“One…two…three.”
Pulling down the lever, with a loud creaking sound the wall began to move slowly.
“Get low,” James whispered. The fading light from outside made it harder to see.
Stepping through the opening, James faced a large man holding a hunting knife in a hostile stance.
“Drop the knife,” said James, “and we may be able to work this out.”
His shotgun was visible but pointed at the man’s legs.
“You’re in my house now,” spat the intruder, as he lunged, knife first, towards James.
Raising his rifle, James started to squeeze the trigger, as he heard the Boom just to his right.
Jason fired a second shot, felling the man. All was quiet, apart from Chance barking from another room.
“There’s at least one more,” said James, quietly looking down at the still man on the floor, just in front of him.
“Daddy! Daddy! Are you okay?” called a high-pitched voice from upstairs.
James looked at Jason, who was doubled over, vomiting onto the floor.
A boy of no more than five years old bounded down the stairs, stopping just short of the bottom, with a fear in his eyes James had never seen in another person.
He took a few seconds, scanning the room, from James to Jason and towards his daddy, laying face-up on the floor in a pool of bright red blood.
Nobody said a word. James saw everything in slow motion, as the boy ran to his father’s side, sobbing uncontrollably. “What’s wrong with him?!” he screamed. “Wake up, Daddy! Please wake up! I’ll be good, I promise. Please wake up!”
He grieved his father, not understanding what happened.
“Stay here with him, Jason,” said James, as he cleared the house, not expecting to find anyone else.
Chance was locked in an upstairs bedroom and appeared to be unharmed. Once let out, he did his own sweep of both the upstairs and downstairs, sniffing at the man’s body but not barking. He licked the small boy on the hand and laid at his feet.
“Jason,” said James, handing him the truck keys. “Get the ladies and your girls. We need the trailer too,” he added.
“Come in through the front and take your girls straight upstairs. They don’t need to see this.”
Jason headed back through the wall and cabinet, exiting the cellar as quickly as he could.
“I’m sorry about your daddy,” said James in a low, calm voice, as a pit gnawed in his stomach.
“What’s your name?” he asked.
“Billy,” he answered, not looking up from his dad.
“How old are you,” James asked.
“Five and a half,” the boy responded flatly. “Is he…I mean, is my daddy dead?”
“I’m afraid so,” James replied. “Where’s your mommy,” he asked, wishing the ladies were already back to help him sort this out.
“She’s gone, I guess. I don’t remember her, but my daddy shows me pictures sometimes. I have one right here,” he said, reaching into the chest pocket of his faded overalls. “Wanna see?” he asked.
“Sure, buddy,” looking as the boy held up the picture. “She looks like a good mommy,” said James. “Let me show you something over here, Billy,” he said, just wanting to get the boy away from the gruesome scene before him.
“This was my mom and dad,” James remarked, pointing to a picture on the dining room wall.
“Is your daddy a doctor?” Billy asked, noticing the scrubs he was wearing.
“Yes, he was. He used to deliver babies,” James replied.
“Does he still do it now?” Billy asked.
“No. He and my mother passed on some years ago.”
“You mean they died?”
“Yes, that’s right, Billy, but I still talk to them almost every day,” James continued.
“How do you do that?” the little boy asked.
“Well, I pray to God and say nice things to them.”
“I don’t know what you mean, mister.”
“Do you know how to pray, Billy?”
“No. I don’t know what you mean… Do I need to learn how to talk to my daddy now?”
“Yes, Billy,” James replied, “but we can teach you that when the time comes.”
“You and that other guy?”
“No. We have some other people that live here and you will meet them very soon,” said James.
“Are they nice or mean?” he asked nervously.
“Oh, they’re the nicest people I know.
“Do you have any other family close, like brothers or sisters, aunts, uncles or grandparents?”
“I don’t think so; it’s always just been me and Daddy,” Billy said, starting to cry again.
Running back across the house, he hugged his father tightly and begged him to come back.
James had tears in his eyes for the first time that he could ever remember.
Fifteen minutes later, James saw the headlights coming up the drive, piercing the now-dark sky. The lights blinked twice, signaling Jason was at the wheel.
Janice walked slowly through the front door, having heard the news. She asked Lauren and Jason to take their girls upstairs.
“His name is Billy,” said James quietly. “His daddy was the only family he knows.”
Janice asked her husband to fall back and approached the grieving boy slowly.
Chance quietly lay at his feet, with his head down.
