean, evil, and wicked. He likes to hurt people and tear up things. Every one of Kevin's handlers told him they wouldn't ship him. I thought you knew. I don't know what you know about horses but it better be a hell of a lot more than any of them other guys."
The ride down to the office he mentioned was pretty short. I found out my driver's name was Leonard LeBo. He had been working for Valley Downs Farms for eleven years. He was kind of an all purpose person. He took up the slack whenever someone didn't do their job or needed off.
We pulled into an underground garage and took the elevator up to the eighteenth floor. As we stepped off the elevator Leonard took my arm and led me over in front of a desk. The lady behind it was dressed really attractive. She was a pretty woman and she was well put together. Leonard dropped my papers on her desk. "Sharon, this is our horse wrangler."
She looked up and smiled. "Pleased to meet you son. My name is Sharon Thurmond. What's your name?"
Leonard got tickled and burst out laughing. "HER name is Katrina McDonald. SHE, is Montana's state champion roper for the past three years. SHE needs a passport by tomorrow. She's supposed to be able to get Heater loaded on a plane and fly him down to Brazil two days from now."
Leonard pointed at the papers he dropped on Sharon's desk. "All the paper work is there. Can you pull the rabbit out of the hat for us?"
Sharon was studying me trying to figure out if Leonard was pulling a fast one on her about the gender thing. She picked up the forms I had filled out for the passport application before she answered. "I'll need a reasonable photo. Take her down to Anna's on first floor and get her some decent clothes. She can look like a boy three hundred and sixty four days out of the year but today for that passport photo she's going to look like a lady."
Pulling on my arm, Leonard led me out the door and back to the elevator. "Let's go change you into a girl."
I was getting annoyed with the way he was leading me around. I wasn't a little child to be led by the hand. We were on the elevator headed down. I collected my thoughts. "Leonard, as much help as you've been. As much as I need your advice. As much as I need you to tell me what my job is. You grab me by the arm one more time and lead me around like one of your horses and I'm going to deck you."
I turned to look at him. His eyes registered shock, amusement, and then they spread into silent laughter. "I guess I have been taking the lead just a little here. I'm sorry. I have never met a real cowboy before Katrina. I kind of figured you were about as bright as one of them horses. Too many old cowboy films on the mind I guess."
The elevator stopped at the first floor. Leonard automatically reached out his hand to grab my arm again. He was standing on my left and I doubled up my right fist. He noticed. His right hand brushed my sleeve as he pointed toward the open door. "This way, please, Miss McDonald."
In the lobby he started to do it again. Grab my arm. I side stepped him before he got a hold. He shook his head laughing. "Please forgive me. It's not intentional. I'm so used to grabbing someone or something and leading them to where I want them to go, I can't help myself."
I nodded. "I do understand. You understand this. It's going to hurt you a lot worse then it hurts me if you don't get a handle on that habit of yours."
He stopped and looked at me kind of funny. "You're all barbwire aren't you Katrina? I think I'm finally beginning to understand what a real cowboy is."
Pointing toward a ladies shop he motioned I should go in. "This is Anna's. She is the resident wizard of Atlanta. All of the women swear by her."
We walked into Anna's. Leonard held out his arm to an attractive lady standing off to one side talking to a customer. "Hi beautiful."
I thought she was pretty but a little over done in makeup and dress. I mean she looked like she should have stepped out of a movie magazine or a makeup ad rather than real life.
She was eyeing me suspiciously as she gave Leonard a peck on the check. "Hello, Leo. Sharon called. Is this her?"
He turned around and pointed. "Yes, how much time do you need?"
I thought she was going to cry as she shook her head. "A couple years but you aren't going to let me have her that long are you?"
Laughing, Leonard shook his head. "Anna, my love, she's a cowgirl, not one of your debutantes. Change her into a woman for a passport picture. She takes Heater out the day after tomorrow. I'm sure she isn't going to be wearing a dress for that."
Anna sighed. "So much potential, so little time."
She waved me toward the back room. "Come my dear. We must get started immediately if I am to accomplish the impossible by six o' clock. They will want you up in personnel for pictures no later."
Leonard shouted as I was walking into the back with Anna. "HEY COWGIRL, I have things I have to do. I'll meet you out at the farm. Call me when you're done with the photos and I'll have someone pick you up."
Turning to look back I nodded. "Thanks Leonard."
Anna took my arm to lead me into the back. What was it about these city people and grabbing someone by the arm?
Two and a half hours later they had finished with me. I felt like one of those rodeo clowns. You know, all made up and not really what you were looking at. Anna was directing me as she handed me a sack with my old clothes in it. "Our photo department closed up thirty minutes ago. Ken said he had another engagement this evening and couldn't wait on you. I called a taxi. You are to go over to Eversteins and get your photo taken."
She handed me a note as she urged me toward the front door. "Give this to the driver and he will take you there."
It was really nieve of me to not ask more questions. Everyone thought I was city wise I guess. There is a lot of difference between the parts of the big city I saw on the rodeo circuit and the parts of the city I was looking at now. Besides, all those other times I had Bill Randall to chaperone me and keep me from doing something stupid.
There was a taxi waiting out front. I walked out and slid into the back seat. "Are you my taxi?"
The driver turned around in the seat to take a look. "I'm anyone's taxi. Where we going?"
I handed him the instructions Anna handed to me.
He settled back into the seat, glanced over his left shoulder, and the car jumped out into a hole in the traffic with car horns blaring from everyone around us. He kept looking in his rearview mirror at me. I was wondering what he thought he was looking at?
Thirty minutes later he pulled up in front of a large building. I waited, he waited. Finally he turned around in the seat again. "We're here. This is the address you gave me. You going to get out or what? I don't care because I still charge the same whether you sit in the car or whether you don't sit in the car."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know." I started to get out.
"Lady, I like looking at you but it's gonna cost you just the same. It's fifty six dollars and forty five cents for the fare." He held out his hand.
It embarrassed me to realize I should have paid him. I knew better. Pulling my jeans out of the sack I took my billfold out of the back pocket and took out a fifty and a ten. I handed the money to him and waited.
He waited.
I held out my hand. "I think you owe me three dollars and fifty five cents in change. As much as I appreciate the ride over here, you charge a heck of a lot of money for that. I don't think I should be giving you any more than what you deemed was a fair price. My change if you please."
Smiling he handed me my change. "Where you from? You don't talk southern. You from Kansas, Iowa, or Wisconsin?"
"Montana." I put the change in my billfold.
“What do you do besides model?"
"What? Oh no, I'm not a model. I'm a roper. I rope calves and steers in the rodeo." I opened the door to get out.
He blinked a couple times. "Yeah, and I'm the president of the United States. Get out of my cab lady. I have other fares to go pickup."
He almost didn't let me get out of the cab before he was gone. I never had a chance to tell him I really was a roper.
Walking into the building I was met by a lady with several small chains and straps around her neck. There was a watch on the end of one, a small calculator on one, and other instruments of one kind or another hanging on the others.
She picked up her watch and looked at it. "You're late. Down the hall third door on your left."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to keep anyone waiting." I was trying to apologize.
"It makes no difference. Get down there now." She pointed down the hall.
At least she didn't grab my arm and lead me. "Yes ma’am."
If I had been wearing my boots I would have ran. Those three inch heels Anna put on me weren't for running. I tried my best and counted doors as I did an almost run down the hall. It was a good thing I wasn't bulldogging calves. I wouldn't have ever caught one in those heels. The third door on my left I turned the knob and hit it with my shoulder at the same time.
It swung open, all the way back to the wall with a loud thud. It rattled the whole room. I was standing there looking at a sea of faces. The man straight in front of me looked down at one of those watches on a string around his neck before he threw up his hands and shouted. "Places, people. Places. Let's get this over with."
He pointed at me. "YOU ARE LATE!"
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be." I was sure these people hated me for making them wait to take a photo of me. That passport photo was turning out to be a real pain emotionally.
He pointed across the room. There were a bunch of lights and cameras. "Over there."
I hurried across the room and stopped. Turning around I saw a startled expression on his face. He blinked as he stared at me. "Linda, LINDA! She needs position. Position! I need position!"
A lady stepped out from the crowd behind the cameras. "Get in front of the cameras. Smile, wave, give us a little movement."
I did as I was directed. I smiled, waved and stepped over to the side wondering what kind of photo had to be in that passport?
"The bag. What's she doing holding onto the bag. Get rid of that bag. LINDA! WHAT IS SHE DOING WITH A BAG?" The man was yelling again.
The lady stepped up and held out her hand. "Here let me take care of that for you."
I held back. It had all my money in it. "My personal things are in there."
"I'll make sure it's okay. Let me have the bag."
Handing the sack to her I wondered if I had done the right thing. Who would I call if I lost all my money and had no way of getting home?
"Position. I need position. Linda, we need something happening here. I don't feel anything from her. TALK TO HER!" The man was yelling again.
Linda stepped up in front of me again. "Okay, take your skirt and swing for us. Smile, toss your hair over to the side, give us some action."
The purple dress Anna had put on me had a full skirt. I swung my hand down and collected some material in my hand as it went past the skirt. I swept it up as I tossed my head over to the side and smiled.
"Great! I love it. Now spin and do it again. Linda, we need some action." He had finally stopped yelling. Cameras were flashing and I was wondering what they did with those passport photos?
Linda gave a little twirling motion with her right hand. I spun as the skirt swept out. Again I caught it with a sweep of my hand as I smiled and laughed. I had no idea what a passport photo looked like. If it was this hard to get one, I was surprised anyone would have one.
Ten spins later I was so dizzy I fell down on my butt. The cameras were still clicking. I felt pretty stupid.
"That's a take. Let's get the car."
I was sitting on the floor when a couple dozen people marched by me. All the props and everything around me disappeared off to the side with the people. They pushed a car up behind me.
"Okay, can she stand beside the car? Linda?"
Linda stepped in and helped me up off the floor. "Stand beside the car. Smile. Sit on the hood. Open the door and stand beside it. Sit in the car with the door open. Last, close the door and buckle in like you were driving it."
Damn funny passport pictures? I walked up beside the car. The illuminescent purple dress I was wearing was in distinct contrast to the shinny silver car they wanted me to pose with. I looked that car over. It had to be brand new. Someone had spent a lot of time making it shine like that. Feeling mischievous, I spun around, ducked my head, and glared at the cameras out of the side of my eye.
After the initial rash of clicks it became so quite you could have heard a cow eating grass on the other side of the barn. I looked out past the lights wondering how much trouble I had got into by not following orders?
"linda?" It was his voice, soft and quite behind the lights.
There was a cough and Linda walked over to me. "I imagine that was the one but let's finish up just in case."
I tried to sit on the hood but I kept sliding off. Between that soft polyester dress I was wearing and that slick car hood there wasn't any way I was going to stay on that car.
Linda took my arm and led me back around to the car door. "Okay, let's do the side shot. I'll have them drop a cloth on the hood later."
She backed up. I smiled, tossed my head, put my hand up on the car, did everything they asked. Finally it was inside the car and they took several dozen more pictures. Then it was back to that hood. A man dropped a small rubber mat on the hood. I jumped up and stayed for a few seconds. Between my pantyhose and that slippery dress, I slid off again. It was a good thing I was wearing a full skirt or I would have exposed a lot more than intended.
"Linda?"
"I think I got it." She walked out from behind the lights. Before I knew what she was doing she reached down and lifted my skirt up to my shoulders.
"Up on the car."
It was an automatic response to do what I was told. I hopped up and plopped my butt down on the rubber pad on the hood. Linda took my full skirt and arranged it across the hood of the car letting it drape off the side.
She backed up and cameras clicked. "Motion, we need motion."
I smiled, tossed my head, leaned down across the hood and stretched out. Again it got quite. I sit up knowing I had messed up again. Those damn passport photos were a pain for sure.
Linda walked out again. "Maybe we didn't have it that first time. It's going to be tough with two good ones."
"LET'S GO PEOPLE! TIME IS MONEY! We have one more to do before we finish here tonight. Let's get it done."
Why did he have to yell all the time? I was really beginning to dislike the man I didn't know.
A sea of people crossed past me. The car was gone. A fence and backdrop of a stable was behind me. Half a dozen hay bales were scattered around. I heard a sound I recognized. The clop of horse hooves.
Linda walked up with a pinto in tow. "He's gentle so don't let him scare you. You'll be all right. We have handlers who will get him if he gets too excited."
Laughing, I looked the pinto in the eye. "She's a mare not a he."
I reached up and scratched her behind the ears. "Hello old girl. Where you been? I don't think we have met before. My name is Katrina, what's yours. You ever get out and play in the rodeo? You might know me as Jake."
The pinto snorted and her eyes glazed over. She was in horse heaven as I scratched behind her ears. Linda got a funny look on her face.
She looked around. "Where's the rope? We need rope in this shot. Where's the feed? We need the feed bag for our sponsor shot."
A guy walked up and dropped several nylon ropes on one of the hay bales. Several others set sacks of Dan's Race Horse Feed around.
"Okay, pick up one of the ropes and act like you are going to catch him…, her with it." Linda backed out of the picture.
I kicked one of the ropes with the toe of my shoe. "You couldn't catch a post with this. Much less a horse or something moving."
"What? Linda, we need a little co-operation here. GET HER TO PICK UP THAT DAMN ROPE! The voice was yelling again.
Linda stepped back up to where I was looking down at the rope. "What's the problem? All you have to do is pick up the rope and act like you were roping the horse with it."
"It's not lariat rope. It's too limber and soft. That's nylon rope. You can't toss a loop with that. It won't open and it won't throw worth a darn."
Linda nodded. "Okay, I seem to be lost here. You're telling me that isn't a throwing rope? Pick up the rope and ACT like you're tossing it. What the hell do you know about rope anyway?"
I squatted down, picked up the rope and tossed it over to the side. "I know this isn't a lariat. You get me a lariat and I'll do what you want."
Her eyes were showing fire. She had stopped being friendly and was getting hostile. "Jean, that bag of old ropes Sam dropped off? They still here?"
"Yes ma’am"
"GET THEM!"
Linda was ready to shoot me I was sure. A young girl came dragging up a canvas bag. She dropped it at my feet. I opened it up and pulled out a real lariat. I looked at the initials branded into the eye of the loop. Sc. "Big S, little C, I know this rope. Sam Chapman. Good man with a rope. He's one of the best steer ropers in the country."
I spread it out and coiled it back up in my hands. A light toss and I had the Pinto roped. Again there was that deathly quiet. Looking over at Linda should have warned me. She had a funny look on her face again.
"You're not from the modeling agency are you?"
"What modeling agency?"
"OH SHIT! BECKMAN! WE HAVE A PROBLEM!" She was looking at me like I had stolen the payroll from the bank.
Chapter VII
Passport! You’re Not a Model?
The man who had done all the yelling before, stepped up. "What's the matter? Get her to toss that rope again like she just did and we'll shoot it."
Linda was watching me like I was some sort of wild animal. "She's not your model. We don't have any pictures."
"WHAT! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN SHE'S NOT OUR MODEL? WHO THE HELL IS SHE?"
They all turned toward me expectantly. I was wondering what I had done. "This isn't the place for the passport pictures?"
"OH SHIT!!! We are going to loose it all. Who the hell are you and what are you doing in our studio?" Linda was glaring at me.
"I'm a calf roper." I was wondering how much to say.
"A CALF ROPER! A CALF ROPER! YOU’RE A CALF ROPER?" The man was screaming at me.
What was the matter with his hearing? I thought that was plain enough. "Yes."
"OH DAMN! Please tell me you are a model! Please to god, tell me you are a model and the agency sent you over." He was leaning toward me as if he could will me to say what he wanted to hear.
"I don't know about any modeling agency. I'm here to get some passport photos taken so I can transport a horse."
"OH SHIT! OH DAMN! OH SHIT AND DAMN!" He walked away wringing his hands.
Linda was edging in closer as she studied me. "What's your name and how old are you?"
"Katrina McDonald. Everyone calls me Jake. I'm eighteen."
She threw up her hands and everything she was holding onto went into the air as she spun around the other direction. "Holy shit, we're fucked. She's a minor. Jeeze what else can happen?"
"Listen, I didn't mean to hurt anyone. Anna said I was to come over here for some passport pictures. The lady at the front directed me back here. I'm sorry if I messed up anything." I gathered the rope off the Pinto as I had no idea what it was I had done.
Beckman had returned. "Okay, how much is it going to cost us? I need those pictures and I need you to sign a release."
"What? You want to pay me?" I was thinking I was going to have to pay them for ruining their pictures.
He was watching me closely. "You've never been in pictures before have you?"
"No sir."
"Linda, I have an idea. We can use a free agent. She's a free agent. Get a contract. What did you say your name was and where are you from?"
"I'm Katrina McDonald. Everyone calls me Jake. I'm from Montana. You may have possibly heard of me. Bill Randall and I are head and heel steer ropers. We took state team roping championship for the past three years."
He shook his head as he offered me his hand. "I'm Ronald Beckman. Sorry, I don't pay a whole lot of attention to those things. Can you get your parents to sign a release for you? I need those pictures we took."
"Yes. Can you do me a favor?"
He eyed me suspiciously. "What?"
"I need a passport photo."
Shaking his head, he walked away. "A passport photo. All she wants is a passport photo."
I signed some papers. They took a lot more pictures of the Pinto and me. I found out they were an advertising agency. I roped just about everything in that studio for them as I tried to explain the techniques behind throwing a rope. Sam had one of his trick ropes in that canvas bag so I did a few rope tricks too. That's a shorter version of the lariat. Spinning the rope over my head or jumping back and forth through it was something I hadn't practiced a lot. It was twice as tough wearing heels and a dress but I managed it. I did it without falling down or getting tangled up in the rope.
I learned later they sent some pictures and a release form to mom and dad by next day mail. After talking to Leonard by phone, they told him they would give me a ride out to Valley Downs Farms. They promised to get the right pictures back to the right people for that passport.
I had changed back into my jeans and shirt. My cowboy hat didn't fit over all that hair spray and other things Anna had them do to me. I wasn't able to pull those long nails off either. They were glued on better than my own nails. A lot of the people had already left the studio when I walked back in and was waiting on my ride.
Linda watched me walk back into the room carrying the purple dress on my arm. "Katrina, I'd like to take some more shots. Would you mind?"
"I don't want to have to dress up again. I'd rather not." I walked up to where she was standing.
"No, I mean like you are now. The real you." She was waiting for an answer.
"This isn't the real me. I didn't take off any of my makeup. My hair is so stiff I can't get my hat on and I can't get these nails off. This isn't the real me. I probably couldn't rope a calf like this. I'm sure I don’t want to try any heel and head roping."
"Close enough. I'd like to take some pictures. Do you mind?" Linda picked up a camera as she turned on the lights.
"Why not? What do you want?" I laid my dress down on the back of a chair. I'd have to make sure Anna got it back along with the heels.
Some of the others were starting to gather back around. Linda motioned toward the canvas bag full of Sam's ropes. "Do some of your rope things and tell me why that first rope we had wasn't the right rope for a cowboy."
I picked up the nylon rope they first laid out. "It's too soft and limber. You can't control it. The loop won't open up and when you throw it, there isn't a hole for the calf to run through."
I coiled the rope up and gave it a turn over my head before I threw. The loop barely opened and the chair I aimed for was knocked over rather than being lassoed. Picking up one of Sam's lariats, I did the same thing and roped the chair beside the first. I removed the loop off the chair. One of the men was walking across between us. I tossed the end of the rope out and dropped a loop where he stepped into it. I pulled it up and then released it just as quickly. If I had held onto it I would have had his legs tied together and he would have tripped.
"Roping has to do with timing. You have to aim for where the animal is going to be at the same time your loop gets there. Don't aim for where he is at the time you throw or you won't ever catch him. Put it out in front of him and let him step into it or run into it. Make sure you have the loop closed by the time he's there or he will run completely through the loop and you've missed." I dropped a loop over Linda as she was shooting pictures.
"Do it again. I need you to do that again." Linda stepped out of the loop and was busy with her camera again.
We played for almost an hour before I helped Linda load up some cameras and other gear into her car in the parking garage. I also helped load up Sam Chapman's ropes. He would want them back for sure. A roper's lariat is a personal thing. I had no idea how they managed to get Sam to part with his ropes long enough for a photo shoot.
We were headed north out of Atlanta when I asked Linda about Sam's canvas bag. "How did you manage to get Sam to loan you his ropes? That would be almost as bad as asking for the loan of his horse."
She passed a couple cars before she glanced in my direction. "I don't know. I asked Harold Strick if he had any ropes he could loan us for a photo op we were shooting and he said he would see. I don't know Sam Chapman but I guess Harold does."
This whole situation was so odd. "If it's the Harold Strick I know, he is a top hand in bronc riding. He was number thirty four in nationals last year. That may not sound like much. You have a couple thousand cowboys competing for the same thing and that's a long ways up toward the top. Harold and Sam bunk together a lot of times. They share truck and trailer to defray some of the cost of getting on the road. Where are Harold and Sam? They should be in Dallas this week."
Again she glanced in my direction. "You didn't hear? Harold was hurt pretty bad last week. The horse he was riding fell down trapping him under it. He was caught between the fence and the horse. Broke some ribs and gave him a concussion. He's recuperating out close to the place you're going, Pine Farms."
Such a small world. I knew people from the rodeo everywhere I went. Maybe it was the kind of people who rode in the rodeo that made it such a special group of people. "How's he doing?"
"He's okay. Beat up and bruised. I understand a lot of cowboys are usually that way most of the year."
It was a long ways out to the Farms. I was really appreciating the effort Linda had gone to when we finally got there. As she pulled into the lane leading down to the house and stables I was impressed. Everywhere I looked suggested money and lots of it. White pipe rail fencing, manicured lawns and paved driveway. The house looked like a mansion. It went on and on.
After Linda stopped the car I got out and walked out to the barns. I could have lived in the stables and been happy. Those stalls were so darn clean I could have eaten off the floor. The barns were expansive. They had air conditioning and blowers everywhere. They treated those horses better than most humans were treated. There were a couple dozen men and three women that I counted there. Grooming horses, walking horses, changing bedding, whatever. Most of them ignored me, a few acted like I was trespassing on their turf, and no one said hi to me even after I greeted them. I was the foreigner in their world. I guess I deserved what I got. My jeans and shirt didn’t match the makeup and my hair style. Everything Anna had done to me said one thing and my working clothes said something else. One way or another, part of me was pretend and the other was real. They figured the hairstyle and makeup was real and the jeans were pretend. To them I was the socialite who had come out to play in their business and they resented it.
Chapter VIII
A Leather Skin Full of Hate
Walking past the stalls I didn't see a real working horse among any of the horses. They were the socialite horses of the world. The racehorses everyone put up a million dollars to own and then never paid any attention to until they stepped on the racetrack. The owners let the trainers, handlers, and other flunkies handle the horse and get him or her ready for the race. No wonder there were so many psychotic racehorses in the world.
One of the men was walking toward me. I smiled when he looked up. "Where's Heater?"
Without stopping or saying a word, he pointed back down the breezeway behind him.
I walked down the aisle looking into the stalls. The horse that caught my attention was the third stall from the end. I stepped up to the gate. "You're Heater aren't you? You look like the crazy horse Leonard was telling me about."
He charged the gate. I held firm. I knew he couldn't get through the gate with the speed he had built up from the back of the stall. When his nose got past the gate I hit his nose with my fist. The bite he wanted to put on me was forgotten as his head slammed up against the frame. He backed up shaking his head. No one had ever mistreated him like that before. It was a new experience to him. Again he charged. Again I smacked him on the nose. He backed up shaking his head and assessing the situation. He wanted a piece of me in the worst possible way.
I needed a lariat. Turning around, I was going to go get one of Sam's ropes out of his canvas bag. Leonard and Linda were there. She had been taking pictures with the camera that always seemed to be in her hand.
"Leonard, where's my suitcase?"
"In the bunkhouse. Go out and turn to your left. It's the room all the way to the back as you go in the front door." He pointed toward the opening where we were standing closest to.
I glanced over my shoulder into the stall at that insane stallion. "Don't go away. I'll be back."
I had packed my own lariat in the bottom of my suitcase. Some things a cowboy just doesn’t leave home without. In front of Heater's stall I uncoiled it and looped out a small loop. I was fixing to open his stall door when Leonard shook his head. "I wouldn't if I were you. He'll bust loose."
"We'll see." I shook out a loop as Linda and Leonard backed down the aisle and started shutting gates between us.
I put my hand over the gate. Heater charged and we went through the same thing we did the first time. I belted him on the nose and he backed up. As he backed up I opened the gate and shook out a loop. Seeing the open gate he charged. I dropped the loop under him. I pulled as he stepped into the loop. I had two front feet bundled together. He went down. His face was on the floor as he skidded out of that stall. Before he could get his senses and his feet under him I dropped a loop over his head, did a half loop around his nose, caught his right front leg with the rope, and snugged it up.
Heater pawed the air as he tried to get all his legs under him. One of them wasn't working like he wanted. He finally fought his way to his feet. With the object of his hatred in front of him, he tried to rear up and stomp me. The loop around his nose and right front leg wouldn't let him get his head up. Lift up his head and it pulled on his leg. There wasn't anyway he was going to get head and leg up enough to rear up on his back legs. He wanted to run over me if he couldn't stomp me. He started to charge and he stumbled. Again he couldn't get things organized like he needed to charge. If his right leg wouldn't work he would use his left front leg to stomp me. He tried to get it up but the problem with that idea is every time he lifted his left leg to get it up, he was pulled down by his right leg.
That horse hated me with a passion I had never seen or felt in my whole life. He stumbled forward and I grabbed that makeshift rope halter I had dropped on him. Staying out of the way of his left front leg was easy enough. I stayed to his right. He spun in a circle trying to get me in position to stomp me with the parts that still worked. I held on and stayed one step ahead of him. He was breathing heavier and heavier as he snorted and pawed at me. Finally he was exhausted and gave up. Too soon I thought. He was lathered all over from the fight but he wasn't past hurting me if I let him have the chance. I walked into his stall and picked up his water pail. I came back out and threw the water on him giving him a dousing. He hated that too. Once again we went through the motions of him trying to get me under his hooves.
He finally gave up knowing he wasn't going to get me the way he was trussed up. Up until that moment I had been busy trying to stay alive. Now I had a chance to look around. There were twenty or thirty people in that barn standing behind the gate with Linda and Leonard. They had been watching the show.
"Leonard, may I have a brush and a pail of water?"
A brush and pail appeared under the gate. I walked over and picked it up. This time when I walked back over to Heater he didn't try and get me under him. He stood there quietly hating me while I brushed him down with the water to cool him off. After I had him cleaned up I reached up and scratched behind his ears. It didn't please him at all. He hated me and the only thing that was going to please him was to kill me.
"You really ought to get a life. This isn't it. Hating humans when they are the ones who are feeding you isn't wining you any brownie points. You are going to end up in the glue pot and no one is going feel sorry for you."
I scratched him under his belly and under his chin. One thing for sure, I wasn't wining any brownie points with Heater either. I had never seen so much hate packed into one animal. I led him back into his stall still trussed up. If I had turned him lose he would have had me for dessert. I headed him back out toward the gate before I stepped out and shut it between us. I reached back through and untied him. He didn't charge and he didn't try and bite me but it was on his mind.
Most of the people had left. Linda and Leonard walked over where they could look in the stall at that wild racehorse. Leonard shook his head. "If I hadn't seen it I wouldn't have believed it. I think I'm getting a better idea what a cowboy is."
"How do you control him? You have to put a bridle and saddle on him to race him." I was wondering how the others did it.
"We put another horse in the stall and crowd him over until he doesn't have any room. It takes eight men at least to get a bridle and saddle on him. We keep him between two horses as we lead him out. Once we get him in the starting gate the jockey is on his own. He likes to run so he usually isn't any trouble once we have him aimed down the track."
Leonard and Linda were walking with me back down to the other end of the barn. The others in the barn didn't turn and ignore me like they did earlier. Most of them would smile and nod an acknowledgment as they stared at me. I was wondering if they thought I was a show off or what?
Leonard answered that for me with a question. Probably the same question that was on everyone else's mind. "By the way, what is it you accomplished back there besides the fact you are better than eight men and a couple horses?"
"I found out that horse is crazy. He's not untamed or undisciplined. He's crazy. I've never thought any animal should be put down but that horse should. Any normal horse would know I just bested him and he would respect me the next time. They might not like it but they would respect me. There is a difference. Heater doesn't know respect. I could go back down there in an hour or more and we would have to go through the whole process all over again to make him behave for a few minutes. Heater could be the fastest horse in the whole world and I would still suggest putting him down. He's going to kill someone if he ever gets the chance. Maybe a lot of people are going to get hurt. How do you justify keeping an animal alive knowing he's going to kill you if you give him the opportunity?"
Leonard stopped before we walked out the end of the barn. "You get him down to Brazil two days from now and he can do whatever he wants. I'll let his new owners worry about whether they can control him or not."
I had the hands make me a cage for Heater. I wasn't walking that horse onto a plane. I'd get him in the cage and have the cage put on the plane. It was like you would treat any wild animal. I asked the resident vet to give him a tranquilizer before we loaded him.
He looked at me kind of funny. "You get him tied up like I heard you did the other day and I'll give him a shot. Otherwise, forget it. I'm not getting into the stall with that horse."
You never know how a tranquilizer is going to affect an insane person or animal. It can make them mellow or it might make them even more insane. I could only hope because no one had tried it on Heater before. The day we were to fly out, Heater and I went through our routine again. He wanted me so bad that he couldn't stand himself. After the fight he let me lead him into that cage we had waiting for him. For a few minutes at least, he knew who was in charge of the situation. I dropped a cersingle on him, along with a halter and a martingale. Every time I got close to him he tried to kick me. I finally managed to slip two hobbles on him. One set on his front feet and a set on his back feet so he couldn't kick the side of the plane out. I strapped the back hobbles to the front set so he couldn't get either set of hooves up without falling down. The martingale would keep him from getting his head up and rearing up. It was a shame to truss up a horse as much as I did Heater but I wanted to get to Brazil alive. Having him kick the side of the plane out wasn't an option with me.
The vet gave him a shot after I had him trussed up. Heater tried to stomp him but he couldn't do any more than shuffle his hooves. If there ever was a straight jacket for horses, Heater was in one. They picked the cage up with a forklift and put it in the trailer. My suitcase and me went in front of the truck with the driver. I had washed the spray out of my hair the night before and I had my cowboy hat pulled down on my head. At the airport they forked Heater's cage up on the plane and strapped it down. We were on our way in a matter of hours.
On the flight down to Brazil, I swear that horse went even more insane if that were possible. His eyes got the look of a demon in them as he watched me riding in the seat beside him. I thought he hated me before. I was wrong. Now he hated me. I don't know if it was the tranquilizer that pushed him over the edge or being trussed up got to him? It didn't make any difference, one way or another, once we landed he became the other person's responsibility.
The jet landed in Brazil. I had a handful of transfer papers for someone to sign so I could get rid of that insane horse. A big old limousine drove up beside the plane as the forklift lowered Heater and his crate down to the tarmac. A couple of men got out of the back as the driver got out. They were staring at the way I had Heater tied down.
One of them motioned toward me. "Is that my horse?"
"Not yet. You sign these papers and he's all yours." I held out the papers for him to sign.
The man took them and signed them where needed. I handed him a copy. He motioned for the other man to open the cage. I shook my head. "I wouldn't do that. He's pretty wild from the trip. Why don't you take him out to the stables first before you unload him?"
He said something to the other man in a language I didn't understand. They opened the gate on the cage and begin taking the hobbles, cersingle and martingale, off of Heater. I was watching his eyes. He was biding his time until they freed him and then all hell was going to break lose.
My suitcase and lariat were still on the plane. I tried to stop them. "Wait until you're out at the stables. He's gonna get us if you turn him lose."
The man dropped the martingale off and it was all Heater needed. He body slammed the man in the cage with him. The guy went down and Heater decided to stomp him. I was racing for the gate to close it. Heater might have been insane but he was damn smart insane. He knew if I closed that gate he was locked up again. He backed up and threw his weight against the gate before I dropped the latch. The gate flew open and slammed me up against the side of the cage behind it. The first man never understood he couldn't reason with this horse. He was trying to get up beside him to get his halter. Heater screamed, rose up on his hind legs and laid a front hoof down along side the guy's head. The man dropped to the ground with his skull split.
I waved my hands in the air to get Heater's attention. Heater hated me more than anything in the whole world. He came around the cage at a run. The window was down on that limousine and I dove through it. He hit the car with his chest as his hooves skidded on the pavement. He tried to stick his head inside to bite me. I pushed the electric button and rolled up the window. I had his neck trapped for a few seconds. I knew it wasn't going to take him long to break that glass. I jumped out the other door and headed for the plane. I heard the window break and knew Heater was loose again. I looked for the driver. He had locked himself inside Heater's cage. It was probably the safest place to be right now. Men were coming our direction either running or driving those little tow vehicles. Either way it didn't make much difference. Heater was too insane to be scared of anything. Lucky for the men, Heater wanted me more than he wanted them.
Running for my life, I jumped on a crate that had been set off the plane and bounded into the open cargo door as Heater tried to follow me. He misjudged. Those steel horseshoes he was wearing weren't giving him any traction on the tarmac. He slid into the crate pushing it up against the plane and fell down. He was down for a few seconds. I snapped open my suitcase and grabbed up my lariat. Finally I had something in my hands equal to the wild horse that wanted to kill me. All I had to do was get in position and let him come to me. And of course not miss my throw.
Heater was back on his feet and headed toward the men who were coming our direction. I jumped down off the plane and whistled as he ran over the first man. Heater knocked the man flying like a rag doll. He made a circle and men were scattering. Something finally told them that they weren't going to win the war with this horse by shouting and waving their arms.
I waved my hands in the air and screamed at him. Once again he focused in on me. I checked my rope as he came at me at a dead run. I gave a swing over my head and laid the loop out in front of him. He stepped into it and I pulled gathering up two legs in the loop. Heater went down head over heels as his body kept going when his legs were no longer under him. I dropped a loop over his head and a half hitch over his nose and snugged him down to both front legs this time. I didn't want him up for any reason. He tried the rope a couple of times and then quit struggling. He knew he had lost the fight again. He glared at me. Next time. He would get me next time. I could see him thinking how he was going to do it.
