HARLEY
&
MUTT
By
Waddie Greywolf
Chapter
9
“Well, I don’t
care what they say, and to tell the truth, neither one of them says a
damn word about themselves. No man can sit here and watch those
cowboys rope together and not realize them two's bonded,” Buck
blurted out to the men around him. Everyone chuckled and agreed
with him. “Surely, they must realize it,” Buck added.
“Nope,” replied
Beryl, “they ain’t got nary a clue; neither one of ‘em. Hell, we
ain't blind. We see what’s going on, but you know as well as I
do, it’s just that way between a lot of men. I got two straight
men in
my clan, Bull and Charlie, who ride with our family. They worship
the ground the other walks on, yet they ain't got no clue. They
run though old ladies like they's prizes a the bottom of a Cracker Jack
box. Men what were once straight who took on male slaves see and
understand what passes between them. Ever’body laughs and giggles
about ‘em behind their backs. It’s so obvious to ever’one but
them. You think, for a minute, they’d ever admit how they really
feel about each other? We love them separately or together and
accept them like they want to be. It’s an unspoken rule not to
joke about what we see going on between them. If they discover
each other, then it should be their business. It should be a
natural thing and not something somebody talks ‘em into. So it
should be with Harley and Mutt if’n it ever happens.”
“Yeah,” Dan
Justin agreed, “you’re right, Beryl. You can’t push that sort of
thing. It’ll either happen naturally, or it won’t happen a'
tall. I was pretty damn lucky to find this big man for a brother
after I moved my family here to Chapel Creek,” Dan said and motioned
towards Buck, “He patiently taught me things about life and love my old
man should’ve taught me when I’s growin’ up but never did. One
thing Buck taught me was you can’t force love on nobody. Another
thing he taught me was real love of any kind can’t be and won’t be
denied for long,” Dan said.
“Amen to that,
brother!” Big Beryl said and laughed, “Did ju’ see that catch they just
made?” he asked.
“I'm sorry but I
gotta' agree with the Sheriff. That kind a’
rope’n goes beyond luck or skill,” Booger Red said, who was laughing at
Beryl, “that gets into the realm of the downright spooky; like they’s
read’n each other’s minds and their ponies as well. C'ain’t beat
no cowboy what’s developed that edge with his partner. The
several
times I watched Cowboy and his dad Bud Cummings rope, they was the
same way. There weren’t nobody what could touch ‘em. I
know, I experienced it once with a partner many years ago,” he
said. Everyone paused waiting for Red to finish or elaborate, but
he didn’t.
He had a glassy-eyed, far away look in his eyes with a sweet smile on
his face; or as sweet as you might imagine on the face of such an ugly
man. Buck and Dan fell in love with Booger and Cowboy. They
didn’t understand their relationship any better than anyone else, but
it didn’t bother them a bit. Buck was so open to people and the
world itself, and he taught his brother Dan to never judge a man
until you’ve given him a chance. Dan proved Buck right more than
a few times. For all Buck’s love of life, his school boy charm,
exuberance, and his off the wall, drop down, deadly funny sense of
humor, Dan, more than any other man knew the rock solid soul that
dwelled within the huge body of his brother. Dan loved Buck
without question.
* * * * * * *
Randy Crenshaw
managed to find a few minutes alone with Harley Boone. Since he
and Mutt became the stars of the arena for a couple of days, it
was hard to find either one alone. Most times they had Mutt’s two
little brothers, his big brother, friends, and various other relatives
hanging around them talking roping and rodeo. Randy watched
Harley rope with his boy. He didn’t want to, but he agreed with
Buck and the other men, there was something between them.
Perhaps, every man hopes his son will marry and have children to bless
him in his later days, but Randy Crenshaw was a wealthy man when it
came to sons.
With Cassidy's face in such bad shape after Nam and the experience his
son related to him about his fiancee running from the room in horror,
he held little hope his son would ever marry. Randy resigned
himself not to care too much. 'Hell, he weren't no saint when it
came to male bondings,' he thought to himself. He was so
concerned for his boy, his beautiful son, he could’ve cared less about
the implications of Harley and Cass’s friendship. He and Sarah
came too close to losing their boy completely. The good Lord gave
them another chance. Randy wasn’t going to mess up this
opportunity. If Cassidy found comfort in the arms of a man, so be
it. As far as Randy Crenshaw was concerned, his boy couldn't have
found a better one.
“You rope pretty
damn good for not having done it for a while, Harley,” Randy started
off his conversation.
“You must a’
missed my first couple of tosses,” Harley said and laughed, “Having a
top notch partner can pull any man up to where he’s operating at peak
performance. I had no idea your boy was such a good roper until I
saw him rope with Dan Yates. I didn’t say nothing to nobody,
‘cause they were head and heels above me,” Harley replied.
“I’ll take your
word for it, Son, but seeing you and Cass rope together’s like watching
some'um what rarely happens in a man’s life. It ain’t too often
you get to see rope’n on the level you two showed us in the last couple
of days. I can remember only one or two other times I ever seen
that happen. The first time was when I watched Waddie rope with
his brother Gip in our arena in Bandera when they's going on eleven
years old. Ain’t never seen nothing like it and never thought I
would again. They’s still talking about them two in our town,"
Randy said.
“I watched
Waddie rope with Cass, and he’s still damn good. I’d put him in a
class with Cowboy. Him and Cowboy made a pretty fair showing for
themselves the last few days,” Harley said.
"We’re gonna’ be
leaving tomorrow, Son," Randy said, "I’d like to invite you to come
stay with us for a while. Maybe stay with us until we return here
for Christmas if ya’ can. I’ll be honest with you, Son. My
wife and I see what good friends you and our boy Cassidy have become,
and we’d love to have you come visit for a spell. We hoped if you
talked to him and agreed to come along it might be easier for him to
come home for a while. It weren’t easy for him to come here for
Thanksgiving. I know in my heart you had something to do with
it. You
cared enough about him as a friend you thought it would be the best
thing for him. My wife and I will always be grateful to you for
your kind consideration for our boy. I just wanted to tell you
‘thanks’ and let you how much we appreciate it.”
“Awh, Hell, Mr.