“Billy,” she said softly, putting an arm around him. “My name is Janice. Do you think we could talk over here?” she said, pointing to the living room, “for just a little bit?”
“Okay,” he replied, tears still streaming down his cheeks.
“I’m scared,” he cried. “I don’t have anybody now…” He cried out even louder.
Janice held him tight, rocking him back and forth for the next 20 minutes.
Falling asleep in her arms, she laid on the couch with him. She motioned for James, waving her arm in the air.
Whispering, she said, “Get Jason and clean this up. We don’t need any of the children seeing this anymore.”
“We will take care of it, honey,” he told her, heading upstairs to get Jason.
To his surprise, Jason was sitting on the floor just outside their bedroom.
“Does he know I did it?” he asked. “Does he know I killed his father?” he continued, appearing agitated.
“Please keep your voice down, Jason,” James asked him. “He doesn’t know what happened. He’s only five and didn’t even ask. He knows his daddy is gone, but that’s all. Be very careful about what you tell him or your girls tomorrow.
“I need your help to get this cleaned up quietly. Billy is asleep on the couch with Janice. We need to do a good job quickly, so no one else sees this. Are you with me, Jason?”
“Yes, of course. I only wish…”
“Let’s talk about that tomorrow, okay?” asked James.
Forty minutes later, they had the man wrapped in plastic from the barn, and laid him in a clean horse stall. All traces of blood, to the naked eye, were removed from the hardwood floor where he once lay.
* * * *
Janice stayed on the couch that night, holding Billy, with Chance laying just beyond her feet. She awoke several times when little Billy cried out, shaking but not opening his eyes.
Everyone was up early, except for the girls and Billy.
The adults got a game plan together, to be on the same page with the girls and the new boy fast asleep on the living room couch.
Talk of what to do with the little boy was the topic of the early morning by the adults.
“I’ll take a quick run to town,” said James, “to tell the Sheriff what happened here.”
“Won’t he want you to go to work, since you’re already there?” asked Janice.
“No, I think we’re okay,” he replied. “I’ll leave Jason here, and I’ll show up in shorts and flip flops, just in case.
“Besides, he knows we need to slaughter a
cow today to keep his promise of free beef to his new voters. I’m pretty sure he won’t want to interfere with that.”
James unhooked the trailer from the truck for the second time in 24 hours and headed to town early.
He arrived just after 7 a.m., according to the town clock. He was half surprised to find the Sheriff in the office.
“You’re here early,” James asserted.
“Well, I was making sure our house guests have some breakfast is all. It’s just not right to be hung on an empty stomach,” he grinned.
“Are you hanging somebody today, Sheriff?” asked James.
“Oh no. Not yet. I’m just saying they need to appear healthy when we do, assuming of course that the Honorable Judge Lowry rules in favor of it.”
James proceeded to tell the Sheriff about the happenings last night and inquired how to find little Billy a new home.
“That’s interesting,” observed the Sheriff, “and it sounds like you did the right thing. But that’s just the start. The way I see it is our future Mayor needs to campaign hard come Monday and Tuesday morning, right up to the election at 2 p.m., ensuring that every man and woman eligible to vote does so.
“The Mayor’s position pays a little money each month, and you have just added another mouth to feed.”
“Thank you for your time, Sheriff,” said James, with his head spinning. “Now, if you will excuse me, I’ve got a steer to butcher.”
“See you boys bright and early tomorrow,” said Sheriff Johnson. “Let’s start at about 7 a.m. and go until dark.”
“See you tomorrow, sir,” James replied, not exactly agreeing to the new schedule.
James drove back to the ranch with the windows down. I guess we have a little boy now, he thought. James would give his daddy a proper burial on the property, so little Billy could visit him whenever he wanted.
Pulling up to the house, his wife and Billy were on the front porch, sharing a rocking chair.
“Has he met the girls yet?” asked James.
“Not yet. Jason wanted to talk to you first,” she replied.
“Do you need anything, Billy?” James asked.
“We’re okay,” replied Janice, with a wink.
“Okay. I’ll find Jason.”
James found Jason on the side of the house, sitting with his head in his hands.
“Jason, how are you holding up?”
“Not good, I guess. I’ve been out here for a while. I can’t look the boy in the eye; I just can’t do it… Did you find a home for him in town?”
“No, Jason. I did not. I spoke with the Sheriff, and he’s not interested in finding him a new home. We can’t just give him away at the next trade days.”
“I know,” replied Jason. “So does that mean…?”
