About the Author, who till spell check came along couldn’t spell Author…

I learned to read in the first grade, that was about the only thing I did learn in school, I couldn’t stop reading and just let the rest roll over me, got booted out of school for being like my alter ego “Hozay Buck” and just to show them I joined the Marines at 17.

I always admired that some folks could write a book, I mean think about it, I love to read, live to read, but to write a book, naa, this is magic! It takes many years of schooling to be able to write a book, and God knows I sure never had that, I got my GED because the First Sergeant in my last unit made me go take the test ( The option was death so..) I guess that day they graded on a big curve cause I passed some how.

Anyway, one day with no planning, no thought as to how to do it I started writing this story, I know it reads like a uneducated fool wrote it and God knows one did!  I wrote it like I talk and think, I really don’t even know when to use a period or a comma, but I figger anybody can tell a story and so I did.

I liked it when I wrote it, I still like it, I have places where it still makes me laugh out loud, and places where I get something in my eye so I guess I did a fair job of it, my second story is sorta the same thing but I think I cleaned it up a bit, I’m working on a third one but I’m kinda bored with it so may not get to the end of it…

Anyway, if you have read this and have got this far you now know a bit about the ol man that wrote it, I hope you found a small bit of something in it that you enjoyed if so I am very happy because good or bad, accepted or not, I by God wrote a book!! And my 90 year old momma read it and really liked it. Made me proud.

TJ Reeder

High Country Journal

Montana

Written by TJ Reeder

October 18, 2007- January 16, 2008

I don't know where to start this.

So I guess at the beginning. My name is Hozay Buck, (my dad had a warped sense of humor).

I had just spent a full day, from Can See to Can't See, on the back of a misgaited stumble footed roan excuse for a horse that belongs to my boss Shiloh Bend (guess his ol' man had a warped sense of no humor too), the owner of the Shadow Valley ranch way up in the high country of Montana.

I had ridden in to set up in a back country line shack for the spring and summer to watch over the summer graze and to keep the bears and cats and them damned environmentally protected wolves from cleaning' out the calf crop as they moved to summer pasture.

Now that damn horse was a devil in hair, but the mules packing' the grub and other stuff for my 5-month stay were a blessing. I was thinking about shooting' the horse and riding' a mule!!

Anyway, I had got to the cabin in No Sun Valley ... (After the first two weeks I took to calling it Lonesome Valley, cause it sure was that ) it was called that cause it was about July before the sun shined into it, it was cold, dark and too quiet for me , but here I was, my last hoorah in town had cost me 2 months pay in fines and a word from the judge and the sheriff that maybe I should stay away for a while, like maybe 20 or 30 years...

Now how was I to know the lady was married? And to the Sheriffs brother?? Anyway here I am, at 6500 ft up in the cold and lonely just this nag and me. And of course a black eye and 2 busted knuckles...

After I got to the cabin it was getting late and I had to move my tired ol' butt to get all this stuff into the cabin and get a fire going' and feed and care for the stock so I got to it. Soon I was settled in and the fire was feeling good in the old sheepherders’ stove and a pot of coffee and some canned beans were starting' to steam.

I got out the little CB, set it up, and hooked it to the cable on the side board and the battery I brought along and decided to make my call in to the main ranch, bouncing' the signal off the repeater on Sheep Dip Mountain, funny thing is it didn't seem to work. I had tried it at the ranch and it worked fine, and I packed it myself so I know it was packed right... but there wasn't nothing, deader then dead, then I hooked up my little transistor radio and it wouldn't work, well now this was a fine kettle of fish- no news, no contact. So I ate my beans and drank some of the pot of coffee, and went to bed.

Riding’ line is a quiet ,lonely job, you never see a soul and seldom hear a jet although you can see the trails behind the glint of sun on metal, took me a week to notice I wasn't seeing' them either.

Well Shiloh wasn't paying' me to worry ‘bout stuff what didn't have hair on it so I forgot it and settled into a routine of riding' all over the valley making' sure none of his cows was hanging' out with them wolves...

After about 4 months I was getting a tad bit low on supplies and was looking' forward to seeing' my replacement coming' over the rim, I could then take a week off and go into... well into a different town!! Let off a bit of steam and then head back for another month or so till the snow started moving' the cows and their fat calves back down the mountains.

When the end of the 5th month came and went, I was getting' a bit pissed off and decided to saddle up and ride down and raise some hell at the main ranch.

Well sir, to make a long story short, I learned a lot on that trip, I learned about something' call EMP (it don't like radios) I learned that while I was sitting' up there in that lonely valley my country was dying , hell the world was dying. Them what the bombs and bugs didn't kill was working' hard to kill themselves off, kinda made "Mad Max' look like a cookie sale at the Baptist Church.

I did manage to find a lot of food at the ranch, no people, but nobody had looted it that I could see, and I had to ride my horse into town cause not one ranch truck would start of course, no batteries but then I didn't know ‘bout that EMP stuff yet, nor that it was a war zone.

Everybody trying' to kill each other over a can of beans. I stopped at Sheriff Bill's house on the edge of town and got all the information from the young lady I mentioned before. She asked where I was headed so I told her and she said she was coming with me , she tossed a lot of clothes in a bag and we lit out.

Well this ol’ cabin in No Sun Valley is a lot nicer with Mary here and in fact it ain’t so dark looking anymore , in fact it’s down right beautiful.

I figure we have enough meat to last forever, and that girl says she can grow food out of a rock. Which we have a lot of !

Mary says in another year or so we might go back down and look around, see if there's anybody left alive.

I wonder if it matters in the long run, We have a roof over us, we have love, and looks like pretty soon we're gonna have a new addition to this happy lil' cabin hidden away in a nook in the Valley of No Sun.

It's now some time in April near as I can tell, mostly cause the snow has give way to green grass.

The Horses and mules seemed to do ok, guess cause we had a real mild winter, maybe all that crap in the air after the bombs had something to do with it, I don't know, and really don't care.

I'm sure a lot of the cattle had it rough cause they won't dig thru the snow like a horse or mule will. But red meat is not something we are short of.

Thank god before we ran for the mountains. Mary had the sense to make me stop back at the ranch head quarters to supply better then I would have- I swear that girl packed everything but the water trough.

Seems that my little Mary was raised up in one of them churches where they put stuff by for hard times, well this is for sure hard times, maybe not so much for us but them other folks out there must be hurting'.

About my Mary, what a blessing she is, I never had much to do with all them bible pounders but I gotta say that if there ever was a real angel, it's Mary.

I asked her about how she came to be hitched to a complete horses ass like that Sheriff’s brother. She told me that she was never married to him, that she was passing' through and got stopped by the sheriff and framed on a drug charge and then told by the sheriff that if she was to take up house keeping' for his no account brother she could avoid prison. Sure seemed odd to me but then anything that ol bastard did was strange..

This was about a week before I came along. She said she took the deal cause she figured that bein' as the brother was 2 bricks short of a load she could handle him , and he didn’t bother her after she kicked his nads up in his throat… 

When she snuck out that night she was planning to find some ol' boy to get her outta town right then.

And of course my momma’s dumbest son just had to stumble into that!!

For which I thank god every day that I wake up just to watch her sleep.

Not long after we got back up here in the high lonesome, Mary told me she was in a family way, I remember standing' there yelling’ "How in the hell did that happen?!" She just started laughing' and said “Hell, cowboy. I don't know, must be something' in the water!!”

So here I stand, looking at becoming a father, stuck in these cold mountains and no doctor for who knows how many miles or even if a doc is alive out there.

To say I'm scared would be an understatement. I've helped many a young critter through birthing' but this ain't the same by a bunch!

So there I stand in the dooryard watching' the sun bounce off the peaks when "Dog" rumbled real deep causing' me to look up real quick like. Don't ask me where that mutt came from ‘cause I got no clue, but one day I came back from scouting our back trail and there he was, in the cabin, layin' by the fire looking' smug as if he just got crowned king or something'. Before I could open my mouth I got "the look" from Mary and wisely decided to shut up and accept it.

But that ol' dog was a damn good watchdog, nothing came near the cabin or Mary without knowing there was only trouble waiting' for them.

Now he's telling me there's something' coming' from the south where an old trail heads out into some really deep dark country.

Mary heard him and was standing at the door when I saw the strangest sight I ever did see; there riding out of the timber was a round dozen of what could only be.... Indian Warriors?? What the hell?? After blinking a couple of times I flicked my hand and heard Mary step back out of sight. Dog of course don't mind worth spit so he just stood there growling'- 75 pounds of dog, 150 pounds of mean.

The riders came right on towards me so I kinda shifted over to my ol' Winchester standing by the door. Guess I never thought about being out numbered but then I guess all my problems come from bein dumb , hard to believe huh?

Well they were a sight, I'll give 'em that. Eagle feathers fluttering in the breeze, buckskin vests, camo BDU's and combat boots! Only thing was they all had what looked like M-16's across their thighs.

They rode right on in as I stood there with my mouth hanging open letting' flies in. They stopped about 20 yards away and just sat there looking pretty damn mean.

Now, I was never one to look down on any man regardless of his color but right now I was feeling  like that ol' definition of democracy where 2 wolves and a sheep are voting what’s for lunch.

I knew I was a long step from my rifle and that there was no way in hell I was gonna make it so I just stood there looking' at them looking at me.

Then the door opened and beautiful, big as a house Mary walked out with a big pot of cowboy coffee and a string of tin cups and said so calmly, “Buck! Where’s your manners? ask our neighbors to light an' sit.” Then like a gentle breeze she turned and walked back into the cabin and shut the door.

So there we was, them and us looking' at each other, so I said, “Well boys. Ya heard the lady, get down and have a cup of hot java.” Well they just sat there like a stone wall of faces waiting for something.

Then ol' Dog who had been quiet rumbled again causing me to look away and there came a few more of them riding proud on them painted ponies, manes blowing in the breeze.

They rode up and the one in front said, “Well Buck? Ain't ya gonna ask us in???” I took a better look and damned if it wasn’t an old friend. His name was Willy Badger! Well now I took my first real breath since these throw backs to Custer rode into my dooryard.

One of his bucks said something in what I took to be Lakota and he smiled and nodded his head a bit.

He said something to his young men in their language and they turned them ponies and filed out and just vanished into the trees like smoke.

Willy and I sat by the fire and had our coffee with a taste of "Who Shot John" added to it (once again Mary was about a mile ahead of me), and he told Mary how we come to meet.

Seems Willy decided one night he was gonna have a drink in the local bucket of blood on a Saturday night when all the fools were out. Yours truly included, of course.

So, in walks this tall good-looking well-built cowboy 'cept he was all Plains Indian- boots and Levis couldn't change the fact.

He had hair down to his belt, and a wide smile of white teeth, and to say he had a chip on his shoulder would be an understatement.

He just walked right up to the bar and ordered a shot and a beer. Which, of course, the bartender laughed at.

Until Willy jerked him across the bar and popped his nose like a grape.

Now, I gotta say that was just about the sweetest punch I ever did see, don't think Willy's fist moved 6 inches.  I never did like that surly son of a bitch of a bartender.

Well it turned into a reverse Little Big Horn with Willy being outnumbered bout 10 to 1, and, being my mommas dumbest son I got up and joined Willy in the best losing' fight I was ever in!! Damn it was fun, till that damn ol' sheriff showed up and me and Willy got free room and board for a week!! Guess ya had to be there to understand, anyway, we been friends ever since.

I asked him what brought him out here in the lonesome, he sat back got comfortable by the fire pit and poured another cup and said “Well Buck, just before the crap hit the fan so to speak some of us in the tribe living on the Res could see it coming' a mile away from the news and some of the things the DC critters was doing' to the world.”

”So we just got everybody we could gather, loaded all we could carry and lit out up into the high country over in the Crazies where we just settled in and waited for all you whites to kill each other off, and by God ya did a fair job of it!! Gotta hand it to ya.”

”Anyway, we kept an ear out and heard all the news , seems the folks in the county decided to settle some old grudges and went at it hard.”

”We also heard you rode into town and stole a woman, and rode out like you was the king pin. That rotten ol' sheriff and his half wit brother was gonna do many bad things to you but somebody that they had screwed over decided a bit of pay back was in order.”

I asked him how so; he smiled and said “Well. Buck- think 12 ga. at about 10 feet!!” We both had a purty good laugh at that.

Anyway, he said he knew I was gonna run for the high ups and this was where he figured we'd be.