While they were busy loading the ambulance with the three men Heater had almost killed, I was busy putting the hobbles, cersingle, and martingale back on him. I didn't care what they did with that horse as long as he wasn't free to kill me before I left the country.
My schedule for the flight was to drop off Heater and go to Venezuela to pick up another horse for a flight to France. I had a two hour wait for the hop to Venezuela. I walked into the terminal to get a sandwich. After the flight down I was starved. I hadn't packed anything to eat and it had been a long flight.
I walked up to a lunch counter. I didn't recognize anything on the menu. Whatever it was they were serving I didn't know if I wanted it.
One of the ladies walked over. "May I help you?"
"I'd like something to eat but I don't know what any of that stuff is."
"Are you the cowboy who roped that wild horse out there on the field?" She was studying me.
"Yes." I wondered if I was in trouble again.
"That was pretty fancy roping." She was writing on a ticket.
"Thanks. What about food? I haven't had anything since I left the states this morning. My backbone is pushing against my ribs." I didn't mind talking about roping but I had rather talk about food.
"I'll bring you something you'll like. Have a seat." She motioned toward the chair by the bar and left.
A man walked up from my left and reached out his hand in the offer of a handshake. He started saying something I didn't understand. I shook his hand and nodded even though I had no idea what he was saying.
More people gathered around me and pretty soon it was a din of confusion in a language I didn't understand. People were wanting to shake my hand for some reason. The lady returned and set a big bowl of brown beans and a big chunk of bread in front of me. She was right, it was something I liked. Those were darn good beans.
I finished that big bowl of beans and got up to leave. I was digging money out of my pocket wondering if they took American money? She set a sack down on the counter in front of me. "This will get you back home with out staving to death. There's no charge. One of those men you saved today was my cousin. I can't thank you enough."
I put some dollars on the counter. "I was doing my job. I don't expect payment for saving someone's life. Is this enough?"
She stared at me for the longest time before she leaned up in my face. "Are you a girl?"
"Yes." Now would she take my money since I wasn't the cowboy she thought I was?
The reaction wasn't what I expected. She screamed as she jumped up in the air, waved her arms, and shouted something I didn't understand. Everyone in there was shouting and pointing at me. I had enough of the circus. Escape wasn't to be. People were shouting and pushing at me. They weren't mean about it but they weren't easy either.
A couple uniformed men walked in and everyone started shouting all over again and pointing at me. I had no idea what it was all about. The two men pushed everyone back and stood staring at me.
The one on my right pointed at me. "Senior?"
I nodded. "Yes?"
He pointed again. "Senorita?"
"Yes?"
They started shouting. Senorita, Diablo, and a few other words I understood. The rest was lost. One of the soldiers took my hand and led me into the main terminal while shouting. Pretty soon, the circus I had hoped to escape had changed into a grand event and I had no idea why.
The lady who had waited on me passed in front and I grabbed her. "What are they saying? Why is everyone pointing at me?"
"Because you roped Diablo, the devil. They can't believe you're a woman. Everyone is arguing if you are an American cowboy or a cowgirl."
I pulled out my passport. "Well why didn't they ask me."
I held my passport up and one of the soldiers clutched it. He stared at the picture and then screamed. "Senorita."
A couple of the men lifted me up on their shoulders and started out to the front of the terminal. I tried to stop them "Wait, my plane. I have to catch a plane to Venezuela. I can't go any place. I have to catch a plane. Wait."
A dozen people loaded up in the back of a utility truck and we sped off down the streets. I knew I was going to miss my plane and no one would know what happened to me. I was in a strange country, couldn't speak the language, and had no idea what any of us were doing.
"American embassy. I need to go to the American embassy." I had an idea if I could get them to understand.
Shouting and laughing they all screamed. "American, si."
The truck pulled up to a large house and everyone got out. Finally the shouting and screaming had stopped. A man walked out of the house. The soldiers walked up to him and gave him my passport. They pointed back at me saying, senorita.
The man walked inside and shortly returned with another taller well dressed man. I had dropped down from the back of the truck onto the ground. They walked up to where I was standing. I had no idea what it was I had done wrong.
"You are this woman?" He held the passport open and there was the picture of me taken by the photographers three days ago. The tall man was eyeing me suspiciously.
"Yes."
I cleared my throat. "Listen, they made me up for that picture. I want to apologize for anything I did wrong. I'm sorry for what ever it was I did. Can I go now? I'll miss my plane. I have to be in Venezuela to pick up another horse tomorrow." I held out my hand for my passport. It didn't hurt to try and bluff my way out of this situation.
Putting the passport back in my hand he nodded. "Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Simon Pladure. One of the men you saved today is my brother. The other man is my foreman. That is my horse you caught. I am in your debt."
"Are they going to be all right. The one who had his skull split looked in pretty bad shape."
"Yes, they will be all right. I'm sure they will be a lot smarter when they get better. I heard you tried to tell them not to let the horse loose?"
"I tried. Heater had a long ride down here and he was itching to take it out on anyone who got close to him at the moment. He should have been put up and let settle in for a few days." It wasn't a lie but I wasn't going to tell Simon the horse he had bought was crazy and never would be all right.
Simon took my arm, an all too familiar situation with people outside Montana. He led me back into his house. "Please, you must be my guest for tonight. There will be a party in your honor."
"But I can't. I have a plane to catch. I must be in Venezuela by tomorrow." I was led into the house under protest.
Chapter IX
The Reluctant Guest
"The plane is on hold until the matter with the horse is settled. I'm sure it will be there tomorrow when you are ready to leave. At that time it will be released and you may go pick up your other horse. I insist on having you for dinner tonight, Miss McDonald. We never get an American cowboy down here and never have we ever had the honor of hosting an All American Cowboy."
My head snapped around and he smiled a disarming smile. "Someone called in your abduction at the airport. Your embassy called our embassy to inquire about your situation. They said we had the All American Cowboy and it would be in the best interest of both countries if we returned you. I had our ambassador check in your country and it really did seem as we had the All American Cowboy. Only she was a cowgirl. Your country is so strange. Why would they call a cowgirl a cowboy?"
I sighed it wasn't a subject I wanted to explain. "There has been a mistake. I'm not the All American Cowboy, I was nominated as the All Around Cowboy. There is a difference. I ride the rodeo circuit with Bill Randall. I sign in as Jake as that is what I've been called all my life. There were a couple errors in the situation. The cowboys voted me in as the All Around Cowboy because most of them thought I was one. When they found out different they voted me back in anyway. There isn't an All Around Cowgirl so they couldn't vote for me in that category. It just kind of got out of hand."
He smiled. "And I'm so pleased it did. Please dress up for the party tonight. Did you bring any clothes with you?"
Tugging on my shirt I shook my head. "No, what you see is what you get."
"Ah, then we must find something appropriate for you to wear when you meet our Presidenti." He motioned for a woman coming in from another room.
Hours later I was no longer Jake or Katrina. I had no idea who I was. I was wearing long nails again. I was coffered and made up. My clothes were more of a Mexican or goucho flavor. I had a white silk blouse, red leather bolero jacket with fringe, red leather short skirt with fringe, and red boots. Thank goodness the boots didn't have fringe. I didn't think I could stand any more.
The woman who had helped me get ready led me back into a large room where a party was all ready in progress. People turned to stare. I was introduced to a lot of names I couldn't repeat.
I was introduced to Carlos Peron, El Presidenti. He took my hand and held it as he studied me. "So you're the American I have heard so much about today. All my staff is talking about you, I'm getting calls from the American embassy about you. I'm getting calls from Washington DC about you. I was expecting you to be a lot bigger to match the stories I have been hearing."
It embarrassed me. I had no idea what he was hearing about me. "I'm sorry if I caused any problems. It was all a mistake."
Someone off to the side said something in Spanish. I caught the word senorita, cowboy but that was all. The whole room laughed. I knew I was in trouble.
Carlos laughed and smiled. "No, I assure you Miss McDonald you have done nothing wrong. I have heard a hundred stories today about what you did out at the airport when Simon's stallion managed to get lose. Now I would like to hear the story from you."
"Well Sir, I wanted them to…," I spent an hour explaining the story to Carlos and I guess someone was translating it because a man was talking when I did and he would stop when I did. It certainly happened a lot quicker than what it took to tell the story.
After that I was led around and introduced to more people. Mostly I smiled and nodded my head as I didn't understand hardly anything that was going on. An hour later we were seated at a long table. Simon sat at one end. The Presidenti sit at the other. I was seated on Simon's right. The lady who had helped me get dressed was on Simon's left and she had transformed into a goddess. It was then I realized she was his wife. Earlier that day she introduced herself as Lucinda. I tried my best to not make a fool of myself. I had no idea how to act at a social party. It was about five minutes into the dinner when I noticed I was getting subtle hints from Lucinda. She was watching me. If I would do something wrong, she would only slightly shake her head. I finally realized I needed to watch for her guidance. If she gave a slight nod yes when I started to pick up a utensil then it was okay to proceed. If not then I looked for something else.
Those people were party animals. It was two a.m. or there abouts before the party died. I tried to find a phone to call a taxi so I could go back to the airport.
Carlos and Lucinda wouldn't hear of it. He pointed off down the hallway. "No, we have plenty of room for you. You are our guest. I insist you spend the night with us. I'll make sure you get to the airport with time to spare in the morning."
"But…," I was sure I needed to find that airport tonight.
Lucinda took my hand. "No, when Carlos invites you to stay then it's settled. Here, I'll show you to your room."
Ten minutes later I was sound asleep in a huge bed with a canopy over it. I didn't really care what happen the rest of the night. Four thirty in the morning came and I crawled out of bed hunting for my jeans and shirt so I could go help dad milk the cows. It took me almost a minute of searching in the dark before I remembered I wasn't home. I tried to remember what Lucinda had done with my clothes? I couldn't go looking around a strange house in my all together. I slipped on the skirt and blouse along with the boots. I cracked the door to see if anyone else was up yet. Hearing murmurings from down the hall I headed in that direction.
I opened a door at the end of the hall and walked into a kitchen. There were nine people in there eating breakfast. One of the ladies by the stove turned around and looked when she heard the door open. "Ah, senorita McDonald. You ready for breakfast? Si?"
Most of the others turned to look when the lady spoke to me. "Yes, that would be nice. What can I do to help? I can cook my own if you will allow me to use the stove."
"Oh no. It would not be permitted. Our special guest cooking her own breakfast would not be allowed. Do you want to eat in the dinning room?"
"Where? You mean that big room where we were last night? I don't think so. Can I eat in here with you?" That big table we ate at last night didn't impress me. I was thinking a scrambled egg between two slices of bread would be my kind of breakfast.
"Sure if you want." She said something in Spanish to the others at that kitchen table and they made room for me at one end.
Someone dropped a plate in front of me after I sit down. A fork appeared just as quick. The lady slid a couple eggs on my plate. "Would you like bread or toast with your breakfast?"
"Bread would be okay, thank you. I can get it. Where is it?" I was getting up to find the bread when it appeared on the table in front of me.
Everyone around the table was watching me as I ate breakfast. The lady who had spoken English to me was busy gathering up pans, dishes, and a dozen other things. I also figured she was getting things ready for my host, Carlos, Lucinda, and anyone else who happened to spend the night.
I picked up my plate after I was through and carried it over to the sink to wash it. The lady took it out of my hands. "Here let me take that for you."
"That's okay. I can wash it. You have enough to do." I was trying to get it back without any success.
I finally gave up on trying to help as she kept maneuvering me out of the way. "Do you know where my clothes are? I need to change."
She pointed at one of the doors leading from the kitchen. "They are in there. But they are still wet."
"Still wet? What happened to them?" I wondered how they could have gotten wet. I didn't leave them outside and I was sure it hadn't rained anyway.
"They were washed a couple minutes earlier. Is there a problem?" She was looking at me waiting for an answer.
"Yes, there's a problem. I need them now. I have a plane to catch and these clothes were loaned to me. I can't leave with Lucinda's clothes." I was wondering how wet clothes were going to feel this early in the morning. I hated that. I didn't mind getting rained on and getting wet but I sure hated pulling on wet clothes when it wasn't raining.
"I'm so sorry but I was told to clean your clothes before you left." She looked at me apologetically.
"I guess nothing can be done about it now. I need a phone to call a cab. I have to get back to the airport and find out what happened to my ride. We were supposed to leave yesterday evening." I had no idea what I was doing, who I should call to get help, or what I was going to find once I was back at the airport.
"Mr. Simon Pladure, would not be pleased to find his guest gone before he gets up." She was pointing back toward the living room indicating I should stay put.
"Give Mr. Pladure my apologies and assure him I appreciated the supper last night along with the bed and breakfast but I have a plane to find. You people don't seem to understand I have a schedule to keep and it's been trashed. I have to call my employer to find out what I need to do." I opened the door to the laundry room as I spoke. I needed those jeans of mine.
My jeans and shirt were hanging on a line still dripping wet. "Don't let anyone come in here until I'm back out. I have to change clothes."
Pulling the jeans and shirt down off the line I wrung them out as best I could. I slipped off the outfit Lucinda had loaned me and wiggled into my own wet clothes. They sure felt yucky. I wished I had my suitcase. Problem was, it was on the plane which was only God knew where.
After dressing I gathered up Lucinda's clothes and walked out of the laundry room barefooted. My hat and boots were in the room I slept in last night. No one tried to stop me as I walked back through the kitchen. I laid the dress on the bed and slipped on my own boots. I had seen a phone in the hallway. It was back to the kitchen as I had no idea how to dial a taxi from that phone. I collected the woman who knew English. After a lot of protesting on her part, I managed to get her to phone a taxi for me. I left while my hosts were still asleep. That may not have been the right way to do it but I felt more like I had been kidnapped for last night's party rather than formally invited. Thirty minutes later I was back at the airport. I was looking for a plane that last night, Simon Pladure had assured me would wait. It hadn't. My lariat, my clothes, my plane, was gone. I counted money in my pocket. Sixty eight dollars and twenty six cents. My money wasn't going to buy me a plane ticket home, I was sure.
My parents weren't able to do anything for me at this point. They had hardly ever been out of town all their lives. I figured I better call someone who knew a little more about the world. Stopping by the lunch counter I traded American for a hand full of Brazilian currency. It was back to the pay phone and put in a collect call to Leonard LeBo in Atlanta.
It took several tries through several operators before I heard his voice on the other end.
"Hello?"
"Leonard, this is Jake McDonald. I'm…,"
"CAT! Everyone is worried to death about you. The papers up here are running a story about how you were kidnapped. Are you okay? How did you escape?"
I eased the phone back up to my ear. Leo had been screaming into it. "I was kind of kidnapped but not really. Leo, I'm at the airport and my plane is gone. I don't have enough money for a ticket. What do I do?"
The phone was quiet for a few seconds before it spoke to me again. "Stay on the line. I'll do some checking."
While I was waiting, those who walked by me would stare. I don't guess they got a whole lot of cowboys down in this neck of the woods. I remembered what happened last night and took my hat off and put it behind me. Now I hoped I looked like any other dirty tourist.
"Cat, I found you a ride. He'll be there in twenty minutes. Albert was on the other side of town taking some pictures. He is driving a yellow Fiat. Go with him and he will make sure you stay safe. I'll make arrangements for you to catch another plane."
"Thanks, Leonard." I started to hang up and go wait for a yellow Fiat.
"Cat, wait." The phone was still talking.
"Yes?"
"You will be given another job. The horse you were going to transport is already on his way. I'll have information and more instructions waiting when you and Albert get to the ranch."
I thought of something else. "Leonard, my lariat is on the plane. I need it."
I heard him laugh. "So is your suitcase and clothes."
"I can live with what I'm wearing. I need my lariat." I felt lost without a rope in my hands.
"Cat, I thought I understood what a cowboy was after our first day. I was wrong. You aren't all barbwire. I'll see what I can do. Go catch your ride and stay safe." The phone went dead.
Chapter X
Don’t Ride With Anyone Running From the Police
Walking out to the front of the terminal I looked for yellow cars and held my hat down by my leg hoping no one saw me as a cowboy. It was over twenty minutes later a little yellow car pulled up to the curb and stopped in front of me. He motioned me in. "Senora, we are not safe here. Hurry."
I opened the door and slid in. "You Albert?"
He jammed the car into first and pressed the pedal to the floor. "Yes, and you are the famous Katrina McDonald who delivered Heater to Mr. Simon Pladure. You made the television news last night and all the newspapers this morning."
He almost rolled the car over as he took the corner from the airport to the main highway. "If I don't put some distance behind us you will be a guest at the President's Palace tonight and I will be in jail."
"No, I was a guest last night. I'm not going back tonight. I have work to do." I was positive I was going to turn down any offers for a second night.
He glanced in my direction as he whipped the Fiat around a slow moving truck in our lane. Horns honked, people shouted at each other as we left them behind. "You don't understand do you Miss McDonald? When you are invited to be a guest you don't have an option of accepting or refusing. Did you refuse to be a guest last night?"
"Well, I don't know. I was picked up by the soldiers and taken up to Simon's place and he invited me to spend the night." I was trying to decide if I had really stated I wanted to be with my plane?
He nodded as he passed another car. "You didn't have the opportunity to not go Miss McDonald. The soldiers had orders to pick you up and deliver you."
I shook my head. "No, they were surprised to know who they were talking to."
Now he shook his head. "What surprised them was how easy it was to find you. They figured they would have to drag you off the plane. You were in the terminal and all they had to do was lead you out to the truck."
That shocked me. "You're kidding aren't you?"
"How do you think I know so much about what went on last night? I'm a reporter. I found all this out last night while you were at that big party where you say you weren't kidnapped." He smiled as he took a furtive glance in my direction.
We made it out of the city and he was pushing the little Fiat for all it was worth. Albert's foot was making a depression in the floor where the gas pedal was. The speedometer was varying between seventy two and seventy nine Kilometers.
"Albert, I thought Leo said we were going to a ranch until I caught a flight?" The way we were headed didn't look like I would be back to catch any flights.
He shook his head as he dodged another car. "Miss McDonald, you still don't seem to understand. We won't be catching any planes. The police would have us before you finished signing in."
I was finally getting use to his speeding when he hit the brake and turned off the highway onto a dirt road. It was a two lane path and not really a road. I was in the air half the time as that little car bounced from rut to rut.
"Albert, do you mind? Slow down. You're going to kill us both."
"If I slow down we are both dead already. Look behind us."
Bracing myself between the dash and the seat I turned to look. All I could see was the dust we were raising. "What? I don't see anything."
"Wait, I think I saw a flash of light." I was sure of it as there was a second flash in that cloud of dust.
"Get down. That flash of light is them firing at us."
It took me a second to realize what he meant by them firing at us. I saw another flash in the dust cloud. I dropped down in the seat. "What do they want? Surely they can't be that serious about another party?"
"No, I'm afraid I got you in deeper than another party. They want to kill me and you are a throw away. Someone who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm sorry Miss McDonald."
There was a new sound as something solid hit the back of the car. "Was that a bullet?"
"Yes, keep your head down. It's only a little further."
"What?" I bobbed my head up to look out the window. A bullet put a hole in the back glass and the front one.
I sucked my head back down on my shoulders like a turtle. "Why are they shooting at us? Give them what they want. Nothing is worth this."
"Ah, you are mistaken. Some things are worth a life or two." He spun the wheel and the car slid sideways before it found traction and shot forward.
The other vehicle went by us in the cloud of dust. It sounded like hail as the little Fiat was riddled with bullets. Then it quit immediately.
Albert pulled up and stopped the car. "It's okay. They have been taken care of for the moment."
I eased my head up to take a look around. Dust was settling all around us since we had come to a stop. The other car was no where to be seen. "Where did they go?"
He leaned back in the seat and took a deep breath. "Over the edge. They never saw where the road ended and the canyon begin because of all the dust."
In shock I glanced at Albert. I couldn't believe he had killed them intentionally. I started to tell him how much of a beast I thought he was. The damp red on his right chest stopped me. "You're bleeding."
"Yes, I'm afraid I have been shot." He was breathing heavy now.
I pulled his shirt back and was looking at a dark red hole in the middle of a blood puddle. "You're bleeding profusely. I have to stop it or you are going to die right here. You have a first aid kit?"
He smiled as he shook his head. "Afraid not. I didn't pack a field hospital in the car."
"You have extra clothes? I need bandages." I looked in the back seat for any kind of clothes.
"Small suitcase in the boot. Never can tell when I might be gone for a couple days on a story."
I took his left hand and straightened his index finger. I pushed it up against the hole in his right shoulder. "Hold this for a second while I find that suitcase of yours."
His suitcase was where he said it should be. It also had some extra holes in it. I guess we were lucky he had it in the trunk of the car. Those clothes stopped some bullets that could have found their way up to us. I ripped up a couple shirts.
Opening the driver's door I eased Albert around in the seat. so I could put a padded dressing on the wound he had in the front and the back. The bullet had gone all the way through. "Easy Albert, I have to put a pressure pack on those wounds so they will stop bleeding."
He grimaced as I wrapped the binding around his chest to hold the pads in place. I could see tears in his eyes. "I know it hurts. You can scream if you want."
He gritted his teeth. "You act like you have done this before. Where did you learn to apply a field dressing?"
"I was raised on a farm. Animals get hurt and a vet isn't always handy. You learn to do the best you can. Can you walk around to the other side of the car? I don't know if I can carry you or not?" He was a tall man and I figured he weighed close to one ninety or there bouts.
Leaning on me Albert managed to walk around to the passenger side of the car. I took a good look at the back of the car as I walked back around to the driver's side. "We have holes all over, besides the windows being shot up. We need to go back to town and tell the police what happened."
Albert rolled his head from side to side. "No, we can't. Those guys at the bottom of the canyon were part of the police. The side you don't want to get mixed up with. You'll live longer if you figure out how it works down here. There are two sides to the police. Those who take your story, nod sympathetically, and forget you were there once you walk out the door. Those who listen to your story and then dispose of you if you are a threat to their business."
He looked at me to see if what he had told me registered. "We're a threat so we will die if they get their hands on us. Of course I got you in this mess when I picked you up and you have no idea why someone would want to kill you now."
"Let's go while I tell you a story. Back up the road about a kilometer you will find another road leading off to the north. Take it. Our friends might have called in while they were chasing us. In that case, more of their friends won't be far behind."
That was a prompting I didn't need to hear twice. In seconds I had the little car started and was backtracking up the path. I wouldn't call it a road. Every bump put Albert in pain but it couldn't be helped. As we bumped along in the little Fiat, Albert told me a story about taking some pictures.
He held onto the seat and talked as I bounced him down the road in the little Fiat. "It seems the police were trading drug dealers back to their friends for drugs. There was another situation at the same time the police and the military were swapping men and drugs. The police had picked up a man who had found some wreckage in the jungle. He had a box with him. Someone in the police showed it to someone in the army. The box was part of an encrypted decoder. It was what allowed our military to show up as friendly planes on the AWACs screen."
Albert looked out the window. "I was at the right place at the wrong time. I was working on a story about the military, police, and drug dealers. It seemed the Brazilian government was telling the US they were working on the drug problem. The only problem with their story is the police and military were murdering drunks and derelicts and passing them off as drug dealers. The real drug dealers were safe as money and drugs passed hands."
He reached down in his pocket and pulled out a thirty five milimeter film container. "I took some pictures at the military base where the deal on the decoder went down. I thought I was safe as no one saw me. I was outside the fence with a telephoto lens. Obviously I'm not as smart as I thought I was. Someone found out or maybe they didn't. This could be part of another plan where they wanted to kill me because I was chasing the drug trades."
He held the film container out to me. "Miss McDonald, I never intended to get you in a situation like this. I knew the death squad had a contract out on me. I didn’t imagine them closing in on me this fast. I thought I could pick you up and be gone before things turned ugly. However the one fact remains. They know or will soon know I picked you up, so your life is in danger too. Even if the men in the car didn't know who my passenger was, someone will find out I stopped at the airport and they will put two and two together. When they do, the name that will jump out is Miss McDonald."
I looked at the film container. "I don't want it. What would I do with it?"
"Deliver it to our government. They have to know their codes have been compromised." He dropped the film cartridge in my lap.
"I can't do that. I have no idea what I'm doing. I wouldn't know who to contact or what to say once I talked to someone." I was looking at the road in front of us which was changing into a goat path.
Slowing the car down I looked for a way forward but there wasn't any. "We have run out of road."
"I know. This is an old mining road. It has grown back up into a jungle. From here we walk." He opened the door and slid out groaning.
"Walk? Walk where? You aren't in any condition to be walking. Where are we supposed to walk to?" I slid out of the seat and studied the path ahead of us.
He pointed up the path. "It's about five miles that way. There is a mining shack. We get there and then we will wait for our ride."
"What ride? Who are we going to wait on?" This whole situation seemed absurd.
He looked at me for a second. "Back the car up and turn it toward the canyon. Put it in gear and let it roll over the edge. It will be hard to spot down in the canyon if they come up this way looking for it. I had just as soon they didn't know we went up this trail. If they are actively looking for us then we could still end up dead before our ride comes."
The questions could wait. The mention of dying wasn't something I wanted to see if it was going to come true. I backed the Fiat up. After pulling his suitcase out of the car I dropped it in gear, grabbed that film canister and rolled out the door. I watched as the little car bounced off down the hill picking up speed on its way to its doom. It sailed off the edge out into thin air, the nose dropping until it was upside down and disappeared from view. I waited for the crash but there wasn't any noise.
I started down the hill to see where it went when he shouted at me. "Let's go. We don't have that much time."
Hesitating, I stopped, turned and picked up his suitcase and caught up with him before he disappeared into the trees up the path. "You really think someone would shoot us if they caught us?"
"In a heartbeat. Again, I'm sorry Miss McDonald. You are too young to be learning about these kind of things. You value life. As Americans we think life is precious and shouldn't be wasted. Other societies don't set the same standards as us. They wouldn't give any more thought to killing either one of us then killing a rat or a snake. Life doesn't mean much to them. They kill someone every week. Maybe a lot of some ones so one more life doesn't matter to them."
We had gone over a mile before he stopped to rest. I checked the bandage. "You aren't going to get any better unless you stop and lie down. That wound isn't going to stop leaking blood as long as you're walking."
"Miss McDonald, I'm going to keep getting worse. Right now while the wound is fresh I'm okay. In four or five more hours my body is going to start manufacturing antibodies and I'm going to get a fever. I have one hope and that is to make that miner's shack before then. We are walking two to three miles an hour so in another hour and half we should be there."
He pointed at the suitcase I had been carrying. "What are you dragging that along for?"
"It has your clothes in it. I can use them for bandages."
"We don't need it. This is a do or die situation for me. We either get to the miner's shack and the ride or I die. Those clothes aren't going to help one way or another. Throw the suitcase away but make sure it's off the path. I don't want them finding it if they happen to track us this far." He stood up and started up off the path again.
Looking at the suitcase I thought about it before I set it down and opened it. I pulled a couple shirts out of it before I tossed it as far back into the woods as I could. I didn't care what he thought. I may need to change those bandages before his ride came.
He was already disappearing up that goat path through the trees when I looked up. "Hey, wait. I don't know the way."
He never looked back as I trotted up behind him. "Don't fall behind. I don't have the strength to nursemaid you. You get lost and I won't come back looking for you."
"Well, thanks a lot. I probably saved your life, you have jeopardized mine, and you won't come back for me if I get lost." I was watching his feet when he suddenly stopped and I ran into his back.
"Miss McDonald, for the ten thousandth time, I'm sorry for getting you into this. Understand your life and mine isn't worth what is on the film cassette you are carrying. There may be thousands or hundreds of thousands of lives in danger because of the secrets on that film. I'm hoping both of us make it out to tell our story. If we don't then I hope one of us makes it. Since you don't know the story, you get the film which will tell the story by itself. If I get out I will have to convince them I know what I'm saying without the film."
He wiggled his shoulder. "It's beginning to hurt really bad and also starting to tighten up. I can make the cabin if we don't have to stop for any more group discussions."
Once again he was off up the path and I was left standing there. I ran to catch up. "Albert, wait, Leonard said we would be safe once we reached the ranch. Is that where we are headed? To the ranch?"
"No, the ranch won't be safe now. They know your shipper Kevin and the ranch are connected. They will be waiting there for anyone to show up. You, me, it doesn't make any difference now. Miss McDonald, we are both dead if the police or the military get their hands on us."
I didn't like the sound of that dying Albert kept talking about. "Listen, as long as we have to be together, call me Jake. I don't think I can stomach one more Miss McDonald."
He shook his head. "Jake? What kind of a name is that? Is that a code name or what?"
"It's the name I've gone by all my life."
That stopped him. He turned to look me over. "You're pulling my leg?"
"No, daddy always wanted a son. I was the only child they were ever going to get so he called me Jake. I found out two things as I got older. I found out I wasn't a boy and Jake wasn't a girls name. By the time I learned about all these things it didn't make any difference. I liked the name. Until the past couple years no one besides my parents knew I wasn't a boy. Miss McDonald and Katrina aren't two names I'm very fond of. So if you don't mind, as long as we have to be together, call me Jake."
Albert nodded his head. "You got it Jake."
We made that cabin in a little over one more hour. From the looks of Albert he wasn't going much further. We were standing in the brush in front of the cabin. I was disappointed to no end. This wasn't what I had been thinking of when Albert mentioned cabin. This thing in front of me was caving in on itself it was so old and rotten. The room was mostly gone. Wild animals had been running in and out. For all I knew, one could still be in there.
I pointed toward the shack. "Is this it?"
"Un huh." He dropped down on the ground obviously spent.
My idea of a mining shack didn’t exactly match up with the rotting, sagging, run down decrepit mess I was looking at. I didn’t see any wires going to it indicating it had electricity or a telephone. As bad as our future looked before, what I was looking at in front of me shoved any hope I had about being rescued into a non event.
“Tell me you’re joking!”
Chapter XI
Don’t Get Close to the Spiders
"I was kind of hoping for room service and a hot bath. Tell me it has a telephone so I can call for our ride you mentioned earlier?" I looked up into the trees for a telephone line and there wasn't any. My hope died and I was sure Albert was going to die too. He was never going to walk back down off this mountain in his condition.
He laid down groaning. "Ka…, Jake, listen very closely. Go inside the cabin. Count floor boards and lift up the fifth one from the door. Watch for spiders and snakes. Some of them are very poisonous. After you lift the board, buried in the dirt is a plastic bucket. Inside it is a canvas oil bag. Inside the bag is an emergency radio. The batteries will be dead but that's okay. There is a crank on the side of the radio to generate electricity to operate it."
I found me a stick about four feet long and the size of my wrist. With the stick I whacked brush and things back from the door. The talk about spiders and things wasn't a whole lot of help in making me want to go inside that shack. Counting boards I worked on the fifth one from the door. I couldn't get it up and my stick was too big to fit in the cracks. Looking around the shack I saw a rusty bar over by the old fireplace. I retrieved it and worked on that fifth board. I chewed up the board with the bar before it finally gave up and it lifted out of it's slot in the floor. Something darted off to the side in the dark of the crawlspace. Whatever it was it wasn't a spider. I probed the ground with the rod until I found something hollow. With the rod, I whacked all the way around under that floor as much as possible without getting down there myself.
Stabbing at that pail with the rod didn't work. I was going to have to drop down there and dig it up. "God, if something gets me down there, tell my parents I loved them."
I dropped down into the crawlspace and slowly turned around with my rod at the ready. I was scared to death and running on adrenaline. Spider webs were everywhere. I hadn't knocked down hardly any of them when I was beating from above with my rod. Now I could see what had run when I first lifted that board. There were several spiders under there as big as my fist and they didn't seem the least bit scared of me. They were probably sizing me up for lunch. I started digging the pail up with the rod while I tried to keep an eye on those spiders. I had it. I threw that pail up on the cabin floor.
That must have jiggled the spiders web. Several of them moved in toward me while others backed further off. I put my hand up on the floor and pulled with all that was ever inside me. I shot out of that crawlspace like a jumping jack. I never slowed down as I latched onto that pail and bolted from that shack.
Throwing the pail down beside Albert, I collapsed on my knees. "There are spiders in there as big as me."
He rolled his head over to look at me. "I bet they looked at least that. When you get down eyeball to eyeball with them, they do look big. Did you count their eyes?"
"WHAT!" I stared in shock at him.
"Did you count their eyes? Spiders have eight legs and eight eyes. Their eyes are green. Next time you feel them watching you, count their eyes. Besides giving you something to do, it take your mind off their size."
"YOU'RE CRAZY! WHY WOULD I WANT TO COUNT EYES!"
"Jake, I'll make you a bet. I bet every spider you ever met has eight eyes." Albert was smiling from ear to ear.
I finally figured it out. He was making me talk about it so I would get over my fear of having just looked at the biggest spiders I had ever seen in my whole life. "You're on. I bet they don't."
"Sure they do. Count them from now on."
"I'm going to find one that has been in a fight and lost and eye or two. Then that spider won't have eight eyes."
He laughed. "Okay, I can believe that. I guess I lost the bet already. Call me up when you find that spider and I'll come and take a look."
I was pulling the lid off the bucket. The canvas bag and then the radio slid out. The radio looked brand new. Not a speck of rust or dirt on it anywhere. Someone had packed it well. "What do I do next?"
"Set the dial to twenty two point three and crank." He rolled back over so he was flat on the ground.
"That's it? Don't I have to call for help or something?" I set the dial and started cranking.
"No, it's already calling for help. The person who hears it will know where it's coming from and what he has to do. Crank it until he answers, Jake."
"How will I know when he answers? What do I do, get a signal back?" I was busy spinning that crank.
"No, he will send a different signal. Don't crank so hard and fast, Jake. Easy does it. It doesn't put out a stronger signal because you crank it hard." Albert closed his eyes and he was resting or asleep.
If he was sleeping I had no idea how he could sleep with all the pain he had to be tolerating.
As I sit there cranking on that handle on the radio, watching Albert sleep, I wondered what I had got into? First the mess at home where I was supposed to be at a party I didn't remember. Now I was involved in some government thing where supposedly lives, make that thousands of lives, were at stake. Momma said I would move up in the world. I don't think this was what she meant.
I was still cranking on the radio hours later when I heard it. It was faint at first and then it kept getting steadily louder. A clacking sound coming our direction. "Albert, wake up. Something or someone is coming."
