There was a large crowd gathered around the front porch of the main house. Pepper sat on the top rail of the corral watching everyone. They were excited about the fact that Sonny was due home, any time now. He watched them talking and laughing. They were a close-knit group, and he felt like an outsider.
Dan, Joe, Hank, and Calvin stood apart talking in hushed voices. The three Mrs. Daniels, Rose, and Lily were seated on chairs making wedding plans. The ranch hands were in a group off to the side discussing a variety of topics none of which had anything to do with what had happened out in Los Angeles, Sonny's return, or running the ranch.
With the arrival of Sonny at the ranch, Pepper's time there was coming to an end. He was looking forward to returning to Los Angeles. It had been ages since he had a fast food burger, a taco, or a latte. He missed his apartment, but more from a comfort perspective than a real desire to spend much time there. It was strange, but he didn't miss the store at all.
He stared over at the mountains thinking about how majestic they looked in the distance. No matter what other feelings he might have about his abduction, he had to admit that the scenery here was great.
The sound of a pickup truck pulling into the drive caused a minor commotion over by the ranch house. Pepper watched as Mrs. Daniels got up from her chair and moved towards the driveway. He noticed that more than one person checked his or her gun just in case it was an unexpected guest. He was about to dismiss it until he thought about what would happen if the gang showed up here. They sure wouldn't wait for everyone to go get their guns.
He could see Donny when the truck pulled up, but he didn't see Sonny. For a second he was worried, but then Sonny sat up. He was shocked at how pale Sonny looked. The young man appeared to have lost some weight since he had last seen him. He figured that getting shot two times in a month had a lot to do with it.
Mrs. Daniels immediately hugged Sonny. Her embrace was tentative as if afraid that she would hurt him. He gave her a good squeeze and would have lifted her off the ground, but didn't have the strength for that. Pepper flinched on seeing that.
Rose went over to Donny and welcomed him back with sufficient passion to spark jokes about the need to move up the wedding date. Hank and Calvin made a number of comments about needing to find a shotgun, but it didn't slow things down one bit.
When they finally broke apart, Donny looked over at Hank and said, "Be quiet, Dad. Can't you see that she's trying to make an honest man out of me?"
Hank was pleased to be addressed as 'Dad' by Donny. Trying to sound like a crotchety old man, Hank said, "These darned whippersnappers don't know how to show an old man respect."
"Stop talking to the old man and kiss me again," Rose said winking at her father.
The uncles and aunts were crowded around behind Mrs. Daniels waiting their turn to hug the young man. It was fitting that the young man was welcomed home by his family. On the surface, it was a cheerful reception, but there was an undercurrent of sadness. Sonny had been changed by his ordeal, the uncles had been changed by their actions, and all of the women welcoming Sonny home knew that. Nothing was going to be the same.
"Family."
The sudden voice by his side startled Pepper. He looked over and saw that Carl was standing beside him. Carl was facing the family rather than Pepper.
"They are a tight family," Pepper said.
Carl said, "You see those two men over there."
"Yes," Pepper answered.
"Do you know who they are?" Carl asked.
"I'm assuming that is Hank and his son, Calvin," Pepper answered.
"You know what they did for Sonny," Carl said.
"I do," Pepper said. He took a deep breath and said, "I guess I should go over there and talk to them."
"That would be a good idea," Carl said with a sharp nod of his head.
Pepper climbed down from his perch atop the corral rail. He headed over to the two men, walking like a man facing the gallows. He didn't have a good feeling about this meeting.
Stepping up to the two men, Pepper said, "Hello, my name is Pepper. You probably know me by my reputation as the dumbest man alive."
A smile almost made it to Hank's face, but Calvin glared at Pepper.
Pepper said, "I apologize for my actions and any consequences they had on you. I ask your forgiveness."
Calvin was not in a forgiving mood. He hauled off and hit Pepper right across the jaw. Stunned by the blow, Pepper fell down on the ground. Calvin was about to kick the man when Hank grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back.
He shouted, "Stop it."
"Dad," Calvin shouted in protest.