I asked about how it was down in the flat lands, he sat a bit and sighed and said “Well Buck, there's grass bending to the wind, the eagles are still flying' and the country’s settling' out like about 150 years ago, meaning' that most of the white folks have either died off or left after they realized they had burned their own town.”

He then smiled that big ol' Willy smile and said “And guess what? We own it again and we ain't given' it back!!” We both laughed so hard we ran out of air.

Mary had just sat quietly and listened and finally asked Willy for the news of Salt Lake, he looked at her a bit and softly said, “Well Miss Mary, it's gone.

What didn't get blown up was burned down, then the bugs came and that nailed the lid on the coffin. What’s there now ain't worth looking' at.”

Mary sat a moment and got up slowly, laid her hand on his arm and smiled a sad smile and said “Thank you, Willy”, then turned back to the cabin and shut the door.

We sat there a while not talking', then Willy said “Well Buck? How a rounder like you got a woman like that is beyond me”.

I asked him why he'd say that and he laughed and told me that when he rode up the buck that spoke told him there was a shotgun barrel pointed right at him!!

That Mary had seen the stand off and quietly took chips in the game unknown to me! Now, don't that beat all! We had a nice chuckle and a sip over that.

Willy asked me what I was gonna do about Mary and the baby, I said “Hell, I ain't got a clue, too late to ride out of here ‘cause she’s too close and no doc around.”

He asked when she was due and I said I didn't know. He called me the dumbest SOB he ever saw and said maybe a smart man would ask Mary.

Now, not wanting' to look like a bigger fool I just sat there sippin' my coffee a bit and then said I'll be right back cause I wanted to make sure she was ok...He just smiled.

When I came back out I sat down and poured another cup and sipped it till Willy finally said, “Well, dumb white boy, what did Mary say??”

I glared at him a moment then we both started laughing and I told him she thought like in the next 3 weeks. To which Willy said he was gonna send his wife and 2 other women over to help out and that one was a tribal midwife and one was a nurse.

Them Indian folk sure know how to prep. As soon as he stood up, the riders who had left came out of the trees all around us.

I think even Dog was a bit surprised. ‘Course he just sat there acting' like he knew all along they was there.

I called Mary out to say goodbye and to tell her the news. She was relieved, I could tell.

With that Willy mounted up and he and his Warriors slowly rode away- not a one looked back, but I'd bet my dinner there was a couple of them young Wolves watching' from the timber.

Mary and I went in and sat and talked about all that happened and what we would do after the baby came.

We for sure had to get out of the high country.

She asked where we could go and I told her I figured that the home ranch house was still standing' and we could just move in "IF" the new land owners would allow a pair of whities to settle in their valley.

In the mean time, there's a lot of Love in this valley and more coming....

I figure we got each other and soon the baby and a good friend and what more could we need?

Well I didn't know how wrong I could be but that was down the road a ways and we were here in the now. In Lonesome Valley.

2 weeks after Willy's visit.

For the last two weeks it's been quiet here in the valley, too quiet if you can get my drift. I've been watching Dog and while he ain't acting like an ant walking' on a hot skillet, he's a bit watchful.

I figure it's a few of Willy's wolves kinda babysitting' over us and Dog has it figured that they are ok by Mary, so they must be ok by him. I don't figure in much where Dog thinks.

I guess if it weren't for Mary, me and him woulda been at each others throats long ago- well maybe not that bad, but I tolerate him and he ignores me.

So I been sitting' in the sun watching' the tree line and wondering when Willy and his tribal medics will appear. I'm not one to worry ‘bout much, but for the first time in my life I have somebody counting on me to keep her safe, fed, and warm, which I'm able to do, but having' a baby fixing' to enter the scene is a different thing from normal in my life. I’m scared SHITLESS!!

I don't know if it was the clink of a horseshoe on a rock or what, but my ears perked up just as Dog rumbled a tiny bit. Of course he didn't bother to open his eyes ‘cause he had me there to do it for him. I think I could hate this damn mutt. But then maybe I'm givin' him more credit then he's due.

In time there was a stir in the afternoon and there, like they just grew out of the ground, was Willy's advanced guard riding in like before.

All ‘cept for the three riding out of the timber behind me, I knew it !!  I had been right all along and threw a sullen look at Dog as if to say "see!! Told ya so" but he was gone, right into the cabin to stand by Mary. I really do hate this mutt!!

Guess these fellers could eat me for lunch for all he cares, God save the one that goes for Mary. That's ok by me.

Well, in time Willy and a few others rode in behind the wolf pack and came right up to me. Willy slid off and handed down a short lady that turned out to be his wife.

I swear she was a ft shorter then him, but I could tell at a glance that while he wore the pants it was her that let him!!

She walked right up to me and gave me the biggest hug I’d ever had….then slugged me in the gut as hard as I've ever been hit!!

I just stood there gasping' for air while she explained in that eastern collage educated way of talking' that the hug was for bailing her stupid man out of trouble that time, the gut shot was for bein' there in that white trash joint in the first place! ... Guess the fact that I was white didn't seem to matter.

Now I don't think I understand this a bit, but after looking' at Willy who was trying give me that wise Indian look while having trouble not laughing, and also that he's not coming to my aid explained a lot,- he's scared spitless of this mountain midget!!

So, I took another look at her and saw he was right. Mary was laughing and Dog was hiding behind Mary.

Her name is Morning Dew, and she’s as pretty as a little puppy, 'cept this one has big fangs! Even the wolf pack was quietly edging their ponies back as if a run for the trees might be wise.

I was trying to introduce her to Mary but was having a lot of trouble breathing so she just took over, calling to the other two ladies they all went into the cabin and shut the door.

Then it flew open and Dog came out like a fire was burning' his butt. Now, that was a sight I'd pay to see most every day!!!

When I turned back to Willy he had both hands in front of him and was saying “Stop!!” He looked around at his men who were all busy looking around for anything they could study real hard and wanting to be anyplace but here.

He just looked at me and said, “Hey!! She’s tough to live with but I love her, so what can I do??” I did refrain from saying “We could shoot her in self-defense”, but it was tempting!!

So we sat down and just waited for her ladyship to float back out to order us mortals to do whatever she thought needed doing.

Well, in time the ladies all trooped back out just laughing and chattering like they was at one of them pick a nicks things ladies like.

You'd of thought they were as sweet as honey but I knew better, Willy knew better and the wolves?? Hell they was gone!! I had no idea just what spell this little woman had over the men around her but it was strong and flat out scary.

The upshot of it was that they decided me and Willy and a few of the pack was to ride down to the old ranch house to check it out, a few of the pack would provide security (I think there was a fight amongst them to see who had to stay here and who got to get the hell outta here!!)

Well I wasn't thinking so I just up and said “Listen lady! I'm not going anyplace, this is my woman and by god that's that.”

I don't think she blinked, nor did she lift a finger, she just smiled the sweetest smile and said “Oh. And Buck, you and Willy try to stay out of trouble ok?”

Next thing I knew I was riding out of the valley that had become our home. I don't even remember getting my nag saddled. I looked over at Willy and he just shrugged and did that hand wave that says "Don't ask"...

The ride down outta the mountains was nice, Willy filled me in on the things that he knew, seemed the bombs weren't as bad as could have been, and the bugs while they was nasty seemed to have a problem surviving' in the light of day?? Hell it didn't make sense to me but little has of late.

Anyway, things were quiet, the folks who had survived the bombs, bugs, and hell raisin’ that followed had all moved on to lower warmer places, which suited Willy and the "NATN" just fine.

Of course I had to ask as he knew I would, seems NATN stands for "North American Tribal Nation." sounded like a business corporation to me and I said so, Willy told me that all the tribes that lived in the North West had at long last come together as one nation, those that had survived that is.

And after some long talks and planning and cutting a few side deals all the tribes signed a Declaration of Independence, just like the one that our Founding Fathers wrote up, and even had a Bill of Rights!! But they changed a few, seems the second amendment is now the first! I wonder how that will play on the old beltway "IF" it still exists?

I asked Willy how this was gonna work where us white folk was concerned. He said as long as the National (think tribal here) Council approved the person or persons involved and could see that he or they would bring some skills needed for the Nation to survive then more power to them.

It sounded more like abilities and needed skills were more important then skin color. When asked, Willy looked at me like I had just spoke in some language nobody understood and said “Well hell Bro, what you think, we’re a bunch of silly savages that ain't got no schooling'??”

I sometimes forget that Willy has a few degrees and ain't a dummy.

So, says I, “Does this mean the Big guys are gonna look me over and decide?”

”Nope”. he said with a smile, “I already decided.”

Now I was confused, so I asked if he was on the Council. He said, “No, I am the council!!”

Now I was really confused, so he explained that as far as tribal business was concerned, there was a group of people who represented all the many tribes. But as for Security of tribal lands, he was the top dog and his word was law in regards to anything to do with keeping "The People' safe.

When asked just how much area fell under his control he laughed and said, well, think Montana, Idaho, Wyoming.

I damn near fell off my horse at this, and I told him he was crazy- that the feds weren't gonna let this stand. He asked me "What Feds"? Now I was beginning to get the picture of just how bad this war had been.

Seems there was/is a wanna-be federal government back east but it's real busy trying to round up all the guns and "centralize" all the food stocks.

I guess some folks were fighting this and it wasn't going too good for the Liberals who dreamed it up. But they did have some of the remaining military left and were pushing their way thru the cities east of the Mississippi.

I asked when they would start pushing across this side, he laughed and said “Maybe after they rebuild the bridges that used to be there.” The way he smiled I didn't need to ask why there weren't any big bridges left.

Seems my buddy Willy and his pals had been planning this for a long time and had prepped for it, figuring that when the balloon went up they would be ready to reclaim their high plains and mountains. Hell, I never even knew there was a balloon to go up.

I asked him how many non-Indians were left in tribal lands? He said not all that many but those that were there were good folks who weren't going to be a problem.

I guess the scope of all this hadn't soaked in on me yet. I just knew I was really wanting to be back in my valley with my Beautiful Mary, our baby and of course that damn dog.

But there was Morning Dew to think about in that regard so I just kept riding. I guess Willy is smarter then I know ‘cause he looked over with a smirk and said " Wise choice".

Morning Dew was to Willy what fire is to heat, they just go together, they just ... Are. They met in collage and she has been the force in his life ever since.

I asked him what it was that she had. The ... power? The force? That she could just by her presence control those around her?

He said he didn't know and doubted she knew, it just was and that was it. In another time they burned women like her as witches, guess I can almost understand that!! That woman’s scary, AND hits too damn hard!!

I asked about that, Willy laughed and said she had more belts then a sears catalog!! Said she had held some championships in school and was on the team. Guess he should have brought her to the bar fight that time!!

We rode on in silence awhile then one of the scouts rode up and jabbered at Willy in their tongue. He then told me that all was well and the ranch house was standing just fine and looked good 'cept for one small problem, I hate it when he makes me ask the obvious questions- he likes to play the stoic Indian too much sometimes- he’s like a kid with a new toy!

Seems a small bunch of squatters had moved in the day before and were planning to stay. I asked what we could do about it, he just smiled that damn "here we go again" smile and said “Well we’re gonna ask 'em to get out of your home!”

”And if they don't wanna move?” I asked. Then we move 'em, or bury 'em, whichever, he said.

Now it seems very final to think it like that but to hear it spoken out loud is way different!!

I looked at him and asked how he planned to handle it, he just moved his vest and there was a badge!! On closer look it was that no-account sheriffs badge!! Now I guess I know who it was that had a personal talk with him!!

Willy do amaze me, every time I think I have him figured out. But he did decide to wait till late in the night to move them out so we hunkered down in a wash a mile or so from the house and using dried wood made a pot of coffee.

When I took my bottle of "Who Shot John" out of my saddlebags Willy took it away from me and said it was against the law to have booze on tribal lands! Willy could Piss off the pope!! But I did notice he placed it in his bags!! And smiled that smile. I think I could hate him along with Dog...well maybe not.... maybe...

Well, the night passed, the coffee was gone, nothing left except to cinch up and ride on in…. into what?? We didn’t know that but I felt we were about as bad as anybody in the valley, so God help him or her squatters.

I was standing' by my Roan with my hand on my cinch when I heard a sound that once heard will never be forgotten!

The sound of a round being chambered in a 12 ga. pump shotgun is very distinctive, and as I said you don’t forget it. And it was coming' from all around us!!!