Albert groaned as he sat up. "Our ride has arrived. You can quit cranking on the radio, Jake."
The brush on the side of the mountain parted and a cart came rolling out on the steel tracks that led back into the brush. "What is that?"
"It's our ride. Come on Jake. Bring the radio. We don't want to leave anything behind.
I gathered up the pail, canvas bag, and the radio as I followed Albert over to the miner's cart that had appeared out of the mountain. It was white from spider webs and cobwebs all over the front and top of it. It had a canvas over the top. Albert picked up a stick and wiped spiders and web away from the canvas. He tried to pull the canvas back and cried.
"I can't do it Jake. Pull the canvas back far enough for us to get in." He was holding his shoulder and panting.
The canvas was snapped down. Making sure I wasn't grabbing any spiders, I pulled it loose at the front and pushed it back. "Get in Albert."
He was in serious pain as I helped him up in the cart. I threw the things I had picked up inside with him and then climbed in beside him. The darn thing had a switch and batteries inside it.
"Close the tarp. There are things inside the mine we don't want in here with us."
I pushed the tarp back in place and snapped it from the inside. It became terribly dark and I couldn't see a thing. "Albert, I think I heard voices coming up the path before I crawled in."
"It's okay, we aren't there any longer and I don’t think they will be stupid enough to go into the mine. A small red light came on and everything was cast in an erie red glow.
Albert turned a switch and I could fell the wheels turn as a soft whine came from under our feet. It's battery powered. It will take us where we want to go. Sit back and enjoy the ride."
Sitting there in the ether world of the glow from the red light, I felt movement as the cart rolled along a track only it knew. The wheels clanked as the cart gently rocked from side to side. Every once in a while something heavy would drop on the tarp above us. I started to put my hand up and push where one of the things had fallen on the tarp.
Albert grabbed my wrist. "No! It's fangs can go through that tarp as if it wasn't there. Remember those spiders you saw under the cabin. Those were babies compared to what is ridding on the tarp. Keep your hands away from the tarp and it will be okay. They will get off when we start getting close to the other end."
I shrank back as far as I could from the tarp. It was when Albert wrapped his arm around me I realized I had settled in on him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get on top of you."
He held me firmly but gently. "It's okay. They scare me too. I've been through here several times and it wasn't always in a cart with a cover."
It felt good to be held by someone who had been through here before. "How did you get by them?"
"Bring a darn big torch. Flame thrower would be more like it. Flashlight would really work. They don't like the light so they try and avoid it. Give them time to get out of the way and they try to avoid contact. The cart is knocking their webbing down so they fall onto the tarp. They probably aren't any more crazy about this ride then we are." He wiggled to ease the pain in his shoulder.
"I'm sorry. I should be holding you." I tried to move off him but he held me.
"No, it's okay. I like holding you. You don't feel soft like all the other girls or women I ever held but you smell like a girl. What do you do when you aren't transporting horses all over the world?"
"You mean if I'm not running from some government who is trying to kill me?"
He laughed. "Yeah, when you aren't doing that too."
"I rodeo and help on the dairy farm."
"You barrel race?"
"No, I did that once. I thought I was a calf roper. Bill Randall told me I unofficially broke the world record. I had a...,"
"You're a calf roper?"
"No, I only thought I was. I'm not big enough to toss them down once I have them roped. The only times I qualify is when they fall down and I'm there to tie their feet before they can get back up. I ride with Bill Randall as part of a head and heel roping team."
I moved off of him over to the other side of the cart. "We made top in Montana for the past three years. Since I was in school we didn't get enough points to be top nationally. That takes working most of the year to gather up enough points to be tops there."
The cart slowed down. "What's the matter? Did our batteries die?"
"No, we are probably there. Don't raise up yet." He prodded the tarp with the radio bouncing it up and down.
I knew he was trying to make sure we weren't carrying any extra guests. "Are they gone?"
"Yep, all gone. Didn't like the light. Don't take this ride in the dark because they don't know when to get off."
There was a thumping on the side of the cart. "You going to stay in there all day? Come out of there with your hands in the air where I can see them mister. I'm gonna give you to the count of three and then I'm gonna start shooting."
Albert had a smile in his voice as he responded. "Mike, you old snake doctor, watch your language. We have guests."
The snaps on the tarp clicked and it slid back. The light shining in blinded me and I couldn't see a thing as my eyes had adjusted to the dark.
A shadow backed against the light spoke. "So I see. Who's your pal Albert and what do you mean bringing him along on our track?"
Albert stood up and was climbing out of the cart. "You dumb ass, if you had half a brain you would know my pal is a gal. I made the mistake of picking her up when I had problems Our lives are in danger Mike. I hope you are flying something a little bigger than the ultralight you are so fond of flying everywhere."
The dark shadow slowly turned into a man. He was intently watching me. "Who is she?"
Albert almost fell out of the cart before he caught himself. Slowly he eased himself over the edge. "I'll introduce you two later. Do you think you can get us out of here?"
The other man reached over the edge. "Hand me the battery and toss your radio and other junk out too."
Looking at the battery, it had wing nuts on the cables. I took them lose and handed the battery up. Tossing the radio, pail, and tarp out, I climbed out after them. Mike started pushing the cart back toward the mine. "Give me a hand."
I put my weight against it and it started rolling faster. It was when I looked up I noticed I was pushing it by myself and was almost back inside the mine again. I stopped and the cart kept rolling on into the darkness of the mine. Turning around I saw Mike walking away with the battery in his hands. He and Albert disappeared into the trees.
I followed the voices through the trees as there wasn't a path.
"Are they going to follow you?"
"Probably, they want it real bad and they want us dead even worse."
"Good grief, Albert, how do you get into these situations?"
"I'm a reporter. I report things even when they aren't popular and I see things that aren't supposed to be seen."
"They will lose men in those tunnels. Think they will keep coming."
I walked into a clearing and there was a helicopter. Mike was bolting his battery back into the helicopter. He glanced up. "Chunk the radio and other stuff in the jungle. It's extra weight and we are going to be maxed out already. I need full tanks to get back and you are going to overload us. If you are carrying anything besides the pants you have on then chunk it. Say your prayers, ask God to forgive us for all our sins, and climb on."
"Where?" I was looking at a two seat helicopter and I didn't see any extra places to hang on. I threw the radio and other things off in the trees.
Mike was climbing in already. "You get to sit on Albert's lap. If you don't like that arrangement then he can sit on yours. The third option is to stand there and watch us disappear."
I didn't need to think over that third option. Running around to the other side I climbed in as the engine turned over and started. Albert tried to close the door but it was his right shoulder where he needed to reach up and get the latch handle. I did it for him. Mike closed his door as the blades above us begin to spin and the engine reved up.
Nothing was happening as we were stuck to the ground. Mike was wiggling the sticks as the helicopter refused to budge. He pushed down on the stick by his left and the engine sped up more. He lifted up with his left hand and we hopped up and settled back down as the engine lugged.
"Come on baby, give me all you got and then some." Again we hopped up and then down.
"I'll stay. You can come back and get me later." I started to open the door.
He shook his head. "No, we all go or nobody goes. There isn't going to be any coming back. If I could only get moving forward it would carry us."
"What if I dropped out, you start flying and I jump on as you came back by me?"
Mike looked at me and I could feel Albert shaking his head behind me. I knew if I didn't do something we were never going to get up in the air. Opening the door before it could be discussed, I dropped out. Immediately the helicopter lifted off. For a minute it looked like they had second thoughts and were going to leave me as the helicopter flew up and out of sight past the trees. Then the chop grew louder and I knew they were coming back. I got ready.
Mike was having a hard time judging the speed with which he thought I could catch it and it would stay in the air with the extra weight when I was on. He floated down out of the trees into the clearing. The world stopped as I watched the right skid coming straight at my face. All those years of roping and catching calves had taught me to go with the momentum instead of fighting it or taking it head on. Running backwards as the helicopter flew past me, I jumped at the skid. I crooked my right arm and caught the brace that held the skid to the helicopter. I was jerked off my feet and my arm felt like it had been yanked off. I grabbed my right hand with my left as my arm went numb and I lost all feeling. Swinging my legs up on the skid I rolled up on top wondering if we were still flying and if we would clear the trees? Finally I was standing on the skid and opened the door.
"Want to try it again?" I leaned in so they could hear me.
"What? Hell no I don't want to try again. Get in. You're costing us fuel hanging out like that."
I was sure we were only a couple feet off the ground. I started to step off the skid so we could try again. Looking down at my feet I watched trees go by twenty or thirty feet below. WE WERE FLYING! I jumped in and closed the door. Albert groaned as I landed on him when I jumped in.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. You want me to hold you?" I tried to look over my shoulder but it was impossible in that little cockpit. When they said it was for two people they didn't mean three or even two and a half.
"No, just be still will you? I can stand you sitting on my lap if you will stop moving." Albert was talking to my back.
Five minutes later I was looking up and watching mountain tops go by us. "Shouldn't we be flying a little higher?"
Mike glanced at the mountain to our left and the one over on our right before he answered. "No. They can't track us in the canyons and I seriously doubt they will have any planes up looking for us. It wouldn't make any difference. They wouldn't be able to spot us unless they were extremely lucky."
An hour later we were still flying through mountains and I had no idea where we were. The only thing I was sure of, Albert was in a lot of pain. He kept trying to ease me from one side to the other. I was rubbing my right arm where I had caught the skid. It was throbbing something terrible. I knew it had to be bruised. I wondered if it had been yanked out of the socket? I looked over at Mike. "Have you used enough fuel to set this helicopter down and take off again? Albert is hurting and I should be holding him."
Mike looked ahead of us. "I only have one answer to your question. No. Another few minutes and we will be home. He can get some serious medical attention there. Albert knows the rules. You tough it out until everyone in the party is safe."
"That's mean. Albert is in pain. I can hold him. There isn't any need of him suffering like this."
Mike glanced in my direction. "I don't hear Albert complaining. Be still and don't wiggle around on him. He's passed out if he isn't dead. Either way doesn't make much difference. We can't land in the jungle and the first clearing is another thirty minutes away."
The helicopter lifted up and over some trees before Mike looked in my direction. "What's your name kid and how did you meet Albert?"
"I'm Jake. I was left behind when the plane I was supposed to be on took off without me. My host, Mr. Pladure said the plane would wait for me but it didn't. I called Leo and asked how I was supposed to get back. I didn't have enough money to buy a ticket and I didn't know anyone down here so I was kind of caught between a rock and a hard place. Leo told me to wait and he would have Albert pick me up."
Mike nodded. He was waiting for the rest of the story. "What happened then?"
"Well, I don't really know. It seems a bunch of people in a car following us started shooting at us. Albert said it was the police. He led them down a dirt path and turned off just before it went over a cliff. They didn't see the turn and didn't make it. Anyway, his car was shot up. He said we couldn't get back out on the highway and there was no way we could contact the police as it was them who were trying to kill us. That's when we walked up the path and radioed you."
The helicopter was circling around a hill. "What did Albert tell you about why the police were chasing you?"
"He said he had taken some pictures of their military and some secret black box that belonged to our government or something like that. It involved the police and drug dealers and it was a mixed up story."
I pulled the roll of film out of my pocket. "Albert gave me this and told me to give it to our government. He said he had the story in his head and hoped one of us could make it out."
"Here, I don't know anything about any of this. You take it." I held the film out for Mike to take.
He shook his head. "No, you keep it. By the way, what kind of name is Jake for a girl?"
"Oh, it's not really my name but it's what daddy always called me. I'm the boy he never got."
"Fair enough. What's your real name?" He reached up and tapped on a gauge.
"Katrina McDonald. Is that your fuel gauge?" I was looking at the gauge he had pecked on and it looked like we were running on empty.
"Un huh."
"Is it showing empty or does it read differently than a car? Do you have another tank on this machine?" That dial was sitting on the bottom side of the gauge.
"Look, there's the ranch."
I looked up. Half a mile in front of us was a clearing with houses, barns, and livestock everywhere.
At that moment the engine coughed. Mike wobbled the helicopter. "Come on baby, just a few more feet and we're home. You can do it."
We flew on in and set down in front of the barn. As soon as the skid touched the ground the engine died. Mike smiled from ear to ear as he looked in my direction. "See, not so bad. She knew she had to get home."
I opened the door and fell out. I got up off the ground dusting myself off. "Tell me you killed it and it didn't die because it was out of gas?"
"Nope, bone dry. She didn't have another few feet in her." He was turning all the switches off.
"Why didn't you carry some fuel up there with you? Surely you knew it would be close even without my weight." I couldn't believe he hadn't prepared for the round trip.
"Honey, I did carry some fuel up there. All I could lift in a bladder tank. Put the fuel in the chopper after I sent the cart through the mine for you. Ditched the tank in the forest. If those people who are after you make it all the way through the mine? If they figure out you had help? If they find the radio and the bladder tank? If they calculate how much fuel it held? If they start searching for the maximum distance one could possibly fly? I will probably be wishing it were me in Albert's place."
Chapter XII
Cowgirl Meet Tom
Mike climbed out and shouted. Several men came running up. Mike and the men were saying something I couldn't understand. The men pulled Albert out of the helicopter and carried him into the house.
"He's going to be alright isn't he?" I should have offered to help.
"Yeah, he's tough as an old boot. He'll be good as new in a couple weeks. We carry a pretty good stock of veterinarian supplies. I'll pump him full of something to kill the infection." Mike started off toward the house.
"Veterinarian supplies? You're going to pump him full of something? You'll kill him if he isn't already dead." I was running to catch up with Mike's long strides.
"I don't think so. All of us use it when we need. It's good stuff. They don't sell you that junk so you can kill your cows or sheep. The idea is to make the critter healthy not kill it." He opened the front door and walked into the house.
I followed him in. It felt ten degrees cooler in the house then out in the yard. Mike walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a bottle of medicine along with a needle and hypo. He tossed the bottle over in my direction. "Here, what do you think?"
Rolling the bottle around in my hands I turned it so I could read the label. "Combiotic? Is Albert allergic to any of this stuff?"
He shook his head. "Not that I remember. He needs ten cc' s in him now and another ten in twelve hours."
I handed the bottle back to Mike. "I guess. I've used it before but only on animals."
Mike nodded. "That's us. Just animals."
He pointed down the hall. "Bathroom is down that way Jake. Don't use a whole lot of water as it's solar heated and it isn't that big of a tank. You use it all up and tomorrow night I take the first bath and you will get a cold one."
I started down the hall before I stopped and turned. Mike was filling the syringe. "Mike what do we do now? I mean, what if they catch us? Will they kill all of us?"
He held the hypo up and squirted the air out of the needle. "First things first. They won't catch you Jake. I don’t care if they send the whole army through that tunnel. It will take them a few days to make it and figure out you and Albert had a ride waiting on the other end. Those tunnels spread out all through that mountain. Chances are pretty good they won't ever find the right one even if they do believe you and Albert went through. Anyway, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference. You'll be gone by then."
"Gone? Gone where?" What did Mike mean by gone?
"Go take a bath and relax. Towels are on the shelf above the toilet. You let me do the worrying now. Albert passed that responsibility to me when he brought you along." He turned and walked out of the room.
The bath made me fell like a new person. I did have a fresh perspective on life when I walked back into the front room. I searched the house until I found Albert. He was lying in bed and a woman was wiping his head with a washcloth now and then.
"How's he doing?"
She smiled and nodded.
I felt of his forehead. He had a temperature but it wasn't bad. I picked up his wrist and felt for a pulse. He had a good strong regular pulse. That was the limit of what I was capable of doing for him. "He seems to be resting alright."
Again she smiled and nodded.
"You speak English?" I was beginning to suspect she didn't understand me.
She smiled and nodded.
"No, I don't guess you do." I left to find Mike.
I found him out in the yard. He and several men had the helicopter up on a dolly and pushing it into the barn. I lent my shoulder to the task. "Need a horse."
Mike nodded as he steered the dolly and helicopter into the big barn. "That would work if you knew what you were doing."
They worked the helicopter back into a corner and the men covered it with a tarp. Mike stopped long enough to wipe sweat off his forehead. "How's your arm? You seem to be alright."
"It's better after the bath. I thought it was broken when we were in the air. I probably bruised it pretty bad. I bet I will be paying for it in the morning." I wind milled it around to show how good it was.
He looked at one of the men and said something I didn't understand. The guy walked over to a box on the barn wall and pulled down a bottle. He walked back over to me and started rolling up my sleeve.
"What's he doing?" I didn't know if I wanted my shirt sleeve rolled up or not.
"He's going to put some liniment on it so it won't hurt in the morning."
"Uh, that's okay. I'm sure it won't be that bad." I was trying to back away but the guy already had the top off the bottle and shaking something with a real strong odor on my arm and rubbing it in.
Mike walked out of the barn while I was getting liniment rubbed all over my arm. I chased him down after I got away from the guy who wanted to rub whatever it was all over my arm. "I stink. Now I need another bath."
"Won't do any good. The liniment has soaked into the skin. It won't hurt you Jake. What it will do is keep your arm from swelling up and hurting by morning."
"What is it?" I leaned over to take a smell. It wasn't anything I had ever run across before.
"Bark extract, seed pits, and a lot of other things mixed in alcohol. It will heal a sprained ankle in a day."
He walked up to the corral, put his right foot up on the bottom rail, and leaned over the top rail. "I built this place. Came here after Vietnam, Lebanon, and a few other places I don't care to remember. Albert and I were buddies in special ops. I took care of him, he took care of me. After we retired from killing everyone Uncle Sam pointed us at, he became a reporter for a lot of magazines and some of those big television networks back in the States. I wanted away from it all. I had enough of people and what they did to one another in the name of some bullshit cause or another. Everyone's cause is a good cause so we kill each other to make the other guy believe it. I killed in the name of democracy to make the rest of the world safe. Bullshit! I killed because someone in my government pointed another man out to me and said he didn't think the way we did."
I was very quiet as I listened to Mike tell his story. I was almost positive I was the first person to hear this. He turned to look at me. "I was better than good Jake. Albert was better than good. That's the only reason we survived. I won't let anyone hurt you. No matter what, they won't get to you. I might be older now but I'm also a lot smarter. I have lost some of my edge but I make up for it in brains. I'm better than any man you have ever met. I'm even better than Albert which makes him the second best."
He turned and looked me in the eyes, winked, and walked away. I didn't believe for a second he had been telling me a whopper. I believed every single word. I tossed and turned in my bed that night. It wasn't my shoulder or arm causing me torment. I was lost in a world I didn't understand. Men killing men because they could and for no apparent reason.
Before sunup I was sitting on the corral rail watching the horses in the pasture and the jet black one in the corral. That horse was as interested in me as I was in him. I felt someone walk up behind me. "Hello, Mike. Sure is a beautiful horse. I checked on Albert a few minutes ago and he seems to be better. His fever has broke and he's breathing regularly."
He climbed up on the rail and sit down beside me. "How did you know it was me?"
"I could smell you."
"You smelled me? There are other men around here." He was studying me.
"Yes, but they smell different than you. Most everyone has their own peculiar body smell. Bill Randall smells like old leather, sun, and horse sweat."
"Who's Bill Randall?"
"He's a man back home. He is the National Calf Roping Champion. Lives down the road from us." I wished with all my heart I was back there now.
"Jake, I arraigned for a ride out for you. They will be checking all the commercial airports so it isn't going to be quick but it will get you out of the country. Six nights from now, at midnight, a plane will come in and pick you up. He will fly you out to the ocean and kick you out. A trawler will be waiting to pick you up. You ever do any parachuting before?"
I blinked as I tried to imagine what he was telling me. "No."
"That's okay. The parachute will open as soon as you clear the plane. When you feel your feet hit the water trip the release hooks. A rescue team will be there as soon as you splash in. Just in case something goes wrong, you will have a life raft tied to your belt. It will automatically inflate when you hit the water. If the rescue team isn't there when you surface then climb into the raft and they will be there shortly." He threw a stick out into the corral and waited.
I finally found my voice. "I need to call home and tell them I'm okay."
He nodded. "You can't call directly. They may be monitoring everyone's phone in that part of the world. I would if I were them. You can call a relay station in Belgium and it will delay and then relay your message to where ever you want it to go."
Mike dropped down inside the corral, turned around, and was studying me. "You're quite an unusual person. What is America's All Around Cowboy doing down in this neck of the woods? You know this whole country is going ape over your disappearance. The US Embassy is demanding to know what happened to you. The Brazilian government wants you. I'm curious as hell as to what is going on? In the helicopter, that Mr. Pladure fellow you mentioned being a guest of? That wouldn't happen to be Simone Pladure would it?"
"Yes."
"Boy, you don't mess around do you? You walked out on the most powerful man in Brazil? You don't just up and walk out on Simone Pladure. If he wants you to stay and be his guest then you stay and be his guest. How did you manage that little trick?" Mike was smiling as he asked the question.
"I had the cook call me a cab and a ride back to the airport. It wasn't complicated." I had no idea why I couldn't leave Mr. Pladure's house when I wanted. After all, I never asked to be his guest.
His eyes closed to squints. "My god! So simple it worked. Simone's house is guarded twenty four hours a day by the military. It would take a commando team of twelve men to penetrate that place. No one walks in or out without an authorization from Simon himself."
Mike was laughing. "You call a cab and ride out. I can't believe it. I bet heads are rolling right now."
He reached up, pulled me off the rail, and helped steady me as I dropped to the ground. He opened the corral gate. "Let's go see if Consuelo has breakfast fixed yet. We don't find our place at the table when it's ready those hands of mine won't leave us anything."
Back in the house, I washed my hands and then went to check on Albert. He was awake. "How you doing? You ought to be up and running the races as much stuff as Mike pumped in you."
A smile crossed his face. "Yeah, I bet he did too. I'm sorry for getting you into this mess Miss McDonald."
"Think nothing of it Albert. I don't seem to be the any worse for the wear and tear. Certainly not like you are. I think I came out of this in pretty good shape. Speaking of which. How do you feel?" I reached down and laid my hand on his forehead to see if he was still running a temperature.
"I'll live. Remember this Miss McDonald, even though the bullet went clear through it carried a lot of stuff with it. Parts of the car seat, my shirt, anything that was on my skin was pushed in. It all might have been microscopic but it carried a lot of bugs and they can build up a family in a hurry. So you remember to pump in plenty of bug killer if you ever get a hole." He was eyeing me to see if I had absorbed any of his wisdom or not.
I nodded. "I was born and raised on a farm. You don't have to tell me about wounds, germs, and things. I know all about them. I hadn't ever thought about a bullet carrying so much trash along with it but I guess it's probably true. Thanks for the advice. I'll leave the guns and bullets up to you and Mike."
He waved his hand and dismissed me. "I smell breakfast. I know this crew. You better go find your share before they eat it all up."
I helped Quinswala wash the dishes and clean up after breakfast. The men had disappeared right after eating. I never asked where they were headed. I figured they had to work livestock. I also figured they considered me a guest and I wasn't invited along. An hour later I finished sweeping floors and helping with the housework. I was glad when we were though. There was a black horse in the corral I needed to go inspect.
He was at the far side of the corral when I walked outside. His head came up when I stepped out on the porch. It showed me he was alert. Walking down to the corral, I climbed up on the fence and watched him for a few minutes as he watched me. He certainly was a beauty. Jet black, his hair glistened in the sun like it had been oiled.
"Here boy. I want to pet you. Come here." Didn't get any reaction.
"Okay, we'll do it the hard way." I stepped down off the rail and headed for the barn. In a few minutes I found what I wanted and was back at the corral. That corral had a snubbing post in the middle and it showed lots of use. I was betting black beauty was the one who was putting the wear on it.
He held real still until I swung the lariat over my head and then he took off. Around and around the edge of the corral he ran. I let him run for fifteen or twenty minutes before I dropped a loop over his head. Instead of wrapping the rope around the snubbing post I let him run some more. I was walking around the post as the black stallion ran the edges of the fence.
He must have run for more than a half hour before he decided I wasn't going to yank him up to the snubbing post. Slowly he dropped down into a trot, then a walk, and finally he stopped as he eyed me suspiciously.
Ever so slowly I eased toward him as I talked. "Easy old boy. I only want to pet you. How you been? You and I should get to know one another. You might make it up to the states some day and you can look me up. You know where the states are don't you? That's way up north of here."
I droned on and on in a monotone voice as I eased up closer and closer. Finally I was close enough to ease a hand out for him to smell me. He gave me a good inspection as I stood there quietly admiring his form. He was a magnificent horse. He had strong withers, excellent muscle mass in the front chest, and obviously good stamina. He wasn't breathing heavy after running for a half hour. He didn't quit because he was tired. He quit because I wasn't pulling him into the post in the middle. This horse was like Gunshy, he could never be broke, never be owned, and would never quit. Someone might ride him but it would never be a mutual agreement until they made friends with him.
I pulled the brush out of my back pocket I had found in the barn when I picked up the lariat. I let him inspect it before I began brushing his neck and shoulders. "You're such a pretty thing. You born and raised around here or did Mike buy you from someone else? You should have told him you weren't for sale."
We talked for an hour or more. I was finally able to move around him as I brushed him. I stayed away from those back legs. One little quick movement and I would have been dead. He might have been allowing me to brush him, we were a long ways from being friends. I brushed around his forehead and around his ears. It didn't send him to horse heaven but that was okay. Sometimes it's a learned trait. Over time he would learn to love it.
I felt his skin shiver. I could smell them too. "Hello Mike, where you been?"
The answer came from across the corral behind me. "How do you do that?"
I dropped the lariat off, letting it fall down to the ground as I turned my back to the horse. Mike was leaning on the rail along with another man. "I asked if he wanted to be friends and he said it would be okay."
A smile crossed Mike's face and I thought he was going to laugh. "That too, but I wanted to know how you knew it was me? You were busy when we rode up and you never looked."
"I could smell you. I also smelled the other man who is with you. He sit across the table from me at breakfast this morning." I could feel the black horse breathing on my hair and down the neck of my shirt.
"Is that what Tom is doing to you?" Both men were looking behind me.
"Tom? Is that his name? Kind of a plain name for such a beautiful horse. Yeah, you might say that. He's cataloging my scent. We aren't friends but we aren't enemies either. I'll make a wager with you. I'll bet every time you come out here to work with him you throw a rope on him and snub him up to the post. When you get where you have him pulled in so close he can't move you put a saddle on him."
Mike's eyes were closing to narrow slits as I talked. "When you get him saddled and a bridle on him, you try and ride him. That probably lasts until someone is thrown or he gets so tired he can hardly stand. Either way it doesn't make much difference. The next day is going to be the same thing. You start all over from scratch. He's not going to give in and you aren't going to give up. You might eventually ride him out of here but when you least expect it he will throw you. You'll never break his spirit."
Mike shook his head. "I might as well sell him for dog food then because I can't keep a horse that won't be rode."
"I didn't say he couldn't be rode. I said you will never break his spirit."
Taking a step back I was scratching under his chin. "Be friends with him. He will accept a friend. He won't accept a master."
Mike shook his head. "Jake, if that was me standing there in your place right now that horse would stomp me to death. I swear you have him under a spell."
"No, I let him know I wasn't going to fight with him. When we sit down to have a talk it isn't going to be with him pulled into the snubbing post. He's free to walk away if he wants. He knows that." I ran my hands down his chest.
"Jake, I need you to stay…," Mike hesitated and was looking off in the distance. “GET THE MEN!”
Chapter XIII
“RAMON, GET THE TRUCK AND THE MEN.” Mike was pointing off toward the pasture.
I stepped up in front of Tom to see what they were looking at. Three or four hundred yards out, a man was running across the field. Behind him about two hundred yards was a bull and he was closing in fast.
I grabbed the lariat at my feet. Running across that corral, I hit the fence and rolled over the top railing. The horses Mike and the other man had rode up on were by the house. I made a wide sweep around to the side of the one on the left. I wanted her to see me coming. Yanking the reins where they were tied to the rail got them lose. That horse was backing up from me as I threw one rein up past her neck on the left and pulled back on the other so she would stop back peddling. When she stopped I was in the saddle. My heels dug into her flanks as I yelled “HEY YAH” and leaned forward to grab the other rein where it was laying across the top of her neck. She sprinted forward as I turned her one hundred eighty degrees back toward the pasture. We were flying when we passed Mike. I urged her for everything she had.
Mike shouted something like "wait" but I ignored him. I was lying down on that little mare's neck demanding she run faster, harder, as I coiled my lariat. "Come on girl."
We were quickly closing the distance between us and the man. Of course so was that bull. I dropped a loop down by my right leg. This was going to be something I had never done before. Always before I was chasing them down from behind. This one we were going straight at. I brought my hand up and took a turn over my head. I threw my loop before we ever passed the man. The bull was almost on top of the man as we raced by him. I took several turns of rope around the saddle horn with my left hand and snapped the rope with my right. If my timing was right the loop would shrink as it closed around the bull's neck.
I knew it was going to be rough. I wrapped my legs as tight as I could around the mare as I tried to pull the little mare to a stop. Whether she had begun to slow down or not didn't make much difference. That bull out weighed us two to one. With his horns only inches from Ramone, bull and horse came to opposite ends of the rope, it stretched out like piano wire. I was thrown forward when we hit the end of the rope. My chest slammed hard into the saddle horn. Underneath me I felt her coming up and over on her back as I looked over my shoulder. The bull was pulled down and sideways as his right horn dug into the ground and his face plowed dirt. His tail end was going up in the air. The mare was down on her haunches as the weight of the bull keep dragging her back. I threw my right leg out as I pushed off the saddle with both hands toward my left.
Mike had run for the other horse when I rode past him. He was still trying to get his horse under him when he looked over his shoulder toward the pasture. That was when I threw my loop. From where he was standing, he watched as Ramone went down, the bull went down and flipped head over heels, and horse and rider went over backwards.
Everything was hidden in a cloud of dust.
He was shouting. " Consuelo, get the first aid kit. Ramon, get the truck and the men. Bring a rifle. I'll kill that damn bull."
Mike was there almost immediately. He was looking through the dust cloud. "Jake, you okay? Jake, answer me. You hurt, girl? Jake, talk to me."
Lying on her back, my mare was struggling to get her feet back under her. I was still hidden from Mike by the little mare. She was on top of my leg. My left leg was caught between the ground and the mare. If she rolled the wrong way I was going to be under that horse. I had seen enough cowboys trapped under a horse. Something usually ended up broken when the horse rolled over them.
I was looking up at horse and rider. They were on the wrong side of the mare if she tried to roll away from them. "Mike, back off. You're almost on top of us."
I was pushing with my right foot trying to get the mare to roll to her left. Finally she found her equilibrium and she started struggling to her feet. I grabbed the saddle horn and stayed with her as she stood up. The dust was settling as we came up off the ground. The bull was lurching to his feet too. "Mike, rope his feet!"
"WHAT!" Mike was looking at me as if I had dropped in out of the sky.
Unwrapping my rope from the saddle horn, I passed it to Mike as I urged my mare forward. Instinctively his mare had begun to run beside us. That Brahma bull was right behind. Mike barely had my rope in his hands as I leaned over and yanked his lariat off his saddle. "Stay out of his way for a few seconds."
It wasn't necessary to tell Mike to keep his mount running. That big old Brahma bull wanted to horn something and we were the targets. I pulled my mare off to the right as I shook out a loop. That gray Brahma started to follow me but Mike had my rope fastened around his saddle horn by now. The bull stumbled as he was tugged behind Mike's mount. It didn't take the Brahma any time to forget me and focus his attention on Mike's mare. He put new effort into catching his foe as I threw a loop down under his back hooves. He stepped into the loop as I pulled the reins on my mount bringing her to a halt.
That big old Brahma dropped to his knees when his back legs were yanked out from under him. Of course Mike had no idea what was going to happen so he and his mount never tried to slow down when I tossed my loop. What surprised me was the distance they dragged that bull before his weight stopped them. My mare had decided she didn't want any closer than necessary. She was really tugging on that lariat which was still wrapped around the bull's hind legs. With Mike's mount pulling from the front and mine pulling from the rear, that bull looked like he was on the spit over the barbecue grill.
"Where do you keep this beast?" I could see Mike's ranch hands coming with the truck from the barn and a couple of riders coming across the field from the south. Behind us Ramon was finally getting up off the ground. He didn't know whether to run some more or wait for the truck.
Mike was eyeing me. He looked around for a few seconds before he answered. "I normally keep him in the east pasture. It has a good five wire fence and he's never gone through it before."
"Is that where we are taking him?" I was waiting for directions before I let that bull find his feet. I was positive that Brahma didn't want anything else to do with us or our horses. We had roughed him up twice now. Usually they get a little smarter after the first time. Obviously this bull was a little slower than the rest.
Mike nodded. "I'll tell the men to bring a trailer down here and we'll haul him over there."
"Loosen up your rope and take it off his neck. He's had enough. We can drive him over."
Urging his mount backward, Mike loosened up his rope. As he slid out of the saddle the Brahma tried to regain his feet so he could run. With his hind legs strung out behind him it wasn't possible. Gingerly, Mike removed the lariat off the bull's neck. After he remounted I loosened up my rope and the bull finally got to his feet. My loop lay on the ground as he stepped out of it. He had more than enough of horse and man. He ran across the field toward his home pasture. He knew where he belonged. The only thing he wanted was to be was far away from us.
After picking up Ramon, the truck pulled up and stopped thirty feet away. Mike said something as he pointed at the disappearing bull. They took off after the bull.
"Think they will get there in time?" I was coiling my lariat up around the saddle horn.
"Where?" Mike was looking at me again.
"I imagine you told them to open the gate so he doesn't tear down the fence running through it. Think they can beat him to the pasture?"
He turned his mount and we headed back toward the barn. "Jake, you're better than any Gaucho I have ever seen. Where did you learn to throw like that?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "Practice. I had a few good teachers too. I rode the rodeo circuit part time. The cowboys were always doing rope tricks as they waited for their turn in some event. Sam Chapman is one of the best steer ropers I ever had the pleasure of meeting. He can rope right or left handed. If that steer has horns, you can ask him to rope only the horns. He will lay that rope out there so pretty, you'll swear that animal slipped the rope on just to please Sam. I've seen Sam rope almost every part of the animal. One time a man made a bet with Sam he couldn't rope the tail. Sam collected that bet."
