© Katta
Author's Note: This and all future stories of the TYR soap will let Ike survive In The Face of Mine Enemies. He's not essential in all the stories, but the point with soaps is that stories blend into each other. The conversations in Spanish etc., are usually not very important for the stories, but if you want any translation, please contact me.
Teaspoon read the letter once more. It troubled him. He watched his riders, that at the moment seemed to be having an inofficial competition on who could swallow the largest amount of meat without chewing first. Things were busy right now, and he didn’t know how to do without a single of the boys, not to mention three. But for Alonzo’s sake, he would try.
”What’s the matter, Teaspoon?” asked Cody. ”You look like the world just fell down on your shoulders.”
”I got a letter from an old friend”, said Teaspoon and rubbed
his chin. ”Alonzo Girón. His wife Becky is - well, was - my sister
in law. They live
in this town called Reina Isabella, a bit south of Kearney. Most of the people
there are pennyless Mexican farmers, and that storm a while ago caused quite
a lot of trouble.” He stopped for a minute, and they looked silently at
him, waiting for the point. ”So, Alonzo’s asking me for two or
three boys to help him out for a while. Go down to Reina Isabella and live there
for a a few weeks - a month maybe.”
”A month?!” said Jimmy disbelieving. His tone of voice made Teaspoon smile.
”I take it you’re not going to volunteer?”
”I’ll go”, said Lou quickly.
”Me too”, said Kid.
”Then I’ll stay!”
Lou’s voice was as hard as stone, and Teaspoon sighed. This was more than just another love quarrel, this was almost a breakup. Maybe it was just as good to keep them apart for a while.
”Alright, Louise”, he said. ”You’ll go and Kid will stay here. Only trouble is, Alonzo knows Majors, so you’d better go as a boy. Not that he’d exactly tell on you, but through no fault of his own, he’s absolutely no good at keeping a secret.”
”No problem”, said Lou, and Teaspoon nodded at her.
”Still need at least one more.”
His eyes set on Ike. That was a thought. He had been darn close to the
valley of death and it wouldn’t hurt to keep him away from danger for a
while. Ike noticed the look. <<Me?>>
”Yeah, it’s still hard work, but at least you won’t lose any more blood. Of course, if you don’t want to be away from Emily that long, I understand.”
<<No, that’s okay, I can go.>>
”Well, then I’ll go, too”, said Buck. ”If that’s alright with you, that is.”
”Sure. The three of you can leave tomorrow, and everyone else will take your rides.”
”More work, just what I need”, muttered Jimmy. Teaspoon chose to ignore him.
”First you’ll go to Kearney and then…”
”South”, added Lou. ”You said that already.”
”Right. Sorry, lot on my mind right now.”
Reina Isabella might have been a beautiful place ordinarily, but at the
moment it looked remarkably like a pile of junk. Many houses lacked roofs,
some even walls, and the mud and rubbish around them made you wonder whether
it was more appropriate to laugh or to cry.
”Excuse me.” Lou addressed an old woman. ”We’re looking for Alonzo Girón’s house.”
The old woman shook her head.
”There is no house anymore”, she said in broken English. ”A
big tree fell on it and the house was wrecked. They sleep in the cellar now,
and cook
outside.”
”How awful!”
”Oh, they’re not the only ones. The storm has made many people homeless.”
The riders looked at each other. All felt a bit shook up. It had been bad weather in Rock Creek as well, but nothing like this.
”So”, said Buck in a hesitant tone of voice, ”where… is the place where house used to be?”
She pointed down the road and said: ”Over there and then to the left.”
She said farewell and then walked away, completely happy-go-lucky.
”Well!” Lou sighed. ”I suppose we’d better go see them.”
They walked in the direction the old woman had shown them and soon saw the former house, that looked just like a house of cards that had fallen down, although someone seemed to have started to try and sort it up a bit. In the yard, there was a middle-aged anglo-looking woman, who looked at them with curiousity in her friendly face.
”Mrs Girón? My name is Lou McCloud, they’re Buck Cross and Ike McSwain. We are…”
”Teaspoon’s boys.” The woman had a heavy Southern accent. She straightened her back and her face brightened. ”You are, aren’t you?”
”Yes, ma’am.”
”Oh, bless him!” She smiled happily at them. ”Well you can
see for yourself that it is quite a lot that needs to be done. Alonzo’s
strong enough, but
he’s not a big man and it’s too much for us to do alone. And everybody
in this town has problems right now, so you’re really sent from heaven.
Welcome!”
Her face darkened again as she looked at the hole in the ground. ”I can’t very well have you sleeping here, though”, she said. ”There are hotels and boarding places in this town, but I don’t know if any of them will have any rooms that are both whole and available. It’s worth a try, though.”
”Thank you. Shouldn’t you do the same?”
Mrs Girón shook her head. ”This is my home”, she said, looking at the boards and bricks. ”It’s nothing but garbage right now, but I can’t bear to leave it.”
Since the first place they tried was full and the second was uninhabitable,
the riders started to wonder if they would be able to sleep in a bed that
night. The staff had been helpful, but there was really nothing to be done.