So there we were frozen in our boots with at least 10 people round us, Willy spoke at last in Lakota and I think he was saying' to his wolves that now was a time to be puppies or some such.

Whatever he said them ol' boys froze even tighter, and we waited to die or talk, whichever.

Shortly a voice said, move to your fire and build it back up then sit down and cross your legs. And that’s just what we did.

After the fire was burning a man walked into the light, He was dressed in camo and held a short barreled pump 12 ga. like he was born with it, hell, he maybe was.

He looked us over and then did a strange thing; he said quietly, “All clear”, paused and said “Yes Sir” about 3 times then seemed to relax a bit. It was then I saw the ear bud and the curly wire behind his ear. They had radio contact!!!

He looked us over then said “Well boys, somebody make coffee. The ol' man will be here in a few.” One of the pack said “We need water for coffee and it’s in the creek.”

The camoed man just smiled and said “Well, guess ya best be getting it, huh?” The young Indian stared at him a moment and stood up. The man looked at Willy and smiled.

Willy then said something to the younger man who with a cold look at the man walked out of the firelight.
In a few he was back with a bucket of cold water which was poured into the big cowboy pot and coffee grounds dumped into it and set on a rock in the fire.

We all just sat there looking' at one another and not saying' nothing. The camoed man then surprised us by sitting down and layin' his scattergun beside him.

Nobody spoke, but we knew there was a lot of people watching us. So there wasn’t a damn thing we could do. We watched him, he watched us with a tiny bit of a smile on his lips (I was wondering' how Willy was liken' somebody smiling' that ‘I know more then you’ smile at HIM for a change!!)

He was clean, his uniform was clean, his boots were in very good shape, and everything about him spoke well for him and his leader.

After a bit we heard a sound that none of us had heard for a long time. It was a vehicle engine coming at us from a ways off. After a bit we saw headlights.

When it got closer we could see it was a Hummer!! With a machinegun mounted on top just like the ones used by our former military. When it stopped a bit away from the fire we could see on the bumper painted U.S.M.C.

Now, this was getting a bit spooky cause we all knew the world as we knew it was ended. Yet here was what looked like a normal military vehicle with a normal machinegun pointing at us in an un-normal manner!!

We couldn’t see who was in it ‘cause of the glare of the fire on the wind shield, but we heard the passenger side door open and a shadowy figure stood up and up and more up.

He then said in a very deep, well educated voice, “Well well well.... lookie here what the cat dragged in, a skinny little white boy and an ugly smelly injun!!!” Now this really pissed me off! I’m 6’2” and Willy’s 6”6”.

I was caught so off guard that I never even seen Willy move, but he was not only on his feet he was running right at this giant and rammed his head right in the mans gut!! And then the damndest thing, he fell backwards!!

Now I seen Willy do that head butt to the gut in our first meeting' and he  sure as hell didn’t fall down. But there he was on his Ass looking up then he scrambled up and him and that giant shadow was a turning' and staggering' and it sounded like they was grunting' like bears 'cept I finally realized it was laughter!!

Now I gotta tell ya that I was as surprised as the day Mary said we was gonna be parents!! And that takes some surprising' I gotta say!!

Well we sat there scared to move and Willy and the giant was a stompin' all around that hummer just a bellerin' and back slappin' each other so hard I figured one or the other was gonna get a broke spine.

Well they did settle down a bit and went to huggin' like brothers, which I come to find out they was. So to speak.

When they walked into the fire light I was lookin' up at the biggest light brown black man I ever did see, he stood a head over Willy’s 6’6” and musta weighed damn near 300 lbs. and there wasn’t enough fat on him to cook an egg in… and he had the strangest thing...Bright Blue Eyes!!

He was dressed just like his trooper who was now on his feet in a sort of stiff manner, and his shotgun was back in his hand like it growed there.

I got to my feet, as did the pack, who was stunned. They never ever thought they would see their leader handled like a stepchild but also rollin' around like a kid pounding' and bein' pounded by a black giant!!

I can’t say I was used to seeing' that my own self …but I had seen him rollin' around in the broken glass of a saloon, he was winning' that time, this time he was outclassed like a freshman football team against the Dallas cowboys… well back when there was such things.

At last the big man looked at me, then the wolves, then back at me and asked Willy if this was his Army he bragged about? Whatever this meant??

Willy just smiled at him with a look of love and then they went to huggin' and back slappin' again, until the young feller with the ear bud said... “Colonel? Sir!” When he had the man's attention he said, “Sir, Delta is asking if all’s well or should they move up?”

The man had Col. Eagles on his collar tabs and he sure looked like I thought a Col. Maybe should look.. But what do I know? He said, “No Sergeant. Tell Delta I want them to join Alpha at the ranch house and set up a wider perimeter until I get some Intel from this warhoop here“.

Willy just smiled a real smile, to my shock.  I seen him try to knock a man's head off for making less of a slur about his bein' an Indian. This was getting too strange for me but there I was, in trouble because of Willy again, well maybe not trouble, but it was sure strange!! Delta?? Alpha? Next maybe it would be Charlie and Baker…

I needed a drink and I knew where there was one, in Willy’s saddle bags, so I helped myself. I took a long pull and the Col. reached for it and he took a slug.  I told him that Willy didn’t allow booze on tribal lands. The Col. busted out laughing and said,
”So right!!

Everybody knows these red savages can’t hold their drink!!” He then handed the bottle back to me, but it was jerked out of my hand by Willy who took a deep pull and smiled at us both like a kid with his hand in the cookie jar… Then introduced the man, his name was so help me God……. Ebony Black !! Talk about daddy’s with strange humor!!

Me and the Col. both busted out laughing!! Now that big man knowed a bit about laughing!! He laughed so deep in his gut the boulders around us kinda shimmied a bit… small critters moved well away in case of a landslide.

I know one thing, I liked this big man right away, he has something… a kind of a …something… You just know that if you hung with him and if it don’t get ya killed, you’re gonna have a lot of fun and adventures!!

But I have a woman and a soon-to-be baby up in that dark shadowy valley so I headed to my horse.

I told Willy I was heading back up to the valley to be with Mary. The Col. overheard that and asked what was going on.

I explained about the baby coming soon and my need to be with her. He turned to his aide and told him to arrange transport to the valley and if I wished for Mary and the other ladies to be brought out.

Now I found this strange to be  standing right by my transport and hearing the Col. tell his  to man to arrange transport.

When he saw me looking at him with a perplexed look he explained that he had “resources” at his disposal to handle things in a speedy manner.

At that I heard a faint sound in the distance. As time went by it became apparent it was a chopper! Then it swept around the hillside and started settling down about 100 yds. away. Well, the horses weren’t having' none if this and let us know, so for a bit there it was rodeo time!!

I was about to fulfill a long time dream and shoot that damn roan, when he read my mind and settled down and acted like it was my fault…I hate that horse…

Now the Col. came back over after the horses were settled down and with a twinkle in his blue eyes asked if we would like him to shoot them!! HA  !!! I was all for it!! But Willy and his pack looked shocked.

He said that he would explain all he knew to us soon, how he got to be here, why, and what’s going on out in the world, all of it. But that for now he felt that getting my wife (?) down to the ranch to have the baby was more important. I agreed with that wholeheartedly but asked his plan.

He said that the chopper would haul one of his medical staff, a doctor and a corpsman, but that with Mary and the 3 women from Willy’s group there wasn’t room to carry me in and out, so I said I’d ride out with the rest of the scouts Willy left as security.

Willy then explained that his wife was an RN and that the corpsman wouldn’t be needed, so there I was about to take my first chopper ride. It’s hard to act cool and unruffled in the face of fear!! But I was damned if Willy or that smug Col. were gonna see me sweat.

We loaded up after Willy and I showed the pilot just where the valley was located, and Willy wrote a note for his wife explaining to her what was going on and to make sure the security man didn’t shoot at the chopper. After tying a red streamer onto the rock with the note attached we took off… after we were up and moving forward I have to say it was an awesome thing!! Having never been in a chopper, I wasn’t prepared for the thrill. I was hooked!! If the Col. would have me I was joining his Army!!  IF I could learn to fly one of these things!!!

We made the long day’s horseback ride in about 30 minutes I think. As we flew over the valley and headed for the cabin I was hooked into a safety strap and stood in the door waving at the people I could see around the cabin yard.

Nobody was shooting at us but they were all armed and looking. As we passed over, the crew chief tossed out the rock and streamer. Looking back I saw it hit and one of the wolves ran to it.

We banked around the valley and slowly flew back towards the cabin. I could see Morning Dew waving her arms, so we settled down a ways away from them.

I jumped out and slammed down on my back, knocking the wind out of me! The doctor looked down and smiled and said, “Son, when jumping out, it’s best to unhook the safety strap…” Add a name to my hate list!! I was gonna need a tablet just for these names!!

I got up slowly and unhooked with doctor’s help and headed for the cabin, where Morning Dew was waiting and laughing… and of course Dog, who was smiling…god I hate 'em all…

Morning hugged me and I cringed waiting for the jackhammer blow to the gut, but it never came… she smiled and said Joe, you’re too tense, you need to relax…

Never mind, you already know I hate her too… I tried to kick Dog as I passed him but missed cause Morning shoved me saying, “Be nice!!”…. Right….
I all but ran into the cabin and there sat Mary, beautiful as ever. I would say radiant but I’m not sure how to spell it.
And big as a house!! How had she gotten so big in just 24 hours?? Well I tried to not crush her with my hug, then just sat looking at her until some dust got in my eyes and I had to let her go to wipe them out. Choppers sure raise a lot of dust…

Well, it took about 5 minutes to bring them up to speed about the flight out and to see alarm come into the ladies’ eyes- even Morning Dew looked scared!! I should feel shamed by the happy feelings I got from seeing her look scared… but I’m not, sometimes I’m a small person! But it was so nice!! A memory I shall treasure.

Well, in a short time the doctor checked Mary out and said she was doing fine and he thought she still had at least a week to go, but that the chopper ride might speed things up… Wonder how??

In another 30 minutes we were packed as much as possible and were ready to fly out. The two ladies who arrived with Morning Dew (I never got their names) decided they would rather ride out as fly out, which left a lot of room so to speak.

After everybody had backed off, the pilot slowly raised it up and we were moving forward and gaining altitude.

As Mary and I watched our peaceful valley home disappear I think we both wondered if we would see it again…. It was the first real home I’d ever had and the happiest I had ever been…holding my Mary close to me we now rode into a future of which we had no clue……….

If I was expecting' Mary to be scared of the chopper I was for sure wrong, she was like a kid on a carnie ride! I had to hold her to keep her from leaning out the door.

As I shifted I felt something nudge my foot, lookin' down I see Dog lookin' back at me!! How in the hell that mutt got on board was beyond me.

I was thinking that a gentle nudge with my boot would maybe give me the last laugh.

Well, just then Mary’s elbow slammed into my ribs and that witch woman of Willy’s kicked my shin. Both was again' at me like I was slime. “What?!!” I asked.

Both just stared and shook their heads…how do they do this? I wondered… Dog- that SOB, was just layin’ there smiling, first that  roan, then Dog!! Both on the same day. I smiled at the thought, and got another elbow and a kick…I had to stop thinking around these two or I was gonna be a mass of hurts.

So I just closed my eyes and acted like I was sleeping'. Mary leaned over and said “Joe! I can hear your thoughts so behave!” And Morning Dew laughed out loud! I really could learn to hate her , 'cept I already do…

Well, soon the chopper was coming in to land at the ranch yard. After it shut down we climbed out- me helping Mary down, then Morning Dew stuck her hand out for help. HA, like she couldn’t just fly down, but that thought got me elbowed again…

So I smiled the biggest false smile I could and took her hand and helped her down, which earned me a smile back.

As the women walked towards the house, Willy walked up and laughed at me and said, “You ain’t never gonna learn are you?”  I hate him…

The Col. walked up in that big cat way of moving' he had and said “Well, Tex? How was the flight?”

I told him that it was awesome, and that if I could join his army I’d love to learn to fly.

He looked at me with pity and said, “Joe, first it’s a Marine unit, not an Army unit. If you’re going to join us you have to learn the difference.” Fine! Whatever!

I was gonna kiss whatever butt I had to, ‘cause I really wanted to fly one of them things. Then that damn roan was dead for sure!!

He said there would be a meeting at 1600. I asked 1600 what? He just looked at me and said uh huh; well, we will get to that soon. And walked away.

As he was leaving he turned and said “William, I’d be pleased if you could smooth the edges off Tex.”  William????

