Marysvale (6 page)

I crossed over to the bed and pulled
the tie from my hair, letting it fall. I collapsed my aching body
on the straw-filled tick, watched the last rays of the fleeting
sunlight evaporate into darkness, and then closed my eyes to enjoy
the still sound of nothing. When I finally pried them back open, I
was surprised to see the first glint of sunrise creeping over the
tops of the surrounding hills, bathing the cottage in a welcoming
pink and golden light.

It took me a moment to realize that I
had drifted off to sleep, still dressed, and in the same position
where I’d lain down the previous night. Sighing, and with much
determination, I attempted to heave my bruised and stiff body off
the bed. Success was achieved on the third attempt.

I walked (if you can call it that) over
to the stove and got a fire started. Stripping my shirt off, I
grabbed soap and a towel, and reluctantly strode out into the cool
morning air. Around the back of the cottage stood a barrel full of
water, with a bucket hanging at its side. With an involuntary
shiver, and grateful there was no ice floating on the surface, I
shoved the bucket into the barrel, heaved it out, and began pouring
it over my mostly naked body. The cold water shocked my senses and
banished any remaining sleepiness. Shaking profusely, I grabbed the
soap, lathered up, and rinsed. If the malevolent barrel had a soul,
I was sure it would be enjoying the torture of its subject at the
hand of its henchman, the bucket. The steam rose off my body in the
morning sun. I admired it only as long as it took me to fumble for
the towel and dry myself off. With the torture over, I hurried back
into the cottage to warm up by the stove and then get
dressed.

After a brief raid of the chicken coop,
I made my breakfast consisting of eggs and the rest of the bread.
With that complete, I set off to a small, nearby barn that I shared
with the Wiggins family. It was actually their barn, but we had
agreed that, if I fixed it up, I could add a few stalls and use
part of it. In the end, it probably would have been almost as much
work to build my own barn; but during the process, we had
inadvertently worked our way into another mutually beneficial
agreement. I helped care for their horses and livestock and, in
return, they kept me supplied with fresh bread, butter, and
milk.

“
Hello, John.”

Looking up, I saw a gawky, blond-haired
boy of fifteen smiling at me.

“
Hello, Thomas. Should I be
worried when people like Governor Potts automatically arrange for
you to come along? If you keep this up, people are going to cut me
out and call only on you. I’ll be out of a job before long,” I said
with a smile.

He laughed.

“
I wouldn’t worry; you’re
too gifted with animals,” he said in that awkward voice that was
somewhere between boy and man.

“
So are you. Why else would
I ask you to help me? Well, that and because you’ve got nothing
better to do.”

“
Not true,” he protested.
Then, with a grin, he added, “The grass isn’t going to grow by
itself you know, someone has to watch it.”

I chuckled.

Changing the subject, I admitted, “I’m
a little surprised your father let you come, even if it was Potts
who asked him.”

“
He was in a very foul
mood,” he said, turning more somber. “At first, he was furious at
the idea; but Governor Potts said something to change his mind.
Plus, I think he likes keeping track of you through me.” Looking
down at his feet, he asked sheepishly, “Are you angry at me for
that?”

“
No, of course not. I know
how your father is. Tell him anything he wants to know…. How is
your mother?” I asked hesitantly.

He said nothing.

I sighed. “How severe is
it?”

Looking pale, he confessed, “I don’t
fully know; he sent me away. But it was bad.”

He seemed reluctant to go on, and I
wasn’t going to push the matter. But then, after a moment, he
continued brokenly, “I could hear her pleading. She tried not to
scream, but he beat her hard, and…I think…he touched her.” His eyes
searched mine for understanding.

I nodded once and put an arm around his
shoulder.

Despite his outward control, I could
feel his hatred boiling under the surface for his father. He
relived the emotions felt the night before: the absolute
helplessness when sent away; his inability to protect his mother;
and the rage he felt afterward when he saw what had happened to
her. I was surprised at how calm he seemed on the outside, when
inside his anger was so powerful as to transfer over to me without
any active thought on my part, or any attempt to harvest the
information. This was unusual for me. Normally, when I look upon a
soul, it’s like witnessing a storm through a window. I can see it,
and imagine what it would be like to be in it, but I can’t feel it.
With Thomas, that window flew open and sucked me in to experience
the full fury of the wind and rain—causing me to share the tempest
of emotions that he felt.

He stared at my clenched and trembling
fists with wide eyes.

I withdrew my arm, suddenly aware of
how I must look.

In a voice that begged me not to pursue
it, he pled, “John, you mustn’t do anything. He’ll destroy you if
you try. Trust me; I’ve seen what he’s done to others who
have.”

His anger passed quickly, while mine
still boiled over.

“
You’re probably right,” I
said slowly, trying to give the impression I was letting it go,
even though I had no intention of letting anything go.

He relaxed.

“
Let me saddle up,” I
said.

We walked along the rails that enclosed
a pasture and lead to the barn. A huge, charcoal-colored horse
trotted up and nuzzled me in the back.

“
Sorry, not today, Smoke,” I
muttered.

He snorted and kept nudging me as if he
didn’t understand, although I knew perfectly well that he did. I
wanted to keep him rested for the hunt, so, instead, I would use
one of my other two horses. Smoke looked on as I chose the mare.
Though she didn’t have much spirit, she was a good, calm, obedient
horse. However, Smoke wasn’t going to give up so easily and kept
pestering me all the way to the barn. By the time I arrived, my
shoulder was wet with horse snot. I wished it were him; nothing
brought me as much pleasure as riding on his back, hurtling across
fields and through woods at a breakneck speed. I knew he loved it,
too.