Everyone who had been greeting Sonny turned to watch what was happening. John was ready to go over and break it up, but Donny grabbed an arm to hold him back. He said, "Let them work this out."
Hank said, "He's apologized, son."
"He got us in this mess," Calvin said.
Pepper picked himself up from the ground. Looking at Hank, Pepper said, "I deserve his anger."
Calvin struggled to get out of his father's grip without any success. Hank looked down at him and said, "When you say the Lord's Prayer, you are asking God to forgive your trespasses as you forgive those who trespass against you. This man has asked our forgiveness. Are you going to be a good man and forgive him?"
Pepper realized that he was at one of those crossroads that Carl had talked about. He looked over at Calvin who was glaring at him for a bit and then at his father for a bit. It was obvious to him that Calvin was not in a forgiving state of mind.
"Don't force him to forgive me," Pepper said holding up a hand.
Mrs. Daniels watched Pepper. It had torn her heart to see Sonny looking so weak. Her anger at and low opinion of Pepper had returned full force. She was impressed that he was taking the high road. It was the last thing that she had expected of him.
Surprised, Hank asked, "Why not?"
Pepper answered, "Words are cheap. Any fool can make utterances of great significance without understanding what he has said. I don't know what happened back in Los Angeles. I can see that it affected you. I asked your forgiveness, but I'm not really sure what I'm asking you to forgive.
"Calvin is right in being angry. I've got a feeling that Calvin doesn't know what I should be apologizing for, either. Before he can accept my apology he has to know what trespasses I've committed against him. I think that is only fair."
Craig leaned over to Carl and whispered, "Pepper has gotten a little smarter."
"Yes, he has," Carl whispered back.
Hank still held onto Calvin. He was reappraising Pepper, thinking that perhaps bringing him here where he could learn to be a real man had been a good idea.
He asked, "What do you suggest we do?"
"Let Calvin go. Let him make up his mind," Pepper said. He stretched a little and settled in place fully expecting to get hit again.
Hank released Calvin and stepped back. Calvin took a step forward with his hand clenched into a tight fist. Pepper's heart was pounding a hundred times a minute. There were no doubts in his mind that the younger man wanted to leave him on the ground as a bloody mess.
Pepper said, "We don't need to do this in front of an audience unless you want everyone to know what consequences my actions have had upon you."
Grabbing Pepper by the upper arm with a grip powered by enough anger to break bones, Calvin said, "Come with me."
"Okay," Pepper said without resisting.
Calvin pulled Pepper over to a place beside the Quonset hut where they were out of view. Calvin released Pepper and said, "Here is fine."
"I'm not afraid of you," Pepper said.
Calvin punched Pepper in the stomach. He looked at Pepper doubled over and holding his stomach wishing that the man would make some kind of attempt to defend himself.
He said, "You should be."
Gasping for air, Pepper said, "Deep down, you're a good man who has done some pretty bad things because of something I said to a member of the gang. You're angry because my words forced you to perform horrendous acts."
Straightening up a little, Pepper said, "I fear those gang members. They are evil. If one of them was standing there he would be hitting me too. He wouldn't be doing it because he was angry ... he'd be doing it because he enjoys it."
"You don't even know what I've done," Calvin said bitterly.
He had killed men. The hardest had been the first man because he wasn't in danger and the man wasn't even firing a gun. He had nightmares about that moment when he pulled the trigger. No amount of justification seemed enough to take the taint of sin he felt away.
Pepper said, "I am asking for your forgiveness now, but I don't expect you to give it to me today."
Pepper could see that Calvin was in pain. He could also see that Calvin wasn't going to tell him what he had done. It dawned on him that Calvin was at a crossroads of his own. In a way, it was a more critical decision than the one that Pepper was facing. The wrong choice would leave a hard bitter man who was only a hair away from erupting into violence.
Remembering Carl's advice, he said, "I think you need to ask one other for forgiveness before you can deliver forgiveness to me."
"Who?" Calvin asked with a snarl.
"God," Pepper said.
Calvin stared at Pepper for a long time. He hit Pepper in the stomach one more time. Pepper was unable to remain standing. Calvin stood over him tempted to kick him. The tension was evident in his stance. All of a sudden, it seemed like the man crumpled.