Well I stood there awaitin' for ‘William’ to kick this upstart’s butt all the way back to California but instead Willy just said, “Yes Sir, consider it done Sir!”

This was too  much for me. I went off lookin' for Mary, who was holed up in the house with Dog guarding' the door.

When I went to step over him the damn fool growled at me. This was getting to be to [censored] much, so I just reached down and grabbed him by the back of his neck and jerked him off the ground and I’ll be hung if he didn’t go to yelping' and whining and acting like I was killing' him.

The door flew open and Mary said “Joe put the dog down and get in here, NOW please.” And before I could toss him over the porch rail, she said gently Joey….”

So I sat him down “gently” and that mutt limped, yes LIMPED into the house like he had a broke leg. I followed him in tryin' to boot him as I did but was under the evil eye of the Witch of the Indian nation, who was smirkin' at me.

Why did I ever come out of the mountains? Why didn’t I stay in there? But then I wouldn’t have Mary. Then again I wouldn’t have that GD Dog or the witch for that matter.

All of who was lookin' at me, so I stopped thinking so they couldn’t hear my thoughts and sat down.

I figured to shoot the next SOB what crossed me. Which got me a sweet smile from Mary. How do she do that??

So there I sat, holdin' my thoughts and waitin' for the next bad thing to happen to me.

I looked around the room and could see that it was spotless clean, and it had never been that before in my memory.

I figured the Mountain Witch had just waved her hand and conjured up some critters from hell to clean it.

I quickly cleared that thought and sat there lookin' innocent which didn’t seem to be fooling' anybody, even Dog was glaring at me. But that’s ok ‘cause I know his day is coming' …soon!!

Well, with that pleasant thought I tipped my hat down and just nodded off.

Well sir in the days following the arrival of the Col. and his troops I learned that my ol’ buddy Willy, “William” to the Col., had served with the Col. in a lot of places where folks didn’t seem to take a hankering to them. Both had saved each others’ lives a bunch.

I was surprised to find out that ol' “William” had been in the Marines and also that he was in some super Marine thing called Forced Recon.

I figured if they was all that hot why’d they have to be forced to do whatever they was doing', and made the mistake of saying' so, which earned me a look from the Col. and William, not to mention the troops who heard me.

If I didn’t wanna learn to fly that chopper so bad I’d have us heading home to the valley soon as Mary has the baby and can ride, but I’m a sell out, I really wanna fly that  thing.

If I can’t do that I figure sitting' in that door with that gun would be almost as good. Maybe have an accident when I was flying' over the dog or that roan!! Now there’s a thought…made me smile, which caused the Col. to stop talking' and ask me if I was sick or sum thin’.

Anyway, seems ol' Willy had talked a lot at night to the Col., who was a Capt. back then, telling him all about how he had folks getting ready for the big whooptedo, and that got the capt./col. thinking.

Willy got hit and hauled out for repairs, which got him sent home with a check coming' in every month.

When the Capt. got back home he decided to start talking' to a few of his most trusted men, who then talked to the ones they knew was smart enough to keep their mouths shut.

Well, in time it growed a bunch and then growed a lot more. The Capt. was by now a major and was slowly building a private army…uh marine corps on a small scale.

Being a planner he saw that he needed some folks on the outside, so he talked to some of them ol' boys that was not lifers. They got out when they was due and then stayed local kinda, most got into law enforcement and all joined the local Marine reserve units. Some got married, but not till they made sure their wives were gonna fit in with the whole thing.

A lot of the couples was both Marines. Women Marines, who’d a thunk?? Anyway, as time passed the Capt. who was now a Col. built up his plan and his troops. He had people planted in most of the different units and a lot was in the supply places and the weapons’ depots and armory’s, they was tank drivers and plane drivers and chopper drivers- they was in all walks of the Corps.

Now, something like this can’t be hid too long, and one day the Col. got a call to come see the General, who sat him down and asked him just what was going' on.

Well, the Col. and the Gen. went way back, so the Col. just laid it all out for him without naming any names. The Gen. sat there a bit and said “I agree Col. I think we will see it happen before too long, and all hell’s gonna break loose.’

The Gen. then asked just where the bunch would head so the Col. told him about Willy’s plan to take back the northwest for the Indian folks, and said he figured maybe Willy would go for some help holdin' it from whoever came later.

The Gen. told the Col. to call him if he ran into any flack (whatever that is), and he would cover his goins' on.

Well, in time it all happened- bombs of some sort, bugs that wasn’t too good at bein' bugs but killed a whole lot of folks anyway, then the riots and fires and general hell raisin’ that was goin' on killed off a whole bunch more.

In the meantime EB (the Col.) and his bunch was holed up in a far flung area so far out in the boonies of the base that nobody much bothered with them. Them that did? Well, they stopped bein’' a bother, to anybody, Some was accepted in cause they was marines and had skills.

The Col.'s cop friends showed up with a lot of special cop gear that they thought might be needed. His Reserve troops showed up driven' whatever they could drive off with at their reserve places.

When all was said and done, he had what he called a heavy battalion complete with tanks and choppers and cannons of some type- I think they was 105’s???

Anyway, he had brought it all together and when it was time, they loaded the tanks onto lowboys ‘cause I guess ya can’t drive a tank to Montana. All but a couple of choppers was loaded up on flatbeds ‘cause it seems they need a lot of working' on so ya don’t waste hours.

I guess the big guns have their own trucks and have wheels, and can be dragged behind the trucks that’s hauling' the ammo for them.

One bright sunny day about 6 months after the blow up they just rolled right out and headed north  Wives kids dogs and cats… Well, I guess it was a sight to see, after the survivors thought it was all finished they hear a roar and see the whole damn Marine Corps driven' right down the road.

Most folks just took off a running' but some came out and waved and smiled and yelled “Go get ‘em boys!!”

The Col. was kinda sad telling about them folks, but he said that if the country was gonna have a chance he had to get to Montana and get ready to finish the battle with whoever was out there waitin' to come in and take over.

I guess people are really stupid ‘cause several times during their trip they had to pull over to deal with bunches of fools who thought they was the kings of the road, and figured to take the hummers and stuff from the scouts, not knowing' that only a few miles away a bunch of 105’s was being set up to pay a house call.

The scouts would just relay the info and the guns would speak and that was all she wrote. They did lose a few people on the trip but none of the folks who killed them lived long, and then the Marines buried their dead and moved on much as they always have.

Once a bunch of biker types who had taken over a town and raped and tortured the locals made a mistake, they hit a scout rig, and killed the 2 male marines but took the 2 women marines for toys.

When the troops heard the story over the radio from another scout team the Col. asked if they wanted to shell the town or go in and deal with the scum. Well, hell, that was a loaded question that even I could see.

Of course they wanted to do it the old fashion way. Hey diddle diddle, straight up the middle!!!

Well, the recon team was goin in and cut throats, and the troops who won the coin toss stripped down to just weapons and camos and faces darkened. 

They slowly slid into town and holed up waitin' for light. In the meantime, the recon team went in and located the 2 gal marines.
Both was still alive and was bein' saved for trading' to another gang that was coming' in at day break, or so the scouts overheard from the fools sitting' around the fires getting drunk.

So after telling the Col. what was goin' to happen come daylight, the Col. sent another unit around to cover the way in from the other side, and they would let the bad guys in but nobody was getting out…alive.

The scouts laid low to cover the 2 women and waited for the show to start.

And start it did. Come about 30 minutes after full sun up here comes a thundering' about 50 dudes on Harleys, followed by several old trucks and cars followed by another bunch of bikers.
Well, them dummies just rolled right in like they owned the place, and all the ones in town come out, and they was back slappin' and carrying' on like fools all the while death was just waitin' to visit.

The scouts eased into the house and got the ladies who asked for weapons and were armed right there. Well, it was decided that when they came for the gals the scouts would kill them with blades and then the gals would step to the door and open up with them machine guns they all had. and that’s what they did.

The door opened and 2 bikers walked in and said “Come on you bitches- you been sold to some real nice folks”, then they both just kinda gurgled as they got cut from one side to the other.
Then the ladies opened the door and said “HOWDY BOYS!!”,opened up with full auto fire and just hosed them BG’s.

Then the rest of the unit opened up on them, some made it to bikes and roared away, but on a small rise was 4 snipers who had a good time till the bikes got around a corner and some trees, then came several loud blasts, something called claymores, cut them to ribbons.

Well, not a one of them losers made it- some was still kicking' but got to watch a Marine in black face bend over and cut their throats, musta been a bad way to go. But they all got what they had coming'.

The troops found a few women alive, just, the Doc’s  got them cleaned up and dressed and then they just piled the dead in buildings and torched them. The bikes were salvaged as future “scout” wheels if they needed to infiltrate someplace.

Well ‘bout this time I heard a lotta yelling' from the house and seen the doctor a running' for the door so I took off and made it just as the door slammed in my face.

Now I was pissed! Whatever was goin' on involved my Mary and I was gonna shoot somebody when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

Turning' I looked at the Col. who said “Joe, there comes a time when every man has to just sit down and be quiet. This is your time”, all with a smile. Without much effort he eased me over to a chair and then sat down next to me. Then he opened a bag and pulled out a bottle of really good scotch which he opened and passed to me saying', “lets drink to your son Joe.” “I got a son”, I thought, but that can’t be. The baby ain’t here yet.

So I took a drink and passed it to the Col., who took a slug and then handed it to Willy who was back to playin' injun and sneakin' up on me. Willy sat down and took a drink, then the Col’s. Dog robber came up and offered us all a cigar.

Well, that was sure nice of him so I thanked him, which got a look of surprise from them all. The Col. smiled and said “There is hope for you yet, Joe!!” and him and Willy both laughed. I don’t know what was so funny, but I figured I’d smile and I did.

So there we sat, waitin' for my son to get here and me shaken' like a hound passim' a peach seed!! So the Col. passed the bottle back for another round, which went down real well and that cigar was tasting' pretty good.

About then I heard Mary let out a scream and I was out of the chair, but was grabbed and sat down by both them traitors.

The Col. said “Joseph” (which I hate) “have a drink and sit at ease- the doctor is doing just fine.” I asked him if the doc had delivered many babies, and the Col. smiled that smile and said “No, but he did care for my horse once…”

I started out of the chair again when I heard a loud scream, this time from a baby! Well I gotta say, I lost all my air. I mean my lungs was flat out empty. I guess I was turning' blue cause the Col. pulled me forward and slapped my back so hard I think I lost more breath 'cept I didn’t have none, then I was breathing' and he passed the bottle with a smile and said “Congrats Joe!!”

”I’m a daddy”, I thought, “I got a baby, and I need a job!!” I was thinking some really weird stuff when the door opened and the doc stepped out and said “Congratulations Joe!!”

I just stood there looking at the doc, and felt my world tilt, then I stammered “Is Mary ok?” He smiled again and said “She’s fine Joe.”

”Can I see her?” I asked; he said “In a bit, were cleaning her and the baby up now.” I nodded dumbly thinking “Well, hell, the kid’s brand new. How in the hell could he get dirty so fast??”

Before I could make an ass outta myself, the mountain witch jerked the door open and yelled, “DOCTOR!!! NOW!!!”

Oh god, I started forward but the door slammed in my face. I stood there, mouth opening and closing like a land locked fish, then Mary screamed and I lost it- my Wife was dying and I was stuck here, not able to do a thing.

Big tears were running down my face. I really planned to shoot the doc when he came out again. Willy put his arm around my shoulders and hugged me to him, the Col. put a hand on my arm.

Neither said a word, but both were worried. It was quiet now, too quiet. Then my baby started crying again. My heart was breaking. How could we survive without Mary?

Finally the door opened slowly again, and the doc came out with a funny look on his face. He said, “Joe you have a baby”. “I know that!” I yelled, “but I ain’t got my Mary!!” And I would have had him but for the two fools hanging on to me.

The doc looked at me and said, “Joe? What in the blue blazes of hell are you stammering about?” I said, “Well, hell, my Mary’s gone and I have a baby I can’t care for.”

Doc took the bottle out of Willy’s hand, took a big slug and handing it to me said, “Drink, Joe! Doctor’s orders!” I took a drink, a big one, and then sagged down into the chair.

The doc, sat down and said, “Joe, I’m a good doc. I’ll admit I never delivered a baby before, so I don’t know what new fathers are all about, but I think you’re confused. Mary is fine, The ladies are cleaning her up now.”