I saddled the mare and, with Thomas on
his mount, we set out. It would take some time to get to Potts’
house at the other end of the valley; and since I was in no real
hurry, we would take a little more time and bypass the town. The
morning sun began to burn off some of the cold and felt quite good.
Drowsiness crept over me as we slowly made our way to the
governor’s farm.

“
Where are we meeting
Governor Potts?” asked Thomas, pulling me from my sleepy
state.

“
I’m not sure,” I replied.
“I didn’t bother asking. I suppose we should start at his
home.”

“
Maybe the cow is waiting
for us in the barn,” Thomas suggested hopefully.

“
It should be; if he really
cares that much about it.”

Leaving a sick animal out in the open
was asking for wolves to take it. Thomas already knew that, as did
anyone who cared for livestock.

“
Yeah, but Potts wasn’t made
governor because of his brains.”

I raised an eyebrow. “What was
that?”

“
Him
says it about
Governor Potts all the time,” said Thomas defensively. “He says
Potts was elected because he can be controlled.”

“
Mmm…. I guess he would
know.”

We approached the house.

“
It looks quiet,” said
Thomas. “I wonder if he remembered we were coming.”

“
It does look a bit dark,” I
agreed. “Well, let’s go see if someone’s home.”

We dismounted. Thomas stretched while I
walked up to the door and knocked. After a few moments, the door
opened a crack. It was dark inside, and I couldn’t see who stood
behind the door.

“
Yes?” inquired a timid,
female voice.

“
It’s John Casey, ma’am.
I’ve come at the governor’s request.”

“
Please wait.” Without
waiting for a response, she closed the door.

I turned and exchanged looks with
Thomas. He shrugged his shoulders and kicked a rock absentmindedly,
sending it tumbling down the path.

Muffled voices could be heard behind
the door. I could barely make out the words, “Just tell
him.”

Again, the door opened and the timid
voice returned. “The governor was called away on urgent business.
He left instructions for you to go on ahead. He will get with you
at a later date and square the bill.”

I knew it,
I thought.
The
weasel meant to get out of paying. He’ll probably say I never
showed up.

“
And where’s the
cow?”

“
Oh. Just a few miles behind
the house, I should think,” said the voice hesitantly.

“
You’re sure it’s not in the
barn or corral?” I asked incredulously.

“
I’m positive.”

I thought of the miles of wilderness
where they could be, and groaned.

“
Could you perhaps be a
little more specific?”

“
If you just follow the
stream, I’m sure you’ll find them.”

I wasn’t so sure.

“
And who should I notify
when I’m finished?”

“
You can stop back on your
way out and let me know.”

“
Right,” I said. And without
any more pleasantries, the door closed.

I sighed, “Well, Thomas, since we’ve
come all this way, we might as well see what we can
find.”

We mounted our horses and set off,
following the stream.

“
Where do you think Governor
Potts went?” asked Thomas.

I shook my head and replied, “I have no
idea.”

“
Maybe he didn’t want to be
here when you arrived and made up some excuse,” he suggested, while
looking at me through the corner of his eye.

It was a sign that he knew more. He
wasn’t aware it gave him away, and I never told him that it did;
but it was fine, because it was usually something he wanted me to
find out anyway.

“
Hmm…maybe. Why do you think
that?” I asked curiously.

“
Well,” he said hesitantly,
“I overheard
Him
say something yesterday.”

“
What did you
hear?”

Thomas didn’t answer.

“
You don’t have to tell me
if you don’t want to,” I said. “I know your father will make you
tell him what happened today; so don’t say anything that will get
you into trouble.”

“
No, it’s not that. I’m
actually getting quite good at lying to him.”

I smiled, even though I knew I
shouldn’t encourage such behavior.

“
I’m just trying to think if
it means anything,” he mused.

“
Why don’t you tell me what
you remember, and maybe I can help figure it out.”

He thought for a moment. “Well,
Governor Potts came by yesterday, after your encounter with
Him
.” He looked at my face for a reaction. When he found
none, he continued, “He said something about a hunting party, which
I already knew about. At first,
Him
was in a really bad
mood; but after talking to the governor, it improved some, and he
said, “It’s time.” Then their voices got low. I heard something
about me, and Governor Potts said he’d take care of it.”

Thomas looked apologetic. “I’m sorry,
it’s not very much. At the time I didn’t think anything of it. I
was just excited when they said I was going to help you and…. You
don’t think they’re planning anything, do you?”

“
No,” I lied. “It’s probably
nothing to worry about.”

Except I was worried—and now I wished I
had listened to Smoke when he pestered me to bring him along. If I
had to run, there was no other animal I wanted to be on. I wondered
if he sensed danger and, perhaps, that’s why he was so insistent to
come with me. Of course, now I was being silly. Smoke is
extraordinary—he even seems to read my mind at times; but he’s
still a horse and was probably just vying for more oats.

“
Maybe we shouldn’t go,”
said Thomas doubtfully.

“
Why?”

“
What if it’s a
trap?”

“
I don’t think they’ll try
anything with you around,” I replied. “I’m sure they don’t want to
kill you. And as a witness, I don’t think they can keep you
quiet.”

Actually, I knew, short of physical
death, they couldn’t silence him.

“
You’re right; I would tell.
I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Suddenly, his face flushed and he
exploded, “I hate
Him
! I wish he would do something to get
himself hung!”

His rage again bubbled to the surface.
Once again, despite my normal control, I was pulled into the storm
of Thomas’ emotions as he verbally railed against his
father.