After the service they slowly walked back, enjoying the warm sun and as they neared the barn, out rode Tim driving a two wheeled, black carriage pulled by a black horse. He stopped in front of the three and Bob’s face lit up.
“Wow! Tim, this is a beauty! Was this in the barn too?”
“Kind of,” answered the cowboy as he stepped down. “Part was in the back, part was against a wall an’ one wheel was busted. I cobbled them together and had Bill Hampton bang out the wheel. We cleaned her up an’ hitched Blackie up to her, an’ here she is.”
Bob shook his head as he commented, “Well, you guys did a great job.”
“Well,” said Cal placing the reins in his hands, “we all hope ya enjoy it.”
Bob squinted his eyes as he asked, “Me? Why would I enjoy it?”
“Well heck, son,” added Jean, “what are we gonna do with it? I mean, sooner or later we’re gonna be on our way an’ it’ll belong to you an’ the town.”
“But-But, I don’t even know how to steer one of these.”
They laughed and Tim said, “Tell ya what, partner. Say yer gonna accept it an’ in two days time I’ll have ya steering it all over town.”
Bob shrugged and answered, “Well, I guess so. Guess I better order some more hay and stuff for him to eat.” He added with a wink, “Better than riding the horse.”
Tim nodded and climbed back up and said as he guided the two-wheeled rig back into the barn, “I suggest we start our ridin’ lessons first thing in the mornin’.”
Cal slapped Bob on his back as they continued their stroll and said, “That’s a great offer, my friend. Tim’s about the best around for teachin’ someone ta ride or just plain how ta handle a horse.”
Besides allowing Tim to teach him how to handle a carriage, Bob spent the rest of the week doing pretty much the same as the other days: early breakfast; stroll the town and watch as it changed right before his eyes as the group really dug into their project of rebuilding a ghost town; lunch with Cal, Jean and usually a different family; dinner, which usually turned out to be a barbecue followed by cigars and coffee on his porch with Cal and Jean and then bed with Samson. He slept great and felt that he had found his piece of Shangri-la.
On one of those moonlit evenings, as they were enjoying iced tea on the porch, Bob said, “Cal, there’s something that I’ve been meaning to ask you.”
“Shoot, partner,” answered Cal.
”Well, on Sunday the minister said to the members, ‘This is a momentous day as we meet once again where we have started’, and I wonder what he meant? I mean the part where he says: ‘we meet once again where we have started’. It’s almost like saying that the entire congregation has met before and even that they somehow started right here in Rattlesnake Haven.”
He had addressed Cal who looked at Jean and said, “Jean, maybe you want ta answer the boy?”
Not missing a beat as she rocked back and forth in the wicker rocking chair, Jean said, “I’m sure that what the minister meant was that we all started out by going to some sort of a religious service when we were young and just starting out in life, and here we are once again meeting in another service.” She smiled as she shook her head, “I’m sure that’s all. He is a deep man.”
“So, you two knew him before?”
“Uh, huh,” she said, “Reverend Haines likes to travel to the old western towns too, and he likes the way Cal runs the tours.”
Bob sat forward and went on, “Not that I want you guys to leave, but have you heard from the bus mechanic?” He sat back as the realization hit him, “And, how do you get in touch with him? I mean there’s no cell phone service out here.”
Cal grinned and said, “When we were in town the other day, I made the call.”
“And,” asked Bob with a shrug, “what did they say?”
“That he still hadn’t got the part in from Canada. He also asked if we’d like him ta ask the boss if he should just take another bus out here an’ pick us up?” He looked at Bob with a twinkle in his eye and went on, “Sorta your call, partner. I can easily have him do that.”
“You mean,” asked Bob with a sudden look of shock on his face, “he can just come in and pick you guys up? What about your bus? You can’t just leave it here, can you? I mean, why not just wait until the replacement part arrives?”
“Sounds like the boy wants us ta stay on a bit longer,” said Jean with her knowing smile.
Bob looked down at the porch floor and admitted, “Well of course I do. You guys have brought the town back to life.”