I just stared at him then I guess my brain caught up with my heart and I stammered “Mary’s ok?”  “Yes Joe”, he said.  “And my baby’s ok?”  “Well”, he said, “there is a problem there.” I again felt my heart die, then he said “Joe? Maybe you better come in and see for yourself.”

Well, they pulled me up and held me as I started the longest walk of my life. At the bedroom door the Witch was smiling as big as I ever did see.

Figures- something’s wrong and she’s in hog heaven. She stood aside as I walked past. I opened the door, and straightened up and told myself that I was Hozay Buck, and by god I could deal with this no matter how bad it was!

Inside the room in the bed was the most beautiful woman in the world- my Mary. She smiled and said “Come on Joe, see what you did”. Well, it couldn’t be too bad ‘cause she was smiling, so I walked over and looked down.

OH MY GOD!!! My poor baby had two heads- both nursing at Mary’s breast! I just stood there scared to show the terror in my mind.

And then Mary said, “Well, hell Joe- ain’t ya never seen Twins??…” Twins? TWINS??? What the hell, I gentle pulled the covers back and there was two tiny pairs of feet all kinda curled up and pink lookin'. “Twins?” I said.  “Yep, twins.“  Mary said, with a smile as big as a house.

I knelt by the bed and laid my head on her shoulder and watched my babies nursing, and then I cried, a deep racking chest-hurting, breath-taking cry, the kind that pulls your soul out and shakes it around.

All the while Mary’s hand was running thru my hair.  When I finally got my breath and was composed, I asked her about the babies…baby with a big S…two new mouths to feed. What was I gonna do? No job, no money coming' in, I was foundering. Then Mary took my hand and said, “Joe, it’s going to be alright, ok?” I nodded but wasn’t convinced.

Mary then said “Well, what do you think?”  “About the what?” I asked.  “Why, the babies- you damn fool!!” She laughed around the tiredness in her face. I just stood there and then said “Are they ok? I mean are they...uh..you know..are they all there? All the fingers and toes? 2 eyes?”

Mary just smiled at me with those beautiful eyes shining’ and said “Yes Joe, they are perfect! Now we aren’t going to name them right this minute, ok?”  “Sure” I said  Hell, I never once thought about a name- some dad I was gonna be.

I knew Mary was beat- she was nodding off as I watched.  As I stood there and watched my babies nursing, I realized I was as happy as I had ever been in my life, but I also realized that my saddle tramp days were over. It was time to get a job of some kind, even if the world had ended I needed to feed my family, keep a roof over them, all the things I guess I never had in my own childhood.

Dad died on a hill in Korea, Mom worked her heart out and I wasn’t the best kid a mom could have- hell, I wasn’t even the next to best kid. If there was a way to find trouble and then get into it, well there I was. That ol' song about Momma Tried always comes back to me.

After mom died- most likely of overwork and a broken heart- I just took to drifting', from Texas to Alaska to Montana and back and forth a lot, wherever I could find a place to hang my hat until I had a few paychecks to rub together then I was gone like a ghost in the wind.
I always gave all I had on the job, but the day I was hired I was already leaving, an old truck and a good bedroll, a few pairs of jeans, my hat and an old 30-30 to get meat when the jobs weren’t there. It was a good life and I did love it.

But the time with Mary at the cabin had showed me all I needed to know about the better things in life.
And now I needed to get to doing'. I bent down and kissed her on the forehead, then with fear in my heart kissed my two …Hell, I didn’t even know if I had girls or boys, on their heads and smelled the fresh baby smell for the first time in my life, and I gotta say it beats even a pot of coffee boiling' over the fire on a cold fall day up high.

I walked out as quiet as I could, and gently shut the door behind me, and there in the room was the whole bunch of them.
The mountain witch came over and hugged me and said “Joe? I don’t know how a busted- down broke-assed grub line rider like you did it, but I swear those are the two best looking babies I ever saw.”

Thank god Mary is so beautiful. (I knew she would nail me, it’s her nature, the nature of the beast, but!! I hid the thought!!!) Then all the people ganged around me and shook my hand and congratulated me as if I had done something.

After all that I went out and sat on the porch and started thinking. Then Willy and the Col. came out and sat down.
Willy asked what I was so quiet about. I told him about how I had to get to work and find a good home for my family and get a job to support them.

Well that ol' Col. surprised me...again. He said “What in the blue blazes of hell are you babbling' about NOW, Joe?’
I said “You heard me.  I gotta get to getting, and I got mouths to feed!!”
He laughed at me and said ”Joe, we have a country to build. We have an army to feed. Who do you think is better with cows? You or me?” I said “Well sir, I believe I am.” He said “See Joe? You can think!!”

So? I asked him, “what’s that got to do with me?”   He said “Joe? Who do you think is going to run this meat-on-the-hoof place? I sure can’t, and this damn injun thinks them cows are pincushions for his wolf pack’s arrows.”

”So, somebody’s got to raise this beef to feed the army that we are building, so we can build a country. Now Joe, which part of that do I need to draw a picture of so you can understand it?”

I said “Col.? Are you saying’ you want me to run this ranch?”  “Well, good, Joe! You got it!!” he said. I just sat there and thought a bit and then said, “Does the house go with it?” They both laughed and the Col. said, “Welcome home, Joe.”

So I had a job, we had a home, and we could grow our own food. Of course there is a down side- I still hadn’t figured how to kill that damn Dog without getting caught, so I put that thought on the back burner before it was picked up by…well I killed that thought too.

Well, it had been a few hours since I became a dad, twice! And I was now thinking better- having a home for my family was a biggie, and who could object to having’ a cattle ranch dropped on ‘em?

The Col. talked about the plans for the area and how he and Willy would work it all out. Their plan, now that the Marines had landed, were a lot different then they was before. Willy and his folks was hopin' to hang on to a lot of real estate, and now it looked like they was gonna make a better shot at it.

I was pretty happy bein’ left to just cowboy- hell, it’s all I know anyway, that and goin’ to town once a month and getting drunk and in a fight. ‘Course them days was gone and I wasn’t gonna miss ‘em.

It’s funny how things change when you own something, I mean I was lookin’ at that roan as a asset ‘stead of a liability.  Guess now that he was mine I wouldn’t shoot him. I could still hate him, but it was different now. Makes ya wonder, don’t it?

Mary was resting' and the babies was too, so I wandered over to the ol’ bunkhouse and packed up my gear that I didn’t take last time- my goin’ to town boots and a few good shirts, just stuff like that. Sure didn’t look like much for a man's life but my real treasure was sleeping’ in the house, and I was feeling' pretty darn rich, I gotta tell ya.

Willy wandered over and asked me what I had in mind for help around the place. I said I had no idea.

He said he had about 10 of his men didn’t seem to wanna play Indian and all had some ranch work behind ‘em. I said “well how am I gonna pay ‘em?”

He just laughed and said, “Damnit Joe, there’s no money yet.  They will be happy to have a roof over their heads and a full belly.”

Now, I sure couldn’t argue that ‘cause that damn Shiloh sure wasn’t going broke paying' me wages, so I said “Well, with that many hands, I don’t think nobody’s gotta work themselves to death.”

I asked if any of them had families he said 2 did, so I said “Well, if they want to bring ‘em we can put one family in the Foreman’s house and the other in that guest house ol’ Shiloh kept for his hunting buddies. A man needs his family with him.  I sure knowed that a bunch!!”

Willy said they would all show up in the next few days and would bring more horses with them.

He also told me that a few of the Col.’s trucks was hauling in trailer loads of new livestock. I looked at him a moment, then the light went off in my head and I yelled “NO. Not a chance in hell!! No way , not now , not ever!” He just stood there and said “Joe, you know my people can’t eat cows too long, or they start turning’ white!!

I said “I will not have a damn sorry assed buffalo with in a country mile of me, you know how I feel about them things! They tear down all the fences!! They walk over anything that gets in their way, which is everything. They ain’t nothing but trouble!!”

”Joe”, Willy said, “first of all, why do we need fences? We own all the land for days in every direction. Secondly, you don’t have to brand, rope or chase them all over creation. Third,  they taste better then cows and Fourth, they got more meat on ‘em.

And Joe... I really hate to bring this into it, but …my wife loves buffalo.” Well, right there he won the argument. I might face a pissed-off grizzly bear but I was not gonna tangle with the mountain Witch! I looked at him and said “Willy, I really could learn to hate you!”

He smiled and said “As much as the roan??? Or dog??” That set me back on my heels a bit. I had to admit it was a close race but the horse was still out in front ‘cept he was off the hit list, and I knew if I harmed a hair on that [censored] mutt’s sorry ass I was dead. Her royal witchiness would see to it.

Finally, I said “So, how many of these walking mountains do I have to put up with?”  “Oh, not many.  Maybe a couple hundred… to begin with.”
I just looked at him and said “Fine! Now go away!” He asked me how my two ...uh “By the way, Joe, what are they?” I said “They’s babies ya damn fool”.  “I know” he said “but, uh, what kinda plumbing' they got???”

I was struck dumb. I was so wrapped up in finding out we had a home I plumb forgot to ask Mary!! I took off at a run and hollered back, “Go fetch your  walking' hair piles I got stuff to do!!” I could hear him laughing' loudly as I ran. I really could hate him….

I was outta breath when I hit the door and “She” or maybe that’s “IT” opened the door and said “If you wake them up, I will hurt you Joe….” I know I do hate her, quietly and in private…

Before I could open my mouth and get into deep trouble Mary's voice called out from the bedroom, “Morning Dew, it's ok.  I was awake.” She turned toward the door and in a childish moment I stuck my tongue out at her.  “I saw that, Joe!” she said. Now I really was afraid of her, she really is a witch!!

I entered the bedroom and found Mary sitting up in bed.  She had brushed her long hair and looked so beautiful it took my breath away.

I pulled a chair over to the bed and sat down and took her hand, and said “Baby- I gotta know, do we have girls? Or boys?”  She said “Yes, Joe.  We do.”  I said “No, honey.  I mean are they girls or boys?” She smiled and said “Yes dear.  They are.”  Now I was getting kinda frustrated and then it hit me. WE GOT BOTH!!! One of each!! A son and a daughter!! I looked into those blue eyes and said, “how did you do that?” she laughed and said, “why Joe? YOU did that to me!” Well, now I was really flummoxed. I guess I just never learned about these things. She pulled me to her and hugged me tight and whispered in my ear that she would explain it all to me later.  That was ok by me.

I told her all about the talk with the Col. and Willy- about the ranch and the house and the Indian cowboys that would help with it all. I didn’t mention that Willy stuck it to me with buffalo because I was sure she would think it was a wonderful idea. ‘Course she never had to rebuild fences the brutes tore all to hell.
When a buffalo decides to go from where he is to where he thinks he wants to be, nothing much is gonna stop him.  If he can’t walk thru it, then he will go around it, but walking’ thru is first choice and in a battle of wills the fence ain’t got a chance.

But I must admit that I do love lookin’ at them, there is something about them that seems magical, like for a bit, time stood still.  And I guess if we don’t have to mend fences, then what does it matter? So I guess it will all be just fine.

Mary and I talked about the old house and what she wanted to do with it. She was so happy to know she had a home with room to move around in and that with the babies we were closer to friends and help if we needed it.

She had never let on that she was worried about things like that and it made me feel bad that I never gave it a thought.

A week later, Mary was looking just like she did the first time I met her, slim and beautiful.  How they do that I don’t know- just add it to a long list of things I don’t know. A bit heavier in the topside department, but the kids had to eat too so that was fine.

And this was a special day.

With a surprise for Mary, I had asked her to dress up special and then I had gone to the bunkhouse and showered and shaved and got all duded up in my goin’ to town duds and when I heard the sound of Hummers coming I headed over to the house. Mary came out onto the porch with a baby in each arm so I took one.

She watched the parade of vehicles pulling into the ranch yard. Out of the trees came a file of ponies each with an Indian rider, and Willy and Morning Dew, who I had made a truce with. She really ain’t too bad a person- in fact she went way up in value with helping Mary after the babies came and that’s a good thing.

So, we watched the parade filling the front yard and a couple of big ol’ army trucks driven’ in behind it all.

When every body had piled out and was gathered at the porch and it had got quiet, an older man came forward with the Col. He had some kind of rank thing on one collar and a cross on the other.

When he stood in front of us he smiled and said “Hello Mary. I’ve heard a great deal about you and I’m so happy to meet you at last. I’m Major Collins, Chaplin to the Col.’s unit.”