I glanced at Mike. "You told me you were the best at what you did. Sam is the best at what he does. One day I want to beat Sam. I don't care about roping a calf or a bull or whatever. I want to be the best. I may never make it but I'm sure going to keep trying. Sam and I may be in the nursing home sitting in our rocking chairs but one day I'm gonna beat him."
Mike nodded. "I understand the feeling. Have you roped the tail yet?"
"A couple times but not consistently and not any witnesses. When Sam did it, he never hesitated and never blinked. He knew in his heart he wasn't going to miss. I want to be that good. I want to be that sure."
We rode back to the barn as we were talking. Mike was watching me. "Go in the house, Jake. I'm going out to catch the mare that ran off and left Ramon afoot."
"No, I need to look over my horse first. She took a beating out there. I need to see if anything is bruised or sprained. Then I need to rub her down. If you don't mind, and if you have another horse, I'll ride with you and help you catch the mare." I was already out of the saddle and pulling it off the mare as I talked.
Mike dismounted and walked over to help me look the mare over. "I don't have another horse handy. They are out in the pasture. We have the only two that are up right now."
"What about Tom? He's in the corral." As I ran my hands over the little mare, I didn't find anything wrong. She was beat up some but only a little worse for the wear and tear I put on her catching that bull.
Mike backed up and was studying me. "Miss McDonald, you manage to get a bridle and saddle on that black horse in the next thirty minutes and he's yours."
I laughed as I lead the little mare into a stall. "I'm not going to take you up on your offer Mike. It was a dumb offer since you don't know me and obviously don't know your horse. He's not THAT bad."
Picking up the saddle, bridle, and blanket, I headed for the corral where Tom was. Tom ran over to the far side of the corral when he saw me coming with my arms full. Mike might have been safe in making his offer. I was going to see.
Mike let me in the gate and I dropped everything on the ground. I pulled the lariat off the saddle. Tom stood there until I swung it over my head and then he ran. I dropped the loop over his head. As he ran around the inside of the corral I walked around that snubbing post. Tom quit running after a few trips around the corral. He was an intelligent horse. He knew I was going to let him run as long as he wanted.
Slowly I walked up to him while talking to him in a monotone. "Hey, I have a horse to go catch. Since you have been doing nothing but resting up and getting fat for the past few weeks, I thought you might like the chance to go run some of it off. So how about it? You game? I'm going to need a little co-operation though. I'm not ridding bareback. You're going to have to let me drop on a bridle and saddle."
He let me ease up to him as I quietly droned on and on. Finally I was scratching around his ears and his chest. It didn't take him more than a few minutes to decide he liked that part of it. I rolled the rope into a half hitch and slipped it over his nose making a temporary bridle. Leading him back over to where I had dropped the gear I slowly slipped the bridle on him as I talked in a steady quiet voice. The blanket and saddle were next. Mike started to climb into the corral to help and I motioned for him to stay away. Tom was willing to accept me. He certainly wasn't going to accept the man who had been pulling him into the snubbing post the past few weeks.
With the saddle cinched up I put some weight on the stirrup. Tom sidled away. I was constantly talking as I scratched him some more. Again I put some weight on the stirrup. Tom had his head turned watching me.
Putting my left foot in the stirrup I grabbed the saddle horn. "It's okay Tom. I'm not that heavy. You won't mind. Let's go for that walk okay? You're going to love getting out of the corral for a little while. It's going to be some nice exercise."
I was trying to keep him interested in my voice as I droned on. I was up in the saddle. Tom took a couple of small hops as he jumped stiff legged. He wasn't really trying to buck me off. It was a reflex reaction on his part. I leaned forward and scratched around his neck. It's okay Tom, I'm not hurting you. Let's go for that walk."
Mike opened the gate. He was shaking his head as he walked back toward the barn to get his horse. "I don't believe it. I just don't believe it."
Tom reminded me a lot of Gunshy except Tom was a taller horse. I bet he was over sixteen hands high. Tom was built more for running than sprinting. Gunshy would beat him out of the chute every single time. In a mile race, I was sure Tom would outrun Gunshy. On the farm or ranch, Gunshy would be the more useful of the two. Very seldom do cowboys need a horse who can run any long distance. The days of the pony express, and out running the Indians were over.
Mike and I rode out to the west pasture. The reins were broke where Ramon had his horse tied to the post. The leather had got old and the horse was determined to leave without her rider.
Mike reined in his mount and looked around. There wasn't a horse in sight. "I'll go to the right, you follow on down the fence line. If we don't find her in a couple hours head back to the house. She could be halfway to Mexico by now."
Scratching Tom around the shoulders and neck so he wouldn't mind the load he was carrying, I nodded. "I'll meet you back at the house."
It was a little over an hour later when I heard something coming toward us crashing through the trees and brush. Tom was bouncing as he stepped nervously about. I tried to hold him still while I listened. What kind of large animals did they have in this part of the world? I wished I had paid more attention during my geography and history lessons.
"RUN YOU DEVIL!" Drifted through the woods.
I recognized Mike's voice as the threshing closed in on us. A brown animal crashed through the brush headed straight for us. As Tom bolted, he almost threw me off. I let him have his head as he ran. The brown ghost veered away from us. I recognized a horse with a saddle but no bridle. I steered Tom over to my right after the disappearing mare. Looking over my shoulder Mike came into view. He was stretched out, lying flat along his mare's neck so as not to be swept off by the brush and trees. He had his mare at a dead run, hot on the heels of the brown mare.
I turned Tom so we were now chasing Mike. I was hoping there weren't any canyons or gorges out here. We were all dead if there were. That brown horse would go over and we would follow suit before we knew what happened. We broke out of the trees. Mike was about fifty yards behind the brown horse. Tom and I were about thirty yards behind Mike. Underneath me I could feel Tom stretch out. He decided this was fun. It looked like Mike had reigned into a trot we were gaining on him so fast.
Mike looked up in astonishment as we swept past him. He could have been stopped the way we went by. Tom's muscles were rippling as he settled into a distance eating gallop. There was no doubt left in my mind Tom could outrun most everything on this earth. I was lying flat on Tom's back and not urging him to run. He was doing it because he wanted to. It was in his heart and soul. This was what Tom had been born for. His breath was coming in rhythm with his strides. He had a free heart and soul. Tom ran because he loved it.
In my mind I renamed him Pegasus. We were quickly closing the distance on the brown horse. I loosened my lariat, spread a loop, and dropped it down by my leg. Ten feet back behind the brown horse I brought the loop up over my head to throw. Tom bolted to his left away from the lariat when I swung it up over his head. It caught me off guard. I grabbed the pommel with my left hand as I fell to the right side of the saddle. I was barely hanging on as Tom keep circling to his left away from me. Only by the slimmest of margins did I manage to hang onto the saddle. Finally I managed to pull myself back up into the saddle. My lariat was dragging along behind us. I coiled it back up as I searched for the other horse. She had veered off to our right when we went left. Mike had kept her from circling back to the woods.
I turned Tom after the other two horses and again he settled down into his distance eating gallop. Mike was watching over his shoulder. This time we didn't surprise him as we passed by. His little mare was breathing hard and she was lathered. She wasn't going to last much longer. Again I gathered up my lariat as we closed in on the brown horse. I was ready for Tom as I swung the lariat up over my head. When he tried to veer to the left I pulled him right. He broke his stride and bounced along stiff legged. I urged him after the other horse. He picked up his stride and closed the gap. I brought my rope up. He worked his way left but didn't break stride.
I'm right handed so it's easier to throw in front or toward the left. Throwing out to my right is awkward. I was still swinging my loop when I urged Tom toward his right. He wouldn't have anything to do with it as long as I was swinging that loop over his head. I coiled my lariat back up and worked him over to the right of the brown horse. Looking over my shoulder, Mike wasn't even keeping up any more. His horse was winded. She had done all she was going to do. I brought my lariat up and Tom shied over to the left of the brown horse. I threw and missed. Again I got Tom over to the right so I could throw straight or over to my left.
We had run another quarter mile when I worked Tom into the position I wanted. I brought my loop up and threw before Tom had a chance to get too far to the left of the brown horse. I had her. I pulled back trying to rein Tom in. He wanted to run. Reluctantly he slowed down.
We were waiting as Mike walked his horse up where we had stopped. He was shaking his head as a smile spread from ear to ear. "Miss McDonald, I can see why they gave you the title of All Around Cowboy. You don't give up do you?"
I was rubbing Tom's neck. He was hot but he wasn't tired. "It wasn't me. Tom is the one who never gave up. He has as much spirit as I've ever seen in a horse. We could run back to where we started and come back again and he wouldn't be ready to quit."
We were headed back toward the ranch house with the brown horse meekly in tow behind Tom. "Why don't you give Tom a real name."
Mike was waiting as he looked us over.
"He has wings on his feet. He loves to run more than anything in the whole world."
"You want me to name him Mercury?" Mike looked kind of funny at us.
"Well, not exactly. I think his name is Pegasus like the winged horse." I was watching to see how Mike would take a relative stranger asking him to rename his horse.
Mike nodded his head. "I'll give it some thought Jake. We'll see."
Back at the barn we put the horses up after taking the gear off them. Mike was glad to have his saddle off that brown horse rather than losing both horse and saddle. It would have been expensive loss losing one or the other, much less both at the same time.
I led Tom into a stall and dropped his saddle and blanket. I was brushing him down when Mike walked by the stall. "Mike, where do you keep your grain?"
His head popped into the stall as he leaned around the gate. "Why?"
"Tom needs a reward for what he did. He needs to know when he does good, he gets rewarded for it."
"I'll bring some hay." Mike's head disappeared.
I stepped into the breezeway. "Mike, I'm not telling you how to run your ranch but I sure would like some grain to go along with that hay."
Mike was ten feet away when he stopped and turned around. He looked at me for a long time before he nodded his head. "How much?"
"A double handful would be about right. I need some for the mares too. I'm not going to reward that dumb horse we had to chase down." I was waiting to see if I had asked for too much.
Slowly a smile spread across from ear to ear. "Your reward is sure costing me. Grain isn't that easy to come by out here."
He held up his hand before I could say anything. "You're right. They are worth it. I wouldn't have wanted to run Ramon's horse down on foot. I'll get your grain. You can give it to them so they will know whom to thank for it. All Around Cowboy."
Mike gave up and went into the house before I had finished brushing Tom and talking to him. I wasn't good friends with Tom but I was a friend. He had decided he liked the attention I was giving him. I made sure I didn't make any sudden moves or get close to his back feet. There is a difference between friendship and trust. Tom would accept me as a friend. He would learn to trust me if I had a couple months to work with him.
As I waited on my ride out of Brazil I worked with Tom. I was in his stall before sunup every day. The first day I washed him down and brushed his coat before breakfast. Tom was warming up to the attention I was giving him. What I was doing to Tom was a big change from being corralled, pulled into a snubbing post, and having a bridle and saddle thrown on him.
Mike called me into breakfast as the sun was breaking the horizon. I checked on Albert after I walked into the house and washed up. He was looking pretty good for someone who had a bullet pass through his shoulder. "How you feeling Albert?"
He smiled and laugh lines appeared around his eyes. "Mike told me you rode Tom yesterday."
"He's a beautiful horse. He sure does like to run." I leaned over to inspect Albert's bandage. I lifted the corner to check for infection. It looked nice and red without any yellow puss forming or red streaks leading from it.
"Am I going to live, doctor?" He was looking down at the bandage.
"I don't know. Lean forward and let me look at the one on your back." As he leaned forward I lifted the corner and looked at the one on the back of his shoulder.
"A little infection there Albert. You need another shot of Mike's elixir and the scab pulled off. It has an infection under it." I laid the bandage back down so Albert could settle back in bed.
"Is it going to hurt?" He looked at me waiting for an answer.
"Of course it's going to hurt. What would make you think it wouldn't?" I needed to find Mike. The sooner we did this the better it would be for Albert. Bacteria multiply at a prodigious rate.
I yelled down the hall. "Mike, bring your antibiotic and some fresh sterile bandages."
Mike showed up with a handful of medicine and bandages in seconds. "What's the problem?"
"Albert is picking up an infection on his shoulder where he's laying on it and not letting air get to it. Give him a shot of combiotic. We will irrigate the wound after we open it up again." I took the bandages out of Mike's hand.
"Roll over Albert. The shot needs to go in the hip so it will stay in the muscle tissue and dissipate over time."
"Mike, ten cc's in Albert's hip with that stuff. If we don't kill him giving him this animal antibiotic then he will live to be as strong as an ox." I was easing Albert over on his side for the shot.
Mike stepped up after putting the combiotic in the syringe. He leaned down to shoot Albert in the hip. I stopped him before the needle went in. "Swab it with alcohol first. We don't want to drop more germs in him then he has already."
Mike handed the syringe to me. "You do it then."
I swabbed Albert's hip, slapped it with my fingertips, and stuck him. I put a piece of tape on the prick. "Over on your stomach Albert."
Obediently he rolled over on his stomach. I poured some water on the gauze he had on the shoulder wound to loosen it up from the scab. That way it didn't pull nearly as bad as I teased it off.
I was pointing out the yellow spots to Mike. "This is the infection. If it's red it's his body fighting the infection. Yellow means it has bad bacteria in it. Think in terms of yellow puss. Usually it wouldn't mean a whole lot but with this wound all the way through his shoulder it has a door straight into his body."
Mike was looking as I pulled off pieces of scab. "You learn all this on the farm did you, Jake?"
"Mostly. I learned a lot on the rodeo circuit too. Cowboys are usually broken up or chewed up. They normally don't come in one piece or whole. I wouldn't do ninety percent of the things they do. Most of them are in debt up to their eyeballs hoping the next ride will get them into the money. It's like gambling or anything else. It's a disease of the mind. Only a few make enough money to pay expenses. The others keep looking at the big winners and believing they are going to be the next one to hit the jackpot."
I had the wound opened up again. "Give me some of that combiotic, Mike. I'll wash this down with the antibiotic and cover it with a clean dressing."
I knew I had to be hurting Albert as I worked on his wound. Since he wasn't saying anything I didn't realize how much until I was finished and told him he could roll back over. His whole face was covered in beads of sweat. I wasn't surprised. "Why didn't you say something?"
Pain was in his eyes as he licked his lips. "Wasn't bad."
I remembered Mike telling me how he and Albert were trained to kill. Could you also train someone to accept pain or was that what made a killer so special? They accepted pain and kept going? I didn't ask. "It should go ahead and heal alright. That antibiotic will keep it from picking up a second infection. It will scab over before the bacteria can build up again. We won't have to do this a second time."
"Thanks McDonald. I ever need a doctor or nurse again, you'll be at the top of the list." He managed a smile.
"Stay out of the way of bullets and you won't be needing one." I sponged off his forehead with a cool wet washcloth.
Chapter XIV
Branding is Still Done on Most Ranches
After we finished breakfast, all the other hands left. I was helping Consuelo pick up the dishes. Mike was still at the table sipping his coffee. "Jake, we're going to brand some cows this morning. Do you want to help? They are in the north range. I was thinking we would drive them down to the corral so we could run them through the chute. However, after seeing that fancy roping you did the other day on that old bull, I got to thinking you might show us how it's done? We could brand those cows right where they are at."
"Cold or hot?" I put the dishes in the sink and turned around to look at Mike.
"What? Cold or hot what?" Mike blinked a couple times.
"Cold or hot brand? The answer is, I'd love to help. I want to know if you brand them with a cold iron or hot iron?"
"Oh! Well, Jake, think of where you're at." He was grinning at me.
"Hot iron I imagine. Be kind of hard to get liquid nitrogen to chill your branding iron in this part of the world, wouldn't it? I guess it was a dumb question." I picked up a dishtowel to help dry the dishes as Quenswalla washed them.
Mike rose out of his chair. "No, not a dumb question. But a hot iron is more practical in my part of the world. You still game? If you are, come on. Let's get it done."
He said something to Consuelo I didn't understand. She took my dishtowel and shooed me away. I was guessing he told her I was going to help brand cows. I followed Mike out to the barn. Picking up the saddle I had yesterday, I opened up the stall to the little mare I had used when I roped the bull.
Mike stopped me. "Try Tom. You and him seem to get along pretty good together."
Shutting the door to the mare's stall I backed up to look at Mike. "Tom is skittish around a rope. It is going to take him a little while to understand it's not him I'm roping. He also lacks training as a cutting horse. He's not going to know what to do once I get that cow or whatever roped. It will take longer if I use Tom rather than the mare."
"He's not going to learn unless someone teaches him. Do you mind?" Mike was watching my eyes, waiting for an answer.
"No, I don't mind if you don't. Just don't expect instant results out there today. Tom needs a lot of hands on training and a lot of love." I moved back over to Tom's stall and opened the door. He was eying me expecting some petting and feed. That would have to come later after we did our work, not now.
It took us almost two hours of ridding to get out to where Mike's hands were rounding up cows. They had obviously left horses and gear out here the day before and drove out in the truck after breakfast this morning. I shook out my lariat. Tom danced sideways away from the rope. I swung the loop up over my head as I held Tom from bolting. He bounced stiff legged as he ducked the rope. He was wanting to run. Today wasn't a run day unless one of those calves fled before we could get a brand on him. After about ten minutes Tom finally settled down. I dropped my lariat and brought it back up over my head again. Tom bounced but he didn't try and run. We went through the motions several times before Tom would tolerate me swinging that lariat over his head. We were as ready as we would ever be on this particular day. I was wishing I had more time to get Tom ready before we started with live calves.
Looking around for Mike I found him over on the other side of the herd. "Let's give it a try."
Mike whipped out his lariat and missed his calf. Ramone had his lariat up and caught a different one. The calf was bawling his head off as he was pulled from the herd. As the calf was pulled up by the fire one of the other hands picked up a hot iron. I had my rope out and caught the calf's hind legs before Tom had a chance to think about it. I pulled back on the reins trying to get Tom to back up. He didn't understand. The only reason the calf went down was because Ramone pulled him away from us and our rope tightened up. The calf was branded and inoculated at the same time. They slipped Ramone's rope off his head. I loosened up my rope and the calf jumped up and ran, kicking his hind legs free of the rope.
We worked hard all morning and most of the afternoon. It was getting close to sundown and Tom was getting the idea of how it was supposed to happen on a working ranch. He didn't jump every time I threw the rope and he would back up when I pulled back on the reins. Ramone and the four other gauchos took a try at roping the back legs but they didn't catch any. I was expecting it most of the day and finally it happened. A couple dozen cows and calves bolted from the herd. Mike's hands quickly closed in on where cows were starting to stream out following the leader.
"Mike!" I touched Tom with my heels as I shouted for help from Mike.
Mike had just bent over to place an iron back in the fire. He looked up and waved me on. As he ran for his horse. "I'll be there. Cut them off before they get to the canyons."
Tom didn't need any urging to run. He had been waiting to do this most of the day. In less than fifty feet he had stretched out and settled into the distance eating gait he had. I felt goose bumps run down my spine as the raw energy he possessed could be physically felt. Those cows could have been running backwards, we gained on them so quickly. As we caught up with the leader it was almost impossible to get Tom slowed down enough to match speed with her. He was wanting to run and that cow wasn't running fast enough to suit him. As I edged Tom over toward the cow she shied away to her left. The rest of the break away stock followed the leader. We kept circling until we were headed back toward the rest of the herd. If they kept going they would run right back into the herd and stop or else the whole bunch would bolt. I didn't like the option so I kept them turning. We would keep circling until they ran out of steam or they decided being with the rest of the herd wasn't that bad of an idea.
Mike caught up with us, and I shouted at him. "Keep them turning. I have an idea."
Mike moved in where Tom and I had been as I pulled Tom out away from the herd. Then I pointed him back toward the middle of the pack. Tom ran through them, scattering the ones who were following behind. They stopped when they no longer had a leader to blindly follow. We cut those that were still running in half again. They too decided they weren't wanting to run any more. Finally it was down to the leader and three others behind her. I dropped my lariat down beside my leg.
"Tom, you run sideways on me and I promise to have you skinned before the night is up." Of course I really wouldn't, and I don't believe Tom could understand what I said. The funny part is, when I got into position over to the right of the cow where I could throw? When I brought my loop up over my head? Tom didn't dance away nor did he do any of his stiff legged running like he tried before. We had the leader and I pulled back on the reins expecting Tom to resist. He didn't. He plowed to a stop and I nearly went out over his head as he planted his feet in the ground. Either he understood a lot more than I gave him credit for or it was a fluke. I don't think it was a fluke. That cow came to the end of her rope and Tom was already stopped. I expected Tom to be dragged forward as both animals gave a little. Tom wasn't in the giving mood. He squatted on his haunches and dug in. It darn near yanked the saddle off Tom as that cow was stopped short. She did a flip and landed on her side. The other cows behind her stopped as they no longer had a leader to follow. I was wondering if we had killed Mike’s cow? She laid there not moving. I eased Tom forward, the rope slacked off on the cow and still she didn't move. I was positive we had broke her neck.
Mike rode up beside us. "Mike, I think I killed your cow."
He looked down at the cow and then back over at me. "Well, I guess we will have to butcher her tonight before we go to bed then."
I slid out of the saddle to remove my rope off her. When I pulled my rope off her neck she staggered to her feet.
"Jake, it looks like you're not going to get that fresh steak after all." Mike was laughing as the cow staggered off toward the herd. She had enough of freedom. She didn't want any more of that.
"Boy am I glad. I was sure I had killed her. I didn't expect Tom to be so stubborn about giving a little as I pulled him in." I reached up and scratched Tom around the ears. He wasn't even hot after that little exercise. Eighty percent of the horses would have been breathing hard. Tom wasn't. To him it was a little stroll. He was such a magnificent animal. I had never met another horse like him. Even those thoroughbred racehorses at Valley Downs Farms couldn't compare to Tom. I didn't think any of them could out run him and I knew none of them could out last him.
"Jake, let's drive the stragglers back and finish up the branding if you're not getting tired of doing all the work around here?" Mike was ready to get this over with and go back to the house.
Tom let me get back into the saddle without stepping away from me. We had become friends. "I'm not doing anything. Roping their back legs isn't work. You and your hands are doing all the hard stuff."
Mike was grinning from ear to ear. "Okay, so why is it none of us can catch those back feet? It sure isn't from trying. I've never seen anyone control a rope like you do Miss McDonald. It's as if that rope was a part of you. Jesus, Ramone, and Andie are better than most with a rope. Yet, I notice when you throw it's a ballet in motion. I think throw is the wrong word here because that is what the rest of us do. We throw a rope. You pass a rope."
"Thanks for the compliment Mike. I'm not that good. I'm just lucky most of the time." Tom turned out where the rest of the stragglers were still trying to make up their mind if they wanted back in the herd or not.
Mike rode up beside us. "Don't shortchange yourself Jake. You aren't lucky and you know it. You're gifted. When you get a rope in your hands, you become a whole different person. I see it and so have the others. They have been talking about you all day. Every time you bring your rope up they want to watch. Your wrist action, the position you take in the saddle, the ease with which you lay that loop out is fascinating to all of us. I believe every one of us has missed a dozen or more times today. All except one, she hasn't missed a single throw."
I was ready to change the subject. Mike was embarrassing me. "How many we have left to brand and vaccinate?"
"Nine hard ones. They won't move away from their mothers so it's making it twice as hard and twice as slow."
"I need two ropes."
Mike looked at me kind of funny before he handed me his.
It wasn't hard to pick put the calves who didn't have a brand on their hip yet. Mike was right about them hugging the sides of their mothers. I swung out a loop and let Tom charge the first pair. When the mother turned to run the calf was a split second late doing the same. I had him before he could close in on his mother's side again. We dragged him crying and bawling from the herd. "Ramone, drop a loop on his head."
As soon as Ramone had his rope over the calf's head, I dropped my lariat and uncoiled the second rope. A light toss and I had the back legs. The calf was branded and inoculated before he knew what was happening.
Jesus slipped the ropes off the calf and handed me the spare rope again. Everyone had the idea of how we were going to finish up this branding.
It was late when we got back to the barn that night. I took my time with Tom even though I was dog tired. I could imagine how Tom must have felt, his first time out as a working ranch horse. He deserved and received a double handful of grain along with a block of hay. Talking to him all the time I was brushing him down, I was careful about those back feet of his. Tom was tired, I was tired and it was a good way to get hurt.
Back in the house, I was too exhausted to care about eating. A quick bath to get rid of the dirt and grim and I was asleep as my body fell in bed.
I thought I was an early riser. Forget that nonsense. I heard men talking and the clatter of dishes before I managed to get my eyes open the next morning. Looking at my watch told me it was twenty eight minutes after four. Didn't those ranch hands ever sleep? Rolling out of bed, I managed to find my clothes and get dressed before I stumbled into the kitchen half asleep. Most of the hands were finishing breakfast, Ramon and Miguel were headed out the door as I walked into the kitchen. They stopped, Ramon said something and smiled before letting the door shut behind him.
Consuelo dropped a plate down on the table loaded with scrambled eggs and toast before I found my chair. The chair was warm. The other Ramone must have just left it. Mike was watching as the other hands left.
"Jake, what's your plans for today?" Mike leaned back in his chair as he took a sip of coffee.
"I guess I'll help Consuelo with the housework first, check on Albert, and then see what I can do to help the men." Those eggs Consuelo had set in front of me were delicious. Missing supper last night brought my appetite into sharp focus.
Mike set his coffee down on the table. "I could use that arm of yours out on the south end this morning. I have some stock I need to get up out of the hills. The hands are busy fixing fence over by the arrow where some of the stock ran through it a couple days ago.”
“Sure, I’d like that. Let me check on Albert before we leave.”
Chapter XV
She Talks to Her Horse
Tom was easy to get out of his stall. He wanted outside. I kept a steady conversation going with him as I put a bridle and saddle on him. I also made sure to keep my hands rubbing or scratching his ‘gotta love it’ areas. If they accept you, horses love to have the areas around their ears scratched. They like scratching under their chest and along their neck in front of their shoulders. Of course an all over brushing would have to wait until we returned. If we became good friends I would put my hands under his jaws, lay my head up against his forehead and talk to him. All of these things Tom would respond to, in his own way, letting me know how our friendship was growing.
Mike had his mare bridled and saddled before I even begin. Then he watched and waited as I worked with Tom getting him ready. When we rode out Mike was looking me over and shaking his head. “Jake, I’ve worked with that horse for over a month and he still fights me. In three days you have accomplished a working relationship with him.”
Leaning forward up along his neck I scratched him. “I told him if he will work with me then I will reward him.”
“You what!!”
“Not in so many words but in language we both understand. Like most animals, Tom’s language is touch. He responds to what he likes or doesn’t like. I’m not trying to be his master. I want to be his friend. I don’t want Tom to work for me but to work with me. Like people who speak a different language, Tom and I have a problem communicating until he and I understand the body language signals. With people it would be sign language. With animals it is the same thing but only in body language. It is give and take on both sides. I’m not going to demand anything from him. He is beginning to realize that.”
Nodding toward the mare Mike was riding I shook my head. “Your horse is submissive. She has accepted humans are going to want something from her and she is willing to go along. If you happen to get knocked off out in the great open she will head for the barn and her food, happy you are no longer on her back. She owes no one her friendship or her allegiance.”
“I’m not sure at this point what Tom would do if I fell off. He isn’t sure himself. He likes me but it is a budding friendship. Like humans who work together over time, Tom would be there for me if something happened.”
Looking at Mike I winked at him. “Treat them like your friend instead of like slaves and they will return the affection the same way. Not all of them but many will. Like people you just have to understand which ones are willing to work with us.”
I had never been on a ranch big enough to not head home for food or water when one wanted. Mike’s ranch was huge. It turned into a long day without lunch since we didn’t bring any with us. We rode up mountains and down canyons counting bulls, calves, cows, and even dead carcasses where only a few bones were left. It was after dark when we got back and Mike told me we hadn’t even covered half of it.
He took his gear off his mare, led her into a stall, and gave her hay and water. He was headed for the house. “I’ll tell Consuelo to set out a couple plates. Wash up as soon as you get Tom settled.”
“I’ll be awhile. I’m going to brush Tom down as I tell him how much I appreciated his help today.” I headed for the granary to get him some grain along with his hay and water.
Mike stopped, turned to look at Katrina, shook his head, and then headed to the house muttering to himself. “She’s going to talk to him?”
It was late by the time I had fed and brushed Tom, checked on Albert, ate, bathed, and found a bed.
================================================
“You willing to do it again?” Mike was looking at me across from the breakfast table.
“Sure, but this time we take food and water.” I was moping up the last of my eggs with my toast.
He nodded. “Consuelo, pack us lunch while we get the horses ready. I told Carlos to leave a couple fresh mounts in the coral. My mare was ready to drop by she got back to the barn.”
“So I noticed. I’ll stick with Tom. He thought it was great exercise.” I gathered up my dishes to put in the sink.
Mike was almost out the door when he stopped. “Tom thought it was great exercise? You’re pulling my leg.”
I was behind Mike pushing him out the door. “No, really. Ask him if you don’t believe me.”
Mike rolled his eyes. “If Tom slips on his saddle an offers you a leg up, then I’ll believe you.”
Laughing, I shook my head. “That’s asking a little too much. However if I turn Tom lose and hold up the bridle ‘and’ if he comes to me then will you believe me?”
Mike nodded in agreement. “Then I’ll believe you.”
I led Tom from the barn out to the coral and turned him lose before I headed back to the barn to get his bridle. With the bridle in hand I was standing inside the gate and was holding it up. “Tom, you want to go out and check on the cows again? Come if you do.” I was wondering if I had asked Tom too quickly about being friends?
Mike along with Consuelo, and all the ranch hands who hadn’t already left were standing on the porch of the house watching. Mike told them what I was going to do. So far nothing was happening besides Tom and me standing there looking at one another while I tried to coax him in. It looked like I had pushed a little too hard for Tom’s acceptance.
Minutes later some of the ranch hands were starting to leave, Consuelo opened the door to walk back into the house, Tom walked up to me. Everyone froze as they watched. Tom sniffed my hair, my shirt, and my hands before he bumped me with his nose.
“damn” carried softly across the yard as Mike and all the others watched in disbelief. “She and that horse really do talk to each other. Most unbelievable thing I’ve ever seen. Albert, you seeing this?”
“Yeah, I don’t believe it either.” Came from the window on the east side of the house.
Of course I was smiling from ear to ear as I scratched Tom around the ears and under his jaw before I slipped the bridle on him. “I love you, you great big handsome devil you. Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are? Well you are. Ask me. I‘m a great judge of beautiful horses and you’re a beauty.”
I was leading him out of the coral to get the saddle still in the barn. “Another day, chasing cows. I guess that’s why we are called cowboys…, Well, me anyway. And I wouldn’t shame you by calling you a cow pony. No Sir Mister, you’re a thoroughbred, a leader and a champion in every respect.”
The horses, Mike, and me worked harder that day than we did the day before. It was rough for both rider and horses, as we climbed hills and gullies. We counted calves, cows, heifers, and bulls marking all down on a pad with a pencil. Mike told me electronic gizmos such as calculators required batteries which didn’t come easily in his part of the world.
It was way after dark when we finally returned to the house. Mike stayed with me in the barn as he rubbed down his mount, giving her grain, and extra feed while I did the same for Tom.
“You’re a good influence Jake.” He was walking beside me toward the house. “I only put them up with feed and water after ridding all day. I’d swear she appreciated the grain I gave her.”
“She did, and so did Tom. When we ask a lot from them and give back extra they do appreciate it. Treat them like you would a human friend. Reward them when you asked for them to go the extra mile with you.”
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Mike was looking at me from across the breakfast table. “Jake, next week the ship will be in place to pick you up. Tom and me are going to be back to square one. Tell me how to make him behave so I can ride him.”
Shaking my head I looked at my plate before turning my attention back to Mike. “You haven’t been listening. You don’t make Tom do anything. You ask him. He isn’t a submissive horse like most horses are.”
“Okay, then how do I ask him?”
“It’s going to be difficult for both of you because you mistreated him from the beginning. You tossed a rope on him and then pulled him into that snubbing post before putting a bridle and saddle on him. He doesn’t like you.”
Mike stared at me with his mouth open. “He doesn’t like me? He’s a horse. I don’t need him to like me.”
“Yes you do if you and him are going to get along together.”
“Jake, I won’t have a horse that can’t be rode.”
“I’m not telling you how to run your ranch but you need to take the time to become his friend if you want him to work with you. You and that damn horse are a couple of stubborn knot heads too full of self righteous pride. It makes you better than most but also is your biggest weakness when neither of you will bend. Give up some of that foolish pride of yours and accept Tom for what he is. When you do, he will give some too.”
“And how old are you?”
“Eighteen.”
“I’m being lectured to by a teenager. I can’t believe my life has come to this.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. I’m thankful for everything…,”
“Don’t apologize Miss McDonald. When you’re right and you know it, you don’t apologize because the other person didn’t like the message.” A smile spread across his face. “So…, how do I become friends with Tom?”
Tom and I were in the yard as I scratched his gotta love it spots. I had a halter on him instead of a bridle. He needed to be as free as possible and standing on neutral ground. The coral carried memories with Mike involved. Mike had been waiting by the house as I brought Tom out of the barn.
As I talked to Tom, I motioned to Mike. “Slowly come up and stand in front of him. Don’t touch him. Let him smell you and understand you aren’t tossing a rope on him this time. When he understands you are there and aren’t going to mistreat him, then you can pet him.
The morning was spent with both of us talking to and working with Tom. I counted it a success when Tom let Mike lead him by the halter without trying to break away. I think Mike stayed with it past lunch just so when the men retuned for dinner they would see him and Tom together.
As Mike led Tom back to the stall in the barn I walked along with them staying close to Tom’s head so he would know I was there. As we headed back to the house, Mike nodded and smiled. “Now we’re friends.”
“No, he acknowledged you today. When you walk up to someone and shake hands it doesn’t make them your friend. Mike, think of them as people instead of animals bending to your will. Friendship develops over time. You have a lot of bad times to overcome before he accepts you as a friend.”
He stopped and stared at me. “You and him that first day…”
I shook my head. “We were learning to accept one another, we weren’t friends. I’m still not his friend. That takes time. I’m one he accepts.”
“The other day out in the coral when he came to you?”