They had to take care of their own first. They stepped out of the second hotel
and looked around, uncertain of what to do. There were no more official boarding
places in the town, although the receptionist had explained that many families
kept boarders on the side. A teenage girl was sitting on a fallen tree, playing
”The Star-Spangled Banner” on some instrument that looked like a bent
trumpet. She was tall and rather chubby, with long, thick, black braids falling
down her back, and her eyes were closed. By her feet there was a large, mustard-coloured
dog that wagged its tail and seemed eagerly taken in with the music. The riders
stared at the strange pair, but they didn’t look back. It was as if nothing
existed in the world except the melody. After a while Lou tore herself away
from the music and turned to the guys.
”So, got any great ideas?”
<<The only thing I can think of is asking everyone we see if they know of a place to crash>> answered Ike.
”Well there has to be someone who has at least a spare bed”, said Lou.
The girl opened her eyes and looked at the riders with something that had a vague resemblance to interest, but she didn’t stop playing. Even though she was clearly Mexican, her eyes were deep blue. Buck tried to approach her.
”You don’t by any chance know of any boarding places that still have rooms?”
This single remark made the dog growl, and its fur rose. The girl’s
face got an amused expression, still without any change in her playing, although
she bent her head. Buck waited for a moment, then shrugged, and they started
to leave.
When the girl had finished the melody, she took the instrument from her mouth and shouted: ”Hey, misters, come back here!”They turned around and did as she told them. ”Don’t you ever try to interrupt a melody before it has come to a keynote!” she said.
”Sorry”, said Buck. ”Do you know of a place where we can stay?”
”You can stay at our house”, she answered and started to walk down the road, motioning to them to follow her. ”We have a wing with six rooms, and only four of them are taken. Two of you will have to share a room. Is that alright?”
The riders looked at eachother and agreed. The girl’s face lit up.
”Good! My name is Nita. Actually, my full name is María Juana Fernandez,
but nobody calls me that. Not even my teachers!” She laughed and shook
hands with the riders. ”Hello… hello… and hello! Randy!”
She clapped her hands. ”Say hello to our new boarders!” The dog barked
happily and put his big paws on Lou’s chest. It nearly made her fall. She
patted the dog on his shaggy fur and he licked her chin. Then he did the same
thing with the others, wildly wagging his tail all the time. When Ike got the
furry face close to his own, he sneezed.
”Jesús!” said Nita automatically, and then she smiled at herself. ”I mean bless you, of course. Is it he who makes you do that?”
Ike nodded and sneezed again.
”Oh, too bad”, she said. ”He seems to like you. Randy, come here!”
The dog obeyed, and she squatted in front of him. He tried to lick her face, but she pushed him away to arms length. ”Now, I want you to go home and tell mamá that I’m bringing guests. Okay?” It didn’t seem to be okay, because the dog made no move. She clapped her hands again. ”¡A casa! ¡Corra!”
The dog reluctantly started to run down the road.
”What is that thing?” asked Lou. Nita raised her eyebrows. ”It’s a dog”, she said. ”If you mean what kind, I don’t know. He’s a mutt. Like me.”
”No, I meant, that instrument”, said Lou, pointing at the shiny buglar.
”Oh, that! It is called a saxophone.” The girl caressed her beloved possession. ”I have saved to buy one since I first heard of it, and last year I got one. Isn’t it beautiful?”
”Yes, it is”, Lou agreed. ”Who taught you to play it?”
”I taught myself. I already knew how to play the trumpet, so I worked
it out pretty fast. I can play the mouth organ and the flute as well. I can
blow practically everything.” She grinned. ”Well, maybe except one
thing.”
The crude joke was so unlike the girl’s childish behaviour that Lou asked: ”How old are you?”
”Fourteen.”
”Oh. You look older.”
”Thank you.”
”But you act… younger.”
”Thank you again!” Nita said with a smile. ”I am in no hurry to grow up.”
Her smile suddenly died. A young boy was coming towards them, driving some cattle. When he spotted Nita, his mouth bent in a grin that didn’t seem very kind. With his cane he forced the peaceful cows too close to the people. It was impossible for them to move.
”Hey, get your animals out of the way!” shouted Lou, but the boy payed no attention to her. His eyes were focused on Nita.
”¿Qué te falta, Fernandez?” he asked, very amused.
That was when the riders realised that the girl was crying. She was pressing herself towards a wall, and her formerly lively, happy face had turned pale. There was no doubt about it; she was terrified. While Ike gently held Nita’s shoulders, Lou turned to the boy with renewed energy.
”Now, you move your cattle, ¿comprendes? Cause if you don’t”, she took her gun from the holster, ”I’ll get rid of them for you.”
The boy backed off.
”Okay, okay”, he said. ”It’s not like they’re dangerous.”
He slapped his animals, and they moved, mooing in protest to the rough treatment. When she no longer had the cows close to her, Nita relaxed and yelled after the boy: ”¡Tú eres muy malo, Pedro Sanchez y Vela!”