Mary was looking sorta confused so I turned to her and said  “Mary? I ain’t much but between us we brought two of the most beautiful children into the world. Will you marry me?” Well, her eyes filled and ran down her cheeks and she said “YES!!”

So, there on the steps with the strangest guests ever to attend a wedding all grouped about, all armed to the teeth, with Willy as my best man and Morning Dew as bride’s maid, Mary and I said our “ I Do’s”- each holding a baby in our arms.

Oh, I almost forgot, all witnessed by young William Joseph and Spring Morning Buckminster (I do hate that damn Willy for telling the world my real name!)

We then headed to the barn, where the two big trucks had been unloaded and a wedding feast had been laid out all compliments of the Col. and his troops.

Some times things not only go good, they actually get better! But ya gotta know that somewhere around lurks that damn Murphy.

Things were so happy at our new home that neither of us noticed how time flew past. Fall came, then winter blew in with a rage. We had spent the fall getting in firewood and harvesting a garden, the old root cellar was pretty full as was the cold room where we hung the smoked hams and bacons from a pig farmer a few ridges over.

One of Willy’s folks drove in with an old truck one day shortly after we got settled in and brought a truck loaded with chickens, so, looked like ham and eggs were gonna be a staple around here, and that’s a good thing. We had plenty of grain to grind for breads and such.

We were well stocked and supplied and ready for a long winter. We had cut hay in the places it grew without irrigation and stacked it the old fashioned way in beehives, using the old tractor and the tools stored with it. That helped a great deal.
So, when the snow got really bad we could feed the stock, the buffalo Willy had brought in were on their own until they noticed the feeding going on and then the fences would come down and they would join the cattle. Guess we couldn’t have it all, but would deal with it when it was time came to do so.

We had gone hunting too, and dropped some Elk and some Deer, so we tossed that in the mix, too. It was kinda like living about 125 years ago, but with some modern stuff tossed in.

It was turning out to be a great life. The wives of the two cowboys had taken over cooking for the crew, which was good because Mary had her hands full.

She had been a bit put out at being excluded from the ranch chores that were usually handled by the ranch women but the 2 gals sat her down and explained that she was dealing with 3 babies ( that pissed me off!! So I pouted for a while) and she needed to deal with that and they could handle the other things just fine.

She told them she flat out wasn’t going to be the “White” ranch wife who let people take care of her, and they all got to laughing and soon things were fine, except for that 3rd baby remark.  It really got my goat when I found out the one that said it was the sister to the mountain witch!! Well that apple sure didn’t fall far from the tree.

Mary told me if I ever referred to her as the Mountain Witch around Morning Dew she would fix me good. Well, now that didn’t sound too good, so I don’t!

Things were just going too good and I was cringing, waiting for Murphy to show his scraggly ass around here. It got so bad that Mary kicked me out of the warm house and told me to take a couple of the men and go check the cattle.

Well, that sounded ok, so I got my old heavy riding coat and headed out the door. I went to the bunkhouse and asked if anybody wanted to take a ride. Well sure 'nuff them ol’ boys was bored too, so the whole bunch saddled up and we headed out to see what we could see.

It was a pleasant day. The sun was out and the wind had died down so we were enjoying it. We split off into pairs and spread out just lookin’.

I was teamed up with the man who was the foreman. I don’t have a clue how it was decided by them but that was it. Tom was the crew boss.

He was the one who was married to Morning Dew’s sister. After a while, I asked him how he got along with her. He looked at me and said, “I don’t.” Well, that got my ear so I made a come on gesture with my hand. He said “Well, within the tribe the women have their place, and the men have theirs so I never need to deal with her.”

”I also am smarter then you White Man,  when she shows up I get the hell outta there!” We both laughed at that. I thought he might be onto something, so I made a deal that the next time he knowed she was coming’ over, to warn me and we could ride out and find a place to have a fire and make a pot of coffee and wait her out.

He agreed to that idea, so now we could both be safe. He also said he didn’t know what she had, but whatever it was scared the crap outta almost all the men who came around her, and the ones that weren’t scared of her, were scared of Willy, so it was pretty well agreed on by all that the place to be was away from her.

Well, I was real happy ‘cause I now knowed I wasn’t the only one scared of her. He also said that Willy was real careful around her. I seen that too.

The quiet was shattered by rifle fire and startled both of us. We took off towards the firing and broke over a hill right in time to meet a wolf pack on the run right at us- which meant the bullets was coming’ at us too!!

So we spun them horses around and got back over the ridge line. The wolves had seen us but decided we were less of a threat then the rifles so they came hell-bent for leather over that hill just a hauling’ Ass.

Well, me and Tom unlimbered our saddle guns and started shooting' too- when wolves and cattle are involved you just know them ol’ wolves ain’t up to any good.

Well, at my first shot that Roan went flat out crazy- he went to bucking' and I first lost a stirrup, then the other one, then my rifle went one way and my ass the other. I gotta say, it wasn’t too bad…till I hit the ground, now that hurt!!

That  horse took off right behind the wolves and I think even passed a couple. I laid there for a while waitin’ for the broke bones to speak up. I finally tried wigglin' my toes. That worked so well I decided to try movin' my legs, which seemed to work, so I gingerly got up and dusted the snow off and limped over lookin’ for my rifle. In the meantime the rest of the crew rode over the hill, and seeing me tryin’ to get up, all freaked out thinking they had shot me.

After Tom told them about the winter rodeo they all laughed so hard I was wishin' they had shot me- least ways I could shoot back!! Well a couple went after that bastard roan who was gonna be bear bait soon as I could get him in my sights!!

After they caught him and got back I raised my rifle up and was aiming' at him when Tom said, “Ya know, Buck, I wouldn’t do that just now.”  “Why the hell not?” I asked. “Well, first it’s a bit of a walk home carrying' a saddle, and cause none of these half wits will carry double.” I said is that all? And he said “Well no, your rifle barrel is plugged solid with snow.”

Well, that took the wind outta my sails so I gave up for now. But he was gonna die- that was for sure!!

After I got back up on him he acted like a puppy. God I hate this nag!!

I asked why we was hunting' wolves, and was told to come on. We rode back over the hill and found a cow dead and well eaten.

Well, a part of me that’s a cattleman was pissed off, but the part that was human could see where if anything is hungry it was gonna do what it had to do to survive. I didn’t say that, but I bet them ol’ boys would agree- it was the old on-going war between the rancher and the wild critters that eat meat.

We headed on home. One of the shots had killed a wolf so they brought it along. The horses wasn’t too happy ‘bout it but they put up with it.

We got back to the ranch house and got the horses put away. Mary came out to see the wolf. He was a big old brute- maybe the alpha wolf.

The guys went to skinning him. Mary said “That would make a nice pelt.” We headed for the house and some hot soup and hot bread right from the oven.

I told her about the rodeo thinking she would feel sorry for me, but she burst out laughing and said she wished she had been there!! No love there!

I started cleaning my rifle and hung it over the door. Mary said after lunch we could walk down to the horse pen so she could give the Roan a carrot!! Well I thought she was crazy and said so. Feeding a carrot to a dead horse…

I think I’ve mentioned the “LOOK”? Well, sir I got a good one for that, she said, “Joseph Buckminster!! That poor horse had the heck scared out of him, and then chased by a pack of wolves.” I tried to explain that the horse was chasing' after the wolves but it didn’t matter. I was really feeling' down when she said “Come on sweetie- let me see your booboo and she led me into the bedroom.” Maybe I wouldn’t shoot that SOB today…

The next morning I couldn’t hardly crawl out of bed- I hurt from my here to my there. I had  pain in places I didn’t know I had places. It was gonna be hard to shoot that  Roan if I couldn’t get out the door.

I thought about hollering' over to Tom’s house and having’ him lead him over to my front door, but I knew Mary wasn’t gonna go for that one little bit.

So I took a really hot shower , and had a nice breakfast with my wife and our two beautiful babies, who seemed to be growing faster then they should. Near as I could remember they was about 6 months old, but I was smart enough to not ask Mary.

She was giving them tiny bites of well-mashed eggs. Now Billy Joe was taking to that like a duck to water. Spring wasn’t too sure about it.

I was holdin’ Spring and was tryin’ to give her a slice of bacon, which got me rapped on the knuckles with a spoon. “WHAT??? Hell they gotta learn these things”, but Mary just shook her head and took a deep breath and looked up, so I looked up too, but I didn’t see what it was she was seeing'…Women is strange critters, but ya gotta love ‘em.

Well, long about noon I ventured out for a few minutes with Mary. The kids was sleeping’, tummies full, clean drawers, and all was right in our world.

I heard the sound of a Hummer coming and looked off towards the road, sure 'nuff it was the Col.’s rig. He drove in and stopped, got out and waded thru a drift, hugged Mary and shook my hand. We stood looking around at the mountains all white- but then everything was white.

Col. Black said, we need to talk a bit, Joe. So we went in. Mary checked on the babes and then made a pot of coffee, then said she was going to see Sara, Tom’s wife. I guess she needed time out too- from the babies of course, not me!!

After she had left the Col. said that he was getting some radio traffic from around the area. It was scrambled, but his comm. team was working on that as we spoke.

He said from the amount and times, it appeared to be from a scouting unit calling in a report to their main unit, and that he thought they was within 50 miles of us. Well, that was something to chew on for sure. But I didn’t really have a clue what he was getting at.

I asked him what he was getting at and he said that other messages, heard in the clear from folks with ham sets, that a military type unit was going thru the countryside taking what they wanted and killing anybody who didn’t just lay down.

It was his opinion that they were pretty much shut down by the weather and deep snow, but come spring they would be a very real threat to us.

I asked him why he didn’t just fly a chopper over the area and look ‘em over.  He just smiled that smile and said, “Joe, when you got 3 aces you act like you have a pair of jacks.”

Well, now that I did understand, and if it comes to a fight we might need a really nice surprise. I asked him what he was planning.

He said he was going to send some of Willy’s wolf pack to shadow these folks and report back by courier. I figured that was so there wasn’t any radio traffic for them dudes to hear. Hell, this military stuff ain’t to hard!!

I asked him what he wanted with me. He said that as soon as we could, to push the cattle herd up into Mary’s Valley (Yep- I changed the name!) to keep them out of the way, and that it might be smart to just stay up there with Mary and the kids.

I told him flat out that I never, by god, sat back and let others do the fighting, and I was too old to start, but sending the women and babies up there was smart. Tom and a few of the hands could go too, to watch over them all.

Col. EB just smiled at me and said “Well, I just lost a buck to a buck… “ I guess I was slow, and he said “Willy bet me a buck you’d bust a gusset and refuse to go, but you need to think of Mary and the babies- how would it be if you get killed?”  “Well sir” says I, “I sure ain’t planning to get killed and I’m not gonna be making no charges across the fields like Old Pickett.”

He looked at me and said, “Hmm, did you study some history Joe?” I said nope, I had kin folk what was in that charge, one lived and told the story. He told it in a family journal- he figured that was what broke the back of the south.

The journal was passed down thru the years. “Really” he said, “and where is it now?”  “Well sir, it’s sitting in a safety deposit box at the bank in town and maybe some day I can get it outta there, but I figure for now it’s safe there as anywhere.” He agreed with that. We talked a bit longer and then he left. Shortly Mary came back and sat down by the fire with me and said “OK, Joe- spill it!” How do she do that, I wonder?

Well I told her what the Col. had said and waited for the fireworks to start, but she just nodded and said, ‘OK, we need to really plan this out because it may be a while before we can come back.’

I sat there and inside I was cringing and said “Well, Mary- I’m not staying up there safe with the women when other folks is fighting for me and mine!” Mary smiled that wonderful smile and said “Well of course you’re not, what “man” would??”

”Well” I said, “some men will have to, and I’m gonna ask Tom and a few of the hands if they will stay up there as guards ” She said that she thought Tom would go for it, because Sara had just told her that she was going to have a baby in the late spring, and that Tom wouldn’t want to be away. Well that took a load off my mind, so she started making a list while I went over to the bunk house after stopping for Tom, and told the crew what was going to be going on come spring.

I knew most of these ol’ boys was good cowboys but none had ever been in the service. After explaining what was needed I asked for volunteers, and none seemed to want to be the first, so Tom said, “Joe, Sara is gonna be having’ a baby in the spring, and I want to be with her, so you can count on me to keep your family safe.” Well, that was a horse of a different color- protecting the women and babies was a big difference from sitting out the battle all safe up in a hidden valley. About half said they would stay; the others wanted to be involved in the fight if it came to that.