“I’m the one who has let him out of that coral. Probably the first time in weeks. People, Mike, think of in terms of people. Some are stupid, some are intelligent. If he wanted out of the coral then I was the ticket to his desires.”
He looked off into the distance before looking at me again. “And how did you become so astute in horse logic?”
“I grew up on a farm with lots of animals. Cows, horses, dogs, cats, all have a mind and each one is an individual just like us. I’m not that smart myself. I let them tell me what they like or don’t like. I try and understand what they want from me when I ask something from them.”
He nodded as he motioned toward the house. “How long will it take for Tom and me to become friends?”
“Months, maybe years. You mistreated him. That is going to take a lot of tinder care from you and lot of time from him to forgive.”
“Miss, McDonald…,”
“Don’t tell me you can’t spare the time. Friendship be it two legged or four legged is worth working for.”
We stepped up on the porch and he opened the door. “Are we friends?”
I stopped and looked into his eyes. “My life is in your hands. Are we?”
Mike laughed. “When the bombs start dropping and two people dive into the same foxhole, even if you never met, I promise you’re instant buds and best friends. Jake, we’re friends. I wish you were thirty years older or I was thirty years younger. You’re a woman I could give my heart to. But then you already stole it, along with Albert’s, and every man on this ranch. It isn’t only the animals you have seduced, Miss McDonald.
Blushing from the top of my head to the bottoms of my feet, I shook my head as I waked into the house.
Chapter XVI
RUN JAKE RUN!
The next morning I was in the yard working with Tom when Mike came running out of the house shouting something to the men. Two of them headed for the house. The others headed for the barn. “Jake put up Tom. Trouble is headed our way.”
Leading Tom toward the barn, we met the men rolling the helicopter out. “What’s going on?”
Mike was headed my way carrying a pint bottle of some dark liquid. "Change of plans Jake. It seems the government got wind of the drop off to the ship. They are headed this direction now. We need to get you out of here."
He handed me the bottle. "Go run a tub full of water, pour that in it, and climb in. Make sure you get every square inch of you wet but don't get it in your eyes. It won't blind you but it will burn like hell."
Holding the bottle out in front of me I tried to imagine why I wanted this dark stuff in my bath water. "What is it?"
"Tannic Acid. Same thing green walnuts has in the husk. It's going to change you into a chicharro” ." A smile crossed Mike's face.
"What is a chicharro?" I was trying to fathom what it was going to do to me. I knew all about getting hold of green walnuts. I had never bathed in the stuff before but I had handled it.
"Go, we don't have that much time. The military will be here in about an hour and I want to be long gone before then. Quinswala will tell them all the hands are out chasing cows." He turned and was gone back out the door.
I headed for the bathtub. I already knew what I was going to look like when I stepped out of that tub after splashing around in his stuff. Quinswala caught me right after I got out of the tub. She led me into the kitchen and rinsed my hair. When she was through I put on the clothes she handed me. I was looking at a stranger in the mirror in the hall. I didn't know the black headed, brown skinned, boy in the mirror. Now I knew what a chicharro was.
Mike was back and he was holding the front door open. "Let's go. They are less then ten minutes out."
Quinswala handed me a bag with my clothes in it. I bolted for the front door behind Mike. "What about Albert?"
Mike was climbing up in the chopper. "He's gone already. The men took Albert up in the mountains. He'll be okay. Get your butt up in here Jake or I'm gonna leave you behind."
The engine on the helicopter was already turning over as I climbed aboard. "Where we headed?"
"You're headed to Chili and I'm going to go have a talk with a man." Mike was yelling over the roar of the engine as the blades begin turning.
"What about fuel? I thought we were empty when we came in and I didn't see any gas pumps around here." I was searching for the fuel gage on the dash as I shouted back at him.
"Filled it up after we parked it in the barn. I don't let everyone know I have fuel or a chopper on this place. Buckle in Jake." He glanced around and the helicopter jumped off the ground. He stayed low, only a couple feet off the ground as we sped off to the north.
I turned around and looked over my shoulder at the ranch we just left behind. One of the men was driving a herd of cows across the front yard and through one end of the barn and out the other. I wondered what he was doing? It finally dawned on me. He was erasing all tracks. No footprints, no skid marks from the helicopter, no nothing was left to be inspected. Mike was thorough if nothing else. Several miles out from the ranch Mike started gaining altitude as we started closing in on forest and mountains.
We had been flying for about two hours when I spotted another ranch ahead of us. Mike was dropping down so I figured that was our destination. He was talking as he started to circle the buildings. "Jake, from now on you are mute. I don't want to hear a single word escape from your mouth. Jesus is a friend but I trust him just so far. He is going to fly you on the next leg. Don't talk to him. If he asks you a question nod and smile and shake your head. Do you understand?"
I nodded, smiled, and shook my head.
He laughed. "You're really quick Jake. Remember to do exactly like that from now on. Jesus knows you are a boy on an errand for me and nothing else. He is going to get you to Lana's Place in Chili. That is all he needs to know."
Just before he set the helicopter down, Mike picked up the sack with my clothes. He slid them under his legs. He dropped a small satchel in my lap. "This is what you are delivering. Keep it with you and don't lose it. Jake, about your clothes? They are a dead give away. We don't get many cowboys down this part of the world. I'll make sure they get where you're going. You can't be caught carrying them or you will be recognized. From here on, you let me take care of the satchel of clothes.
I couldn't believe it. "My passport, my billfold, everything I own is in there. How am I going to get out of the country and back home?"
"All your identification is exactly why you can't carry it with you. Getting out of the country isn't any problem. All your belongings will be there when you need them again."
"Mike, how do I ever repay you?" I had no idea how to repay this debt I owed.
Shaking his head, Mike shushed me. "Mute, remember. You can't talk. Watch your back Jake. One other thing. Your name is Pepe Sanchez from now on."
He shut the engine down after the helicopter was on the ground. A tall thin man came out of one of the buildings and waited. Mike motioned me out of the helicopter as he slid out. He shoved a canvas bag in my direction. Mike walked over to the man and began talking to him. I didn't understand what they were saying and couldn't follow the conversation. I waited beside the helicopter wondering how an errand boy was supposed to act? Not too bold, a little bashful maybe, even a little timid? I didn't know but I was going to give it my best shot. I hid Jake way down deep inside me along with Katrina. It was ironic I was doing to Jake what I had always done to Katrina.
Mike motioned me over. I walked over and waited. Mike pointed toward me and then toward the canvas bag and satchel I was holding in my hands. They talked some more before Mike patted me on the back. Mike said something in Spanish. He handed the man the other bag with my clothes he carried from the helicopter. It had my clothes in it.
He said something else to the man and then broke into English. “The boy and the bags are to be untouched and un opened. If either one happens I will know it. The boy is going to return to my ranch. If he doesn’t I will figure something happened to him. Everyone, and I mean everyone will pay a price if he is mistreated or worse.”
Mike turned around and headed back to that chopper of his.
The tall man motioned for me to follow him so I tagged along. We walked into the building he had come out of. There was a bright red, single engine airplane inside. He climbed up in the pilot's seat as I climbed into the other front seat. There were four more seats behind us. The airplane came to life and we were rolling out of the building. Mike was fueling up his helicopter as we turned our tail to him and sped down a grassy strip. Seconds later we were airborne.
The man tried talking to me several times on that long trip. I would smile, nod, and shake my head like Mike told me. Several times the guy called me el stupido, el torro, or a few other nasty names but I didn't acknowledge I understood. If I ever came back this way I would have a talk with him but not now. It was almost six hours later when we started circling a grass strip next to some mountains. I wanted to ask where we were but I didn't. I was supposed to be a mute. Thirty minutes later my pilot was knocking on the back door of some sort of old building.
The door opened and a man was standing there. They talked for a few minutes and the pilot pointed toward me. " Pepe Sanchez."
I smiled and nodded. The man inside the door shook his head. The smile froze on my face. Something was wrong. I wasn't expected or what?
Again the pilot pointed at me and the satchel and canvas bag I was carrying. " Pepe Sanchez, Mike Harmond…," and then he was back into Spanish again.
The man closed the door in our faces. I heard a dead bolt dropping in place. I didn't know if we were out of luck or what? I wasn't given any options on this ride. It looked like it was pretty well cut and dried when I left Mike. Now it seemed it had fallen apart on this leg of the trip. Did I ride back home with Mike's friend or did I stay put and try and contact Leonard from here? Where ever here was? I really had no idea where I was at besides south of the equator.
There was a click as the dead bolt slid back and a woman opened the door. Tall, raven haired, she had classic Latin beauty in her facial features. She studied me for a minute before saying something. I nodded and smiled at whatever it was I really didn't understand. She handed the pilot a small wad of money. He handed her the canvas bag Mike had gave him at the other end of this trip. Reaching out she grabbed my shirt and pulled me into the building. When she shut the door I was standing in total darkness. I couldn't see a thing.
She tugged on my arm. "This way. Follow me."
I understood that plain enough. Clumsily, I followed along as best I could as she held my arm and led me through total darkness. I heard a click and a door opened. I was blinded by the light as she led me into a hallway.
She pointed up a stairway.. "Up that way. I'll be up in a minute. Don't speak to anyone."
That was prompting I didn't need to hear twice. Throwing my satchel over my right shoulder, I walked up the stairs. There were two doors but she didn't tell me to go into any of them so I waited. A couple minutes later I heard laughter coming from on of the rooms. The door opened. Still laughing, a man wearing a uniform walked out. When he saw me his laughter died a sudden death as he stopped and stared.
He pointed and said something.
I smiled and nodded.
Again he said something and again I smiled and nodded.
He grabbed the front of my shirt and began shouting as he shook me. I dropped the two bags I was carrying. Pants and a shirt fell out of one of the canvas bags. The man kicked them down the stairs as he shouted at me.
I didn't smile and nod this time. I was scared of what I didn't understand.
The woman came up the stairs screaming. I looked over my shoulder and she was obviously mad as she screamed something at the man. He turned me lose, backed up a step and stared at me. He said something. I shrugged my shoulders. I really wanted to kick him on the shins for screaming at me and kicking my things around. I didn't.
Glaring, he gave me a hard push as he walked past me. He trudged down the stairs past the woman. His push had caught me off balance. It sent me stumbling up against the railing at the top of the stairs. If I only had a rope with me, I would have dropped a loop in front of him and pulled his legs out from under him. He wouldn't have quit tumbling until he rolled out of the building. It was a good thing I didn't have that rope!
I started down the stairs after the pants and shirt the ugly brute had kicked out into space. The woman stopped me as she whispered. "No, I'll get your things in a minute. Let's get out of the hall."
She led me into the room the man had come out of. A woman was standing naked by the dresser. She turned to look when we walked into the room. She was talking in Spanish as she smiled at me.
The woman who had led me into the room shook her head. "No, Junita English, he doesn't understand Spanish."
The woman named Junita nodded. "Where you from?"
Seductively she slid her hands up her curves and held her breasts. "You want to hold these for me?"
I couldn't believe it. Was I being propositioned? I glanced at the woman who had led me up here. She looked like she was about to die trying to keep a straight face. Finally she couldn't hold it back any longer. She was laughing out loud. "Junita, I don't think he will be interested. He has never made love to a woman before."
"Oh? Well, come over here honey and I'll teach you." Junita smiled as she ran her hands over her own body.
With a big smile on her face the other lady was watching me to see what I was going to do. As bad as I wanted to explain, I couldn't. I was supposed to be mute. I shook my head.
Junita walked over in front of me and started to unbutton my shirt. I tried pushing her away. She was laughing along with the other lady. "Come on honey. It won't hurt."
The first lady finally reached over and stopped her. "Junita, wait a minute. I better explain something about our young friend here. Mike Harmond sent him over."
Junita's whole face lit up. "Big Mike? Where is that devil at? Invite him in and we will give him a real welcome."
"He didn't come. He only sent the runt."
Junita's face sagged as she showed her disappointment. "Darn Lucia, you raised my hopes over nothing."
Lucia nodded. "Not all is lost. This is still going to be a good game. We have to get the runt past the guards and on a flight out of here."
"Oooh? This is interesting. What's so important about this little man the military might have an interest?"
Smiling, Lucinda walked across the room before she stopped. "Junita, I'd like you to meet, Katrina Ann McDonald."
She waited as Junita looked around for the person she was supposed to be meeting. Finally it dawned on Junita who Lucia was introducing…, She was really speaking fast in Spanish.
Lucia held up her hand. "English, Junita, English. Our friend doesn't understand Spanish. It's rude to talk in front of company when they can't understand what you're saying."
Junita was still sputtering. "He's a she? Is this the woman the Brazilian government wants? What has she done to become such a famous fugitive?"
"I haven't done anything." I figured since they knew my name, Mike must have told Lucia about me. It didn't make much difference but I was glad I didn't have to be mute any longer. Not talking when someone was talking to me or about me was one of the hardest things I had ever done in my life.
Lucia was studying me. "Well whatever it is you haven't done has the Brazilian government in a tizzy. There is a forty thousand dollar reward out for your return. If it was anyone but Mike, I'd turn you in myself. It doesn't matter because Mike doesn't forgive nor forget. He has a real nasty habit of taking care of anyone who crosses him."
When Lucia was talking about Mike did she mean what I thought? I didn't think I wanted to know. "I haven't done anything. I was shanghaied off a flight after delivering a horse. I happened to end up at Mike's place. Besides that, I can't begin to imagine why they want me back."
Lucia left the room and came back in a few minutes carrying the canvas bag Mike had sent with my pilot. In the meantime Junita had managed to find a dress. Lucia opened up the bag and pulled out some clothes. I recognized those clothes. They were mine.
She threw them up on the bed. "Junita, put these on. We need to get our friend on a flight headed north."
Junita stood there looking dumb like I was. Finally she found her voice. "What is the plan?"
Chapter XVII
The Flight to Safety
Hours later all three of us were headed out the door. Lucia was dressed provocative enough to turn any man's head, and most women too. She was wearing a really tight red polyester dress. The neckline was cut past naughty. It was shameless. The side slit was up to her hip and she had on four inch red heels. Long gold earrings, half a dozen gold bracelets, and that many gold necklaces. Even as pretty as she naturally was, she didn't look sexy, she look gaudy.
I was wearing a yellow cotton sundress, big sunglasses, short red wig, and wearing white sneakers. Of course my skin was still brown from the tannic acid bath at Mike's but it couldn't be helped. I had a carry on flight bag, camera, shoulder purse, backpack, and an obvious travel guide in my left hand. I don't believe anyone ever looked more like a tourist than me at that moment. Oh yes, I was chewing bubble gum and obnoxiously popping bubbles to everyone's annoyance.
It wasn't much of an airport. They only had one commuter flight in and out every Tuesday and Friday of the week. Supposedly at four o'clock in the afternoon. Lucia told me they were never on schedule.
Junita and Lucia had warned me to keep my distance from them. I strolled into the terminal a few minutes after they entered. Junita was already attracting attention from the Federalies. She was dressed in my clothes and carrying a rope. We couldn't find a lariat on short notice. She was a magnet for the policia. They were converging on her from all sides. She was at the ticket counter trying to purchase a ticket to the United States. I was hoping she didn't get in too much trouble for what she was doing.
The twin engine plane landed and five or six people were getting off. Lucia waved at one of the men. "Carlos, you came back for me."
The guy stopped and stared.
She ran up and wrapped her arms around him. "Oh Carlos, I didn't think you meant it when you said you were leaving me for that other woman."
His face turned red. He was trying to push Lucia away as he screamed something in Spanish at her. She dug in and held on as he franticly tried to back away from her.
"Oh Carlos, you love me. I know you do. Don't try and deny it. We'll live together and be lovers once more."
There was a woman screaming something over on the other side of the terminal as she pointed at Lucia and the man. The policia and Federalies were starting to mill in confusion. It seemed everyone in the terminal was screaming something at someone.
I walked up to the ticket counter. "One to Lima, Peru please."
The man looked at my face for a minute and then to the confusion in the airport. He looked back at me. "You American?"
"No, Irish. I'm on a student visa. I thought I'd see part of the continent before I had to go back to college next month." I was hoping he couldn't see my insides shaking. I felt like jello inside. I nonchalantly blew a bubble and popped it.
He nodded. "It's three seventy two in American."
I handed him the money Lucia had gave to me. "Next time I'll bike it."
His eyes squinted as he studied me. "You obviously don't know how far it is? You can't bike it."
"Oh? We can go anywhere in Ireland on a bike." I wondered if I had overdone it?
"Tourists!" He said in a condescending way as he handed me a ticket. “The plane leaves in thirty minutes."
I looked around as everyone was still screaming at everyone. "Can I get on now. It's a little noisy in here."
He waved his hand in the air in resignation. "Do as you please."
I strolled out to the plane like I didn't have a care in the world. My mouth was dry and my knees were knocking together.
I found a seat on the side away from the terminal. I looked out and the policia were loading up a dozen people in their cars. Lucia and Junita were two of them. I was ashamed for leaving them like that. I had no idea how much trouble they could be in because of me.
People were finally getting on the plane. They no longer had entertainment in the terminal to watch. A short time later a couple men opened up the side door and began throwing packages and luggage on. It was piled loosely in the back part of the plane behind the passenger seats. Two more men with uniforms walked out, spoke to the men who had loaded the packages, and then they climbed on the plane. They went up front and in a couple minutes the left engine started and then the right engine. I don't think I have ever seen such a poor excuse for an airplane in my whole life. Both engines were smoking, the wings were covered in oil, the plane was filthy inside and out.
A couple of uniforms came out from the terminal and headed for the plane. My heart leapt up in my throat as they stepped on. One of them guarded the door while the other walked up to the front of the plane and talked to the pilots. I knew I was going to be dragged off that plane. The one up front turned around and looked straight at me. I think I died at that moment. He smiled and then walked to the back. I was too terrified to look. I knew they were coming back to handcuff me. I was frozen unable to move.
The door slammed, the engines revved up, and we moved forward. One of the engines coughed. That airplane lumbered and bounced across the field as it picked up speed. We came off the ground. The same engine coughed and we settled back down on the ground. We bounced along the ground forever before we finally struggled back into the air. The trees and mountains were rushing toward us as we wallowed sluggishly along. I knew we were all going to die. The plane banked to the left as it struggled to stay airborne. Finally it leveled out and slowly clawed its way up toward the clouds and the top of the mountains. I figured all of us on that plane had used up any lucky charms we might have been saving.
Only then was I able to summon up enough courage to look around where I figured the two uniforms would be in the back. They weren’t there. I started shaking all over from nervous relief. I had no idea why they didn’t arrest me. I was sure I looked like a deer caught in the headlights when that soldier or policeman looked at me. There was no doubt I had ‘guilty as sin’ written all over my face. Was that a common expression for people in this part of the world? I had to get more self control or the next soldier I met might not be so forgiving.
The right engine coughed most of the way to Atacama, Chile. About twenty miles from the airport oil really started pouring from it. Finally it gasped its last gasp and died. I was ready to grab a parachute and jump. Looking toward the cockpit the pilots seemed non perplexed by the situation. The other six passengers on that plane didn't seem to notice anything amiss either. I was wondering if this was a normal flight for them?
We hit hard on landing. When they taxied up to the terminal and killed the left engine, oil ran out of it in a small steady stream. I was sure all of us had been given a reprieve by the grim reaper. I can tell you I was never so glad to get off a plane in my whole life.
In the terminal I handed the man my ticket and the passport Lucia had gave me. He looked at it and then back at me. "Renee OToole?"
"Yes?" I was furiously chewing my bubble gum trying to blow a bubble. It wasn't working.
He handed the passport back. "I went to Dublin once. Down on Wicket Street there is a little bakery. It has the best croissants you ever tasted. Sharties was the name. You been there?"
I shook my head. "No, I was raised down near Cork. That's in the southern part of Ireland. Didn't get to Dublin much."
"You were raised in Cork?" He punched my ticket and handed me another one.
"No, I was raised near Cork. Briar is the little village where I was born." My insides were quivering. Lucia didn't have a whole lot of time to prep me about being Irish.
He was studying me. "You don't talk Irish."
I forced a laugh. "Probably not. My parents moved back to Ireland before I was born. They were both raised in America. I didn't get a chance to pick up the Irish brogue."
"Your flight to Lima, Peru leaves in an hour. The numbers on the tail of the plane are one six one. They will be arriving in ten minutes. When the other passengers get off you can get on anytime after that." He was working on some paperwork on his desk as he spoke.
"Uh, it's not like the kind of plane I got off of is it?" I was sure I didn't want to get on another one of those planes. I would rather go back to Brazil in handcuffs.
He laughed. "No, I wouldn't get on THAT plane for a million pesos. That's Central Flights out of Paraguay. They are always flying hoping the angels will carry them home. Your plane is Peru International Airways. They keep their planes maintained and their pilots are the best."
"That's a relief to hear. Thanks." I walked over to one of the chairs in the lounge and sit down. While I was waiting, there were a couple of uniforms walk by. They didn't give me a second glance.
The flight to Peru was a breeze. The man at the ticket counter had been right. The plane was a large jet and it was in seriously well cared for condition. Customs in Lima, Peru never gave me much more than a cursory glance when I showed them my passport. The man was looking at my passport. "How long you intend on staying in Peru, Miss OToole?"
"Three or four days. I wanted to do a little sightseeing before I went back to college. What do you recommend for interesting sights?" I was so full of lies I was sure they would see right through me.
He glanced up without ever really looking as he handed back my fake passport. "Stop at the information desk in the front. They can give you directions. Thank you for stopping at our city and please enjoy yourself while you're here."
If I was shaking half as bad as I felt, I was sure he would notice and pull me into a back room for interrogation. Thank God for bored customs agents. The man was on auto pilot as he did his routine. I did stop at the information desk. I asked for directions to a decent hotel. I didn't want the man in customs to see me walk by the information booth without stopping after I told him I was a tourist.
I caught a taxi out front. "US Embassy."
"Si senorita." We sped off down the street.
The driver stopped in front of the embassy. I remembered to pay him. I walked up to the Marine at the gate. "I'm Katrina McDonald and I need to see our ambassador."
"What is the problem, Miss McDonald?" The Marine didn't seem too moved by my request.
"I was kidnapped in Brazil and escaped with help from some people I met. I have some serious information about our radar planes. Whatever you call them? You know? The ones that fly in the sky and pick up enemy planes and friendly planes and direct traffic?"
He got serious. "Are you talking about the AWACS? Who kidnapped you in Brazil?"
"Yes, that's the name of the plane. I have some information about some of the electrical gadgets that go in them. It seems one of them crashed in Brazil and their military picked up something in the wreckage. It gives up all the secrets to how they work." I was wishing we were doing this inside the embassy rather then out on the sidewalk in front of the building. I felt a little paranoid about how vulnerable I was to anyone who wanted to drive by and shoot me.
"Wait here." He picked up a telephone and began talking.
In less than three minutes he hung up. "Follow me."
He turned and walked inside the fence before he stopped. "Open all your luggage."
I dropped my luggage on the ground and opened my purse, backpack, and flight bag. I didn't have much. Lucinda had thrown in a few pants, underclothes, a couple dresses, and an extra pair of sneakers. I was probably under packed to be a real tourist. At least the customs agents didn't seem to notice.
The Marine went through every thing thoroughly. Finally he was finished. "You have anything hidden on you?"
I shook my head. "No."
He held out his hand. "Let me see your passport."
I opened up the camera and pulled out my real passport. I handed it over to him.
He searched inside my purse and pulled out the fake passport Lucia had given to me. "What's this?"
"That's what got me out of Paraguay. I told you I was kidnapped in Brazil. Their military was part of the kidnappers. If I had shown my real passport to get out of the country I wouldn't have made it." I wasn't scared. I had no idea what they did to anyone they found traveling on a fake passport. It didn't matter. I was through being Renee OToole.
"Who gave you this other passport?" He was looking at me real hard.
Chapter XVIII
Back on U.S. Soil, Kinda
He could glare all he wanted, I didn't care, I wasn't a Marine. I had enough adrenaline rush the past few days to last me a lifetime. I took a look at his name tag. "I demand to see the ambassador, Marine Collier."
For a few seconds he looked like he was ready to throw me back into the street. He kept my passports as he picked up my backpack, purse and flight bag. "Follow me."
He led me inside, down a long corridor, and to a big room with a steel door. "Wait here. The ambassador is busy. It will be awhile."
He walked out with my things. I heard the steel door clang shut with a finality. Checking the door confirmed my suspicions. I was right, it was locked. Exploring the room was a good way to use up time while I waited. The room had no windows, lots of shelves and books, and plush carpet. It was complimented with big, soft, overstuffed, soft blue chairs, and matching divan, A small bar and refrigerator sat back in a small alcove. When I looked back in the alcove I saw a second door. I gave it a try. It opened up into a three quarter bathroom. I figured I was in a cell. One without bars and windows but a cell never the less. Did they figure I was dangerous or were they protecting me?
An hour passed and then another as I paced the room and examined everything for a forth and fifth time. I finally gave up and laid down on the couch. Someone was shaking me.
"Miss McDonald, the ambassador will see you now. If you will follow me please."
I opened my eyes and was looking at another Marine. "I'm sorry, I must have fallen asleep."
He nodded. "That's quite alright. Please follow me if you don't mind."
Holding the door, he was pointing the way out. "Down the hall to your right and up the stairs, please."
I did as he told me and could hear his footsteps right behind. At the top of the stairs was a door. Opening it led me into a large, spacious, hallway. The Marine stepped up beside me. He pointed toward a huge open door off to my left. "In there please Miss McDonald. The ambassador is waiting."
I walked across the hall into a room larger than the house I grew up in. Across the room was floor to ceiling windows and glass doors. Forty feet across the room to my right was a man behind a desk.
He rose out of his chair. "Please come in Miss McDonald. I'm Ambassador Harold Ford. I've heard all about you. It's good to see you are still alive and in one piece. Now, what can I do for you? I understand you have some information for us?"
It was a long way over to where Harold was standing. I was talking before I got there. "Yes, sir, I do. I was handed something I was supposed to give to you but your Marine at the front gate kept all my things so I don't have it any more."
Leaning down, he picked up a handful of things off the floor and set them on the corner of his desk. "I have all your belongings right here, Miss McDonald. You may have all of them back. Marine Collier was only making sure you weren't bringing in any guns, explosives, or any other contraband that seems to be the norm nowadays."
I was beside his desk looking at my things to see if it was still there. The camera was missing. "I'm sorry, but this isn't all of my gear. I seem to be short one camera."
Harold held up his hand. The Marine who had escorted me stepped up and set my camera down on the desk. Harold was watching me closely. "Is this what you were missing?"
I glanced down at it. "You already found it, didn't you?"
I thought I saw a hint of a smile. "Very good Miss McDonald. But, I wanted to see if you would tell us about it so we put it back exactly like we found it."
Picking up the camera, I opened up the back and pulled the thirty five millimeter film out of it. I handed it to Harold. "The man who gave me this said it was pictures of drug dealers, military, and a few others swapping information about some military secrets. He told me to deliver it to one of our ambassadors and no one else unless I happened to make it back to the states. If I made it back then I was to give it to our government. He wasn't specific so I guess anyone in government would have worked."
Harold was searching for something the way he was looking at me. He glanced down at the film I had placed in his hand. "No, not everyone in government would have been okay. What you handed me is highly classified information. It could very well be the political problem of the century."
He smiled. "I'm sure you're not interested in these matters. Let's talk about things closer to home, shall we?"
Walking over to a large overstuffed chair, he motioned for me to have a seat in one just like it. "Please, have a chair, Miss McDonald."
It only took a second before I decided it didn't make any difference. "Thank you, Harold. May I call you Harold or is there a more formal title I need to use?"
He waved his hand in the air. "Harold is fine."
"Please call me, Jake." I parked in the chair beside him.
"Jake?" His eyes widened to two egg whites before his surprise settled down.
"Yes, now what down home things were you going to discuss?"
"Miss…, Jake, there is a bench warrant out for your arrest back in Montana."
"Big deal. I'm not in the United States so it doesn't mean anything." I wondered why he was telling me this?
"Miss McDonald, when you walked through those front gates you walked back onto American soil. I would be legally correct if I had one of the Marines place you under arrest until such time as you were shipped back to the States." He was watching me to see how I was going to take his speech.
It didn't matter. I would rather go home to a trial then be kidnapped in a foreign country. I shrugged my shoulders. I didn't care.
I guess he could see I didn't care. "It is only a bench warrant. We don't pay any attention to such things. May I ask what your plans are?"
"Well, I'm supposed to be shipping horses. Mr. Pladure messed up my schedule when he insisted I be his guest. I would like to contact Leonard LeBo back in Atlanta and see if I still have a job. Leonard is the only contact I have right at the moment unless I get to talk to Bill Randall. I'm supposed to be working for a man by the name of Kevin Dalder but that's the only names I have. I don't know a whole lot about the man."
"Kevin Dalder is his name. His company is Golden Horse Transports. You flew one of his horses from Valley Downs Farms to Simon Pladure in Brazil. I can't tell you where you went from there Miss McDonald. You had everyone on this end of the world looking for you. Our state department gets real excited when America's All Around Cowboy is kidnapped." Harold leaned back in his chair and relaxed.
Holding the film packet in his right hand he was studying it. "I can put you in touch with anyone you wish to talk to Miss McDonald. Would you like to call your parents and tell them you are okay? You have been in most of the papers back in the states."
Even though Leo had told me about the papers I thought it was local. That shocked me. "WHAT! Why? What did I do? Why would they put me in the papers?"
He slowly rose out of his chair before he answered. "It's not everyday we loose our All Around Cowboy, Miss McDonald."
He pointed toward the phone on the desk as he started out of the room with the Marine in tow. "The names and numbers are on the pad by the phone. If you have any trouble dial three and our secretary will dial out for you. Talk as long as you like. Be sure and let your parents know you are safe. I imagine they are worried sick about you. I would be if I were them. I'll have someone stop by their house later and talk to them."
He stopped before he stepped out of the room, turned around and stared at me for a few seconds. "Katherine and John McDonald have a very interesting daughter…, Jake."
He turned to leave, hesitated and then looked back over his shoulder. "Uh, Jake, stay away from the windows. We live in the wrong part of the world to be standing in front of any open doors or windows."
Harold and the Marine walked out of the room.
The pad by the phone had the phone numbers of mom and dad, Bill Randall, Leonard, and Kevin. Did these people know all the people I had associated with? I picked up the phone and dialed home.
The phone rang and rang and rang before I decided mom and dad were either out doing chores or had to run some errands. I was wishing I was with them as I hung up and dialed Leonard.
"Valley Downs Farms, here." Was a voice I didn't recognize coming from the other half of the world.
"May I speak to Leonard LeBo, please?"
"Hold on, he's coming." The strange voice answered me.
"Yeah!" Was the abrupt voice I recognized on the other end.
"Leonard, this is Jake. I missed my flight out of Brazil and need some new instructions."
"CAT! MY GOD! WHERE ARE YOU!"
I moved the phone away from my ear. I was sure I was going to be deaf in that ear after this. "I'm at the American Embassy in Peru. I'm fine. Things got a little exciting for a few days. Everything is back to normal now. I need airfare out of here or a ride back to the states. I don't have any money and I don't have a ride."
"No, you can't come back here. There's a warrant out for your arrest. You made the papers several times these past few days. Seems as if you were awarded the title of All Around Cowboy. That picked up back page news being as you are a cowgirl rather than a cowboy. Then the next day you made front page news along with a rerun of the All Around Cowboy story as Judge Garrison issued a bench warrant for your arrest. If you hadn't already been nominated as the All Around Cowboy neither story would have ever made it past the back page, if at all. However, bad news feeds off good news so you became an instant celebrity of sorts. All the television stations picked it up."
"I believe your fame would have died a quiet death on the six o'clock news if you hadn't been kidnapped in Brazil. You have been splashed all over the papers and TV for the past three days."
I swallowed as I tried to visualize what Leo was telling me. "Maybe now I'm safe it will all go away again?"
"Don't count on it. Do you remember posing for some advertising agency?"
What was Leo leading me into? "It was a mistake Leonard. I didn’t really pose for them. I thought it was for passport pictures."
"They have really been running the heck out of all your ads. Trying to get all the mileage they can out of them. I can't turn on a TV, listen to a radio, or pick up a paper you don't jump out at me in one form or another."
"I wonder what the Rodeo Association thinks of me now? They probably want the award back." I was thinking aloud over the phone.
"I wouldn't count on it Cat. They are picking up a lot of free publicity over this too. I bet the whole bunch is giving themselves a high five for nominating you. Oh, they will shake their heads and say the appropriate no no's publicly. Silently they are counting the dollars this will bring their way. You can bet attendance at all the rodeos is going to be up this year."
Silently I was wondering how I ever got into this mess as my phone spoke to me again. "Cat?"
"Yes?"
"The advertising spread you did with the Ford car? You look fabulous. Your friend with the advertising agency, Linda? She called and told me they want to sign an exclusive contract with you. Those pictures you made were for the local dealers. Now it seems Ford Motor Company is interested in running some pictures too for a national spread. Not sure how much is gossip. I heard they offered a million dollars to the National Rodeo Association for an exclusive on you.”
“The pictures Linda was taking after you changed out of a dress into jeans? There are several companies vying for sponsorship including Dan’s Race Horse Feed. Linda said she couldn’t release them until you signed off on them. She said they weren’t part of the original release contract. Those she took while you were busy with Heater came out in a little local weekly. Linda said some national magazine wants the originals. They are going to run an article about the all around cowboy. Linda showed me something called a board. She said it is the story before it becomes a story. It was the picture of you taking Heater down. The title was something like, 'Why Jake is number one'. Also, I heard rumors of you being the next nationals rodeo queen. You are the person everyone is talking about out here at the stables. Everyone is bragging about meeting you Cat."
Silently I groaned as Leo kept going.
“I also heard there is all hell breaking loose in your hometown. Those two lawyers representing you are suing everyone. This is all hearsay but Linda has been in touch with Bill Randall. She’s up there to get his side of the story. She has been feeding stories to the national press. I understand those lawyers hired by the Cowboy Association have been busy. They filed against the school. Called for disbarment against a district attorney because he has failed to file against the six kids who assaulted you. They filled against the sheriff to disclose everything he has. They filed against the kids and their parents, and god knows who else. They are pulling everyone in and taking depositions from all the kids in your class and all the teachers. One of our legal beagles told me it was a warning salvo fired across the bow of everyone who thought they were going to be spectators in your legal problems. He said most of those suits would be dropped but it sure got everyone’s attention. That includes national attention. The tabloids are picking it up.”