From the ground, Pepper watched Calvin start to walk away. In a harsh gasping voice, he asked, "Where are you going?"
"To the church," Calvin answered just before disappearing around the corner of the building.
Pepper stayed on the ground for a minute trying to catch his breath. He got back on his feet slowly thinking that he was starting to get the hang of fighting. He had getting hit down pretty good. Now all he needed to figure out was how to block and hit back. He staggered around the corner of the building to discover Carl waiting for him.
He looked over in the direction of the main house. No one was outside. Confused, he asked, "Where is everyone?"
Carl said, "They went inside for an early meal. They're waiting for us to return."
"Let me wash up," Pepper said.
"That's a good idea," Carl said. "How do you feel?"
Pepper said, "That hurt."
Carl said, "I think, all in all, you handled that pretty well."
Pepper went into the bunkhouse to wash up. The cold water felt good. He looked in the mirror, thinking that he was going to end up with a pretty good bruise on his face. His shirt was dirty from the time he'd spent on the ground. Carl was leaning against the doorframe to the bathroom, watching him.
Pepper said, "I'm glad to see Sonny back."
"Me, too," Carl said.
"He doesn't look very well," Pepper said.
Carl said, "Getting shot tends to be a little rough on the body."
Pepper said, "I hope he heals okay."
"I'm sure he will. He's a tough kid," Carl said.
"Yeah," Pepper said.
Carl said, "You'll be leaving soon."
"Probably," Pepper said.
He didn't feel like he could leave just yet. There were a few things that had to be set right before he could go. Calvin was one of those things. A month ago he would have left the moment Sonny returned. According to Donny, he could take his time returning to Los Angeles. He would stay the little extra time required to settle things, here.
Carl raised an eyebrow at the noncommittal tone in Pepper's voice. He said, "I'll be leaving here after you go."
"Why?" Pepper said.
"I've been saving up for a place of my own. There's a small ranch that has just come up for sale. I have just about enough money to put down on it. I think it is time that I moved on and settled down. There's a young woman I've been thinking about asking to marry me," Carl said.
"I didn't know that you had a girlfriend," Pepper said.
Carl said, "I never told you about her."
Pepper dried his face with a towel. He said, "Let me change my shirt and we'll head over to the main house."
"Okay," Carl said.
It was a short time later when the two men entered the main house. All of the men were gathered in the front room talking while the women were in the kitchen getting the last bit of the meal ready. It seemed to Pepper that everyone turned to look at him when he entered the room.
Surprised to see Pepper return without Calvin, Hank asked, "Where's Calvin?"
"He went to the church," Pepper answered.
Hank, Dan, Joe, and Donny all exchanged looks. Pepper's answer had taken all of them by surprise.
Dan said, "He's probably not the only one who should be doing that."
"True," Joe said.
Hank looked at Pepper. "You and I are going to have a long talk later."
"I understand," Pepper replied.
Donny came over to Pepper and put a hand on his shoulder. He said, "You can take off anytime you want. The keys are in the sedan. I've signed the title over to you. Your wallet and keys are in the glove compartment."
"Thanks," Pepper said.
Pepper went over to Sonny and said, "Hello, Sonny."
Sonny looked at Pepper. He no longer had that androgynous appearance that so many young men in the city have. It was a subtle change. His eyes had a slightly narrower look to them from the time spent outdoors. He had lost some of the fat that had given him soft effeminate features. His hands had toughened up a little. It was hard to believe that spending a month out on the ranch had turned Pepper into a more manly looking man.
Sonny asked, "What happened to you?"
"What?" Pepper asked.
"You've lost some weight, and gained some muscle, and you're tanned," Sonny said.
"I've been doing a little work out here," Pepper replied.
Sonny said, "Donny told me that he had you mucking out the stables."
"Yes. I dug a hole and built a bridge, too," Pepper said.
"You dug a hole?" Sonny asked, amused by what Pepper considered important about his time out there.
Pepper said, "I'm sure someone will be more than happy to tell you the story about that."