Crenshaw, I shore' 'nuff appreciate your words, but it ain’t been one
sided. You don’t know how many times, Mutt--- I mean Cass--- has
gone out of his way for me and my old lady, Janice. He’s a good
man, sir, a better buddy, and the best rope’n partner I ever done run
across, with the possible exception of Cowboy when I first met him and
he was at his peak. I’d be downright proud and honored to come
spend some time with you and your family. I can be a pretty fair
extra hand on a ranch. I ain’t afraid of hard work,” Boone
replied.
“Good!
Then we'll be count'n on you, Harley?” Randy put his hand on
Harley’s shoulder and looked him square in the eyes.
“If’n I can talk
my buddy into going, you can count on me, Mr. Crenshaw,” Boone
replied and smiled at the handsome man.
“Call me Randy,
Son. You showed me proper respect, and now I’m asking for your
friendship," Randy Crenshaw said. He was genuine and serious as
he offered
Harley Boone his hand. Harley took Randy’s hand in his, and
firmly shook it to seal their bond of friendship.
“Thanks, Mr.
Crenshaw--- Randy--- that’s mighty nice of you, sir,” Harley replied.
Later that
evening, after a full day of rodeoing and having one of the best times
of his life, Harley approached Mutt with the subject of going back to
Bandera with his family until Christmas. It was a cold November
night, but it was warm in the loft of the barn where Harley and Mutt
were bunking it in with several of Mutt’s brothers. The men went
out a little early to get an early start to bed. They rodeoed
hard all day and were tired.
“You planning on
going home tomorrow with your folks?” Harley asked him.
“I don’t know,
Mr. Harley. I give it some thought, but I ain’t got an honest
answer for you. I won’t know until they get ready to leave
whether I can get on my bike and go or not. I don’t know why I
can’t just make up my mind to go, but I go 'round and 'round in my head
about why I should or why I shouldn’t. It's like a merry-go-round
what never ends, and I can't get off. I ain't never caught that
brass ring neither. I love my folks and my brothers, it ain’t
that. It’s almost like they’re a part of my life I ain’t too
sure’s real anymore. Sometimes, I feel like my life, up until the
time I went to Nam was a wonderful ideal dream I created in a
fantasy in my mind. I had a wonderful childhood, Mr. Boone.
"I was one of
nine boys who grew up on a ranch. As you know, ranch life is hard
work, but we never thought of it that way. It's all we knew so we
just accepted it. We loved each other, worked hard together, and
played together. My older brothers looked out for me and my
younger brothers. We never had much in the way of toys. I
can’t ever remember missing anything like that because we were always
involved in rodeoing, playing baseball or football. We weren't
poor. We never went without. We didn't have a lot of
'things', but we were rich beyond measure in other ways. Each of
us knew, without a doubt, our parents loved us. We knew, without
a doubt our brothers would go the wall for us without question.
There wasn't much fighting between us boys 'cause we all had to pull
our load and loved one another. If one of my brothers was sick we
covered for him until he got better and we knew we could depend on him
to do the same.
It’s all like a
beautiful dream to me; like it never really existed for the man I am
today. I’m not that young cowboy no more what went off to war and
watched in horror as the innocence of his youth exploded before
him. He died in endo-china when he got more’n half his gotdamn
face blow'd off. If he didn’t die, he should’ve, ‘cause what came
back is a lost soul wandering around in an empty shell of a body; but,
whatever it is, it ain’t their boy no more. It ain’t their
brother and no words of understanding or sympathy is ever gonna’ make
it so. The
man inside this body don’t know who the fuck he is or where he
belongs,” Mutt lamented.
Harley didn’t
have a response. Mutt could sometimes devastate Harley with the
blatant unhampered truth of the way he felt about things. He had
a way of expressing himself that came through with a minimum of
words. It may have been garbled truth. It may have been one
sided, blind sighted, pain induced truth, but nevertheless it was
truth for Mutt as he saw it at the time. It was obvious to
Harley, Mutt thought long and hard about his situation and Harley
didn’t know if he could provide him with better answers than Mutt was
trying to gather for himself. The most he could do was to relate
to his buddy his own experiences he never shared with anyone before and
hope for the best.
“Your dad asked
me to come stay a spell with them,” Harley mentioned quietly.
Harley didn’t elaborate he just let it lie at Mutt’s feet. Mutt
was quite for a while but had to know.
“You goin’?” he
asked softly.
“Thought I
might. Told you’re dad if’n I could talk you into it I would for
sure,” Boone replied.
Mutt didn’t
respond, but by this time Harley knew not to push him. Harley
knew Mutt’s fragility and had a sixth sense when to back off and let
him be with his thoughts. He watched Mutt fold up like a
telescope when he was hurt by some biker’s thoughtless aside about
him. Many times Harley followed him only to find him far away
from the group crying his heart out. The two men crawled into
their bed rolls. Harley didn’t try to initiate sex between
them. He really didn’t require it that often with Mutt
anyway. He pulled is buddy into his arms and gently kissed him on
his forehead. Before he went
to sleep Harley looked at his friend lying comfortably in his
arms. “We blew
‘em away today, didn’t we, partner?” Harley asked. He watched a
small smile form on what was left of Mutt’s mouth.
“Yeah, we did,
Mr. Boone. I was proud to have you for a partner,” Mutt replied.
“No more’n I’m
proud to be your partner, Mutt. S’almost like we can read each
other's minds. I know I’d sure enjoy rope’n with you some more,
maybe in Bandera,” Harley said. Mutt didn’t respond but Harley
could see a subtle change in his breathing.
“G’night,
cowboy,” Harley said softly like it was a ‘thank you.’
“G’night, Mr.
Harley,” Mutt replied.
Harley had his
answer.
* * * * * * *
The next day the
Crenshaw family loaded up their trucks with gifts, goodies from
everyone in the community who loved the Crenshaw family as much as Buck
and Dan and they left for Bandera. Mutt decided he would go home
after all and he and Harley rode their bikes with Waddie and
Zane. Beryl stayed behind to visit some more with Buck and his
family. Then he was going to join his own biker family.
Booger Red and Cowboy decided to ride along with the men going to the
Crenshaw’s as they were headed for Mason to spend Christmas with
Cowboy’s dad. Mason's on the way to Bandera. Little Gip had
to stay behind and bid his brother C.W. goodbye. They were
seniors in high school and would graduate in the spring. The
other Crenshaw boys who were still at home, Toller, Brant, Jeb, and
Shad were older. Toller and Shad were home most of the time
working for their dad. Brant and Jeb were both in college on
football scholarships. They had to get back for school.