“Son,” said Jean, “this town never died. It just went ta sleep for a bit.”
They sat and enjoyed the dark night as Bob thought those same words were uttered by Anne, and I haven’t even started up the generator in three or four nights. I’ve become a part of the town just as they have. I’ve become a part of their group in many ways including reverting back to the days of the early western settlers. And I love it!
Looking at his watch he felt his heart pound as he saw it was the time that he and Anne usually went on the Skype program to speak and see each other every night. With an internal nod to himself, he stood and excused himself, “I think I’m going to power up the generator and laptop to check up on a few of my friends. Back in a bit.”
“Still smiling as she rocked, Jean said, “ Say hi to Anne fer us, son.”
He looked at her with a smile of his own and said as he stepped away quickly, “Boy, Jean. You really do have a notion for what’s going to happen.”
“Told ya, so, partner,” answered Cal as he fluffed up his mustache, “Told ya so.”
Bob, followed by Samson, went to the side of the house and started up the generator, thinking, Wonder if she is even online? He quickly opened his laptop and felt a rush as he typed her Skype number in and heard it ring.
She’s online! he thought as a million thoughts raced through his head: What if she’s there with the weatherman? I’ll look like a fool. He decided to kill the connection, but before he could, her face suddenly appeared on his screen.
With her eyes wide she exclaimed through her hands that covered her mouth, “Bob! Oh my God, I was just dialing you. How-How are you?”
Onscreen he saw she had a tissue in her hands and she was twisting it nervously. “Um, fine. H-How about you?” he answered just as nervous.
She shook her head and covered her mouth with her hands again as she caught her breath, “I-I’ve been fine…I-I’ve…No!” She dipped her head and was quiet momentarily before saying, “Actually, I’ve been out of my head.” She quickly looked away and wiped a tear from her cheek before turning back to the screen. “You never gave me a chance to explain and then you were never online. I tried you every night and…well, I just wanted a chance to explain, that’s all.”
Bob now shook his head as he said, “You don’t have to explain anything to me. It is what it is. I just heard something that made me think of you and thought, well, you know, I thought that I’d just give you a call and see how it’s going.”
“That’s it?” she said incredulously, “You were just calling to see how it was going with me?”
“Anne, listen to me. I’m no good at this sort of thing. I’ve sort of been out of any kind of a relationship since, since, well for a long time.”
She smiled softly and said in a low voice, “Please answer me this simple question: did you call me for any other reason other than to see how my workload is progressing?”
He nodded his answer and she filled in the gaps, “Now it’s my turn. I called you every night to try to straighten out any thoughts you might have since seeing that ass-excuse of a man in my apartment that night. I’m going to tell you why he was here, but first I want to tell you that I tried to contact you for one reason only: I think I’m in like with that silly, City Slicker cowboy who bought a ghost town way out in the desert, and I miss the lifestyle he is living at this very moment. I want to be some kind of a part of that lifestyle if he’ll allow me to be.�
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Bob arched an eyebrow, “You think you’re in ‘like’ with that guy? What’s in ‘like’ mean?”
She blushed and answered, “Silly man! You really are not good at this sort of thing at all, are you? You’re supposed to read between the lines and give a girl some wiggle room. But do you know that? No! So I guess I better let it all hang out and tell you how I really feel, even though in a normal relationship that admission should be a few weeks or more down the road. I think I like you a lot, an awful lot. Enough to kinda hang out with you for a chunk of time.”
“A big chunk?” he asked with a grin.
She shook her head, set a firm look with squinted eyes and said with mock anger in her voice, “No more admissions from this girl, cowboy! It’s time for you to fess up. Now, gimme some of your thoughts on this subject, which seems to be one way.”
He smiled and said, “There’s nothing I’d like better than hanging out with you for a chunk of time.”
“A big chunk?” she asked as she suddenly got so close to the screen that her eye filled it.
He grinned and made as though he recoiled in fear as he answered, “A very, very, very big chunk of time.”