So I told Tom to get to figuring' out what they would need in the way of weapons and horses and all the man stuff, Mary and Sara were going to handle the food part, the other lady was going back to be with her family which was fine as it would be less crowded. I also told Tom that I was sure the Col. would fly the doc in there when it was time, and he really smiled at that. So we had a plan, now to bring it all together. I found it sorta exciting to think about it, but I knew it wasn’t gonna be a walk in the park. This was for real and our lives and futures was at stake.

As the winter slowly dragged past the Col. kept us up to speed on the mystery troops on the other side of the mountain. The scouts from the wolf pack had slipped thru their lines, such as they were, and had watched them from a distance. From the report on their uniforms and weapons, it sounded like a Mexican Battalion that had moved far ahead of their supply lines, and were taking what they wanted, including women. They were killing the men and boys, the little girls- well, we didn’t know, but we all suspected.

They were armed with AK-47’s and seemed to be mostly a ground unit with no heavy weapons. The Col. flat out said no artillery would be used on their main camp as that’s where the women and girls were held. I could tell that Col. Ebony Black was really angry- he said there would be no prisoners in this fight, any taken would be drained of information and then hanged…slowly.

If Willy had a wolf pack, EB had a werewolf pack. I pitied those folks but they sure brought it on themselves. Whoever they are I’m sure they will live a few minutes to have regrets but not a second longer.

I had asked EB what role I was to play and he gave mea big, BIG!! Smile and said “Well Joe, seeing as you have no infantry training I’m making you the door gunner on one of the gun ships.” Well, now it was Christmas all over again!!! WOW!!

I then sobered up and said “Col., I don’t know nothing about that thing.” he said “Well, a few passes over some targets and you’ll be up to speed-  just watch your tracers and walk the rounds into the BG’s.” With that big old smile splitting my face I said OK- sounds easy enough!!

I told him that probably in another 2 to 3 weeks the trail up to the valley would be open. He asked if it was possible to make it sooner. Well yea- might lose some of the cows, but not a lot, why? He told me that if we went early the runoff would wash out the trail and nobody would probably head up there.

Well that made sense, so I told him I’d take a ride up there but he said, “No Joe, send a couple of your hands. I want to get you to training on that gun ASAP…” Well, that suited me!!

So I asked Tom to pick a couple of guys. After hearing what it was about, he decided he would go along.
We were all set. Now to wait for our scouts to bring back word of the approach of the enemy , who would all die- then we would attack.

To say I loved that gun is a vast understatement. I decided right then that I was gonna be a door gunner- to hell with flying’! I think Mary was relieved that I was going to be up in the air instead of on the ground. I played up the safety angle a lot, but she finally told me “shut up” because she knew more about choppers then I did, and that when your hanging up there shooting' at them, they are shooting' back. I can’t seem to win one at all.

Well soon we would be going. The Col. came by and said he was going to fly Tom and the women up to the valley and that the cowboys would herd the cattle. Tom said the trail was passable and that there was enough snow to wash out the tracks of the cattle.

It was a hard thing for me to load my Wife and babies into that thing; I was scared spitless, as if I could control events if I was there too.

I watched them flutter buggin' away, and I knew I might not make it and that scared me- to lose all I had after such a short time. Col. EB slapped me on the back and said, “Don‘t worry about what you can’t change, instead change what you can- and being on top of your game on that gun is where we need you.”

After Mary and the babies were gone the place seemed cold and lonely. I just sat waiting for the Col. or Willy to show up. And like a bad penny here comes Willy. I was so happy I couldn’t think straight. He got out of the Hummer he was driving and walked up on the porch and said “Yep, I was right!”  “ ‘Bout what?” says I.

”You’re sittin’ here like a calf with no mommy- you’re disgusting.” I smiled and hugged him and said “I love you too, Willy”. He laughed and came inside where it was warm.

After sitting down with a cup of coffee and a shot of Jimmy B, we got settled and he spoiled the whole  moment by sayin’ “Hey- I heard you fell off your horse.” Well that pissed me off-

“I did not fall off I was bucked off and only ‘cause I was busy killing’ wolves instead of paying’ attention to my horse!”… “Uh huh” he says, “I heard that roan set a new record by chasing' down a wolf pack his self!!”

Well, this nice evening was goin’ to hell in a hand basket. “Oh” I asked, “and what else did you hear?”  “Well,” he said, “I heard you had to be helped on your horse.” Well, at that I jumped up- pain flashing' thru my body and said “That’s a damn lie and I’ll whip any man what says it to my face!” Willy just laughed and said “I know, I just made that part up.” I hate him!! And that nag and the damn dog.

After I got settled down he got serious and said “Joe, I know this chopper gunner thing sounds like a big kick in the butt to you, but Joe it’s not a ride in the park. It’s very dangerous ‘cause all eyes are on that bird and they always shoot at it.”

I told him that the other gunner had told me that while training me, and had shown me the body armor used by the door gunners. I felt safer there then where Willy and the grunts were gonna be.

He just looked at me and said “OK Joe, but be careful you don’t fall out- you know how much trouble you’re having staying in the saddle here lately.” We both had a good laugh and settled in for a long quiet evening by the fire.

He decided to stay the night, so it was even better. He finally admitted that his wife had opted to go to the valley to be with her sister and Mary, so he had no reason to go home.

We sat till the moon came up and washed the valley in a white wave; we stood on the porch and just looked, and with an unspoken agreement, went in and to bed.

Morning came and we had to wrangle our own breakfast, but being grown men we figured we could handle it.

While Willy was burning' the toast, I was breaking' the eggs but the ham was perfect, so we sat down to a feast and loved every bite, but I was sure missing Spring in my arms not taken' to smashed eggs, and watching my son make a pig of himself over the same.

God I missed ‘em. Willy looked over and said “Yes, I miss ‘em too!” He was the best friend I ever had, he is my brother…

Two days later the Col. came lookin’ for Willy and me. Driving up in his hummer, he got out and stomped snow off and came in. He saw us sitting with coffee and a jug of Jimmy B and poured his coffee and added a shot and sat down close to the fire.

He took a big sip, swallowed, tried to catch his breath, and then kinda gasped out something about damn fool cowboys, then he took another slug and settled down, and leaning over toward the fireplace said “Ya know, gentlemen, the Hummer is a wonderful military vehicle but who ever designed the heater needs a tour in hell. I about froze my butt off in the thing.”

Willy said “Well, it would take a while to freeze that big thing off”, which started a round of “oh yeas?” and “what ifs”, etc.

Them two is like kids spitting' all the time- both aughta be kicked in the butt time to time, but lookin’ at them I decided I didn’t want to be the kicker- bad job!!

It was easy to see they were like me and Willy, brothers beyond skin color- two warriors.

I felt lucky to be a part of this.

They finally settled down, and the Col. said “Well, the scouts reported back that the enemy scouts have been located closer then we thought, and tonight after they settle in for the night will be taken down.” 

The Col said “ I told them I wanted three to question, preferably officers but would settle for NCO’s “. He said “I believe we will be hitting their main camp tomorrow at daybreak. We will move out the ground units at dusk and the air assets will lift off at 30 minutes before we hit them- it’s about a 20 minute flight because the main camp is closer too.”

”How many in the patrol?” Willy asked.  “Twenty”, said the Col. And there’s fifteen of our men settled in waiting for them to make their last radio checking. Seems that they just build up their fire and go to sleep. There is a guard, but he sleeps by the fire and is there to build it up when it does down. I don’t think they will survive the night.

”What time is that last check in?” Willy asked.  The Col. said “About 2200. By midnight I expect to hear they are all sleeping with the fishes, as you injuns say.” Willy snorted and looked at Joe and said, “See? The black man has one small drink and confuses us noble savages with the lowly mobsters that sold his people the dope that keeps them down.”

The Col.’s deep booming laugh brought warmth and light to the mood and the room. I really did envy these two the camaraderie they shared. But then realized I was enjoying it- hell, I was part of it.

We all kinda snuggled down and soon were nodding off by the fire. Time moved on and soon it was dark out and the fire was low. I eased up and built it back up and walking quietly, went to the kitchen to make coffee and put on a pot of stew Mary had made the day before she flew out. Was that only yesterday?? God, I was lonely.

When the coffee was done and the stew was starting to make nice smells I went in and got their coffee cups, filled them and set them back on the end table. Then I sat by the fire and watched the twitching start around the noses of the two men. They both were having sweet dreams about something good- the coffee steam was drifting over them and while it was  funny, it was nice too.

Pretty soon the Col.’s eyes popped open. He looked around the room as much as possible without moving a hair, then his eyes settled on me across from him. He then became aware of the coffee, scooted up, took the cup up and just breathed in the smell.

He then closed his eyes for a second, smiled a soft smile, and said in a quiet voice, “Joseph- this so reminds me of growing up in a sharecropper’s cabin in Alabama.

Momma in the kitchen and good smells coming out of there and poppa sittin’ back napping from a hard day in the fields.

Me and my brother doing our jobs carrying in water and wood and settling in for the night. It was good.”

”Why did you leave it to be a Marine, Col.?” I asked.  “Because I knew there was more to life then looking at the south end of a north bound mule.

So one day when I was 17, I walked into the recruiters’ office and tried to join the army.” He had said it with sadness, and I asked him what happened.

He said “Well, the Sergeant behind the desk looked up and said, what you wantin' nigger? I just looked at him and said- Nothing your army has for sure, and walked out.

Next door was the Marine recruiters office. I walked in and the Sergeant there looked up and stood up and said, Hello my name is Sgt. Reid- what can I do for you? I looked at him and said well, from this side of the desk I see a Marine Sergeant, from your side what do you see?

He just looked me right in the eye and said, I see a future Marine if you’re tough enough and can forget the chip on your shoulder. He then stuck out his hand and said sit down son, and let’s talk.”

”So we talked. He wanted to know all about me and my life and my expectations about where I wanted to go in the Marines. I told him about the army guy next door and he nodded and said he’s the best  recruiter “WE” have. As long as he’s there I don’t have to do a thing.”

”So we talked and he found out I still had a few months to go to get my high school diploma. He said Ebony, I’d love to sign you up today, but I want you to get that piece of paper. That will mean as much to the Marines as your big body. The Corps can wait a few months.”

”So I went back and finished school, turned 18 about the same time, and told my Momma and Daddy what I was going to do.

Momma cried, but Daddy just hugged me and said Son- you’re the first of this family to ever get a education, and I want you to amount to something, so you go do what you gotta do- always stand tall and never back away if you know you’re right.”

”The next day I was gone. I didn’t get home for a year, then it was for my momma’s funeral. Poppa was just heartbroken, and I could see he wanted to go, too. 6 months after that poppa died, my kid brother took off for the big city life and I’ve never heard a word from him.”

”So the Corp is my home, and this dumb assed injun and now you Joseph, are the only family I have besides what’s left of my Marines.”

I was flat laid out at all this, ‘cause this man just never seemed to open up, and now here he was telling me things I never thought I’d know.

Willy, who hadn’t moved in all this time said, “Col.? Is the coffee cool enough to drink?” The Col. stuck his finger in Willy’s cup and then in Willy’s ear saying “ Well is it?“ which made Willy move faster then I ever seen!!

Laughing that wonderful rib cracking laugh and watching Willy’s “wet Willy war dance” around the living room, I was laughing so hard tears were running down my cheeks. Willie got all puffed up and started to say something, but then smiled and said “Well, “SIR” as I’m sure the “COL.” will remember “SIR” the last time the “COL.” did that there was a payback! SIR.”

The Col. laughed at him and said “Willy, there ain’t no way you can pull that again.”  “Wait and see “SIR”, revenge is a dish best served cold!!”

With that I told them stew was on, and we trooped off to eat- the two of them pushing and shoving trying to be first thru the doorway.

It was like having unruly brothers in the house. We sat and ate all of Mary’s stew and both said if I got killed they was gonna marry her.

I reminded Willy that Morning Dew wouldn’t like that, and he got a worried look on his face and looked around. EB and I both laughed at him, but he wasn’t laughing much- fear is a funny thing!!

After we had finished eating and cleaned the kitchen we took our coffee and returned to the fire. The Col. then said that the ground units had moved out about dusk, moving slowly to the south, the bad guys were set up for the night in a small valley, more of a bowl with hill all around, and it would be kinda like shooting fish in a barrel.