Other than
Toller, none of the Crenshaw boys were called up for the draft; mainly,
because Randy refused to let them get social security numbers or
register for the draft. He wouldn’t even let the boys get
driver's license. They didn’t seem to care and understood what
their dad was trying to do for them. By the time they came of
draft age they watched the war and bloodshed on their television every
evening for a number of years. They weren’t cowards, but they
didn’t want to become a part of the madness. They didn’t want to
become a statistic or just another meaningless name to be carved on a
cold, lifeless, black granite wall.
Gus and Dora
Franz were just as adamant about their twin boys, Brent, and Kent, who
were the same age as Little Gip and C.W. They were identical
twins down to their toenails. Everyone had problems telling them
apart. Most times they answered to either name depending on who
it was you thought you were talking to. Their own parents had a
difficult time telling them apart at times, but most of the time their
mother knew. They were in their last year of high school and
along with their brother C.W. Crenshaw were
the stars of the football team. Gus and Dora were so proud of
them to say nothing of their older brother, Bubba, and older sister,
Brenda Lou who weren’t beyond spoiling them.
The Crenshaws
followed Red and Cowboy into Mason and stopped long enough to meet
Cowboy’s dad, Billy Gun Junior, or Big Gunn as everyone called
him. Randy Crenshaw was thrilled to find out their neighbors, the
Twissleman family, were friends of the Gunns for a number of
years. Cowboy and their boy were together in Nam. Their
boy, Rowley, threw himself on top of Cowboy to protect him. He
died trying to protect his friends. Randy and Sarah were
impressed by Cowboy’s dad and uncle and found them full of love for
people. Randy especially liked the black man who live with them
named Lester. He and Lester shared several laughs together.
They left Mason
and arrived at the Crenshaw ranch in Bandera in the late
afternoon. The Franzs were expecting them. Dora and Brenda
Lou had an early supper ready. They came out to meet and greet
all the men. Dora and Gus were thrilled to see Waddie came with
them and even more thrilled to see Cassidy again. Gus almost lost
it when he saw Cass’s face but he was a tough old cowpoke. His
tears of joy couldn’t be distinguished from his tears of pain for one
of his beloved boys. Dora and Brenda Lou were in tears as they
welcomed Cass home.
It didn’t seem
to Mutt much changed in the years he was away. He was home, but
he
was afraid of it. He could neither define the fear nor understand
what it was about the place that made him almost reach the point of
choking up. Mutt told Boone the truth, but his feelings were
coming to the surface more quickly than he thought they might He
almost started hyperventilating. He recognized the place as home,
but he didn’t feel at home. He couldn’t even describe it to
himself. It was more like a deep foreboding, a sense of panic,
but a panic to do
what? Was he going to jump back on his bike and run? He
couldn’t do that to his parents or his brothers who were thrilled he
finally agreed to come home.
Harley took one
look at his buddy and grabbed hold of his arm to steady him. “Give it a
chance, Son. Take it one small step at a time. Y’ain’t
alone. I know what’s going though your mind right now. Take
a deep breath and lean on me if’n you need to. I'll help you
through it. Hold onto me. It’ll get easier,
I promise,” Harley spoke softly to his friend. Mutt suddenly felt
his backbone began to fuse from its previous gelatinous state. He
straightened up and walked slowly toward the back door of the house.
Talk was lively
around the table at supper. The Franz twins amazed both Harley
and Mutt. Both families and all the men were taken with the
twins. They walked, talked, and acted just like their old
man. They tried to dress as much like him as they could and were
obviously as proud of him as he was of them. The were like two
younger, identical, carbon copies of their dad, Gus. They were
cowboys to the bone and Gus couldn’t have been more proud of
them. Twins usually have one who is more aggressive and the other
somewhat retiring. Not with Gustalf Brent or Randolph Kent.
Their personalities were almost exactly the same. Gus and Randy
and the rest of the Crenshaw boys instilled in them the cowboy
way. They were intelligent, reserved, modest, and talented beyond
measure.
The twins were
the football stars of the small town and were heavy into rodeo.
Waddie made training ropes for them, and started them on the road to
team roping shortly after they learned to walk. Gus made damn
sure it was Waddie who started his boys roping the right way. He
watched and saw what wonders Waddie and Gip performed teaching Randy’s
boy to rope. Waddie and Gip brought Randy Crenshaw up to a new
level of roping he never reached before. He was forced to become
a lot better just to keep up with his boys. Randy chuckled to
himself remembering Gus and him watch Waddie and Gip teach his six
youngest boys what they knew about roping. Brent and Kent Franz
were winning every rodeo they entered; however, they hadn’t yet come up
against Waddie and Zane, Harley and Cass, or Randy and Waddie.
They knew from their earlier days their big brothers, Waddie and Gip,
were the best team they ever saw, but they didn't have any idea the
strength of competition they would face from the more mature men they
went up against in the coming days.
Brenda Lou
didn't get married right away after school. Bubba put her
through college, but she decided she wanted to come back to Bandera to
live for a while. She stayed home and worked as director of
a clinic which was established in their small town. She helped
Dora raise the two boys and spoiled them rotten. They could get
anything out of their big sis, Brenda Lou.
After supper
Cass’s mom suggested he and Harley might like to stay in his old room
he shared with J.R. “Nobody’s been in there since you and J.R.
left for the war. Your dad and I locked it up so's it would be
the same when you boys came home. Here’s the key, Son,” Sarah
said softly and handed Cass the key.
“Thanks, Mom,
but I think it would be fine if Mr. Boone and I bunked it in the
barn. Waddie and Zane are gonna’ bunk it in out there.
Honestly, I don’t know if’n I could stay the night in there with all
the memories of J.R. around me,” Cass replied, refusing to look into
his mother’s eyes.
“I understand,
Son, but you have the key if you feel like goin’ in there. It was
your room, too,” Sarah said. Only a mother can know when her
child is in pain. Sarah Crenshaw knew and felt the unspoken depth
of her son’s grief. She realized Cass hadn't fully let go of his
brother. He hadn’t fully accepted his own loss let alone dealt
with the loss of his brother. She empathized and remember the
sorrow and pain she and Randy carried all those years from the lost of
their beloved child, Thane. It still made her heart sink a bit to
think on him.
“Thanks, Mom,”
Mutt replied, and quickly pocketed the key.