“I’ll have to talk to Janice, but it probably means he’s with us now. We won’t speak to him or anybody else about what happened. It could just as easily have been me that fired the shot. So that you know, Jason, I had my finger on the trigger when you fired. I want to give his daddy a proper burial on this ranch… So he can visit his grave when he needs to,” added James.
“I guess he should meet the girls, then,” Jason responded.
Janice brought Billy in and introduced him to the girls.
James pulled her aside, telling her about the conversation with the Sheriff.
“It’s a formality really,” she replied.
“How so, honey?”
“Well, he’s ours to raise and protect. I knew it from the minute I saw him. We can’t just go pawning him around town so someone else can take the responsibility.”
“That’s true, Mama. We’ll give his papa a proper goodbye, and I’ll make a headstone for him.
“Let’s clear out the office upstairs and make a bedroom. I’m guessing he won’t want to share one with the girls for too long.”
Carla, Candice and Jenna took to their new housemate right away. All wanted him to sleep in their room, but Janice informed them it would not happen tonight.
“He will sleep with us for the next night or two,” Janice told James. “I won’t have him feeling all alone right now.”
“Okay, honey. Let’s have you and Lauren keep the kids inside today. Jason and I have a lot of work to do.”
* * * * * * *
Chapter Nineteen ~ Second Chances Ranch Weston, Colorado
James and Jason headed out to the pasture.
“How do you pick the steer?” asked Jason. “I used to simply select the biggest one and send them off to the slaughterhouse.”
“Now it’s an easy pick, since we have one big guy with a bad leg,” pointed out James.
“Is it hard to send your babies off to slaughter?” asked Jason.
“Well, I learned a long time ago that you always name your milking cows, but never your steers,” replied James.
They coaxed the lame steer into the slaughter pen, a 15x10 compartment gated on all sides, eight feet high.
The steer paced back and forth, both nervous and agitated.
“All right, Jason. It’s been a while since I’ve had to do this, but the process hasn’t changed any. I’m going to shoot him between the eyes with my 9mm pistol. A .22 caliber would work as well.
“Next, we quickly need to cut the throat, helping him to bleed out.
“After that, we hang him upside down and open him from bottom to top, pulling the organs out into the garbage can. We will save the heart and the liver.”
“That sounds brutal,” said Jason.
“Yes, it does, but I can assure you it’s much more humane than what they did so you could eat the last burger you had before the lights went out.”
“So, what’s the difference?” asked Jason.
“We will say a prayer for our steer and honor him for laying down his life to ensure our future. The kill will be humane and quick, and he has lived his life free-range over these 40 acres and not penned up with a dozen other steers his entire life.
“Beef doesn’t originate under plastic wrap, as many would like to believe.
“Are you ready, Jason? Once we start, everything needs to be timely to ensure the quality of the meat.”
“Okay, I think I’m ready,” he replied.
The kill shot was on target, and James thanked the steer for his sacrifice. “You will be feeding our family, and many others,” he continued.
Jason stepped up and participated in most of the process. The final preparations utilized the saws and various butcher knives to separate the animal for distribution.
Janice and Lauren prepared the large coolers, having filled 40 one-gallon plastic Ziplock bags with water a day ago and freezing them solid.
The 3/4 cow and bonus heart, tongue and liver would be delivered tomorrow morning to the restaurant owner, a day earlier than promised, and they would keep the rest on ice for the next six days, until trade day. By 3 p.m., all was done and cleaned up.
James thanked Jason for his help and told him about the Sheriff’s proposed schedule for the next couple of days.
“We’re going to be super busy over the next week, and we won’t be around here much at all,” James commented.
“Jason,” he added, “Billy is our responsibility now. Janice has taken a shine to him, as I’m sure you have noticed. We will raise him as our own, her and me.
“I need you to be comfortable with him, starting today. I will have Janice help with the evening chores, but I want you and Lauren to bond with him. We can’t change what happened, and it’s not my fault or yours. We do need to protect this little guy and raise him in our family.
“It is important to me that, by tomorrow morning, you can look him in the eyes and see just a young boy in need of a family, and nothing else. Can you do that for me, Jason?”
“I will surely try,” he replied, walking back towards the house.
“One more thing,” said James. “We need to bury the body and have a ceremony tonight. We will be too busy this next week to put it off. Plus, I w
ant little Billy to say his good-byes, and then start to move forward. It shouldn’t take long, using the backhoe on the tractor to dig.”
Next World Series (Vol. 2): Families First [The Road] Page 19