She sat back from the screen and said with a smile, “Finally! Now will you please let me tell you about that-that awful night? “
At his nod of agreement, she went on, “Fine. We all had a late business dinner and as the drinks were on the New York office, the weatherman sucked them up and got stupid, so I had to get him out of there before he embarrassed the company. Long story short, I dragged him into my place as he was passing out and put him on the couch. I went online hoping to catch up with you and as you know he decided to remove most of his clothes and walk into my room. I don’t believe he did it on purpose but I was pissed and tossed him, clothes and all, out into the hall. Since then he tries to explain it all but I stay strictly on a business basis with him.”
She rubbed her forehead and went on, “I tried to get to you every night but couldn’t get through.” She lowered her hands and smiled warmly, “And as you know, Rattlesnake Haven has no Post Office. But I’m really glad we had this talk. I’ll sleep better tonight.”
“Me too. And I’m sorry I was so stupid.”
“Shhhh!” she said, “That’s the end of that conversation. Now, what was it that you heard that reminded you of me? A She Wolf howling at the moon all the way from New York City?”
He grinned, “Nothing as dramatic as that. Just that a tour group came through and because their bus broke down, they are kind of living in Rattlesnake Haven. It’s really great and they are such a nice group of people. You would love them. Anyway, this elderly woman said that the town wasn’t dead at all, just sleeping, and I remembered that’s what you had said.”
“Well,” she said with a shrug, “she sounds like one smart babe.”
“She is. She said that you’d be back in town.”
Her eyes flashed and a smile filled her face as she said, “So, you talk about me?”
Now he shrugged, “I guess. But she seems to be able to sort of look into the future and she said that you would be back.”
“Wow! What a coincidence! The New York group needs a week to go over some paperwork with their parent company and just today we decided to come back and report to the group in Bransville. I really was hoping to see you.”
“That’s great! Tell me when and I’ll pick you up.”
“Can you meet me in front of my place around noon the day after tomorrow?”
“I’ll be there. You can count on that.”
She smiled and blew him a kiss as she fanned her face with her hand, “Believe me, I can’t wait. It’s going to be a long couple of days.”
“For me too.” He blew a kiss back and said, “Good night, cowgirl. See you then.”
They signed off and he went back to the porch with a spring in his step that Jean picked up on. “How’s the lady friend?” she asked, still smiling.
“She’s fine,” he said picking up his glass of ice tea, “In fact I hope the part from Canada doesn’t get here until you get to meet her in two days.”
By the light of the moon, Bob saw her nod her head as she said, “Oh, we’ll be here.”
Seeing that she sat alone he asked, “Did Cal turn in?”
“Nope. A few of the men came by an’ they decided ta take a walk and chat a bit.” She stood and went on, “However, I’m gonna turn in an’ get my beauty sleep.”
“Jean, you don’t need any beauty sleep, it comes naturally to you.”
“Aw, go on,” she said as she went in through the screen door leaving a happy Bob alone in the dark with his thoughts and his dog.
The next day seemed to drag by as Bob constantly checked his watch. He had a plan to surprise Anne and practiced driving his carriage around town as much as he could. After a dinner of chicken cutlets and rice he demanded that he be allowed to clean up.
“You cooked a great meal, Jean, now let me make us some coffee and apple pie.”
“Apple pie?” said Cal patting his stomach, “Don’t tell me ya baked it yerself, partner?”
“Nope! I brought a few casks of water from the well down to Kay’s Diner and she made me take it.”
“Sorta like payment for a job well done?” asked Jean as she dabbed her chin with her napkin.
“Guess so. I told her no, but she insisted so now we have desert.”
“And tell me, partner, where did ya get the casks to put the water in?” questioned Cal.
“Kay gave them to me. I think she got them from…“
Before he could answer Cal added, “Tom’s Barrel-Making Store. And she got them by baking some apple pies for him and his family and he got the wood to make them from Calvin’s Carpentry who made them from the old wooden sidewalks. Now if he had a supply of wood, he could be self-sufficient but for now he has plenty of wood to work with from right here in town.”