"Oh swell!" I was about to cry. All I was supposed to do was transport a few horses this year. How could things get so out of kilter in such a short time?
I was tired of hearing all the home gossip. "Leonard, I didn't get mom and dad. Call them later and tell them I'm okay. Would you? Be sure and tell them to let Gunshy know I'm okay. I'll call later if I get a chance but I don't know what I am going to be doing or where I'll be. What about money and plane ticket?"
"Cat, I said, you can't come this direction. I'll call Larry Mavis and have him get in touch with your transporter Kevin Dalder. This is going to take some time so stay put. You have a number I can call you back at?"
"Yes, call the international operator in Peru and have her connect you with the American Embassy." I heard a click and was listening to a dead phone.
I called the number Harold had on the pad for Kevin Dalder and received an answering service. I told them who I was, where I was at, and I needed some new instructions. They promised to give him the message.
I hung up and the tears started. I wasn't really crying, I was feeling sorry for myself. I couldn't go home, I didn't have any money, I had no place to stay, I had no idea how I was going to get back home again or if I ever was. I had no idea how long a bench warrant could be in effect. I wiped my cheeks with the back of my hand and absentmindedly ambled over toward the windows to look outside.
Someone caught me before I walked half way across the room. "Please stay away from the windows Miss McDonald."
Turning around I was looking at the Marine. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I guess I better be going."
"Where you going?" He had stepped back when I turned around to face him.
"I don't know. I have no place to go." The tears started again.
I wiped them off but others were following along behind. "I'm sorry. I'm not crying. My eyes are watering."
"But of course." He put his arm around me and escorted me from the room.
Pointing down the hall to the right, he walked along with me, his arm around my waist. "The ambassador asked if you would please stay and be his guest for a few days. He said he wouldn't take no for an answer."
I started to protest. "But…,"
"No buts, Miss McDonald. This is the best motel in town. You need a place to stay, Ambassador Ford feels a need to handle this diplomatically. He wants to show the world you are safe in the embassy. He has already called for a party for tomorrow night. Important guests will be here along with what will seem like all the reporters in the world."
He laughed as he stopped and opened a huge door. "Of course they won't all be here but it will seem that way."
Pointing toward the room he stepped to the side. "Your suite, Miss McDonald."
After thanking the Marine, I walked into a room as big as our living room back home. I heard running water and started toward the door over on the left side of the room. An attractive lady with black eyes and long, jet black hair walked out. "Your bath is run Miss McDonald."
She nodded toward a telephone beside a big easy chair. "Please call when you are finished. I will find some clothes for you. Say you are ready and they will notify me."
She handed me what looked like a wine bottle. "Pour this into your bath water and take a long time soaking. It will change you back into a white girl again."
"Thanks. What is it?" I had forgot about dying myself brown with Mike's tonic. After a couple days, I was getting used to it. I didn't know what else to say. Besides, I had experience with green walnuts. I honestly didn't think anything could take the stain out of the skin. I figured it would have to wear off.
"It's a little of this and a little of that, basically same thing we put in our swimming pool. Pour it in your bath water and don't get it in your eyes." She smiled before she turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.
A couple hours soaking in that big tub made me feel almost human again. I had also shed most of the 'poor me' feelings. I still had no idea how I was going to get home but all that was shoved to the side.
The lady reappeared while I was still in the tub. "If you want, I can change your hair back to blond, or red, or brunette, or we can leave it black the way it is now? What do you want to do?"
I hadn't really thought about it. "I don't care one way or another. But it isn't true, you know."
She was studying me trying to figure out what wasn't true. "What?"
"Blondes really don't have more fun, nor are we stupid. I don't care what we do with my hair. The only thing I'm definitely against is turning it green or orange because we mixed something that wasn't supposed to happen. Some of the girls in my school did that. Neither one of those colors does a whole lot for me."
She laughed. "Let's change it back to blond then. It is what the press will be expecting tomorrow evening when you step out. Black really isn't your color now."
“Works for me. I guess I’m no longer a chicharro.”
She blinked as she focused in on me. “Chicharro?”
“Un huh, it is what Mike called me. That’s a brown boy.”
A smile spread across her face as she giggled. “No hon, chicharro is a cricket or grasshopper.”
“He was calling me a cricket? Wait till I see him again. He’s in so much trouble. By the way, what's your name? I should know the name of the lady who is so kind?"
Chapter XIX
A Trick to Get Katrina Back to Brazil
"Well, I guess in this part of the world Maria would catch most women." She was holding a bathrobe for me to slip into.
"Your name is Maria?" I wondered if she wanted me to guess as I dried myself before slipping into the bathrobe.
Laughing she shook her head. "No, I said Maria would be the name of most women. My name is Ecetra VanDuval. I'm a mixture of Inca, Dutch, and French. I think the Indian in my blood won out. Both my parents are white and blue eyed."
Long, jet black, silky satin hair, the deepest black eyes I had ever seen, golden bronze skin, I was looking at a very beautiful Indian princess. It was impossible to imagine her parents as anything but Indian. "You're kidding!"
Laughing, she crossed her heart with her right hand. "No. You know, that is exactly what I said when I was old enough to realize I had the wrong parents. I always claimed I was swapped at the hospital. Problem is, I wasn't born in a hospital. A midwife delivered me at my parent’s house. Believe me, they wondered too. My mother was embarrassed and my dad was ashamed at first. It was bad enough they sent blood to France to have a DNA test run. It was positive. I'm their daughter."
"You're a beautiful woman, Ecetra. May I call you Ecetra or would you prefer I didn't?" I had no idea what was proper etiquette in this part of the world.
"Yes, Ecetra is fine. We have a salon in this building. Let's go downstairs and use it. It would be a lot easier than using the sink." She motioned for me to go along with her downstairs.
That night was a long, long night with me chasing horses on foot all night long. Toward morning, the horses started chasing me and I was caught up in a stampede. I awoke as one of the horses raised up to stomp me. My heart was racing a hundred miles an hour as I blinked my eyes and reality settled back in replacing my nightmares. Yes, I guess you could call that a pun but it wasn't funny to me. I rolled out of the big old bed and found the jeans and shirt Ecetra had been kind enough to loan me. I was tired of the dress I had been wearing since leaving Lucia and Junita behind. Not that I wasn't grateful. I would probably never have made it this far if I had been wearing my normal clothes. There were no boots so I slipped back into the sneakers. I felt half dressed with no boots and no cowboy hat.
Anyone on my trail could follow me by all the clothes I was leaving behind. My suitcase was left on the plane. My watch and hat was left with Mike when I left all my other clothes. Then the last of my clothes were left with Lucia and Juinta. Now all I had to wear was loaned to me. Grateful as I was for the loans, I preferred my own clothes. I had no idea what time it was but I was sure I was through with the night as I didn't want any more of those nightmares. After dressing I found my way down stairs. There was a Marine watching me as I walked across the large room toward the front door.
"You have the time? I don't have a watch." I stopped in front of him as he glanced at his wrist.
"It's four thirty nine Miss McDonald. Are you ready for breakfast?" He looked back up into my eyes.
"Not yet. May I go for a walk outside? I'd like some fresh air."
"Please don't leave the compound unless you have an escort. You want me to call Corporal Randall and tell him you want to go out of the compound? He is assigned to your duty today." The Marine was waiting for an answer.
It was an involuntary sigh that escaped. I was mentally tired of these situations. I would have traded ten years of my life to be back home right now. "No, I'll stay inside your fence. Is there any place I should stay away from? I mean is there any secret stuff I don't want to see or…?"
Laughing he shook his head. "No, you have free run of the whole compound Miss McDonald."
"Thanks Marine." I turned to walk out the front door when I heard him talking behind me.
"Miss McDonald is leaving the embassy building proper. No escort."
Glancing over my shoulder, I saw him smile. He touched his shoulder. "Voice mike. There are others outside who need to know who is walking out of the embassy. It's best they hear it from me rather than wrestling you to the ground before they find out who you are. We don't get many guests who want to take a four o'clock stroll."
Down at the front gate there were two Marines on guard. I visited with them for ten or twenty minutes before I decided to walk the inside wall. That took all of ten minutes before I had circled the embassy and was back at the front. The cool morning air was beginning to seep in. I decided I had enough.
The Marine at the front door acknowledged me as I walked back inside. "Would you like to see some of the city or the country? It's going to be a long day with nothing to do before the dinner party tonight. We can find you some fatigues if you would like. I'll wake up Jim and he can be your guide today? Of course, you may also stay inside the embassy if you desire."
I looked closely at his name tag. "You think Jim would mind, Mr. Cable? I mean I don't want to bother him if he has already been up half the night or has other things he needs to take care of."
A smile spread across Cable's face. "Miss McDonald please call me David. My drill instructor called me Mr. Cable. I'm sure Jim would be honored to escort you wherever you want to go today. All of us here would but it so happened on Jim's watch."
He turned his head and spoke to his right shoulder. "Roust Jim and tell him his party is ready."
As he pointed across the room off to his right, David was closely watching me. "Go down the hall to the end, turn right, and go to the door at the end. Jim will meet you in the mess…, uh, kitchen in six minutes."
I can't tell you if it was six minutes or not but Jim did show up immediately after I had walked into the kitchen. He was carrying a bundle of clothes in his arms. He held them out toward me. "I brought you some clothes. I see you are wearing jeans already. If you like, you can use the jacket in there. You'll need it this morning and it will be too much in a couple hours. We'll take the Hummer. So…? Is it city sightseeing or country you want?"
"A little of both would be nice. I'd like to see some of the country for sure. I'm not too fond of cities. What do you recommend I wear? It seems I'm in your hands today. Hope you don't mind?"
"Miss McDonald…,"
I held up my hand. "Wait a sec. If we are going to be together all day, I can't take any more of that Miss McDonald stuff. Please call me Jake. Please?"
His eyes widened to two white explanation marks. He coughed out. "Jake?????"
"Yes, it's a name I grew up with. I kinda like it. I certainly prefer it over Miss McDonald." I was waiting to see if Jim was going to accept 'Jake'.
Slowly a smile spread across his face as a gleam crept into his eyes. "My pleasure…, Jake. Okay, let's eat a bite and then go see part of the country. Drop the clothes and keep the jacket.
Forty minutes later we were out in the country. Jim was a very nice and polite Marine. He was wearing fatigues. I don't imagine any of the locals had any problems realizing we were Americans. We spent most of the morning sightseeing the country. A lot of mountains were everywhere. What wasn't mountains wasn't flat. I had a hard time imagining how they raised crops in this part of the world. It finally dawned on me I was thinking too big. I mean not in space but in equipment. The big heavy equipment we used in our part of the world wouldn't work in this part of the world. One had to think smaller because all the plots of ground were cut up so they wouldn't erode with each rain.
A couple hours of touring the country with Jim pointing out all the sights was certainly interesting. He then suggested we go back to town for browsing while the markets were still fresh. A few minutes later his phone rang.
He stopped the Hummer beside the road before he answered the phone. "This is Randall."
He glanced over at me as he was talking on the phone. "Okay, I'll check."
"Ms. McDonald, it seems someone found you a job. It's transporting four Lamas. You want to go look at the shipment? They are about forty minutes north of here?"
"If you don't mind. Did they say when I'm supposed to pick them up and where I'm shipping them to?" I was trying to think what a Lama was? Wasn't that similar to a goat or something?
Dropping the Hummer in gear, he was moving down the road before he answered. "No, they only told me where the ranch was. It's a pretty good spread for these parts. Senior Val Rohous is the gentleman you will be working for. He's been to several of the parties at the embassy."
"What's a Lama?" I turned to look at Jim.
"Wha…, oh, okay. I don't guess you have too many of them up in your part of the world. It's one of those critters." Jim pointed out to our right.
There were several animals in the field off to our right. I had been seeing them all morning and it never dawned on me what they were. They looked like a cross of several animals. Long necks and heads like a camel, barrel like bodies like sheep, and long legs.
Many curves, hills, and small farms later Jim turned up to a road leading to a really huge house. I guess all my ideas of a southern hacienda came to mind when I looked at the house at the end of the road. Big sweeping arches covered balconies, three story stucco was a picture home straight out of a fancy magazine. Now I knew where all those photo journalist came when they took pictures of a southern hacienda. This had to be the one home they photographed.
A man walked out of the house as Jim drove up to the front. "Welcome Senior Randall, Seniorita McDonald. Senior Val Rohous is expecting you. Please follow me."
As Jim and I followed the man back into the house I could understand the reason for the big verandas and open arches. It felt ten degrees cooler in the shade. The big open space provided plenty of shade while letting the breeze flow through. It was efficient cooling without using those noisy and expensive air conditioners we Americans are so fond of. There was something else I noticed that was different from our American homes and offices as opposed to those in the Latin countries. They used tile, stucco, and ceramics for their walls and floors which I suppose would last for years if not centuries. We used carpet, paper, and other things of a more temporary measure for building our homes and offices. It dawned on me that as Americans we are a nation of consumers of temporary life styles. The Latin people were a distinct contrast in they built things that would last them a lifetime if not their ancestors too.
"Seniorita McDonald?" He was holding out his hand.
"What? Oh, I'm sorry. I was admiring your home and thinking how beautiful it is. So grand and enduring. I can't begin to tell you how gorgeous it is." I held out my hand and returned his handshake.
He held onto my hand as he smiled. "Thank you. Would you and your escort like a glass of tea?"
"Uh, no, none for me thanks. But you can tell me what you have to ship and where, and what my duties would be." I retrieved my hand as I spoke.
"I ship Lamas, Miss McDonald. I can offer you a ride with one of my deliveries if you want." He smiled as his eyes glanced back and forth from Jim to me.
"From where to where, Mr. Rohous and what does it pay?" I hated blind end situations where I was supposed to go along without any idea of what I was getting into. I had enough of those this past week. It was time to start asking questions before the business started, not after it was all over with.
"Pay? I'm sorry if you misunderstood, Miss McDonald. There is no pay. However if you escort my lamas there will be a minimum of problems traveling out of the country. I have four lamas going to Ecuador in two days." He looked insulted I had suggested payment.
"I certainly appreciate it Mr. Rohous but I'm going to decline the offer. I have enough problems without being a nurse maid to some animals for the fun of it. I like animals but not enough to be responsible for another man's property unless I'm paid for my skills or talent. Besides, I don't have any more connections in Ecuador than I do here. I can't see where I would be gaining anything." I was doubly glad I had asked before saying okay.
"My apologies, Miss McDonald. I had the mistaken notion you were looking for a way out of the country with a minimum of questions." Val glanced over at Jim before turning his attention back to me.
Jim reached over and wrapped his hand around my arm. “We better report in and head back Miss McDonald. They will be sending a squad out here if I don’t call in the next ten minutes.”
“Thank you for your offer Senior Rohous. I appreciate you thinking of me. Maybe next time. I guess we better go report in as Jim said.” I was being hustled back to the Humvee as I was trying to say goodbye.
We were turned around and headed out the driveway as Jim took a furtive glance in my direction. “We don’t have to report in Jake and they wouldn’t send out a squad of Marines in the next few minutes if they don’t hear from us.”
Turning in the seat so I could hear Jim better I had to ask. “Why?”
“Val Rohous has real close relations with a lot of people in Brazil. A couple of things bothered me about the conversation you were having with him. He usually sends his animals by train and I have never heard of him sending a handler along. Then the other thing is, if you ship animals to the US they have to go through customs and be quarantined for a few days.
Jim shook his head. “You were going to Brazil or you were being sent to jail.”
“Is this what Marines do? Rescue Americans in distress?” I had figured out going to the US was a bad idea. Leo had already told me I couldn’t return there. The idea of being sent back to Brazil and my death had never entered my mind. I guess it was still possible.
He turned and winked at me. “Part of our job Jake.”
I had to ask. “Would I have been safe without a Marine guide?”
Jim glanced in my direction. "I apologize for bringing you up here, Jake. The scuttlebutt around the embassy is you are someone who talks to animals when no one else can. When they told me he called asking about you I thought that was something you might do for him. I’m not real positive about his intentions but the conversation didn’t feel right. We always try to pull back and assess the situation if possible when things feel spooky.”
"No biggie. I am not sure what my options are. Going from Peru to Ecuador didn't seem like a step in the right direction." I was looking at the scenery as it passed by us.
The drive back to the embassy was long. I hadn't realized we had traveled so far out. Jim seemed to know every road and trail in the country. Maybe that was part of the duties of a Marine when assigned to guard ambassadors?
Ecetra met us as we walked back into the building after parking the Hummer. "It's time to start getting ready for tonight Miss McDonald."
I glanced at my wrist. It’s a natural instinct even when the watch is no longer there. "What time is it? When does the party begin?"
"The dinner party begins at seven. Guests will start arriving anytime after six thirty." Taking my hand she was leading me out of the room and up the stairs.
We passed a clock in the hall. I took a good look. "It's only a little after three. We have plenty of time. I can get ready in a couple minutes."
Ecetra laughed as she opened the door to a suite. "We girls take a little more time than a couple minutes to get ready, Katrina. I've had my bath. It's your turn. Dalia will help you with your makeup and dress when you are finished."
An hour later I was looking in the mirror at a woman I had met only a few weeks before. The same one I saw on graduation night and then again for passport photos. Dalia made sure my hair was perfect before she was satisfied. The soft red dress had an intricate floral brocade designed in beads and sequins. The beads, and sequins added a sparkle as light reflected with the slightest movement. It was floor length with long sleeves. I was standing on four inch red patent heels. There was a small difference from before. My bra wasn't padded and I didn't have a whole lot up front. It was funny in an odd way. Jake wouldn't have minded. Katrina was wishing for a little more. Would it always be like this every time I wore a dress?
Ecetra returned and nodded her approval. "You look nice Miss McDonald. We need to practice protocol before the guests arrive. Come, let's go down to the banquet hall and practice."
Minutes later I was staring at two very distinguished Marines in all their glory. They were in their dress whites and if there was a speck of dirt on them or a seam which wasn't perfect you could have fooled me. Jim Randall winked at me with his right eye. "May I say you look absolutely stunning Miss McDonald."
I felt myself blushing. "As do you Mr. Randall."
The other Marine held out his arm. "Miss VanDuval, you look ravishing."
Ecetra's sequined blue dress was floor length. It followed the shapely curves of her body like a second skin. It was strapless and it caressed her breasts daringly. Ecetra had a body that shouted 'woman' and she carried herself with a soft sway to her hips as she walked. I was jealous.
Ecetra smiled and winked at the Marine as she reached for the arm of her escort. "Don."
"Miss McDonald, this is how we will enter after the guests have arrived. The Ambassador and the President immediately followed by their wives will walk down the stairs and enter the dinning room. You and Jim will follow next at approximately six steps behind. Don't worry about keeping it perfect, no one notices these things anyway. The Ambassador will walk to the head of the table and stop. Just to his left will be Mrs. Ford and you will be seated next to her. President Manuel Chavez will be seated on Ambassador Ford's right. Next to him will be Mrs. Chavez and I will be seated on her right. The rest of the guests will be introduced as the evening wears on in case you can't read the name plaque in front of them."
She brushed some imaginary lint off her dress. "Any questions?"
"No, I guess not. Jim sits on my left then?" It was an idle question on my part as I didn't have any real questions.
"No, Jim and Don are escorts only. This isn't a military dinner and they don't participate except to escort." Without turning her head Ecetra looked at me out of the corner of her eye.
"You mean they get all dressed up and we don't allow them to eat with us? That's mean!" I wondered why they did it?
"It may be mean but it is protocol. They are here to make sure no one does any mischief while the Ambassador has his dinner party. It has been this way for over a hundred years, Miss McDonald. Any more questions?" She turned her head and was closely watching me.
"I guess not." I was sorry I asked that first question.
We practiced and practiced some more as Ecetra tutored me on how to walk and how to hold my body. My arms and hands were supposed to be tucked in at all times and not swinging about like a farm hand. Don and Jim would laugh as Ecetra coached me, she would give them a stern look and they would straighten up for a few minutes until I did some clumsy thing like the farm girl I was and then they would laugh again.
Then it was time for table manners. Jim escorted me to the table, I pulled out my chair and received a no, no from Ecetra. "Your escort does that Miss McDonald."
We did it again and I waited for Jim to position my chair. I stepped in front of it and Jim slipped it under me as I plopped down. "No, Miss McDonald. We gracefully sit in our chairs. Try it again."
And again and again, and…, I knew I wasn't polished but Ecetra finally accepted the way I entered the room, took my place at the table and sit up straight. Reminded me of Mrs. Waller, my English teacher who was always admonishing the class to sit up straight and not slouch. She tried to teach manners as much as she taught English.
Ecetra was about to tell me about table etiquette when she looked at her watch. "We will have to wing it, Miss McDonald. As the meal is served, watch me and I'll try to give you instructions by nodding yes or no. I have to get ready as the guests will be arriving any minute. You're free to do what you wish until five minutes before seven. At that time please be upstairs so you may enter behind the Ambassador."
As if on cue, a man and woman dressed to the nines walked into the ballroom. Ecetra smiled, held out her hands and indicated toward a five member band that had taken positions as I was being coaxed in manners in the dinning room. "Mr. and Mrs. Raul Pablo, how nice to see you again. Please."
The band dropped into a soft easy string melody. Standing between Jim and Don I watched Ecetra as I whispered. "What is Ecetra's position here? She's not a…, uh…, she's not a hired hand is she."
Jim got tickled and was trying to hold it in. He was shaking all over as he hung his head and giggled. Don wasn't doing much better but he was the one who answered. "Miss VanDuval is the liaison officer for the Ambassador.
"And that is?" I had heard the phrase but I had no idea what a liaison officer did.
"She makes sure a lot of things work smoothly between our government and the Peruvian government. Announcements of affairs might come from the Ambassador but it's Miss VanDuval who orchestrates the behind the scenes politics to make sure there are no gaffs." Jim finished up for Don.
"She is the one who set up this party Miss McDonald. It's a way of announcing to the world America's All Around Cowboy is safe and enjoying life in the southern hemisphere. The story of you being kidnapped, chased by gunmen, and spirited out of Brazil in the nick of time will die a political death. Swept under the news radar by this party where you will be seen by all the political heads of state. More than the usual amount of news people have been invited to make sure there is ample coverage by the press. The press knows it's a cover up, the political leaders know it's a smoke screen, but the public will believe the tales about you being abducted were tabloid news and nothing more." Don had turned and was talking in a very quiet voice in my right ear. Anyone two feet away wouldn't have heard him.
I turned to look at Don. "YOU'RE KIDDING!"
He gave me a smile and shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about Miss McDonald."
Jim leaned over my left shoulder. "Welcome to the world of politics and double speak Miss McDonald. Please don't repeat this to anyone or Jim could be court marshaled and sent to military prison."
That was impossible to believe until I turned to look at Jim. He was dead serious. What could be the charge against them? More guests were arriving. Jim and Don left me to mull that over as they stood by the door and watched the guests. They were constantly on the move. I finally figured it out. They were scanning the guests for trouble. This was my introduction to life where everyone was suspect of being a threat to everyone else. So much for growing up on the farm where the biggest threat was Mother Nature.
Ecetra was talking to a man and woman when she motioned me over. "Miss McDonald, I would like for you to meet Peru's leading Doctor of Medicine, Dr. Anton Under and his wife Estel."
Do I shake hands or not? I had no idea until the doctor held out his. "Pleased to meet you Miss McDonald. May I say you are a very beautiful woman. As a model you have no equal. They say you are the All Around Cowboy. I find it hard to believe a young lady like yourself could best those rugged cowboys."
I laughed as I shook his hand. "Please call me J…," I saw a look of 'oh no' in Ecetra's eyes.
"…, call me Katrina, Mr. Under. I'm not a model and I'm afraid you have the mistaken idea of what All Around Cowboy is. I didn't have to wrestle the cowboys for the title. It's an honorary title given for congeniality, not for rough and tumble sports. The other cowboys liked me is all."
A group of people had gathered around us as Dr. Under held onto my hand. He looked me in the eyes. "Ahhh, and modest too. You don't tell the whole truth Miss McDonald. I've seen the pictures of you posing with the new Ford Thunderbird. Ford Motor Company has dropped two million dollars into pushing the All Around Cowboy and their car in an advertising blitz. Time magazine and Road and Track are coming out with a center fold picture of you lying on the hood of that car. Those advertising people at Ford are pretty smart. I've heard rumors about a calendar with you and a different car for every month."
"What I find hard to believe is they tell me you are the best roper to ever pick up a lariat. It is hard to imagine so much talent in such a beautiful package. My sources tell me you had to be in the top ten percent of your events to be considered for the title. They also tell me you and Bill Randall were number one in your class."
I felt the blood rush to my face in embarrassment. "I'm afraid your sources were wrong Mr. Under. I only posed with one car not several. I don't think a calendar would be possible. As far as my roping skills? There are others better. As to being number one? I'm afraid that is wrong too. I didn't have enough points to qualify for that honor. Bill Randall did as he uses Ben Coller as a partner when I'm in school. Uh, was in school. We won the national finals in Reno last year but that didn't make me number one. Again, not enough points. I happened to get lucky to team with the best and get picked for the title is all. I have a smart horse and the number one calf roper for a pardner. They make me look good. The Rodeo Association should have gave that title to Bill Randall or Gunshy instead of me."
Dr. Under laughed as he turned lose of my hand. "Beautiful and modest, you are not a woman to be taken at face value Miss McDonald. It would be a mistake for anyone to underestimate you."
Ecetra took hold of my left arm and steered me around the other direction. "Miss McDonald, may I present the President of Peru. President Manuel Chavez."
I was looking at a medium built man, moustache, kind of pudgy but not fat, with a couple dozen ribbons and medals on his left chest. What was protocol? I had no idea. Being raised on a farm and ridding the rodeo circuit hadn't prepared me for this. I grabbed my skirt, bowed my head, and dipped in respect. "It is an honor to meet you Mr. President."
When I rose up he slightly bowed his head. "The pleasure is all mine Miss McDonald. I can not say when I have been more pleasantly surprised. You are a vision of beauty. You must show me some of your rope tricks I have heard so much about."
He turned to the lady on his right and smiled. "This is my wife Dioah."
Dressed in a soft red, loose fitting, polyester dress, the black haired woman was like her husband, a few pounds overweight but not what I would call fat. Past middle age, she still had enough remaining beauty to claim she had been a gorgeous woman in her youth.
I bowed my head before I looked into her black eyes. "I am so very pleased to meet you, Mrs. Chavez."
She held out her hand. "Please call me Dioah."
I took her hand in mine. "Thank you, that is most kind. Please call me Jake."
It had slipped out and the room became deathly quiet as I realized I had made a gaff. Ecetra looked like she was about to lay an egg.
Dioah laughed as she winked at me with her right eye. "It will be my pleasure Jake. I heard that was the name you went by but I didn't believe it. Tell me, how did you come by that name?"
I went through the story of how daddy wanted a son and I was all he was ever going to get. Since I was the son then I couldn't very well be Katrina so he named me Jake. I never knew the difference until I was in school and by then it didn't matter as I liked the name.
It seemed photographers magically appeared out of nowhere as I was asked to pose with one group of people and then another. I was asked a thousand questions which were all the same. Not one single person asked me about my trip to Brazil or Simon Pladure. This party was my first introduction to orchestrated questions and answers for the benefit of politics and the press.
At five to seven Ecetra lead President Chavez, his wife, and me up stairs. Ambassador Ford and his wife, Ann were waiting. Immediately President Chavez and Ambassador Ford turned and walked down the stairs. Dioah and Ann were six steps behind. That handsome Marine, Jim, and I were six steps behind them. Ecetra and Don were supposedly six steps behind us. I didn't mind the pomp and circumstance and it was quite an education in itself. We walked into the dinning room and the rest of the guests followed.
As Jim seated me I leaned over in his direction. "You want me to save you any food?"
He got tickled and laughed, Ecetra gave him a stern look as the rest of the guests looked over in amusement. Jim straightened up and left without saying anything. I guess we were supposed to have controlled conversation at this dinner party? Small talk with the gentleman on my right bored me out of my skull. Dioah was on my left and she was quite the conversationalist. Cameras weren't allowed in the dinning room. I guess that was so pictures of someone with their mouth full of food wouldn't hit the six o'clock news.
I never knew people could take so long to eat a meal. And it was such a tiny little meal too. At eight the party rose as if on cue and moved to the ballroom.
President Chavez moved in front of me. "May I have this dance Miss McDonald?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. President. I don't know how to dance. I've never danced in my whole life. However if you are willing to teach me I would like to try." I was wishing all this protocol stuff wasn't hanging over my head right now. I had no idea what to do.
He held out his hand. "It would be my pleasure. Please."
I put my hand in his and he led me out to the middle of the room. Oh GREAT! I was going to show the whole party what a klutz I was. The band was playing a soft melody and the President took my right hand in his left. He moved my right hand to the top of his shoulder and put his right hand in the small of my back as he pulled me up close.
"Move with the music and follow me Miss McDonald." One two, one two, one two, he whispered in my ear as he lead me around the dance floor.
After we circled the dance floor one time, other guests and the Ambassador slipped out onto the dance floor. After the number was over President Chavez led me back over to where his wife had been waiting.
"You have either danced before or you are a quick study Miss McDonald. You did well."
I smiled. "You were easy to follow, Mr. President. You're a great leader."
His eyes danced with delight as he nodded. "And you, young lady, are one to be watched."
He looked over at Dioah. "What do you think of our young friend here, my love?"
Diaoh put her arm around her husband's waist and leaned into him. "She will be a powerful ally to her friends and a terrible foe to her enemies. Let's make sure she doesn't think of us as an enemy."
Without answering, Chavez led his wife out to the dance floor as the music started again. I watched as Dioah danced with her husband. She was fluid, smooth, and yes, even sexy. I didn't want to, but I knew I could never compete with Dioah. She was out of my league, big time!
If one could call what I was doing dancing, then I guess I danced with most of the men there that evening. Including Ambassador Ford. President Chavez asked me to show them some rope tricks. I explained I couldn't without a lariat which was a special kind of rope. Lucky for me, no lariats were to be had so I didn't have to make a spectacle of myself.
The evening wore on until twelve and then as if on queue, within ten minutes, everyone was gone. Welcome to the world of protocol, politics, and orchestrated events, Katrina.
As I watched the last of the guests disappear, Ecetra took my hand and led me upstairs. "You have a flight first thing in the morning Miss McDonald."
Chapter XX
Mexico Closer to Home
"Where? What am I supposed to do? I don't have any money. I need to talk to Leo, and…, oh my god, I forgot to call mom and dad and tell them I'm okay." The ride in the country and the party had caused too much distraction. It was inexcusable to not call my parents earlier that day and let them know I was fine.
Ecetra walked me into my bedroom. "Use the phone by the desk and call if you wish. If you don't remember how to phone out then push one and security will connect you. John and Katherine McDonald have a daughter they can be proud of. You will be flying up to Mexico City to pick up two horses and ship them to Rio. Your handler Kevin passed you off to Phoenix Corporation. They purchased your contract. You will be working for them now."
"SAY WHAT! I can't go back to Brazil! Those people want to kill me! And I don't have a contract with Kevin. Nothing I signed anyway. I was told to baby sit an insane horse named Heater on a ride to Brazil. After that I was to fly to Venezuela pick up another horse and chaperone her to France. I don't know what was in store after that. That's all Leo had explained to me." I stopped and was studying Ecetra to see how much she understood or if she believed the story. Heck, I wouldn't believe it if someone tried to tell me that kind of tale.
A smile slowly spread across her face as she watched me. "Miss McDonald, no one in Brazil would try and kill you. The information they were trying to keep from escaping is a moot point as we have it. You dropped off the film and that's the end of it. Heads would roll if they tried to kill you now. I can honestly say you have made most every major newspaper in the United States and other parts of the world. You are America's goodwill, sweetheart ambassador."
"In five days you will go to party for Mexico's Ambassador, Manuel Rodreuz and our Ambassador, Don Burch. When you get to Brazil, you will do the same with Simon Pladure and Ambassador William Ware."
"You're kidding! That was one of the men I escaped from although I didn't know it at the time. You certainly don't expect me to go back?" It shocked me she suggested I step right back into the lion's den where I had fled from only days before. People had died and Ecetra was suggesting I was to go back?
She turned and reached for the door. "A suitcase is on your bed. Put your dress in it. You may have to wear it at the next party but I doubt it. Brenda is going to help you in Mexico City. You have a suit dress in your closet. Wear it for the flight tomorrow."
"Wait! I don't have any money. I can't pay for any of this." I was sure someone was going to be terribly disappointed when they tried to collect for what I was wearing, much less the plane ticket I was supposed to buy.
Ecetra shook her head as she looked at me. "I know this is a little fast for you Miss McDonald so I'll try and explain it. This morning Kevin Dalder called and said he would take care of all expenses. At eleven Phoenix Corporation called saying they had taken over your contract and they would take care of all your expenses. At two this afternoon, Valley Downs Farms called and said they were wiring money for your needs. What really put the icing on the cake was when Georgia Modeling Agency called. They said they had talked to your mom and would up front a hundred thousand for all rights contract to handle your modeling career."
She looked down at the floor as she laughed. "Money? Miss McDonald, you have three…, four companies who basically said, give her anything she wants and we will pay for it. I don't think money is a problem here. Getting organized in your time schedule is the problem and that should straighten out in Mexico City. You will have two days for your entourage to find you and start grooming you to their expectations."
“The dress and your accessories were paid for out of discretionary funds we have for emergencies such as this. It was listed in along with the cost of the dinner party tonight.”
Her eyes saddened as she walked back over and wrapped up my right hand in both of hers. "Katrina, they will try to change you into their idea of the perfect model, the All Around Cowboy, the goodwill ambassador. Don't let them. You're a breath of fresh air. So young, naive, innocent, and yes, even beautiful. You haven't learned to play politics and I hope you never do. We stab each other with lies and deceit as we go about our business. We step over the bodies of our predecessors as we climb the ladder to the top, knowing we will be one of those cast offs when we are no longer useful to the present person in power."
She pulled me into a hug as she kissed my cheek. "Don't let them change you Jake."