* * * * * * *
Later that day
Waddie was in the barn saddling up old Whiskey, his favorite roping
pony on the Crenshaw spread. Whiskey was older now, but he was
still in love with the man he watched grow from a young cowboy into a
big cowboy. He watched Waddie grow up, go away somewhere he
didn’t know about for several years and then come home to him
again. He almost didn’t recognize his beloved cowboy at first
because Waddie seemed so defeated; so withdrawn; so distant.
Whiskey determined in his big heart he would change all that.
Waddie would see. He’d make it better for his buddy like he did
so many times before. Waddie spent one summer with the Crenshaws
and Whiskey after he returned from Nam. He worked his butt off on
the Crenshaw ranch that summer but wouldn’t take a penny. He told
his dad, Randy, he wasn’t about to take money from his family.
They fed, cared for him all summer and left him to himself. It
was the best thing they could’ve done for him. They never
demanded much of him; just let him be. He appreciated that more
than they would ever know.
Randy and Gus
would sometimes laugh to see Waddie and Whiskey out walking in the
pasture. Whiskey’s little sister, Penny, would always be close
behind. Waddie would be flailing his arms about talking to both
ponies like they understood every word he was saying. They looked
like they were mesmerized by his conversation. He would stop, the
ponies would get restless, then gently nudge him to move on. His
family could see Waddie’s improvement by the day. Horses have
been known to perform miracles in folks. Whiskey did for his
beloved cowboy. Waddie insisted on living in the barn with the
horses. Whiskey became his constant companion that summer and the
Crenshaws knew enough to let them be. Gus and Randy saw what
Whiskey was doing for their boy and stood back to let a wiser creature
than them heal their son. After that summer there was no doubt
who belonged to whom. Whiskey knew deep in his big heart, Waddie
belonged to him. No one else, man or beast, doubted it either.
Whiskey was
anxious to get out to the arena and have some fun with his beloved
cowboy. He was pestering the shit out of Waddie the whole time he
was trying to saddle Whiskey’s younger sister, Penny, for his mate,
Zane, to ride. Waddie would have to stop and show Whiskey
attention and talk to him to calm him down. Zane and Randy
laughed as Whiskey would butt Waddie with his head from the back
pushing
him into poor Penny. She seemed to be used to her big brother’s
rudeness and most times took his playfulness in stride, but today, she
was as anxious as Whiskey to get saddled and go play. She finally
reached over and nipped him a good one on his left ear and Whiskey
yelled. Zane and Randy were laughing their asses off as Waddie
spoke sternly to Whiskey. “Uh-huh! See, ya’ big
bully! Ya’ big ruffian! Now see what chu’ done? Ya’
done went and pissed off your little sister. I don’t blame her a
bit. You pushed ‘til she got tired of it. Serves you
right. Now, tell her you’re sorry,” Waddie demanded quietly.
Whiskey was
stamping his feet and snorting. His feelings were hurt as well as
his ear. He wasn’t having any of it. Waddie turned to
Whiskey, put his hands on both hips and laughed his ass off at the big
horse. “Damn well serves you right. She’s just trying to
get you to act your age. Now, you go on and tell your little sis
your sorry," Waddie demanded again more forcefully. Randy
nudged Zane with his elbow to watch, he’d seen Waddie talk with Whiskey
for years and knew what he could do with the animal. Whiskey
snorted again, lowered his head and gently placed it against Penny’s
neck as if to say he was sorry. Penny whinnied and returned his
sentiment with her head in acknowledgment. Zane’s mouth
fell open as he turned to look at Randy. Randy winked at him with
a big smile on his face. The ponies were saddled and ready to go.
“Waddie, Zane,
you two don’t know how happy your other dads are you found each
other. They’re almost as happy as Gus and me. We just
wanted ju' to know we love you and you’re welcome here anytime,” Randy
Crenshaw said.
“Thanks, Dad.”
Waddie replied, putting his left boot into Whiskey’s stirrup.
“I appreciate
that, Mr. Crenshaw,” Zane added, “I ain’t never felt so welcome by any
folks as I have Waddie and his family. Ain’t never met a man with
as large a family as Waddie's. Ever’ time I turn around I’m
meeting more of his folks and Little Gip told me I ain’t met ‘em all
yet.”
“That’s true,
Son. He’s got a passel of folks what love him. Anyway, Son,
it’s ‘bout time you started calling me ‘dad’ too. You’re now as
much one of our boys as the rest of ‘em.”
“Thanks, Dad
Crenshaw. That makes me feel really accepted,” Zane replied and
almost broke into tears. Waddie wouldn’t look at him for fear of
dropping a few. He just crawled on Whiskey’s back and reined him
up tight.
“You are wanted,
Son. Don’t never forget it,” Randy added with a hug and a kiss
for Zane. Waddie smiled at dad Crenshaw as the older cowboy held
and comforted Zane.
“C’’moan,
brother, Ms. Penny’s a’ raring to go. You don’t mount her soon
she’s gonna’ take a nip out a’ that sweet little ass of yorn,” Waddie
chided him.
Randy
laughed and let Zane go. “She will, too, Son. Waddie
ain’t just blow’n smoke up your butt. She want’s to get out there
and show her big brother how it’s done,” Randy confirmed. They
laughed and Waddie headed out the barn on Whiskey with Zane close
behind him on Penny.
Waddie and Zane
waxed the twins ass that afternoon, and to add insult to injury, so did
Harley and Cass. Gus was really getting into the spirit of the
afternoon when Randy and Waddie beat the twin's time. The boys were
crushed.
“Let that teach
you boys a lesson," Gus lectured the twins, "Don’t chu’ never
underestimate the performance of seasoned cowboys. They may not
always have good days, but when they’re on you won’t beat ‘em,” Gus
told his dejected boys with an arm thrown around each. It didn't
take a genius to observe how much Gus love the boys. They were
the shining light of his later days. “Now don’t go allow'n
yore'selves to get too down over this. You men ain’t competing
with the young’uns, here. You’re riding against mature men who
were cowboy'n 'afore you were born. I know ‘cause I helped raise
that biggest cowboy out there, your big brother, Waddie. They be
damn good, and they ain’t gonna’ give you no slack or any breaks.
A seasoned cowboy is gonna’ eat you alive if you make the smallest
mistake, ‘cause he won’t. They can be beat. I seen it
happen, but you gotta’ reach way down deep inside you to win against
them. ‘Cause if’n you ain’t willing to do it, y'ain’t gonna’ win
here or anywhere else for that matter," Gus told them like a wise old
owl.