He sat forward with his elbow resting on the table as he went on. “Ya see what’s happening here, son? It’s just like it was a hundred years back. The townsfolk are living by bartering. It’s a circle that feeds us all and there are just a few items that we need ta bring into town ta complete the circle.”
Bob nodded understandingly, “You mean, like wood?”
“That’s one, partner. Another is some chickens ta get some eggs and a good Sunday chicken dinner after the rooster brings some chicks into the world.”
Bob thought for a moment and said, “Well, getting those supplies is easy. We just call Pearl’s and have them delivered.”
“Why delivered?” asked Cal with arched eyebrows, “We can just ride into town and pick them up ourselves. Save the charge of the gas and if the supplies need ta be kept cool, we buy a cooler and drop in some dry ice for the trip back.”
Bob scratched his chin as he sought a hole in Cal’s theory. “But isn’t that where the bartering circle stops? I mean to get supplies from Bransville we’ll need money to do business.”
“For now,” Jean interjected, “but we got a group of great artists that can create anything from paintings to wood sculptures and don’t forget them apple pies Kay makes and we also have some of the finest linen makers livin’ right here in Rattlesnake Haven with us. Dresses, bed clothing, fine curtains, anything needed for the household. We got plenty to offer.”
Bob shook his head as he looked out the window and off into the distance. “Boy, you two sure make it sound like it would still work today.”
Both Cal and Bob helped Jean clean up after dessert and as she put the dishes away, Cal motioned with a tilt of his head and both men went out onto the porch. The big man offered him a small, thin cigar and said, as he struck a wooden match on the side of his leather holster, “Guess ya know that me and a few of the fellas got together last night for a jawing session?”
Bob puffed his cigar to life and said, “Yes. Jean told me. Guess I was in a deep sleep when you got home because I never heard you come in.”
“
Want ta know the jest of the conversation?”
Bob nodded, “Sure, unless it was personal.”
“Well, me and the families have been thinking about when it’s time to return home.”
Bob nodded again, “Yeah, I guess everyone’s getting homesick.”
Cal took a moment to flick an ash onto the sandy ground off the porch and said as he pulled on his mustache, “Ya could be wrong there, my friend. In fact after a long night’s chat session the folks asked me ta lay out a plan an’ see what ya think of it.”
13
Settling Down
Bob noticed that Jean silently joined them and sat on the rocker as Cal took the porch rail leaving him the other rocker, which he took. He smiled as Samson jumped up on Jean’s lap to be petted.
“Partner,” Cal said as he pulled deeply on his cigar, the glow lighting his face in the dark, “Let me give ya the whole plan before ya decide. Okay?”
“Sure. Go right ahead, I’m all ears.”
“Every person here, from the babes-in-arms all the way up to Miss Derma Jensen, the schoolmarm, who turned ninety-two three weeks ago, agree that Rattlesnake Haven is the place they been searching for their whole life. Every one of them loves the easy way of the town. I know that you understand what I mean by that as I see ya at times looking off over the town like it was your own child an that says ta me that ya love the way she is growing. Now, here’s what the meetin’ was about last night, an’ believe me, partner, whatever ya say is the way it goes.” He stopped to take another pull on his cigar and Bob did the same.
“Comin’ right to the point, partner, we all would love ta stay right here in Rattlesnake Haven and plant our stakes. There ain’t one person that’s unhappy with the place they chose ta be in, the butcher, baker, dentist, minister, everyone of them was trained in that profession when they worked at it and the younger ones want ta follow the ways of the old west. We’ll make sure the town’s tax fees are taken care of and the group will do all repairs needed. Of course as Mayor, we’ll make sure that nothing is done without yer knowing about it and agreein’ to it.” He clipped the end of his cigar and put the remaining part in his pocket, looked at Bob and said, “Well, partner, ya can sleep on it if ya need ta.” He turned to Jean and said, “Honey, what say we turn in? This young man is gonna have a long night of thinking ahead of him.”
Romance in a Ghost Town Page 27