Moving back, I looked into the eyes of a very strong woman. I knew she was a woman who turned heads and capture hearts wherever she went. I also didn't believe there would ever be anyone walking over her to get to the 'top' as she so aptly put it. "Thank you Miss VanDuval. You're a very beautiful woman. I wish I had half your grace, poise, and beauty."
“You already have all those things Katrina. In your own way. You are above all the rest of us because from you, it comes honestly without any deceit behind it.” Ecetra turned and walked out of the room pulling the door closed behind her.
I was still trying to catch up to what she told me. I guess the problem of money was solved but I had no idea how. I hadn't seen any. It would make me feel a little better if I had some in my hand rather than people telling me I had it when I couldn't see it. I guess that was the country girl in me.
I called mom and dad and knew I was getting them out of bed. When she first heard my voice, mom became so excited she was screaming into the phone. After she calmed down and passed the phone off to dad, he was just the opposite. You would have thought I was phoning him from my room. It was the way they both were. Mom always made too much of a little thing and dad always acted like that was the way it was always supposed to be.
I told them I was okay and everything seemed to be fine. Dad asked me to wait a minute while he dragged the phone over to the door. I heard a snort and knew who it was. "Oh, Gun, I miss you so much. I wish it was you and me out chasing calves across the pasture again. I miss you…, Take care of mom and dad for me and I'll be home when Bill say's it's okay. I love you."
Mom came back on the line. "I think he knew it was you calling, Katrina. He walked up to the door when the phone rang. We love you hon. You'll be home real soon."
"Bye momma. Tell dad and Gun I said bye." I hung up and cried as I felt the heartache of being away from those I had loved all my life.
Minutes later I had washed my face in the bathroom and dried most of my tears. Unless a Blue Northerner was cutting across the fields, I never slept in more than panties. The satin night gown I was looking at when I walked over to my bed was appealing but not my style. I slipped out of my borrowed dress and slip and hung them up. After removing my makeup and everything else, I headed for bed.
Gunshy and I were ridding across the open fields when he stumbled and fell. I was tossed over his head as he went down. "Miss McDonald, you must get up and catch your flight."
It had been a dream and someone was shaking my bed. "Miss McDonald, are you awake?"
I pried my eyes open and looked up at Dalia. "I'm awake."
She backed up. "I laid out a dress for you and packed your suitcase. You have to hurry, your flight leaves in less than an hour. I'll help you get dressed."
With Dalia's help, twenty minutes later I was headed down the stairs carrying a suitcase and a brown leather shoulder purse. Dalia had performed some magic and I didn't look like the girl my parents had said goodbye to a few days before. I was wearing a brown suede, long sleeved, dress and black flats. I balked at the silver earrings and necklace she wanted me to wear but in the end, Dalia won out.
Don and Ecetra were waiting. He reached out and took the suitcase. "I have the Hummer ready. Meet me out front."
Ecetra walked up and wrapped me up in her arms as she gave me a hug. Backing up she pressed a piece of paper in my hand. "If you ever need anything, call this number. I'll be there."
"Ecetra, thanks for everything. I hope I can return the favor sometime." I put the note into my purse.
Smiling she pointed toward the door. "Don't let them change you Jake. Now go so you don't miss your flight."
After driving me to the airport, Don walked me through the terminal and handled the tickets and passport information. He waited at the gate until I was on the jet. He was still there when we taxied out and took off. It felt nice to have someone watching to make sure I was safe. Don, Jim, and all the others would always have a place in my heart for all they did for me.
Mexico City, what a smoggy place and loaded with people. I didn't have a chance to get lost as two uniformed officers gathered me up as I deboarded the plane. "Miss McDonald, come with us."
One of them took my suitcase from me and led the way while the other followed along behind. The pass through customs was just that. I mean we walked right through without stopping. We went right out the front of the terminal to a limousine. The one with the suitcase opened the door. "Your chauffeur, Miss McDonald."
I don't guess it would have done any good to ask questions as I didn't seem to have much choice in the matter. I slid in as the first officer put my suitcase in the trunk and the other officer closed my door. It was the first limousine I had ever been in and it looked big enough to be a house inside that car. It was also kind of lonesome being the only one in the car beside the driver. Was I impressed? Not really. Someone wasted a lot of money on me as I wasn't the kind of farm girl who enjoyed all the pomp of being chauffeured. My style was sitting up front and looking where I was going. I looked at the buildings and people as the driver wove his way through traffic that was bumper to bumper. It was hard to believe people really lived like this in or out of that big old car.
The driver pulled up to the front of a Hilton Hotel and stopped. A man walked up and opened my door. "Buenos dios, senorita McDonald. It's an honor to have you stay at our hotel."
As I slid out there was a tall, handsome, Latin man taking my suitcase out of the trunk. The first man said something in Spanish and turned toward me. "Please this way, Miss McDonald. Your suite is waiting for you."
“Sweet? I didn’t want a sweet.”
“Um…, your suit, Miss McDonald?”
"Suit? No thanks, I have enough clothes. More than enough. I can't handle more than one suitcase and a horse or two at the same time." I was sure I didn't want any more clothes unless they were my jeans and denim shirts I had in my lost suitcase. My hat and lariat would be better than clothes.
"Pardon?" He looked puzzled.
"I don't want a suit. It means more weight and I already have all the clothes I want. Those that someone else thinks I should be wearing anyway." I thought I was pretty clear on the matter.
Slowly his puzzled look turned to a broad smile. "No, you misunderstood, Miss McDonald. I said suite and it's a room in the hotel. If you would be so kind as to follow me, please."
Embarrassed I turned to follow the gentleman. I was thinking when he mentioned suite or suit or whatever, it was more clothes instead of a hotel room. You can bring the farm girl to the city but you'll never take the farm out of her. Bill and I never stayed at any of them places fancy enough to have suites when we were on the road. It was a room if we pulled off for the night.
The man walked across the wide veranda to the entry of the hotel which was huge itself. It was stretch across there to the front desk. He stopped at the desk and held out his hand. "Senorita McDonald's suite."
"Certainly, welcome to the Hotel Hilton, Miss McDonald. Please let us know if there is anything you desire." The dark haired beauty behind the desk dropped a card in the man's hand as she looked at me.
"Uh, yes, thanks." I could see this was going to cost a lot of money. Money I didn't have.
I stepped up to the desk and leaned over to whisper to the man and woman. "I don't have any money to pay for this."
The woman looked puzzled. The man smiled and nodded his head. "Miss McDonald, please accept my sincere apologies. I should have explained. Mr. Duwayne Hulst of the Phoenix Corporation arranged for the room. I believe you have guests arriving at six this evening. You may want to rest or freshen up before they arrive?"
"Whatever, as long as you know I don’t have any money. I couldn't even afford a hamburger right now." I was tired of the whole situation. I would have paid a million dollars I didn't have, to be home right at that moment.
"Please let me take care of all your needs, Miss McDonald. Now, if you would like, your room?" He motioned toward the elevators.
I'm sure we went to the top floor but I couldn't prove it. My sweet as that guy called it? Bigger than my home back in Montana. It was huge.
The gentleman motioned for the man following us with the suitcase to sit it on a table. "May we hang up your clothes, Miss McDonald?"
"Uh, no thanks. Not much there. I have a dress, pair of jeans, a shirt, and that's pretty well it." I was wondering what I could do in a room this big? Okay, it was several rooms as far as I could tell.
"As you wish." He said something to the other man in Spanish and the smaller guy left.
"I am your concierge, Miss McDonald. If there is anything you want all you have to do is ask. The key fits the slot in the elevator console and it's the only way you can get back to the penthouse. If you lose it or have problems, call me. Your party arranged for dining at six. I understand there will be a party of five. If you are hungry and would like something before then, please ask or call down to the desk. My purpose is to serve you and make your visit in our hotel as pleasant as possible. May I get you anything before I leave?" He held out the card in his hand.
Hesitantly I took the card. "No, you're very kind. I appreciate it. I hope you get paid."
Laughing he shook his head. "Miss McDonald, you are so young. You are the only person I have ever met who worried about me getting paid. Believe me, Mr. Hulst has taken care of everything. It is an honor to have America's All Around Cowboy at our hotel. They say you are the number one roper in the world. You are both beautiful and talented. Please enjoy your stay."
He was gone before I could tell him I wasn't the number one roper. I don't know if I would even qualify to be number nine thousand, nine hundred, and ninety nine or not? Probably not. It was onto exploring the rooms as I wondered who in the devil was Mr. Duwayne Hulst? Out of curiosity I picked up the telephone by the bed.
"Yes, Miss McDonald." Came from the phone.
Startled I almost dropped it. "Uh, ah, nothing. I'm sorry. I didn't know it was…, I'm sorry."
I hung it up embarrassed I had caused someone any trouble. I was wishing for a watch but that was probably lost along with all my other clothes. Which reminded me. I opened the suitcase and took out the dress Ecetra let me wear at the embassy party. She said I might need it again. I hung it up. The jeans and shirt I left in the suitcase from habit as much as anything else. Those places Bill and I stayed at didn't have much in the way of clothes hangers and it didn't make much difference. We only stayed at any one place long enough to close our eyes. No need of unpacking. Took precious time we didn't have to spare.
The phone rang and I jumped out of my skin. I picked it up. "Hello?"
"Miss McDonald, you have a guest. Mr. Leonard LeBo is here. Shall I have him wait in the lobby or send him up?" Was a soft Latin voice on the other end.
Chapter XXI
The Rush to Judgment
"Leonard? Leonard? YES! SEND HIM UP, PLEASE!" I couldn't believe Leonard had flown down to see me. How did he know where I was? I opened the door and ran out to wait in front of the elevator. When I heard the click behind me I realized I had left that card thing in the room.
I was trying the door when the elevator dinged and the elevator door opened. Leonard was stepping out. "Leonard, don't let it go. I left my key in the room and we can't get back in."
Leonard had stepped out and he was staring. "Jake? Is that you?"
I pointed to the elevator. "Leonard, the elevator."
He caught it before the doors closed and I stepped on with him behind me. "Yep, it's you cowgirl. Left your key in the room, huh?"
He looked me up and down. "Didn't recognize you without your boots and spurs."
I laughed as I thought about it. "Why don't you grab my arm and see if it's me?"
Leonard shook his head. "I'll pass. Someone told me they would knock my head off if I grabbed their arm one more time. You know, I don't think I've grabbed anyone's arm since. I'm still quivering in my shoes afraid I'll get hold of the wrong person."
The elevator stopped and we stepped out in the front lobby. I walked over to the desk as the lady I talked to a few minutes before watched. "I'm sorry but I locked myself out of my room. Could you get someone to open it up for me?"
She smiled as she placed another card on the counter. "I can if you wish or do you want another key?"
"Oh, no if you don't mind another key would work. I didn't mean I needed someone to open…, I mean I can do it but the key…, room…, I'm sorry." I took the card and walked back over to the elevator where Leonard was waiting. I needed some lessons in etiquette.
"I have your suitcase at my hotel, Jake. The pilots who left you in Brazil figured you were off sight seeing some place. They didn't know you were in trouble until they were contacted the next day."
He pushed the button for the elevator. "We have a lot to talk about before David Homes from Phoenix Corporation meets you for lunch. You want to do it in your room or go to the restaurant, get a table, and talk about it over coffee?"
The elevator doors opened and I motioned Leonard on. "My room will work. I looked it over and it seems I have coke and liquor in a cabinet there. Never been in a place where the hotel furnished cokes along with the room."
Leonard shook his head as he stepped on the elevator. "The hotel does and Phoenix Corporation does. They are working on you Jake. Let me explain the aspects of the business world."
Leonard waited until we were back in the room before he motioned to a chair as he sat down in another one. "Take a seat Jake, this is going to take a little bit."
He waited until I sat down before he became all serious. "Your parents got all excited when news about your disappearance hit the papers. They called Bill Randall in a panic. Bill called Kevin Dalder and Kevin gave Bill my number. I don't know Bill. Never met the man and after that phone call I would hate to meet him if I thought he was mad. Bill told me in no uncertain terms I would find out what happened to you in Brazil and I WOULD make sure you were safe. He said if I didn't understand, there were thirty thousand cowboys who would be glad to explain it to me."
I couldn't help it, I broke up and laughed at the idea of the way Bill was talking to Leonard. Knowing Bill, I bet he did say exactly that.
Leonard laughed and shook his head. "The idea I could have thirty thousand cowboys angry at me for losing you didn't exactly appeal to me. What topped it off was Jerry Lacky from the State Department called me up within an hour of Bill's phone call. I can tell you that wasn't a pleasant call either. He was picking up heat from the news media about us losing their all around cowboy."
"As luck would have it, you called a little after those two calls. After putting you in touch with Albert I called everyone and told them you were okay. I didn't count on you and Albert disappearing for a week."
He stopped and studied me. "Jake, you dropped me into the fire with that little trick. I'm telling everyone you are okay and you disappear with no trace. Every day I expected to see thirty thousand cowboys show up at my door with a rope."
"I'm sorry, Leonard. I couldn't contact you. I sent a message to my parents I was all right but phoning anyone was out of the question. Albert was shot, I saw four men drive over a cliff, and someone wanted us very dead." I was sorry for what Leonard went through. I looked at his eyes and then at my hands in shame.
"I'm still alive Jake. Besides making me a nervous wreck, no harm done. It was the message to your parents saved my bacon. Again, they contacted Bill and he got in touch with me. He wasn't letting me off the hook. He said as long as you were alive I might manage to do the same."
Leonard leaned forward in his chair. "How big is that guy anyway? He sounds big on the phone."
"Honestly? Bill is six foot four and there isn't an ounce of fat on him. I've seen him pick up a two hundred pound cowboy with one hand." I winked at Leonard to take some of the edge off.
Leonard coughed. "Yeah, I bet he could too. Okay, here's the rest of it. Phoenix Corporation bought you from Kevin or a good share of you…"
"SAY WHAT! Kevin doesn't own me. You don't either. I shipped a horse for you and that’s as far as it goes. No body owns…"
"Calm down Jake. Let me finish." Leonard smiled as he shook his head.
"Okay, I'm calm but you don't own me." I was still hot over that one.
"Your primary contact was with Kevin even if you don't agree." He held up his hand as I started to say something.
"I know, Kevin doesn't own you. Even if you don't like it, you had a contract. It may have been verbal but it was a contract between Bill Randall, you, and Kevin. You were to ship one horse named Heater to Brazil. Your pay was four thousand dollars…, That reminds me."
He reached inside his jacket and pulled out a credit card and held it out to me. "American Express in your name Katrina. Four thousand dollars worth. Ecetra VanDuval said you needed some money."
Hesitantly I took it. "Four thousand dollars?"
"That's your base pay. If you kept any receipts for expenses then Kevin will reimburse you for that. Within reason of course. Meals, lodging, and necessary items are normal expenses."
"I don't have any receipts. Everyone was paying for my way, Leonard. I didn't have any money to pay them back and I owe a lot of people who made sure I stayed alive." I looked over at Leonard wondering if he would ever understand how much I owed and not all of it was money.
He nodded. "We'll make sure they get repaid one way or another. Let's forge ahead as we don't have a lot of time. Phoenix Corporation bought your contract from Kevin."
He held up his hand before I could grip about it again. "Okay, non existent contract. They aren't dumb. They know it's a non existent contract but they bought it. Word got out you were in the Embassy in Peru. Phoenix Corporation sends word they will pick up the tab on anything you need. They know you have an invite to visit the President of Mexico so they turn up the charm. I imagine a limo picked you up at the airport?"
Dumb founded I nodded.
"The penthouse is part of the package. They are going to wine and dine you today and push a contract at you. If you're feeling you owe them something in return, you will sign their contract without looking it over too close. For the rest of your natural life they will own you. You won't be able to work for anyone else."
I was in shock. "You're kidding!"
"Jake, these people play hardball. I'll make you a four thousand dollar bet right now, they have a full life history report on you and they are going over it to see how they can take advantage of you, 'farm girl'."
"But I'm not stupid!" Surely Leonard didn't think I would be grateful enough to sign my life away? Then again maybe I was. I was thankful someone had paid for my flight and my room.
"I didn't say you were stupid Katrina. I honestly believe you are the smartest person I have ever had the pleasure to meet. You are a country girl. Smart in the ways of horses, farms, weather, rodeos, and the things you have been exposed to."
He took in his breath as he shook his head. "This is a different breed of people than what you have dealt with all your life. They get up in the morning thinking how to hustle someone before they are hustled themselves. Kevin called Bill after he sold Phoenix your contract. Bill called me and told me to do something and if I didn't he would. Bill explained to me the reason he didn't put you in touch with Phoenix was because they weren't nice people. Heck that's not news. Every time we ship a horse with Phoenix we have to make sure we have all the i's dotted and all the t's crossed or they will do something wrong."
"Jake, when I talked to Ecetra she told me where I could find you. I caught a flight out of Atlanta last night and waited on you to show. Now listen to me. You don't owe Phoenix Corporation a thing. Don't sign a contract with those people. Stay with Kevin for now. You can trust him for the most part. To tell the truth, he didn't understand why he shouldn't have sold you to Phoenix Corporation. I think your friend Bill Randall explained it to him so there wasn't any doubt left Kevin understood he had made a serious mistake." Leo chuckled over that one after he said it.
"Okay, no contract with Phoenix Corporation. I understand that." Suddenly I was tired. It was hard to imagine signing a contract where I virtually gave up my life to a company. But then I didn't know law so I guess it would be possible.
Leonard nodded. "Now the good part. Georgia Atlanta Models wanted a five year contract with you. They are the company who took your pictures with the Ford and the horse feed among other things. They sent your parents a contract and asked for permission to sign you for ten thousand dollars a year for the next five years. Your mother called Bill and again, Bill called me. I guess it had to do with me being in Atlanta as much as I was partly to blame for you getting mixed up with Atlanta Models. I made a visit to their office and explained to them what I thought you were worth. Ronald Beckman is a nice guy. I like him but he's sure stingy with your share of what those pictures are worth."
A smile spread across Leonard's face. "Linda and I managed to get you a contract for two million for the first year. You will have to work one hundred twenty days. For single days you are obligated to put in up to eighteen hours. If two working days are together then you put in fourteen hours per day. For three days or more then you work twelve hours per day. Of course you don’t have to put in the maximum hours for any of the days. You are only obligated to if the pictures run that long. Any extra over one hundred twenty days are to be paid for on a contract basis."
"two million? this year?" I couldn’t believe it. That was more money than I could imagine.
"Jake, we didn't lock you in. It's your choice. I don't know your parents but they sound like nice people. I talked to them over the phone and they are a lot like you. I can see you came from good stock. The problem is, you believe and trust people. There are those you can trust but there are those who will take advantage of you when they can. Life is a game. If you don't think an opponent will try and kick in a scoring goal at every opportunity then you haven't played much sports other than rodeo. Some call it good business sense, others call it dirty tricks." He sighed as he shook his head.
This was more than I wanted to know. I guess, my parents and Bill Randall had been sheltering me from the hard knocks of life and I never learned. "Thanks, Leo. I appreciate the talk. I can't believe you flew all the way down here to give me a pep talk about business?"
"No, like I said, I brought your suitcase and other things. But this discussion was the reason I came. Jake, I didn't want you signing on with Phoenix without knowing what they were wanting out of you. Kevin thought it was kind of funny in the beginning and then I think he decided he may have not done such a funny thing. I don't know Bill Randall but I bet he let Kevin know what would happen to him if you signed a contract with those people. And another thirty thousand cowboys would probably help drive the point home." A smile spread clear across Leonard's face as he thought about it.
"Okay, I get the message, Leo. You don't have to tell me a dozen times for me to understand. How you been, how long you staying, and where are you rooming at?" I was ready to talk about something else.
"I'm over at the Marriot. Seemed like a good idea to keep a low profile until you checked in and I had a chance to talk to you. Like I said, I have your suitcase and your lariat."
He winked at me. "Although what you're wearing looks darn good on you."
I was wearing the brown suede dress Dalia had laid out for me that morning. Long sleeve and just above the knee hem, it wasn't bad as dresses go. Not really me though. "Thanks, I guess."
Looking at his watch he rose out of his chair. "I guess I better run. You have a luncheon with the Phoenix crowd this evening. I'll catch you later."
"Leo, wait. Would you mind going with me? I mean, you don’t have to if you don't want but…," I wanted someone there for support who was on my side.
"Are you sure?" Leonard was looking in my eyes for an answer.
"Sure, I'm sure. It's my life isn't it? I never promised those people anything. I may owe them for something but it sure isn't because they tried to blindside me. You game?" I rose out of my chair as I waited for an answer.
"Why not? Let's lay all the cards on the table. I'll run over to the hotel and change into a suit and be back in less than an hour. I can call you from the front desk when I get back." He was headed for the door as he was speaking.
"Do you mind if I come with you? I'll be bored silly waiting in the room and I would kind of like to see a little more of the city than what I saw coming in from the airport." I moved over to the door behind him.
He opened the door and motioned with his hand. "Grab your key and let's go."
I grabbed my purse and stuck both room keys in it as I followed him out the door.
Leonard caught us a taxi. It was amusing as most the taxi's in Mexico City were Volkswagens. I guess they are economical or something. Leonard and I fit in okay and it was fun but I didn't think Bill would have managed to get in one of those things.
We made his motel, he showed me his room, and before he started to change I walked down to the lobby.
Leonard was carrying the suitcase I had lost in Brazil when he walked into the lobby. We were back at my hotel before noon. Leonard offered to buy me lunch. I had no idea what Mexico offered in the way of meals. After dropping my suitcase in my room we headed for the lobby and Julio.
He was talking to a very well dressed Latino man and an immaculately dressed lady. We waited until he finished and the couple headed for the elevator. “Miss McDonald, what may I do for you and your friend?’
“We have a little time before the meeting this afternoon and wondered about looking around. Leonard mentioned a little earlier big cities always have areas tourists shouldn’t go. Can you tell us about some places to see? I also want to buy boots and a cowboy hat. I seem to have a habit of leaving clothes where ever I travel. My hat is still in Brazil.”
“Miss McDonald, we really aren’t as western oriented as many think. It is only when one gets further north close to Texas does the western cowboy trait become more the norm. However you might try Botas Pakoy and Mecado de Granaditas as they carry a selection of western wear. Those areas are not to be traveled lightly. Let me see if the embassy will furnish you and your friend a guide.”
He picked up the phone on his desk, tapped some keys and started speaking Spanish. ”Miss McDonald, necesita una quia…, Unos veinte minutos? Gracious.”
“Miss McDonald, the Mexican embassy is sending over a guide. Veronica Mendoza will be here in about twenty minutes. If you and your friend would like refreshments while you wait, the bar in the restaurant is open. Hand them your room key when you order and it will put on your tab while you are staying with us.” He pointed off toward an entrance to his right.
Looking at Leonard, I nodded toward the restaurant. “A coke while we wait?”
“Sure.” Leonard started to reach for my arm and then pulled back as he looked at me out of the side of his eyes. “Old habit.”
Laughing, I reached over and took his hand. “A lot has happened since we first met. I’ll let you lead if you want.”
His grip tightened a tad as he laughed with me. We walked into the restaurant to wait on our guide.
A couple hours later we were back at the hotel and I was feeling a whole lot better. I had a hat and boots. They might not have been Montana cowboy style but they were close enough. Leonard went with me back to my room where I changed into jeans and denim shirt from my suitcase before the meeting. This was the first time I felt more natural since I had left Mike and Albert on the ranch. We walked into the restaurant before anyone from Phoenix showed up. I could tell they weren't happy about Leonard joining the group when they finally did show. There were four of them who walked in together. I guess they were going to try and impress me with numbers?
They introduced themselves. Duwayne Hulst was thin faced, receding hairline, and had a gravelly voice. Clyde Borger wasn't that tall of a man. I guessed him about five seven or eight. He had a weak handshake and laughed with a snort. Roger Harris was Mr. Diamond. He had big diamonds on three of his fingers on his right hand and two on his left. A diamond tie tack so big it looked like glass and diamond cuff links that looked fake. The last man, Melvin Orand was wearing a shinny suit that looked like it belonged in the gangster movies. His hair was slicked down to match the image.
I guess I was probably being overly tacky in how I looked at them because of what Leonard had told me up in my room. Instead of thinking of them as gentlemen, I was thinking of them as weasels or rats.
All during dinner they kept asking me how I liked the 'Penthouse', with emphasis on the penthouse. I was told in an off way it was the most expensive room in the hotel and only VIP stayed there. Was the limousine satisfactory and did I enjoy the first class cabin in the airplane?
Halfway through the dinner I wanted to throw up. I like to think I would have figured it out on my own without Leonard's help. Maybe they thought the country girl had come to the big city in wide eyed wonder? It might have happened like that if I hadn't been riding the rodeo circuit with Bill the past three years. But even some cowboys are bad seed. You get where you can pick them out before you are taken in by them. These men from Phoenix Corporation were bad seed. They were snake oil salesmen trying to soften me up before they lured me into the trap.
Without asking me what I wanted, Duwayne, ordered me a Kansas City Steak big enough for Bill Randall to eat. He also ordered enough side dishes to be a meal by themselves. The champagne was the final item but I was terribly unimpressed. Duwayne was sitting on my left as Leonard had taken first option on my right. I would have hated to think I would have been sandwiched between two of Phoenix Corporation's henchmen.
After the food had started arriving and the champagne had been poured, Duwayne leaned over in my direction. "Bet you don't get food like this up in that Montana state. Pretty nice huh? When you work for Phoenix, you don't have to watch your budget.'
Nodding, I was wondering if he really thought Montana was a third world country?
Across the table, Melvin Orand was smiling from ear to ear. "You can expect this kind of life everyday when you work for Phoenix Corporation."
I turned to look at Leonard. He was keeping a straight poker face and not showing one way or another what he was thinking. This was getting a little too deep in the horse manure department for me to handle. I knew when I was being handed a line of bull. Dragging up my most innocent smile, I looked over at Melvin. "You mean, when I'm transporting horses, they will serve this kind of meal on the plane? I mean, I don't see how they could serve this if we were moving those horses by truck."
Clyde Borger was over to Duwayn's left. "I think you misunderstood, Miss McDonald. Melvin meant you could order anything you wanted at any café or restaurant you stopped at without having to worry about checking the prices. I bet you haven't been able to do that too often. That is up until now. Working for Phoenix Corporation means you get to stay in the Penthouse, travel in style, and not worry about money. You see, we take care of all your expenses when you're shipping horses for us."
"Oh, well, yes, I guess I did misunderstand. You'll have to excuse me. I really haven't had much experience in dealing with these business matters. Being from Montana and all, you know we aren't used to them big city places like New York or Dallas."
It was time to smoke these varmints out as to what they were trying to weasel me into. "You know I'm working for Kevin Dalder. I guess I owe him for giving me my first job shipping horses. He's such a nice man to work for. That horse, Heater was such an easy job…,"
Leonard had taken a bite of food and he coughed as he choked on whatever it was he had in his mouth. He covered his mouth with a napkin as he leaned over the side of his chair and hacked and coughed.
Reaching out with my right hand, I whacked him on the back hoping he hadn't got it hung up in his windpipe and died on me right then. "Leonard, you all right?"
Finally he straightened back up and turned his head to look me in the eye. He had tears in his eyes. I didn't know if it was from what I said about Heater being such a nice animal or if it was from the pain of swallowing his food wrong?
Clyde was looking at Leonard and then at me. "We can offer you a substantial amount over what Kevin was paying you, Miss McDonald. Of course for that kind of courtesy on our part we would need a commitment on your behalf. We would need you to sign a contract."
Roger Harris put some papers on the table. "Really it's only a formality. You can see how we treat our help. First class tickets, the best suite in the finest hotel, the finest cuisine that can be offered and it's all on us. All you have to do is turn in your expense receipts and we will reimburse you on your next paycheck."
Duwayne picked up the papers and handed them over to me. He flipped open the last page and pointed to a blank line. "Sign here, Miss McDonald and you'll be flying all over the world at our expense. The only thing you have to do is baby sit a horse or two on the trip. Think of visiting Ireland, France, or Belgium and we are paying for it. Believe me, this is a golden opportunity. This kind of offer doesn't come along once in a lifetime. It's a once in a million offer."
I took his contract and glanced down to the bottom of the page. "Okay, you have a pen?"
Leonard was coughing again.
Duwayne handed me a pen. "You are about to become one of the team members, Miss McDonald."
I made a mark on the line and stopped. Leonard was about to scream as he was rising out of his chair. "Sit down, Leo. Uh, gentlemen, I think I'll look over this contact before I sign it. All that legal stuff kind of goes past me."
Now it was time for the four men from Phoenix Corporation to look like they were in panic mode. Clyde was shaking his head. "Oh, there's no need Miss McDonald. You can trust us. It's not much of a contract and really only a formality for insurance and all in case something happened while you were handling a horse. You have to be an employee for our company insurance to cover you in case of accident and that's basically what it's all about."
Roger was nodding his head yes. "Sign the contract, Miss McDonald. There's no need of worrying about any of the legal stuff. We'll make sure you get what's coming to you. I mean we can change it later if you don't like the way it's worded."
I folded the contract up and slipped it into my purse as I handed Duwayne his pen. "Well, silly me, I guess I don't understand all them legal things. I'm sure it's okay. I'll sign it and give it back to you after I look it over. We don't want to have to go back and make any changes later do we?"
Duwayne looked stunned for a sec and then he smiled ear to ear as he held out his hand. "No problem making changes, Miss McDonald. Sign the contract and let me take care of it. I will make all the changes you want."
Thinking of the graduation where I blindly followed someone without asking questions, I shook my head as I smiled at Duwayne. "Actually gentlemen, it would be foolish of this poor ol country gal to make you go to the trouble of rewriting the contract on the parts I might want to change. So I’ll just keep it and make sure to get it all corrected the first time we do this. I have a friend, Bill Randal, you might know him. He and I do head and heel roping together. I’m positive you will agree it would be good business to have someone else look it over.”
Roger Harris looked at the others before turning his attention back to me. “Miss McDonald, I hope you don’t take this the wrong way. We can’t keep paying for your lodging if you aren’t an employee. If you will sign the contract we will take care of your room fees tonight and from now on when you are moving a horse for us.”
“Well, since you put it that way. Um…, let me think about it. Um, no. Gentlemen, I must say I’ve seen some good cowboys and some sly cowboys in the years I’ve been on the rodeo circuit. That includes the cowgirls too. You men aren’t really gentlemen and I didn’t fall off the turnip wagon this morning. I may be green but I ain’t that green. I’ll leave your sweet tonight and you are welcome to stay there since you paid for it.”
“Miss McDonald, I think there has been a misunderstanding.” Roger was trying to salvage the meeting.
“You bet your boots there was a misunderstanding. You men tried to fast talk me into a one sided contract. I haven’t read all the contract. What I scanned on that last page where you wanted my signature was enough to choke a bullfrog.”
I rose up from the table. “This wasn’t a pleasant evening. We are finished. I don’t need your money, your hotel, nor your offer for employment. I’ll pick up my suitcase out of your room and the room is yours. Enjoy.”
Leonard was hurrying to catch up as I left the dinning room. “Whew, and I thought Bill Randall was tough.”
Shaking my head I looked sideways at Leonard. “Not nearly as bad as I wanted to lay on them. They are pit vipers, everyone of them. Know any good places to stay? I think I’m a street urchin again. I’m going to get my suitcase out of the room.”
Chapter XXII
Katrina Heads Home
“Just a second. He headed for the main desk and the man who had met me when I first checked in. “Excuse me.” Leo looked at the man’s name tag. “Julio, our friend has a problem. The suite she was in has been canceled by the men who were paying for it. It seems as if America’s All Around Cowboy is in need of a room for the night.”
He pointed back at me. “Tomorrow the American Embassy along with Mexico’s Ambassador are going to be looking for her at this motel. You know how the tabloids like to play with the truth. If she isn’t here, I’m only guessing mind you. The headlines will be America’s All Around Cowboy evicted by the Hilton Hotel. Mexico has lost America’s sweetheart goodwill ambassador.”
Julio didn’t even hesitate. “Miss McDonald isn’t being evicted. The room she is in has been paid for and registered in her name. She has the keys. She is the only one who will have keys for the rest of her stay. I would be personally insulted if Miss McDonald found us unaccommodating for her needs.”
His eyes closed slightly as he looked at Leonard. “I read the papers. The lady was kidnapped in Brazil and then everyone denied it was a kidnapping. She is famous model…, no? Our security is the best. When the ambassadors send over the liaison officers to collect Miss McDonald it would be best if she was where they expected her to be…, no? America’s All Around Cowboy, Miss McDonald, may stay in her suite.”
Nodding in agreement, Leonard looked back at me. “Miss McDonald, it seems your room accommodations are still in order.” He turned his attention back to Julio. “Please escort Miss, McDonald to her suite and make sure she isn’t molested while she is staying in your fine hotel.”
“A request I take great pleasure in filling. Miss McDonald, when you are ready I will personally escort you to your suite, again.”
Feeling overwhelmed by the whole affair I didn’t quite know how to thank everyone. “Leonard, tomorrow…,”
“I’ll check on you from time to time Cat. The embassy will be handling your schedule for the next two days. Julio will make sure you are safe here in the hotel. I’ll contact Linda for your modeling career and see what they have in mind. I’ll let Bill know you are looking for a job shipping horses. I’ll contact Kevin and give him an earful of what a low down weasel I think he is for trying to trade you off to Phoenix. I’m going to give my bosses a hint and see if they want to front you as an independent shipper. They move a lot of horses. They know most of the other stables and buyers all over the world. Cat, give it some thought if you want to be an independent shipper and if you could fit it into your schedule between your roping and modeling careers.” Leonard turned and left.
My mind was racing trying to grasp all the ideas Leonard had planted in my mind. Me, an independent shipper? I knew nothing about the business side of it. I was the flunky who got the horse ready and delivered him. Modeling? I posed for some passport pictures, I knew nothing about modeling. I knew and loved roping, and horses, and cowboys, and rodeos, and the farm.
“When you’re ready, Miss McDonald.” Julio moved over to the elevators.