“Yes, Dad,” they
replied in unison. The twins listened to their old men. In
all their eighteen years he never told them a lie nor steered them in
the wrong direction. They accepted Gus and Randy’s word as gospel.
“I’ll tell you
men something you may not know ‘bout them cowboys,” Gus said.
“What’s 'at,
Dad?” Kent asked.
“They got a
couple of things going for ‘em you men can’t touch right now,” Gus
replied.
“Yeah, s’like
you said, Dad, they be damn good,” Brent replied.
“No, no, they’re
good all right, ain't no doubt about it, but it’s some’um else,” Gus
said and waited. His boys looked mystified waiting for him to
tell them.
“They love each
other," Gus said quietly, "They love rope’n with one another.
Watch Waddie and Zane, then watch that good looking cowboy and your
brother Cassidy. They don’t give a shit whether they win or
not. Makes no difference to 'em. That ain’t what their out
there for. They’re out there
enjoying each other. Oh, sure, you can bet chore' boots they’ll
gladly snatch a win right out from under your noses; but mostly,
they’re out there having fun and you men are out there nervous as cats
on coffee trying to force a win. I got news for you boys; they’ll
beat chu’ ever’ time,” Gus grinned at his boys.
“I love my
brother, Dad, and he loves me,” Kent defended himself and his brother.
"Yeah, Dad, and
we love to rope together," Brent added.
Gus wasn’t going
let them off that easy. “Funny I didn't see much love pass between you
boys
this morning. You's blaming each other for ever little
mistake. Get out there and rope with your brother like you love
him, like he's your buddy, and you’re proud of him. Them cowboys
is
out there having a ball and it flows freely between them. You and
your brother are out there butt'n heads trying to force a win.
Yore' out for blood. Ease up. Have a good time with each
other. These are days you ain’t never gonna’ have again in your
life to share with each other. Enjoy them. It ain’t
important whether you win or lose. Make the most of the time you
have together. If you wanna’ win you can, but you ain’t gonna’ do
it on talent or skill alone. Watch them older cowpokes,
respectfully ask them intelligent questions, they'll tell you what
you're doing wrong, learn
from them, then beat them,” Gus said and smiled at his beloved
sons. They knew that look from their old man and there wasn’t
anything they wouldn’t do to please him. Gus said a prayer of
thanks for his other boy, Waddie. He heard Waddie give the same
small sermon so many times to his brothers, Gus memorized it.
Now, his boys were thinking how wise and knowledgeable their old man
was. Well, he was. He was wise enough to know his other
boy’s advice worked. He watched it happen too many times.
* * * * * * *
Aside from their
dad’s good advice, the next day the boys approached their big brother
Waddie for his advice. What could they do to improve
themselves? Waddie worked with them all morning. He worked
nonstop with the boy four or five hours having them make throw
after throw. He would give them hints and tips they would
immediately take and apply. They listened to their big brother
and their times were dropping dramatically. Gus couldn’t have
been more pleased. That afternoon, Zane was sitting close along
side of Gus on the corral fence watching the twins make another
run. Zane didn’t say anything but he couldn’t help notice the big
wet spot in Gus’s Wranglers as he set next to him on the fence.
“Few more runs
with Waddie’s teach’n, and your boys is gonna’ walk all over us amateur
cowpokes, Mr. Franz,” Zane said.
“Maybe, Son, but
you and yore' big cowboy ain’t exactly no amateurs. By the way, I
overhear'd you been calling Randy, ‘dad.’ I’m Waddie’s other dad
‘round these here parts so’s it seems fit'n to me you should be calling
me ‘dad’, too, Son,” Gus said and smiled.
“I’d be right
proud and honored, Mr. Franz. ‘Dad’ it is, sir,” Zane
replied, hit him with a killer grin, and noticed the wet spot in the
crotch of his new dad’s wranglers got even bigger. That night in
the loft of the barn Zane talked to his master about the day. It
was a wonderful day and the Crenshaws bent over backward to make him
feel welcome and at home. “Why, even old Gus told me this
afternoon I should be calling him ‘dad,’” Zane told his master
like he was pleased and amused.
“Gus don’t say
much, so for him to tell you to call him 'dad' is a big deal. I
know he thinks the world of you and after seeing you in the raw at Dan
Yates’ spa he shared with me you make his old dick drip when he’s
around you,” Waddie replied. They shared a laugh.
“Yeah, I noticed
a wet spot on his Wranglers today. The closer I set to him, the
more I talked with him, the larger it got. He’s one hell of a
sexy
mature cowboy, Master,” Zane said. Waddie laughed at his mate.
“I guess it’s
about time I got my old dad Gus in the loft of his old equipment barn
and take care of him. I been sucking that old man off a couple a’
times a week since I was eleven years old. Gip and I used to take
turns. Then we’d have to fight Bubba off to get to ‘em. Gus
was one of the main reasons I made any progress towards reclaiming my
sanity after I come back from Nam. He never pushed or insisted I
talk about it, he just allowed me to love him but would hold me by the
hour pouring his love into me, never saying a word. I love that
old man with all my heart. Tell me, slave, if our dad wanted to
use you... ?” Waddie didn’t even get it out when Zane answered.
“.... in a
cow-town minute, if it pleases my master?” Zane replied.
Waddie broke up
again, hugged his slave to him, and kissed him. “That’s fine with
me. S’nothing like keep’n it in the family,” he replied, “but you
might have to suffer the indignity of your master suck’n on yore'
little cunt and eat’n our old man’s come out of you,” Waddie
said. They broke up laughing and rolling about in the hay.
Zane never laughed so much in his life as he did with Waddie. He
never knew what was coming out of his master's mouth next.
Sometimes he was prepared; sometimes he wasn't. Waddie agreed to
make a date with their old dad, Gus, for the very next afternoon.
* * * * *
* *
The next
afternoon Waddie had it planned down to the minute. He had
Harley, Mutt, and Randy watch the twins and keep them busy in the
arena. Gus took off and told his boys he had to get home, he had
to help Dora with something. He instructed them to stay there and
rope. He would come back and get them a little later. Zane
slipped out the back and rode penny down in the south pasture away from
the arena and the barn where the men were practicing roping. He
crossed the low water damn on Penny. Waddie told him, too.