The boy only laughed. Desperate to be taken seriously, Nita cried: ”¡Te maldizo!”
Pedro stiffenened. He stared at her with loathe mixed with fear. ”¡Bruja!”
he snapped, and then got out of there as quickly as possible. With the boy gone,
Nita relaxed, but this only made the tears flow more swiftly. She sank to the
ground and put her hands over her nose and mouth, trying to breathe slowly.
Ike had to let go of her shoulders, but sat down beside her and tried to comfort
her. His hands moved slowly, so that even a
person who had not learned signs should understand some. But Nita just shook
her head, to exhausted to try.
”He says it’s okay now”, said Buck. ”There’s nothing to be afraid of anymore.”
”I know that!” Her voice was irritated. ”There never was
anything to be afraid of! Those cows don’t even have horns, they can’t
hurt me and I’m
being very, very silly!” Her deep blue eyes were stern now and drying up
fast. ”You think I don’t know that? Nobody ever told me that before?”
She rose in pure anger, and then she took a deep breath and her face softened.
”I’m sorry. This is really no way of treating guests.”
She wiped the dirt off her dress and started to walk again. The riders followed, still concerned.
”Are you sure you’re alright now?” asked Lou kindly.
”I’m fine.” Nita managed to smile a little. ”What really bugs me is that the little prick did it on purpose. I wish I hadn’t sent Randy home. He would have told him off real good.”
Lou tried to get Nita to think of something funnier. ”Why did you name your dog Randy?”
”I didn’t”, said Nita absent-minded. ”He told me that was his name.”
They all stared at her. ”He told you?!”
Nita realised what she had said and a smile spread over her face. ”Actually, I dreamt it. But then when I called him Randy he listened, so I suppose it was a true dream. I’m the only one who calls him that, though. My sister says she won’t rhyme with a dog - her American name is Sandy - so she calls him Bonito. And my brother Carlos, he simply calls him Gran Perro Amarillo.” She realised that the words meant nothing to them, so she explained: ”That means Big Yellow Dog. But usually it’s G.P.A. for short. And here we are.”
This came so close to the rest of her volley of words that it took them
a while to realise that she meant they had reached their destination. They
were entering a yard with white houses to the front and the left and a big poultry
run to the right, enclosed by wire. The farm was sheltered by ome
cliffs and did not seem to have been much harmed by the storm. Outside the main
house, the dog sat, and when he saw them coming he rushed down to Nita and barked
loudly.
”¿Qué pasa?”
The door opened and a woman stepped out. She was about forty years old and obviously Nita’s mother; although she was shorter and of a darker complexion the likeness was remarkable.
”Mamá, I brought some new boarders”, explained the girl.
”Oh.” The woman went down the steps to welcome the riders. ”I’m
María Rosa
Fernandez. Nice to meet you.”
A quick introduction followed before mrs. Fernandez turned to her daughter. ”Clean the rooms for them, will you? We only have two rooms, I’m afraid”, she said in an apologizing tone.
”That’s alright, mrs. Fernandez, we were warned about that”, said Lou politely. ”I’m surprised you have any rooms at all.”
”Well”, said mrs Fernandez, but without continuing her sentence.
Then she changed subject. ”So, come on in! What brings you to this part
of the
world?”
”We’re here to help some friends to a friend”, said Buck. ”Mrs and mr Girón.”
”I see.”
A strain in her voice disappeared, that they hadn’t even noticed until
it wasn’t there anymore. She smiled at them as they followed her into a
large
kitchen. ”I suppose you will want some supper?” She looked at Nita,
who had followed as well. ”Are you still here?”
Her daughter made a very pretty, pleading face at her, but the mother just shook her head. ”Oh, no you don’t. You bring people over without prior warning and it’s your job to make them comfortable.”
”I told Randy to tell you they were coming”, said Nita, but she bowed exaggerated to the others and said: ”I leave you all in my mother’s care.”
Then she quickly left the room. Lou stared at the girl through the window, as she was walking in the direction of the other house, and then felt forced to ask: ”Is she a little bit…”
”No”, said mrs. Fernandez with a sigh, ”but she likes people to think that. It makes it easier for her to get away with things.”
A loud chuckle was heard from the darkest corner of the kitchen. The riders
were startled, because they hadn’t noticed anybody, and turned to find
an old woman sitting in a rocking-chair, peering at them. She looked just like
a sun-dried raisin: small, brown and wrinkled. She yawned widely and then gave
the newcomers a heartwarming, almost toothless, smile. ”¡Bienvenido
atrás, mamacita!” said mrs. Fernandez with a smile. ”¿Has
dormido a pierna suelta?”
”Sí, gracias, Marosi”, said the old woman. ”¿Nuevos inquilinos?”
”Sí. Let’s see if I get this right”, she turned to
the riders, ”You I remember, you’re Buck Cross. And you two…”
she hesitated. ”Lou and Ike, and
you were both Macsomething, but Macwhat I just don’t know.”
”MacCloud and MacSwain.”
”That’s it. And this, of course, is my mother. Her English is very poor, but I promise you she is an exception. The children are more or less bilingual.”
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