Julio left me in the room as he closed the door behind him. I was looking at that big bed while I slipped out of my clothes. Ecetra said I would be shipping two horses to Brazil for Phoenix Corporation when she sent me packing from Peru. I deep sixed that by refusing to sign their contract. Would the embassy still want me to visit now? No matter, I was a lot better off than I was a few days ago. I had Leonard to guide me and possibly some money if the credit card he gave me was on the up and up. I would have traded everything to be back home milking cows and planning the next rodeo with Bill. Why did life have to get so complicated? Heading for the tub I was hoping to wash the troubles of the world away. I wasn’t sure how the meeting with the Mexican Ambassador was going to go after I told them I wasn’t babysitting any horses to Brazil. No matter how much my own government cried about good will and relationships, I was not in the mood to go back to a country where they tried to kill me. As luck would have it, the civil trial back home helped me out of that one. How do they say it? Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
It was six days after I had traveled to Mexico and two days after the dinner at the American Embassy, the lawyers told me I needed to return to Montana to prepare for court. Judge Garrison had me arrested and sentenced me to jail until the trial. Momma was crying as Larry Holmes put handcuffs on me and led me out of the courtroom. Brenda Kendell told me to not worry, she would take care of it. Actually I wasn’t worried. After being chased by men shooting at us trying to kill us, jail wasn’t a problem for me.
Larry took off the cuffs once we were outside the courtroom and I rode up front in his pickup instead of in a cage in one of the patrol cars to the jail house. He took me in to the cells and pointed to one and told me that was mine. Then he took me back up the front and told me to not leave the building, otherwise I could do what I wanted.
Before noon the next day Brenda handed Larry a dismissal order from Superior Judge Numan. I was free until the court trial. Judge Garrison was pissed. He ordered me back to court and I was confined to home and wear a monitor until trial. Again Larry put the cuffs on me, took me down to the jail sans cuffs, and put an ankle monitor on me. Drove me out to the farm and told me to behave. The next day he showed up, removed the monitor and told me I was free until the trial.
He asked me to sit in his pickup before he left. He was grinning from ear to ear as he gathered his thoughts. “Jake, those lawyers of yours are tearing up the case against you before Judge Garrison gets it to trial. It is a civil trial not criminal. Garrison is trying his best to make you look guilty before it starts. A lot of money paid for his campaign to be judge. A big chunk of it came from those kids parents.”
“Brenda came back with another dismissal order this morning. Rumor has it from the court clerk she had a second one for Judge Garrison. State Supreme Justice Hardgrove sent Garrison a notice. One more and he would be brought up before the State Judiciary Review Committee. Your trial was receiving national attention. Everything Garrison did was a reflection on the whole state.”
The corners of his mouth turned up as his eyes danced in amusement. “What I said isn’t to be repeated. Don’t worry about me coming back with any more arrest warrants. Judge Garrison has been properly chastised by some with a lot more authority than he will ever carry.”
=================================================
Standing on the porch and looking out across the field at Gunshy, I was wondering if it really had been two months since I shipped a horse named Heater to Brazil? So many things had changed. Everything I planned before I graduated from high school had failed to go the way I expected.
Dad and mom walked out of the house and stood on the porch. Dad put his arm around me. “Glad to have it behind you?”
I put my arm around his waist as I pulled mom in from the other side. “Not exactly what I thought a court trial would be like. If you had hired one of the local lawyers you would have lost the farm. I felt like I was in a liar’s club in that courthouse. I thought God would strike them down when they swore to tell the truth and then they started lying.”
Momma gave me a squeeze. “It wasn’t because we taught you to tell the truth. You had that in you all along. The animals sense it in you Katrina. It is why they trust you. There will always be those who think telling lies is a way to get what they want. The court won’t change them, especially when their parents encourage them to lie.”
“I wish I had never accepted Donna’s invitation to meet with all the kids from class one last time. I wish I had asked more questions before accepting. I wish I hadn’t been so stupid.”
Mom gave me an extra squeeze. “You were raised to trust people. I think you have learned trust is to be earned not given on first sight.”
“You got that right momma. It’s hard to separate the good people from the bad ones. Some of the worse liars are some of the nicest people until they stab you in the back.”
“Someone’s coming. Looks like a pickup and stock trailer.” Dad was looking off down the road.
All of us watched as the driver pulled up and stopped in the driveway.
“tom?” I was positive I recognized the jet black horse in the horse trailer. I ran up to the side of the trailer and looked inside. “Tom?”
The black horse snorted.
“OH MY GOD IT IS YOU! TOM YOU CRAZY HORSE WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP IN MY PART OF THE WORLD! WHEN I TOLD YOU TO COME AND VISIT ME I NEVER DREAMED YOU WOULD TAKE ME UP ON THE OFFER!”
The driver was grinning from ear to ear. “You must be Jake. He said you were the prettiest girl with a funny name. He also said you have a strange habit of talking to horses.” He held out an envelop toward me.
As mom and dad walked up to look at the horse in the trailer I opened the envelope and took out a hand written letter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
‘Jake, that damn horse went crazy after you left. I tried for days to get a saddle on him. Without taking him back to the snubbing post it wasn’t going to be possible. I swear he held me responsible for you leaving him. When I tried to pet him he kept moving away from me. When I brought him grain he would turn the bucket upside down. I gave up and thought maybe he was a woman’s horse? I invited Lucia and Junita, to visit thinking they might work with Tom.
Well, I was partially right. Tom let them brush him. A saddle and a ride was not going to happen. I think Albert is smitten with Junita. It is bad enough he is thinking about getting married and settling down. Lucia hinted she would accept me as a husband. I put that to bed when I told her I was in love with a girl who talks to my horses. I was going to send her a gift and see if she would accept him as a wedding present. Ha, fat chance of that.
Albert told me I only had three choices with that knot head of a horse. I could sell him to the next poor fool who thinks all horses can be rode. We could skin him and have a barbeque. I could give him to the only person he accepts. Tom is yours Jake. The ranch is always open to you and your parents. I expect you to bring your parents and visit every now and then.
Damn, if you were only thirty years older or I was thirty years younger.’
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“What’s this all about Jake?” Dad was looking at the horse.
“Katrina, what does the letter say?” Mom moved up beside me as I was looking at the papers behind the letter.
Handing the letter to momma, I was looking at a bill of sale for Tom. “The man, Mike, saved my life momma. I owe him more than I can ever repay and he gives me a horse. I don’t understand. I should be there on his ranch working for him.”
Momma finished the letter and put her arm around my shoulder. “And how old is this man who wishes you were thirty years older?”
“I don’t know. Around fifty five or so. He’s ex military, momma. He is an American. He and Albert served together in a lot of wars as best I could understand.”
The driver handed me a packet. “The horse was cleared in quarantine. You need to keep the papers safe. Wouldn’t hurt to have a vet look him over in another thirty days.”
He headed toward the rear of the trailer. “I’ll drop the ramp but I’m not getting in there with that horse. I was warned, not get too close to him.”
Dad shook his head as he listened. “Oh no, not another one.”
“Daddy! He’s not like that. He was mistreated. He accepts me.” I was waiting for the driver to lower the ramp.
After the ramp was lowered I motioned for everyone to stay back. “Give me time to talk to him. I imagine this trip has put him on edge.”
“Katrina, you be careful.” Mom took hold of daddy’s hand and was moving back.
“tom, remember me? How you doing? You are going to have to tell me all about your trip.” I was slowly easing up into the trailer.
Facing forward in the trailer, Tom had his head turned as much as he could and was watching me.
“I wish I had an apple for you. I bet you’re hungry and thirsty after that trip. Where did you have to come into the states? They call it a port of entry in case you wanted to know.” I was carefully watching his body for any signs of nervousness as I droned on. There was no way I was going to dodge those hind legs if he decided to lash out. I avoided putting my hands on his flank as I eased up past him. He needed to smell me first before I touched him.
When he smelled me and bumped me with his nose I wanted to scream, yes! He remembered me. I put my hands under his jaws and laid my head up against his. “Tom, you big beautiful horse you. I love you.”
There was a snort outside the trailer. Laughing, I looked out at Gunshy who was obviously jealous. “Gun, I love you too. I have enough to go around for everyone.”
Gun snorted and shook his head. He wasn’t convinced.
I unhooked Tom’s lead and backed him out of the trailer. Gun stood off to the side taking it all in.
The driver closed up his trailer. “They told me to stay clear of that horse.” Turning around he held out his hand to Tom to pet him. Tom snorted and shook his halter.
“Uh, okay.” He headed for Gun to pet him.
“I wouldn’t do that.” Daddy was waving the driver off.
Instead of listening to daddy, he kept going. When he was four or five feet from Gunshy, Gun reared up and pawed the air. The driver froze.
“No, Gun, down.” I motioned to Gun.
Gun dropped down to all four hooves and stomped the ground. A new horse and a new man on his home turf was asking a little too much.
The driver backtracked to his truck and retrieved a waybill. “Someone sign this and I’m gone.”
After watching the taillights disappear down the road, daddy looked at me and shook his head. “Is this another horse no one but you can handle?”
“DADDY! This is Tom. You and mom can ride him in time. You have to earn his friendship and trust. A lesson I failed to understand about people. Give him time to get used to you and mom. Right now he and I need time alone. He’s had a long trip and isn’t sure what is going on. I need to reassure him nothing bad is going to happen. This is going to take awhile. I might be out in the barn for the next four or twelve hours.”
As I led Tom out to the barn I could tell I was going to have to earn his trust again. He accepted me this time but would I leave him again? “I’m sorry Tom. It wasn’t my idea to run off. There were men who wanted Albert and me and they weren’t nice men.”
It didn’t take me long to get a bucket of daddy’s dairy feed. With all the different rolled grains, minerals, and molasses in it, Tom was pulled in like a fly to sugar. He stuck his nose in the pail and went after it while I got a bucket of water. With Tom busy on the refreshments, I got out the curry comb and brush and started rubbing him down while I told him all about the farm.
“Of course it’s not nearly as big as Mike’s place. There is still plenty of running room. I’ll introduce you to Bill Randall. His place is a lot bigger and he has a lot of horses. You and Gunshy will be great buddies. I just know it….”
It was late before I felt like Tom and I had renewed our budding friendship. Of course I had to brush down Gun and talk to him afterwards so he wouldn’t get jealous. I was so glad I no longer had to go to any school the next day because it was really late when I finally got back into the house.
Two days after his arrival I felt like Tom was ready for a saddle. The blanket was first. After a lot of scratching around his chest and ears I picked up the saddle while I kept up a constant chatter. He was watching as I lifted the saddle up on his back and cinched it up. Tom shivered and did a half sidestep as I stepped up into the saddle.
Mom and dad were watching from the porch, ready to call for an ambulance I was sure. Gunshy was eyeing all this in between the mouthfuls of dairy feed I had left in a bucket for him. Turning Tom toward the road I urged him forward by pressing my knees into the saddle. The only explanation I could think of about what happened next was Tom had enough of being penned up from his trip. He bolted. Tom held nothing back as he stretched out in that distance eating gallop he possessed. Trying to rein him in before he hurt himself wasn’t working. Within minutes we passed the first mile and then the second mile. His breathing wasn’t even hard yet as it came in smooth rhythm with his stride. If ever there was a horse designed to run, Tom had to be the one. I regretted he had left Mike’s ranch and come to our small farm. He deserved better.
Close to a three mile run, Tom let me rein him in. “Jeeze Tom, did we really need to experience that? From now on you let me think I’m the fifty one percent partner in this relationship.”
Headed back toward the house, I leaned down in the saddle and gave him free rein. “Do what you want. We can walk back or run back, your choice.”
It was all Tom needed. When the reins slacked off he took off like a rocket. I wanted to lean over and look to see if his hooves were touching the ground.
As I rode up into the yard dad was shaking his head. Mom didn’t look too pleased. “What was that all about?”
“Wasn’t me. Tom wanted to test his freedom and I was along for the ride.”
“You mean you couldn’t control him?” Dad looked serious.
“If you are asking did I yank the bit back in his mouth to stop him? No. I let him know I wanted to slow down but I wasn’t going to force him. I was concerned about him hurting himself. I should have understood he needed that run. Tom and I are still learning about our communications. You don’t tell a runner they can’t run. It is in their soul. Tom was born to run. I only wish we had more land for him to exercise on. He was born too late. He should have been born before this nation was fenced in and he had the whole world to run across. Even with all the rodeos Bill and I attended, I’ve never seen or met another like him.”
I worked steadily for another two days with Tom to make sure he was accepting me each time. Of course Gunshy was jealous and kept trying to nose me away from Tom when I had both of them in the yard. Luckily there were no mares around in heat so a knock down drag out fight between the two of them wasn’t necessary.
After calling Bill to make sure he didn’t have any mares in heat at his ranch, dad and I loaded up Gun and Tom. I needed to get back to practice roping and I wanted to show off Tom to Bill.
Gun was first out of the stock trailer. I turned him lose knowing he wouldn’t run off. Bill and the hands were watching as I backed Tom out. Bill let out a long whistle. “Cat, I think that’s the prettiest piece of horseflesh I have ever seen and I’ve seen a lot. Eighteen hands high? Is he walking on stilts or are those legs all his?”
I couldn’t stop grinning. “Everyone, this is Tom. Don’t try to pet him and I strongly suggest everyone keep away from his hooves.”
Bill and the others were crowding in for a closer look until I said that. Bill grinned from ear to ear as he shook his head. “Only you could pick up another one like Gun. You’re going to have to teach the rest of us how to talk to our horses Cat. I mean we’re just a bunch of dumb ol cowboys who thought a horse was something you dropped a saddle on and climbed on.”
“What kind of horse is he Cat?”
“He’s a runner. I worked with him on Mike’s ranch as a cutting horse. He picked it up real quick. It took a little for him to let me swing a lariat because he was mistreated with a rope.”
“Give us a looksee.” Bill pointed off toward his left.
I nodded as I took my time talking to Tom before I put the blanket and saddle on him. Bill had a kind of racetrack on his ranch. The starting chutes didn’t have gates. Usually someone hollered go. If the cowboys were racing they urged their horses to a run. The track was bare packed ground. I had no idea if it was regulation. I had no idea if there was a regulation length. But cowboys being cowboys they were always bragging about who had the fastest horse. Bill made a track for them to test those bragging rights.
Four of Bill’s hands mounted up as Tom and I headed for the make believe track. Nealy was on his horse, Beauty. She was the usual winner in these spontaneous races. Hank was on Patches, He won the races every now and then. Loyd and Charley were on two horses I didn’t know.
I leaned down over Tom’s neck. “Easy money. Don’t embarrass them too much Tom. They don’t mind losing by a nose. A couple lengths is more than their pride can stand.”
Tom snorted and shook his head. I got the feeling he wasn’t going to cut anyone any slack if he was offered the chance to run.
“oh this can’t be good” I pointed Tom into one of the chutes.
The other four riders got into the chutes and indicated they were ready as they leaned down in their saddles.
“No hard feelings guys.” I leaned down in the saddle.
The cowboys, dad, and Bill were off to the side in front of the chutes. Bill yelled, “GO!”
Giving him free rein and pressing my knees into the saddle was all the urging Tom needed. He flew out of that chute. Within seconds the others were left behind. All I had to do was urge Tom to stay on the track instead of running straight ahead off into the field. Was it the track or because other horses were running behind us? The run when we chased the cows and the mare at Mike’s place, and the run down the road a couple days earlier wasn’t Tom’s top gear. He had competition now and dropped it into overdrive. My world slowed to snapshots as the landscape went by. With every long stride I could hear his breath coming in rhythm. When we circled the track and flew by the starting chutes, I was looking for the other riders. They were in a bunch a little over four fifths of the way around the track.
Tom was halfway around the track again before I finally got through to him the race was over. He would have run it a second time if I had let him. We walked back over to where the cowboys were staring at us. Tom wasn’t breathing hard. The other four horses in the race were still panting.
Bill shook his head. “Cat, when the calf knocked you down and Gunshy stood over you guarding you? I thought I had seen it all. I’m not going to claim I have seen it all after today. None of us brought a stopwatch. Are you sure that is a horse or is he a cheetah in a horse suit? You said he could run. I’m not sure that was what we were watching. There is a horse race over at Quail River next week. You might think about entering him to see what he can do against real race horses.”
“How much they charge for an entry fee? I don’t have any papers on Tom besides a bill of sale. Don’t they only let pedigree horses in those races?”
“The fee is five thousand…”
“Bill, I don’t have that kind of money. Even if I did I’m not sure I’d take a chance on Tom being able to handle a crowd. The ranch he came from was not on the main highway.” I wasn’t sure what Tom would do in a crowd of screaming, yelling people.
“The payback is pretty good. First place pays fifty thousand. The boys and I will up front your entry fee. If they don’t I will. After what I witnessed I’d pay that much to see him run against the thoroughbreds even if he didn’t win. If he wins we double our money and you keep the rest.”
“Jake, it would go a ways toward paying your legal expenses. The rodeo cowboys aren’t going to ask for their money back. What they donated didn’t cover it all. I heard you were offered several business arraignments. Until you decide what you want to do, I think Tom may be your reprieve if you are willing to take a chance on him.” Bill was eyeing Tom as he spoke to me.
“Daddy?” I was hoping for an answer.
Dad shook his head. “Jake, this is between you and your horses. In all the years I’ve seen you and Gun work together I have yet to understand how you do it. No one thought Gun could be controlled. Yet, you never had any doubt…”
“I don’t control him…”
Daddy shrugged as he looked out across the field at Gun. “Whatever it is you and Gun do. I have no doubt you and Tom are doing the same thing. Talk it over with Tom if that is what you are doing.”
That kind of took me back hearing it from my own father.
He looked at me and grinned. “Don’t look like you haven’t ever heard it said about you before. If they aren’t asking me to my face they are whispering behind my back, saying that’s the man whose daughter talks to horses. Now, take Tom out there where you and Gun and him can discuss this among yourselves and see if he’s ready to race other horses.”
I shook my head as I hung my head. “Daddy, it isn’t like that…”
“Oh no? What were you doing spending half the night in the barn with him when he first arrived?”
“Come on Tom, we need a little piece and quiet to think.” I was headed off out to the field away from the crowd.
Bill watched as she walked away before looking over at John. “Think she will race him?”
John laughed as he looked at Bill. “You think Jake can say no to a challenge?”
Nodding in agreement, Bill laughed. “That’s what I was thinking. I better call them and get a slot for her.”
He looked at the cowboys around him. “Who wants to double their money?”
“Put me down for five hundred. I thought Beauty had stopped the way she ran off and left us. If that horse runs half as good as he did out there today, he is still going to be ahead of the others. Do they take a doping test before or after the race?” Nealy was looking at Tom and Katrina out in the pasture. “She’s asking him if he wants to run in a horse race. I’d bet on that too.”
There was no doubt in my mind Tom could run. The question was would he run if there were thousands of people screaming and yelling? For the next nine days, dad, mom, would be loading up the horses as we took them over to Bill’s place. I wanted Tom to get acclimated to running on a horse track. As luck would have it, word spread about ‘the horse and the girl who talks to horses’ was training for a race at Bill’s Ranch.
The second day a couple of cowboys showed up with their horses. I knew them. Dale Cargil had a ranch forty miles south. Melvin Brooks was a horse trader always buying and selling horses. I never shipped any horses for him because he never sold any outside the states.
Looking over their horses and their tack was my introduction to race gear and their jockeys. Dale introduced me to his rider, Jimmy Shiply.
“Howdy.” I shook his hand as we looked each other over. The guy was shorter and lighter than me.
Smiling, he nodded in agreement. “Heard an awful lot of stories about you Miss McDonald. What do you think of Dale’s horse? Do we stand a chance?”
“You ridding in the race next week?” I turned my attention to the horse Dale had brought.
“We are number one in the betting circles. Blue Diamond has won the last of her four races.” He walked with me over to the horse. Almost everyone there gathered around us.
Blue was watching me as I walked around her examining her. “She’s alert.” Sliding my hands under her jaws I raised her head to look in her eyes and up her nose. “Good focus. You have been pushing her too hard. Over training. She’s tired. You planned on running her against Tom today. Don’t do it. She needs a couple weeks of rest before you race her again. You keep pushing her and she’s through winning anything.”
Dale and Jimmy both looked shocked. Dale was staring at me. “Miss McDonald…”
“Jake, I kinda like Jake.” I turned around to look at Dale.
He cleared his throat. “I assure you there is nothing wrong with Blue Diamond. She is in the best condition she has ever been. You don’t want to race your horse against her just come out and say it instead of telling us my horse is over trained.”
“Mr. Cargil, I’m sorry you took my opinion in the wrong way. I have no qualms about racing Tom against your horse. Except, it would be a healthy horse racing against a cripple. I can’t tell you what to do with your own livestock. That’s your business. When the ranch equipment has problems you don’t keep driving it hoping it will get better. You stop and fix it because you know it will only get worse until there is no fixing.”
I ran my hands over Blue’s left shoulder. “Horses are like that only most people don’t understand nor think along those lines. I’m going to tell you one last time and then this conversation is over. I don’t debate people who mistreat their animals and don’t listen. She is over stressed, her body, her muscles are over stressed. You race her without giving her a chance to recoup and you will destroy an excellent race horse.”
Frustration was not the word for how I felt as I worked my way through the others and headed for Gun and Tom. I was wiping away tears. Dale was going to destroy a beautiful horse because he couldn’t turn lose of the idea of winning at all costs. And I couldn’t save her! Unless….
“H OW MUCH DO YOU WANT FOR HER!” I spun on my heel hoping against hope.
Dale looked startled and slowly a smile spread across his face. “So that’s your game. You tell me she’s through and then offer to buy her. Ten million and she’s yours.”
Bill Randall clinched his fists. “dale…” Came out as a whisper. Everyone in the crowd heard the threat in it.
There was no way I could raise that kind of money and Dale knew it. “Always about money isn’t it? God, what is wrong with you people! Damn you! You’re going to destroy a horse because all you can think about is money.”
Walking over to Gun and Tom, I hugged each of them as I cried. Bill put his hand on my shoulder. “Cat you can’t save them from the fools.”
Wiping tears I looked at Bill as other tears followed. “if we don’t race…”
“Won’t help, Cat. He will race her anyway. Melvin is here and they are going to race their horses irregardless of what you and Tom do. It isn’t your fault Katrina. Don’t quit because you can’t make them understand. Prove to them what you know so others will listen. While they are using racing gear, you and Tom are using a western saddle. Lot of weight difference right there.”
He pulled me into a bear hug as mom and dad headed our way. “Our unofficial race starts in eight or nine minutes. Your choice Cat. If it was me...”
Thirty minutes later I watched as Dale’s pickup and horse trailer disappeared down the road. Dale never stopped complaining from the time we finished the race and he was leaving. Unofficial race, no starting gates, wasn’t a real race, didn’t count, Blue would have won if.
Melvin loaded up his horse, Tracer, before he came over to look at Tom. I warned Melviin to not get too close or try and touch Tom.
Melvin laughed as his eyes twinkled. “Jake, I heard you picked those kind of horses or they picked you. What do you think about Tracer? We stand a chance against you next week at the ‘OFFICIAL’ races?”
I was sure he emphasized official because Dale had complained so much about this unofficial race at Bill’s ranch. “Everyone stands a chance. There are no given’s in life.”
“Yeah, but the question stands. What’s our odds?” He was eyeing Tom.
Shrugging my shoulders I hesitated as I looked at Tom. “Does slim to none sound familiar?”
Melvin laughed again. “Kinda what I thought too. I’d bet on your horse but since I’m in the same race they would claim I had thrown the race on purpose. It would turn into a legal nightmare for me.”
He held out his hand. “Beautiful horse, Jake. I wish I wasn’t racing against him.”
Shaking his hand, I tried to soften the hurt Dale had caused. “It is a race, Melvin. There are no sure winners. Quiters never win and winners are always replaced with others who are better.”
He held onto my hand. “A word of advice, Jake. If it looks like he is going to smoke the lot, hold him back so it isn’t a total route. A horse length would be an acceptable win. Too much and none of the locals will race you again. The purse is good money. You and Tom play your cards right you might manage to win a dozen races before you scare everyone off.”
“And you?”
Melvin shook his head. “Five thousand to enter a race I know I’m going to get my unhuh handed to me is a little rich for my blood. We race you this week Jake because I’m already in. Don’t expect me to keep contributing to your retirement funds. From now on when you and Tom are in a race, Tracer and I are out.”
“Now, you looked over Tracer, what do you think about him?”
“Honestly? He’s in great shape. You haven’t over trained him like Dale has. He is going to be a constant winner for you for the next couple years. Like Tom, he enjoys running. You haven’t made it a punishment to him. He tries his best. Your rider, Pat didn’t have to push Tracer to get his best from him. Janet Weldon has a mare, Penny. A colt from Tracer and Penny could possibly turn out to be the best of both if you treat him right.”
“And how much is this professional advice from the lady who talks to horses going to cost me?” Melvin’s eyes were dancing in amusement.
That got me tickled. “I don’t talk to horses.”
Melvin smirked as he looked at Bill who had joined us. “Yeah, that’s what I haven’t heard. Jake, I was told you were working on your veterinarian degree. I don’t care if you have that certificate or not. From now on all my horses are coming to see you if they aren’t acting right. You won’t be able to write any prescriptions before you get that diploma. Doesn’t make any difference. You need to start charging for your horse advice. I’ve used Dr. Renner for years. I just met you and for some reason I would take your advice over his. There is something about you and horses I can’t explain. The feeling is there you bridge the divide between them and us.”
“I don’t talk to horses.” I hadn’t put a halter on Gun because I knew he wouldn’t run off. He picked that time to come up and nudge me in the back for attention. Everyone around us laughed as Gun nudged me again.
Bill put his hand on my shoulder. “She’s been in denial as long as I’ve known her. Yet, in all the years I’ve been around her and Gunshy, the only time he lets me touch him is when she is standing right there beside us. Ask some of the cowboys who threatened her whether Cat and Gunshy talk to one another.”
Bill turned to look at Gun. “Gun, do you and Cat…”
Gun nudged me again.
Bill looked at Melvin. “You can take that as a yes.”
The next seven days went by in a blink and I found myself along with Bill and Melvin walking down the rows of paddocks where the horses were kept before the race. The horse we were looking at was named Seven Over. The handlers were working inside the stall getting him ready for the race.
“He’s picked to place. What do you think?” Melvin was looking from the horse to me and back to the horse.
“Good form. I haven’t seen him run so I’m guessing. Let’s look at the rest of them we are up against.” I walked over to the next stall.
As luck would have it was Blue Diamond. My heart went out to her as I shook my head. “She’s through as a race horse. I’m so sorry girl, I wish I could have done something.”
Bill looked at his cheat sheet for the bookies. “She’s listed as first place.”
“She will do good to finish the race at the back.”
Bill had managed to get Tom in the high stakes nine horse race even though Tom was an unknown. I don’t know how Bill did it as there were a lot of horses who had been racing for years weren’t able to get into that race. We finished looking at all eight before heading back to Tom’s stall.
“Well? What’s Tracer’s chances?” Melvin had stayed with us.
“He’ll place second provided they all run without any penalties or someone getting in the way. Give him his lead out the gate so he can find a clean field and not get caught up in the traffic. He has no problem running all the track at his best. You don’t need to save him for a sprint at the end like I’ve seen a lot of jockeys do. Tracer loves to run. Let him run.” Opening the door to Tom’s stall I started scratching him under the chin.
“And Tom?” Melvin’s eyes danced in amusement.
“Just follow him to the finish line.” I pulled Tom’s head down and kissed him on the forehead.
“I wish we had an experienced jockey riding Tom.” Bill was eyeing both of us.
“You want to see a jockey get bucked off before the race starts?”
“Cat, you’re good. That isn’t a western saddle you will be on. You’ve only had a couple days to find your balance in it.”
“Tom will take care of me.” I gathered up my ridding gear and headed for the weigh in station as I remembered my first rodeo. Never again would I be embarrassed to be called a girl. The card I had to fill out to be a jockey, I put down “Jake” Katrina Ann McDonald. I think both daddy and I were slowly beginning to understand Jake was his daughter and damn proud of it!
I think I was as happy about Tracer coming in second as I was about Tom coming in first. Tom wasn’t that happy about any of it. I took Melvin’s advice and kept Tom reined in and didn’t let him shift into his overdrive when he wanted to stretch out and run. Scratching around his shoulders and neck as we walked to the winner’s circle I whispered to him. “You can run on the farm or at Bill’s place and go as fast or as slow as you like.”
The vets led us to the clinic where they took saliva and blood samples while I held onto Tom and talked to him. I didn’t think Tom killing a couple veterinarians would make us popular in the racing circuit.
When the vet pulled down Tom’s lower lip to do a swab test he hesitated. “I see a tattoo. It’s latin. Someone give me a pen and pad. Miss, your winnings will be held up until we can determine the bloodline and ownership of this horse.”
“Ownership? He’s mine. I gave them a photocopy of the bill of sale at the time we registered him.”
“Yes ma’am, I understand. This horse has an ID and will be registered. You ran him as an unknown. If he has been racing you will forfeit the race. Carl, contact the office and tell them to hold all payouts on the race. Tom and Miss McDonald may receive a disqualification.”
“Ladies and gentlemen please hold onto your tickets. A problem has come up and we are attempting to resolve it. Thank you for your patience.” Came in over the loudspeakers minutes later.
Ten minutes after that a man came in carrying a clipboard. “Tom is To’mas. His dame is Higel and his sire is Short Sword. He has never raced. His owner was Bartholomew Costello. It seems To’mas was traded as a debt or some such and records of his where abouts were lost. Because he was never sold there was never a value place on him. Having never raced he qualifies as Miss McDonald entered him.”
The announcer came over the loudspeakers telling everyone the race stands. They could cash out their tickets.
The man looked at me. “Miss McDonald, you claim a man gave him to you. He must think an awful lot of you. Up in the office we figured To’mas was worth three to four million as an untested race horse before he ran. After winning his first race by a horse length, another million can be added to that.”
My legs turned to rubber as I leaned back against Tom’s shoulder for support. “You’re serious?”
The guy nodded. “You could borrow half his value, a couple million, using him as collateral without any problem.”
“Mike, did you know?” I whispered to myself. What could Mike have done for the guy to get Tom in payment? How does one treat a million dollar horse? Mike treated him like a…, well like a horse as he pulled him into the snubbing post and tossed a saddle on him. I shivered as I remembered ridding Tom in all the gullies and along the ledges counting cows. And then I used him as a working cow pony and a cutting horse.
The more I thought about it the more I realized Tom and I weren’t really that special. No matter what anyone thought, I was still a farm girl and nothing was ever going to change that. And Tom? I stood back and admired him before reaching up and hugging his face. I wasn’t going to put him in a stall and coddle him like I saw them do to the racehorses at Valley Downs Farms. Tom had a free soul. I wasn’t going to cramp his style. He could run across the farm and Bill’s ranch all he wanted. I guess Gun, Tom, and me deserved each other. We were mavericks, all three of us.
======================================================
Because I was working with traders shipping horses all over the world, a lot of times various businesses would ask me to hand carry packages or notes to field offices or traders to the countries where the horses were going. Trans Time was one of those companies I had carried a package for. I picked up the horse and the package in France and delivered both to Italy. The package had already been handed off when they asked me to get it back. One of the company men, David, met me and requested we go for a ride in the car I had rented.
“Katrina, the man Niccolo Assante, is passing on our trade secrets to another company. We found out too late after you had delivered the folder. I need you to get it back.”
I started the car up and was headed back down the mountain. “And how do you propose I do that, David. Walk in and demand it back? Hey Niccolo, I heard you were selling company plans. Give back the folder. Why don’t you ask him yourself?”
David shook his head. “Not that simple. If I ask him, he sure won’t give it up knowing what he has is the last trade secrets he will ever get from us. We can’t have him arrested as there isn’t enough evidence. We did give the folder to him. His arrest will come later when we have a case, not now. We need you to pick it up for us.”
“David, this isn’t my problem. Your company asked me to deliver a package. I did. Now you want it back and I’m supposed to get it without Niccolo knowing you suspect him of trading company secrets. Look at me, do I look like a secret agent who has a clue how to do what you are asking?” I was getting frustrated with the way this situation was going. “I deliver things. What I don’t do is steal them back.”
“Jake, you are our only option. If we had another way I’d try it but we don’t have any one else. The folder contains company expansion plans, patents, and trade secrets. Given to our competitors it will cost us millions. You said he asked you to dinner when you dropped off the folder. Use that.”
"Jake, you know I would use someone else if I could. I hate this more than you do."
I gripped the steering wheel harder as I pushed the little Spider to its' limits. "No you don't hate it nearly as much as I do. Am I supposed to sleep with him too?"
"How you get it back is beside the point." He put both hands on the dash as the Spider slid dangerously close to the edge of the pavement.
"For God's sake, Jake, slow the fuck down." He was beginning to perspire as I turned the steering wheel back in the other direction for the next curve.
"Jeeze, David, I thought you liked living on the edge? You sure don't mind asking me to put my neck on the chopping block." I was feeling vengeful as I pushed the Spider for a few more miles an hour. I really didn't care if we went over one of those cliffs as we raced down the mountain.
"Katrina, I'm sorry for getting you into this! Please slow down. Please? David closed his eyes. He knew we weren't going to make that next curve.
There was a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach as I realized I had pushed the little Spider too hard. I felt the pavement slip under the tires. Some car or truck had thrown oil out of the engine or transmission as it pushed up the grade and the little Spider lost most of its traction on the pavement. The edge of the pavement and a three hundred foot drop was rushing at us. I no longer cared about dying.
Inches from the edge the Spider got a grip. When I looked over at David he was ash white. “What is it worth if I manage to get the folder back?”
David swallowed trying to find his voice. “A couple thousand.”
Slowing down and shaking my head I kept my eyes on the road. “You said the company would lose millions. What is it worth if I get it back? You better nail down a decent figure or you can put on a dress and go to dinner with him.”
David reached for his phone. “Let me make a call.”
Thinking back, I knew the desk drawer Niccolo had put the folder in. Not that I cared at the time. It had taken time to tell him no when he kept trying to corner me and talk me into a dinner date. It he hadn’t moved it, if the drawer wasn’t locked, and if David came up with the right incentive? I might give it a go. Lana Mortner put her place up for sale. A couple thousand acres would be nice for Tom and Gunshy to run on. David didn’t know it. His company was going to help me buy a ranch.