Penny’s step was a lot more sure footed than Zane’s. Waddie gave
the boys a few more lessons; rode with each of them and told them he
was going to take a ride with his partner down by the river. He
left and followed Penny’s tracks. He arrived at the old barn and
hitched Whiskey by his sister on the side away from the Franz’s ranch
house. He entered the barn and gave a small whistle for a signal.
“Up here in the
loft, Son,” he heard Gus’s voice slightly above a whisper. Waddie
climbed the ladder to the loft and peaked over the edge. They
didn’t wait for Waddie. Zane lay naked on a beautiful old
patchwork quilt Gus spread on the hay. Gus was lying on top of
him obviously already getting himself some of Zane’s wonderful boy
cunt. They both had their boots on. Waddie laughed to
himself at the picture.
“Our old man
doing my slave boy some good, Son?” Waddie joked with Zane.
“Better’n good,
Master Waddie. Dad Franz here’s about the finest fuck I’ve had
cept’n you of course,” Zane replied. Waddie laughed but Gus was
too taken with his business to let his oldest boy interrupt the finest
fuck he had in a while. Gus looked into Zane’s deep green eyes
and ordered the young man to kiss him. Zane was ready for
it. As they were in the deep throws of a kiss and Gus was doing
some deep fucking into Zane’s cunt he felt his other son moving up
behind him. He trusted Waddie with his life and knew he wouldn’t
do anything he wouldn’t like or approve of. The next thing Gus
felt was Waddie’s wet tongue on his asshole licking and cleaning it
like an old heifer cleaning up her new-born calf. It was about
the most sensual feeling Gus ever experienced in his cowboy life.
Here he was in the throws of bliss, fucking the cunt of a beautiful
young man he called his son and his other son was trying to shove his
tongue as far up his ass as he could get it. He stopped kissing
Zane looked at him and winked.
“I was gonna’
give you a good, long, slow buckaroo fuck’n, Son, but yore' master’s at
my backdoor with his mouth on my ass suck’n on it for all he’s
worth. I’m afeard I can hold it much longer,” Gus said quietly.
“It’s all right,
Dad. You fucked me just fine. Ain’t had no finer cept’n my
master. Let me have all of you. I love you, Dad.
You’re welcome to come inside me. Get it, Dad, for both of
us,” Zane urged him on.
“Well, I damn
sure love the both of you boys. You gotta’ know that, Son,” Gus
said as he heaved a couple more good thrust into Zane’s boy cunt and
shot his big cowboy load into him. Waddie felt his old man’s
hole try to bite his tongue off and he chuckled. He withdrew
himself from Gus and set back on the hay.
“Sorry,
Dad. Your ass just looked too tempting for me not to make a
little love to it. Promise I won’t never do it again if’n you
didn’t like it,” Waddie said and grinned.
Gus was spent,
still laying lightly on top a Zane. Waddie looked at Zane to see
a glazed look on his slave's face. He knew his old man got his
slave boy off at the same time and they were both enjoying the moment
of their shared bliss; their petite mort. Waddie heard Gus
chuckle.
“Now, now!
Lets not be hasty. Don't say you won’t never do something like
'at again for yore' old man. You let him be the judge of
that. Didn’t feel too damn bad to me, boy. In fact it made
me pop my cork a little early. I was gonna’ give my other boy
here a good old down home country fuck’n,” Gus allowed. Waddie
rolled on his
side laughing at him.
“You still can,
old man. I’ll go down and stand watch for you two. Take all
the time you need,” Waddie said and climbed down the ladder to the
loft, walked to the door and planted his butt on a hay bale near the
entrance where he could get a good view from both
directions. Gus and Zane stayed in the loft fucking almost
until the sun went down. When they climbed down from the loft,
they found
Waddie asleep leaning up against the barn door. Whiskey
pulled loose from his post and was standing guard over his beloved
cowboy.
Zane and Gus couldn’t help laugh. “Some guard you
made, cowboy,” Gus chastised Waddie.
“Oh, I just
drifted off for a minute, Dad,” he said as he yawned and
stretched. Zane chuckled.
“We figured we
better stop when we heard you snoring, Master,” Zane replied and
laughed.
“That bad?
Sorry, Dad,” Waddie replied shyly. The men were having a
good time with a
distraught Waddie.
Waddie mounted
Whiskey and pulled Zane up behind him. Gus mounted Penny and they
slowly rode back to the Crenshaw’s barn. Randy turned the arena
lights on and the men were still roping. The twins were beginning
to win every now and then. Their attitudes changed
completely. They were beginning to relax and have a good
time. Their dad was right. Their old man would
never
lead them astray. They learned from the
older
cowboys
and listened to their brother Waddie. Waddie and Zane unsaddled
the two ponies,
rubbed them down and fed them. Then they crawled way up into the
back of the loft where Waddie proceeded to suck and eat his old man’s
come out of his slave boy. Gus came to find them and got so
excited he had to sit on a bale of hay and jack off. That was one
of the happiest days Waddie and Zane could remember of their young
lives
together.
Of course, it
wasn’t another week before their other dad, Randy, wanted to sample his
son’s slave-boy wares. Gus and Randy shared everything and Gus
told him all about his experience the week before. They repeated
the scene in Gus’s same
barn. Randy was wowed by Zane. Gus told him Zane was good,
but he had no idea he would be as good as he was. Once again
Waddie kept watch for his slave and other dad. Randy had a new
found respect and love for his newest son. So did Gus. They
were both loving and protective of their new boy and Zane couldn’t have
been happier.
Not all the time
at the ranch during the holidays was fun in the arena rodeoing.
Randy made sure their was time set aside for that, but there was work
to
be done. Waddie, Zane, Harley, and Mutt pitched in and worked
right along side Randy, his boys, Gus and the twins. They did
several projects for Gus as well. Things that needed more than a
couple of men to do. They worked in good spirits and Harley
somewhat surprised his buddy Mutt. Harley was as good an all
around hand as he was at tossing a rope. Harley was right when he
told Randy Crenshaw he wasn’t afraid of hard work. He was right
there with the men every morning from sunup to sunset. He was
ready to hit his bedroll at the end of the day like any cowboy, but he
didn’t moan or groan to get up and hit it the next morning.
Harley only grew
in stature in Mutt’s eye and all the men who were with them. Mutt
didn’t talk too much when they were working together. He seemed
to enjoy working and being with his family and close friends. They left
him alone and didn’t try to gather him into their conversations.
