Unspoken Pleasure

I downloaded the picture to my computer and then pasted it to an e-mail with a note to the police of my former hometown stating that I was alive and well and had left town of my own free will. If I had used a local paper it would have given a clue as to where I was. This way I could be anywhere. I sent the e-mail to Jake and told him to go to one of the local coffee shops that offered free internet access. I figured my work e-mail would still be active and gave him my password. That way he could forward my original e-mail and picture to the police and it wouldn’t leave any tracks to trace me or him. This way I hoped the police wouldn’t list me on some F. B. I. list or national list as a missing person. I didn’t think they would spend to many resources looking for a runaway husband. I slept soundly that night.

I was up at five the next morning and showered and dressed in time to walk with Sam to the main house. Breakfast was eggs, sausage, hash browns and toast. And there was plenty for all. After we had eaten Bill told Sam to take me and put me to work replacing fence posts in the hilly section.

I followed Sam out to the barn and he pointed out a horse and saddle I would need. Sam kept a close eye on me as I put the saddle on the big brown mare. My days of being on my uncle’s ranch paid off as Sam seemed satisfied with the job I did. We then took two mules and put on saddle packs that we could load fence posts and a post hole digger on. Bill came out to the barn carrying a Winchester model 94 in a saddle scabbard. He told me that this was mainly in case we ran across a cow that had to be put down. It didn’t happen often but it was best to be prepared. Sam and I mounted up and leading a mule each we headed out. We followed the creek up into the hills.

As we rode Sam and I talked and got to know one another. I told him about how I came to be in Montana. I really didn’t think he was going to rat me out. He told me about his own experience. He had married right out of high school and caught his ex-wife in bed with another man. In a fit of rage had nearly beat the guy to death. He had served five years in prison and when he got out Bill was the only one who would hire him. That was how he had come to be here for the last thirty years. He went on to tell me that he thought the world of Bill and Colleen. They were the salt of the earth.

In the rising morning sun the mountains in the background were breathtaking. It was the beginning of April and the snow had melted away in the lower elevations but there was still some on the peaks. Once we hit the tree line the trail began to rise. It took another half hour until we came to the fence that marked the property boundaries. Sam pointed out that not all the posts had to be replaced, just those that had rotted or were close to it. That was about every third one. He stayed with me while I got the first two in to make sure I was doing it right. Sam said if I worked until about four I should get back in time to take care of the horse and mules and make it to dinner at six. His final words were to tell me to follow the stream back down and I wouldn’t get lost.

Sam headed back and I was left alone with my work. There something calming and soothing about being in this beautiful hilly forested country. I worked my way down the line pulling out old posts and putting in new ones. I took a break at noon and pulled the pork chop sandwiches that Colleen had handed me this morning from my saddle bag. The were left over from last nights meal and were just as delicious today. As I quietly ate I watched as a blue jay passed through the trees. A woodpecker made a brief stop and hammered at a tree in search of a meal. Then a white tail deer came into the opening on the other side of the fence. She edged forward until she caught my scent. She snorted and bounded back in the trees waving her tail in the air like a flag. I finished my sandwiches and went back to work.

I had set the alarm on my watch and it beeped at four that afternoon. I saw that I had set all but a couple of the posts the mules had carried up. Leading the mules I headed back along the fence line until I found the stream and headed downhill. A short ways before I would leave the trees was a natural pool that the stream flowed into and out of. I stopped and took in the view. The upper stream dropped over a ten foot high ledge to waterfall into the clear waters below. I knew this had to be most beautiful and serene spot on the ranch.

I arrived back at the barn in time to unsaddle the animals and get them fed. Sam came in to bed down his horse while I was in there and when I told him I set all but two of the posts he seemed to be surprised and impressed. We had just enough time to wash up and change to make supper on time. We ate steaks that night.

Bill was visibly impressed when Sam told him of the progress I had made that day. I was bushed and made little contribution to the conversation at the table. As soon as dinner was over I excused myself and went directly to bed. I slept hard.

Fuck, was I sore when I woke up. My hands hurt from working the post hole digger. So did my arms, shoulders and legs. I had thought I was in pretty good shape as I worked out four or five times a week but there is a big difference from a two hour workout and a full day of setting fence posts. When I limped into the kitchen and winced as I sat down I got a couple chuckles from Bill and Sam. Even Colleen tried to hide her grin. I was starving, though, and put away the food.

“Ready, for another day of fencing,” Bill asked as we rose from the table.

I groaned. “Yes sir,” I said hoping I sounded more optimistic than I felt.

Bill laughed at me again. “I think you can give it a rest today. I’d like you to ride the rounds with Sam.”

I nodded appreciatively. The first job of the day was to muck out the stalls and put in fresh hay. We put the horses and mules into the pasture and filled their feeder. Only then did we load up in the pick up and ride the range. Basically we were checking to make sure that there were no cows down or calves who had become separated from their mothers. The tour Sam took me on was much more extensive than the one I had gone on with Bill on my first day on the ranch. Sam seemed to know instinctively where the cattle would be and roughly how many would be there. I guess after thirty years it came naturally.

We got to the far end of the ranch and Sam stopped the truck and looked around. Something up on one of the hills seemed to catch his attention and he pulled out his binoculars. He handed them to me and pointed to where I should look. It took a minute but finally I picked out two calves and they appeared to be alone.

“Where are their mother’s,” I asked. Sam pointed over at two cows near the tree line.

“That’s them there. Their calves must have wandered up into the trees and got lost and kept going. We’re going to have to bring them down.”

“We gonna hike up there?” I asked.

“Nah, it’s too far. We’ll go back and load up a couple horses.” The pickups were equipped with two way radios and Sam called Bill and told him what we had seen and that we were on our way to get the horses. When we got back to the barn Bill had already saddled two horses and loaded them into a trailer. All we had to do was hook up and go. Sam got us pretty close to the tree line below where the calves were and we unloaded the horses and rode up into the hills. Sam’s thirty years here showed itself again. He knew this country like the back of his hand. Half an hour later we were easing up behind the calves and slowly began to push them back down the hills.Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.