They were always ready to listen if he had something to contribute, but
most times he didn’t. His dad wasn’t so worried about him any
more. He watched another of his boys, Waddie, go through similar
trials when he returned from Nam. There were weeks the only
creatures Waddie would talk to was Whiskey and Penny. Gus and
Randy just left him alone and prayed for their boy. They did the
same for Cass.
On the weekend,
Randy allowed neighbors and friends to come over and Rodeo with
them. Sunday was reserved for church, and if you were sleeping
under the Crenshaw roof you went to church. None of the men
minded. Waddie was certainly welcome and knew just about everyone
in the small community. They watched him and his brother grow up
and knew of his pain over the loss of his brother in Nam. Johnny
Mack Tamplin grew close to Waddie, Gip, and their families and always
had a big hug and a kiss for Waddie. The preacher was still the
same pastor Waddie and Gip shared their miracle with many years before.
Except now, the
community was larger and could support a full time preacher. He
lived alone in a new parsonage, but his son was sheriff of the county
and came to his dad’s church every Sunday. Mutt was worried about
going to church the first Sunday he was home but the preacher was not
about to embarrass him and didn’t make him stand or raise his
hand. Most of the folks knew who he was anyway, and they were
good people. They came to him almost shyly to hug him and softly
tell him of their love. Mutt’s heart melted from some of the
loving comments the folks had for him. They told him how sorry
they were for him he lost his brother.
Waddie
introduced Zane to the church as his buddy and new roping
partner. They was no problems with it. A cowboy needed a
partner. Randy introduced Harley Boone to the congregation as
another one of his many sons. The congragation laughed.
They grew accustom to the Crenshaws every now and then coming up with a
new son. Randy announced to the congregation, since Waddie was
their boy they had no
choice but to adopt his new partner, Zane, as well. Randy added
he was such a fine cowboy they would’ve adopted him even if he weren’t
Waddie’s partner.
“Say what chu’
will,” Randy chuckled as he stood and addressed the small congregation,
“the good Lord’s seen fit to bring some of the finest, most talented
young cowboys to our home over the years and Sarah and me, we’re
certainly grateful,” he said. The congregation could only agree
with
him. They knew and were amazed at some of the rodeo talent Randy
and Sarah fostered over the years.
Waddie and Zane
only planned to stay with the Crenshaws a week then they were going to
return to Chapel Creek by way of Mason. They ended up staying two
weeks. Waddie just couldn’t run off and leave his two dads with
the projects they needed to get done. It was a Friday night and
Waddie and Zane were going to take off the next Monday to return to
Chapel Creek. Waddie and Harley decided to ride their bikes into
San Antonio to a big cowboy biker bar they knew on the outskirts of
town. Naturally they were going to have Zane and Mutt ride
along. Of course, the younger men wanted to go along but they
told them no, another time. Randy and Sarah seemed grateful for
that. So was Gus and Dora. The men left after the sun went
down that Friday. After stopping for food and rest they got to
the bar around eight o’clock in the evening. There were already
thirty-five to forty bikes out front. Waddie raised an eyebrow at
Harley when he got off his bike and locked it. Zane and
Mutt seemed a little apprehensive as well.
The men went in
and got a table. There was a good country and western band
playing and they paid a cover charge to get in. The waitress was
friendly to them because she could tell they weren’t the rowdy kind of
cowboy bikers she was so used to. They were polite and
mannerly. They spoke to her and called her 'ma’am' and answered
‘yes, ma’am’ and ‘no ma’am.’” It was a pleasure for her to,
occasionally, have a group of men who were respectful and didn’t try to
paw her to death. They made sure they tipped her well. They
got better service, too. The men slowly drank their beer and
enjoyed listening to the band. Every now and then some woman
would come over and ask one of the men to dance. In fact, Mutt
was the first one to get asked to dance. He didn’t want to, but
his buddies urged him on. He let the good looking little lady
lead him to the floor, and he took her into his arms for a slow two
step. She was looking right into his face and didn’t seemed a bit
bothered by his injuries.
“You don’t
recognize me, do you, Cass?” she finally spoke to him. Mutt was
startled. He didn’t recognize her. “I’m Evelyn West.
I used to go to high school with you in Bandera. I was a grade
behind you and was really heavy back then. I had a crush on you
like
you wouldn’t believe. I couldn’t figure out who I liked better
you or your brother JR, but you won my heart because you were always
nice to me. I heard what happened to you and your
brother in Nam, but for a long while we didn’t know for sure. We
thought you was
killed along with JR. I cried myself to sleep for a month after
hearing you two was killed. Then recently, I was home and my mom
told me you made it back. She told me about your injuries, but it
didn’t keep me from recognizing you the minute you walked through the
door. I know’d who you was the minute I saw you.
Ain’t another cowboy with as sexy a walk as you got, Cass,” Evelyn
said. Cass
was overwhelmed at the young woman’s heartfelt revelation to
him. He couldn’t help it, his eyes began to water. He
pulled her close to him so she wouldn’t see, but she felt his tears
dropping on her shoulder. She didn’t say any more.
“I do remember
you, Evelyn. You always wore your long blond hair in either pig
tails or a pony tail. You set right behind me in study hall one
semester. I remember a bright blue dress you used to wear
sometimes that made you look so pretty. I never thought you was
overweight or nothing. I always thought you was a pretty little
girl,” Cass made Evelyn start tearing up.
“Whatever
happened to you and that girl, Nancy, you met in college before going
to Vietnam? I thought you were suppose to get married when you
got home?” Evelyn asked then realized too late maybe she
shouldn’t have blurted out a question like that without thinking it
over first.
“I wrote her and
told her my face was messed up pretty bad. She wrote me back and
told me it didn’t matter to her none. I went to see her when I
got back, she took one look at me, ran out of the room screaming and
told her mother to tell me she never wanted to see me again,” Mutt told
Evelyn the hard unvarnished truth.
“Oh, God, Cass,
I’m so sorry. How cruel can some people be? I don’t know if
it helps, Cass, but you don’t look bad to me. Underneath, I still
see the handsome young cowboy I fell so much in love with in high
school,” she said.
“It does help,
Evelyn, and I appreciate you telling me. You don’t know how much
it helps,” he replied. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and he
escorted her back to her table and thanked her graciously for the
dance. Word got around and every other dance some good looking
woman would come to the men’s table to ask Mutt to dance. Harley,
Waddie, and Zane were thrilled and agog. They were worried their
brother wasn’t going to have a good time and get depressed. Here
he was dancing more than them. Harley didn’t have any problem
getting asked to dance because he was so damn good looking.
Neither did Waddie or Zane for that matter even though if they had
their druthers they would’ve rather been dancing with each other.
It even occurred to Harley once or twice he wouldn’t mind two-stepping
around the floor a couple of times with his cowboy buddy, Mutt.
He was thrilled
his buddy was getting some much needed attention. Harley looked
through the crowd and saw a couple of familiar faces. He couldn’t
believe it. Sitting at a table was Spider and his three
cronies. Harley didn’t make eye contact, but wondered if Mutt saw
him. He escorted his dance partner back to her table and thanked
her graciously. Harley made it back to their table and made a
point of telling Waddie first. Waddie didn’t react except to tell
Harley they should tell Mutt. Waddie proceeded to tell Zane and
he frowned. Mutt returned to their table with a smile on half his
face. He just danced another dance with Evelyn and had a good
time. He set down and looked at Harley and smiled. He knew
Harley so well by now he saw a look of concern in his face. He
knew the concern was for him. “Yeah, I seen
him, brother,” Mutt said in answer to Harley’s concerned look.
“Z’it bother
you, buddy?” Harley asked placing his hand on Mutt’s shoulder,
“We can leave if you’re uncomfortable.”
“Naw, I know
he’s seen me. He waved to me a minute ago while I's dancing with
Evelyn. I nodded and waved back to him. I ain’t running
over and kiss’n his boots if'n that’s what you’s worried about,”
Mutt chuckled not meaning to hurt Harley’s feeling.
“I know you
wouldn’t do that, cowboy. Not in a place like this anyway,”
Harley replied. He laughed, but Mutt got his meaning. Mutt
smiled at his buddy knowing he deserved that come back from
Harley. The men decided to stay. They were having a good
time and until he got drunk and rowdy they knew Spider could be a
halfway decent man. They figured if he was to cause trouble the
management of the place wasn’t about to put up with his nonsense. They
were right. After several more dances the men looked up to see
Spider and his three men approaching their table.
“Mind if we join
ya’?” Spider asked. He held out his hand to Mutt. Mutt got
up to shake Spider’s hand and Spider pulled him into an embrace.
Mutt didn’t fight it, but graciously returned his embrace.
“Good to see
ya,’ Son. I missed the hell out of you,” he said.
“Nice to
see you again, too, Mr. Spider,” Mutt replied.
Waddie and
Harley gathered a couple extra seats for the men and motioned for them
to sit down. Spider introduced his men to the four of them.
He knew every name in Mutt’s group including Zane’s. Everyone
shook hands.
“What chu’ men
doing in San Antone, tonight?” he asked Mutt.
“My family lives
not far from here and we been at their ranch for a couple of
weeks. Mr. Boone, Waddie, and Zane are good friends of my dad and
mom and know my brothers real well. Waddie and Zane are taking
off come Monday to go back to his family for Christmas so we thought
we’d take ‘em out for a couple of drinks and some fun," Mutt explained.
“Where’s Janice,
Harley?” he asked Harley pointedly.
“I left her with
her family for the holidays. I’ll pick her up again after
Christmas. I weren’t about to spend another Thanksgiving or
Christmas with her folks. Her mother’s idea of Thanksgiving is
Swanson’s T.V. turkey dinners and a six pack. For Christmas they
give each other a case of beer or a bottle of Jack Daniels. I
love my liver too much to spend another holiday drunk on my ass,”
Harley said and grinned. Spider laughed. “Mutt’s folks invited me
to spend the holidays with them and it was too good an invitation to
pass up. They be real fine folks,” Harley added. Spider
looked at Zane and Waddie.
“Hear’d you two
got hitched recently,” he looked directly at Zane, “You’re the slave
what’s got a cunt on him, ain’t cha,’ boy?” Spider asked with no
sense of social decorum. Zane could see the hairs on the back of
his master’s neck stand straight up. Zane put his hand on his
master's leg under the table.
“Yes, sir, Mr.
Spider. That ‘ud be me, sir,” he smiled sweetly at Spider as he
move his arm around his master.
“Well, you’re
one hell of a lucky little slave, z’all I can say. I know'd this
big cowboy for a while now. We don’t always see eye to eye but
you couldn’t a’ got chore'self no finer master nowheres,” Spider said
in an unusual moment of charity. Waddie was a little taken aback
by Spider’s sudden reversal of character and generosity.
Zane
just beamed. “Thank you,
Mr.
Spider. You’re right, sir. I am a lucky slave boy.
I’m blessed to have this big cowboy for my master. Master
Waddie’s good to me. He takes good care of me. Gives me
what I need and lots of it I might add. I love him with all
my heart and it's an honor to serve him,” Zane said without being
braggadocios.
“That’s the way
it should be, Son. I can see it in his eyes, he’s a cowboy who's
head over his boot heels in love with you. My best to the two of
you,” Spider said. He raised his bottle of beer in salute and his
men followed suit. Harley and Mutt raised their beers in toast to
Waddie and Zane as well.
The evening wore
on and Spider began to get drunk and obnoxious. Waddie and Harley
could see in Mutt’s face he wanted to leave. They said their
goodbyes and left. Spider held on to Mutt a little longer than
might be considered socially acceptable but finally broke when one of
his men spoke his name. He promised to find Mutt after the
holidays and for him to have a Merry Christmas. In fact he wished
all the men with Mutt a Merry Christmas. They returned his
sentiment.
It was a bone
chilling cold night in Texas as the men headed back to Bandera.
It was a good hour’s ride back to the hill county. They didn’t travel
as fast as they did going into San Antonio because the wind chill
factor was about to freeze their tits off. Waddie began to wish
they took the old pickemup truck he and Gip owned after his older
brother’s Billy Bob and Earl D. gave it to them. They in turn
gave it to their younger brothers to travel back and forth to
college. The boys offered it to them but they decided if they
were going to a biker bar, they were men, they’d ride their
bikes. Waddie cursed himself a hundred times that night and
continually asked himself one nagging question, “What price macho?”
End Chapter 9 ~
Harley & Mutt ~ Waddie Greywolf
Copyright 2011 ~
All rights reserved
Mail to:
waddiebear@yahoo.com
Proofed: 05/01/11
WC 10302