Hell, even I knew better then to allow myself to get caught in such a spot. and said so.
Col. Black told me that these people, while pretty well armed and tough in their own country, were really nothing but punks and thieves drafted into a Mexican army unit and allowed to run rampant thru the country side.

This unit seemed to be heading someplace for a reason, but whatever that was would have to wait till the smoke cleared and then the survivors would be questioned.

He said that the troop transports would be stopped at least 2 miles from the camp, the troops would move in on foot and surround the little valley. When they were in place the choppers (2) would then move in, buzz the place and hose anybody that held a weapon, taking care because there were captives in there.

His scouts said they were all held in a big tent with guards around it but that some were always being “used” by the enemy. That made me grit my teeth so hard I almost broke a few.

So, we had all night to think about it and get ready. EB said he was going to head out to move in with his troops and Willy was going with him. I was to be picked up by the chopper I was going in about an hour before day break, and we would fly right into the assault.

The two of them left with a handshake and a hug between warriors. It felt great being a part of this and more so for having two such close friends…. No… Brothers, because that’s what we had become and I felt humbled that I could be so blessed in my life-

Mary and the babies and now two of the best men alive as my brothers. God does watch over the unworthy.

As the long night slipped by I went over and over my part in this battle to come. I have never been one to bother the Big Boss in the sky with my trivial wants and needs, but in this case I really felt the need, so I knelt there by the fire and asked the lord to ride this night with my family and friends, and to watch over all of us who were going in harms’ way to stop a wrong. And while I knew that some must die in the process, to bless those who would fall while granting us our victory.

Not having much practice at praying, I just hoped the message got thru, what with all the praying' goin’ on all the time, and most probably a lot more important then mine, but I got it done, and that’s all I could do.

So I gathered my gear and got it ready to pick up and run when the bird came. I had a wild thought that maybe I had been sandbagged and no chopper would show up, but I couldn’t believe either would do that to me.

I settled into my old chair and with a lap robe over me dozed off. I woke up at about 5:00 and figured I had time to make coffee, so I did, then some sandwiches.

That taken care of I just waited and sure ‘nuff I heard the chopper coming, so I threw on my heavy mackinaw and winter gloves. I had already put on a set of Carhart insulated bibs and my snow boots- I was all set to stand in a door with 60mph winter beatin' at me.

I walked out with my pack over my shoulder and my 44-40 saddle gun in my other hand and watched the blizzard as the bird settled down in the yard. Soon as he had slowed the thing down, I ran out bent over like a really old man- I couldn’t see shitt!! 

And I ran right into the nose of the friggin thing, fell flat on my ass, the crew chief jumped out and grabbed me and helped me into the bird and got me hooked into the safety cable and a helmet with a mike, slid the hatch shut, then the elevator shot right up thru the roof!!

We banked towards the south and west a bit, and hugging the earth ,so to speak, we took off for the war. I felt really fine!! I spoke into the mike and asked who wanted hot coffee?

I swear both them cowboys herding' this thing thru the sky let go the steerin' wheels and held their hands out. Well, that was spooky but seems to be OK with the bronco we was riding'.

The crew chief held out 3 plastic cups and I poured them then me a cup in the lid. We settled in and watched the night pass outside the ports, and I heard the crew talking to somebody but just waited figuring' if it was important they would tell me.

After a short ride, or so it seemed, the crew chief told me that we would be coming in over the BG’s camp in about 15 minutes, and that we were going to be right over the middle where the women’s tent was and that it was a big reddish color. We had a free-fire zone all over the camp except in the middle around that tent.

The biggest fire in the camp was located right at the front entry flap of the women’s tent and that would place it on my side and so don’t hose to my right of the fire. Otherwise, good hunting!! Great sense of humor these Marines got.

I looked at this kid who seemed too young to be here, but I knew he had already seen more in his life then I had, so who was the lamb?

He had explained during the days of training that we would be moving slowly over the camp about 300 feet up, which was low but with the danger to the captives we needed to be right on with these miniguns, and that the best way was to just use it like a fire hose- washing the red tracer bullets over everybody I saw.

He had showed me a picture of a funny lookin’ thing that looked like a fence post with a fat point on it, and he said it was a rocket propelled grenade launcher, it was a real bird killer and to shoot fast when I saw one, if I saw one.

The scouts had said that the 2 sergeants they captured from the patrol they took out told them that there wasn’t any RPG’s. Well, that sounded good to me, but I was never one to accept anything as 100% fact.

Hell, that Mexican Sgt. might have enjoyed having his toenails pried off with a hot knifepoint!! If he was even that lucky.

I had seen some of the Force Recon Marines that was goin’ after that Patrol, and I didn’t think any of them had missed the class where they taught “Mean”.

Nope, I 'spect them two Mexicans talked pretty fast and loud.  I guess I felt sorry for them, but then the reports about what was goin’ on in the main camp with the women and girls washed that all away.

We soon heard radio traffic and the pilot was talking’ back- it was mostly garbled static to me, but the crew chief said we were about 1 click out. I think he meant a mile but I wasn’t gonna have time to discuss it ‘cause in a bit he said to slide my door open and to check my armor and cable and to get ready- he would call “FIRE”, and from that point on my own private war was gonna be goin’ on my side of the bird.

I slid the door open and lost my breath. I had never felt cold so bad, it just sucked my lungs empty; the crew chief, thank god, had been here before and said “Joe!! Breathe!!” “Smart ass”, I thought, but I sucked that frozen stuff as deep as I could and felt better.

The CC said, “20 seconds!!” And I leaned out and saw fires coming at us fast!! Also green little lights??? Then CC said FIRE FIRE!!!

And I hit the triggers, and I wasn’t ready for the light show, I had only done this in bright sunlight- it really was like a water hose of fire spraying the earth.

I saw men running everywhere and the hose danced over them. The bird seemed to just lay over and spin and we were right back over them again. It dawned on me that the green flashes was their tracers and the air was full of them and some were whipping' right past my head!!

That scared me a lot!! But I just stayed on the trigger and worked back and forth over them people on the ground, but the moving ones was getting hard to find.

We flew out a ways and turned and hung in the sky, watching the rest of the fight, or maybe fight is too big a word.

It was a one- sided slaughter. Bodies lay in piles everywhere, but right in the middle, around the red tent, was a few of them still trying to fight, but they were dropping fast.

Then they started standing up with their arms in the air, out of the blowing snow and night came white ghost looking forms that took them down and quickly tied their hands with nylon ties like the cops use.

The radio crackled and garbled again and we slowly started to settle to the ground. unhooking from the cable this time with a smirk at the CC who was openly smiling at me, we headed into the camp, which was a mess, bodies everywhere, wounded moaning, the Marines were searching bodies and removing all weapons and ammo.

There was a shout from a large tent on the other side of the red tent, and we headed around there to see a Mexican-looking man being shoved out of the tent.

He was bare footed and holding his pants up with both hands. The marine behind him put a boot in his ass and propelled him forward into a few of his men who had given up where he started screaming at them and was in general pissed off, not acting like a prisoner at all.

Out of the night came a tall white ghost with a black face. He walked up to the screaming man and slapped him hard across the mouth and said “Quiet!”

The man drew himself up to his full height, all 5 foot nothing, and in a cold voice said “I am Col. Vasquez of the People’s Free Army of Mexico, and you will treat me with the respect I am due!! Or you will pay!!”

Col. Black looked at this swollen-up toad of an excuse for a man and poking him in his fat chest said, “If you’re the best those back-stabbing lowlife scum-sucking pigs south of the border can send up here, shortly they and all your sorry excuse for a bloodline will be extinct!”

This really set the little fart back on his heels. He still tried though, and he said “I demand an officer to accept my surrender!” The Marines around the Col. started laughing at that. The Col. bent down and said, “Boy, I am an officer. In fact I’m the ONLY officer here and you have nothing to surrender, you stupid bean-chewing sonofabitch!”

WOW.  EB was PISSED.!!  He then asked the Marine who had captured the “toad” just what he saw in the tent. The Marine said “Well sir, I saw this weasel in bed with 2 young girls.”  “How young, Sgt.?” asked EB real softly.

”Well sir, I’d say between 12 and 14 as a guess- they are inside with 2 of our lady Marines, Sir.” EB turned back to the now-deflated toad and said “Pull your pants up, you despicable worm!” The toad jumped and grabbed his waistband and tugged.

EB started away and then had a thought, and turned back and said “Col.? What of your wounded?”

The toad nailed the final nail by looking like it was a bother and said, “Why, shoot them, of course, they aren’t real soldiers anyway.

They are just peasants who were drafted into my battalion for this “investigative tour” of our northern provinces.”

Col. Black turned to his Sgt. Major and took him aside and said “Go get all his wounded together and start questioning them. I’m not liking the vibes I’m getting here.

This is almost like bait to pull us out. Move it- we need to be out of here in an hour. Load up the wounded we can save, have the Corpsmen OD the rest with Morphine and get rolling.”

”How many did we lose?” he asked.  “None, sir” said the unit Doctor, “five wounded but none too bad- they are all ready for medivac.”  “Then make it happen Doc.”

With that, we cleaned out that place, all the weapons and ammo and gear that was deemed of value to the Marines, and the rest was burned in place along with their dead. The wounded that were OD’d were checked and when they were gone they too were tossed into the vehicles and torched.

It was a morbid sight if one dwelt on it, which we did not. The wounded were choppered out, and I chose to ride with the Col. It was a much faster trip out here then going home ...

EB was on the radio constantly talking to his XO at their base in the old town. I knew his conversation was scrambled but wondered if the BG’s could unscramble it?

Somewhere along the way Willy and me must have nodded off because it was full light when we woke up. We were just rolling into the base.

We got out at EB’s HQ and walked in. I had been here a few times while in the area on business. EB’s office was also his quarters, and his bedroom was in another room off his office, handy for sure.

After we were settled in, the door opened and a young Marine came in carrying a tray with a pot of coffee and a bottle of JimmyB.

I raised my eyebrows at EB and got a smile and the finger!! Such actions from an officer and gentleman. Willy and the Corporal just laughed and poured.

The Cpl. started to leave when EB said, “Steve?”  “Sir”, said the lad. “Please sit and join us. I might need your memory.” The Cpl. smiled and said “Of course, sir.” and poured a cup of coffee.

I asked him if he would like a shot of JB, but he smiled, and in a soft southern drawl said “No thank you, sir. My Father always said when breaking bread with savages it was best to forgo the hooch.”

I just sat there while Willy choked and coffee and whiskey shot right out of his nose!! Boy!! I knew that’s gotta hurt!

Well with the Col. laughing that booming laugh, and Willy tryin’ to choke to death and still glare at the young Marine, I decided it was funny as hell so I burst out laughing and all in all, except for Willy’s inability to breathe or cuss, it was a nice moment.

EB introduced his Battalion clerk, dog robber, First Sgt. and in general go-to man of all trades Cpl. Steve Black. I reached over to shake his hand and said “Pleased to meet ya.” Willy just glared and said “We met!” Ha-ha, this was better then watching' his wife push him around. The Cpl. and the Col. laughed and in general we was having’ a good time at Willy’s expense which was a switch from normal.

After the laughter died down, EB asked his main man what the reports were from the men dealing with the prisoners, and the word from the women and girls.

Steve shut his eyes a second and said like he was reading it.

”Sir, the prisoner team found that only about half of their troops (for a better word) were army- the rest really were nothing more than impressed labor, almost all of the peasants (for lack of a better word) were captured alive, as they weren’t armed and weren’t standing up fighting.

The regular troop’s prisoners felt it was their duty to let us know that these ‘worthless dogs’, to use their words, weren’t even men as none would use the Yankee women like a real man would.”

”Also it seems that this bunch was put together to scout up into the states, and were told they could have all the spoils they could carry, and their officers were kicking peasants out of the trucks to walk back home so as to have more room for stolen goods and women, which they say will bring a good price back in Mexico to the owners of the whorehouses.”

”When asked why they were so willing to talk about all this, they said that everybody knew the Yankees were a spineless breed who never ever got away with being men, because their politicians and liberals wouldn’t allow them to be men!”

”As for the peasants, all expect to be killed and only wish to be allowed to write a letter home to their families.

All have talked willingly and seem to be nothing more then what they are, forced labor. They say that before they die they wish to apologize to the women because all Mexicans aren’t rapists and child molesters.”

”The men doing the questioning have Spanish speakers present but none are Mexican, so one of the prisoners translates for them all- he did it right every time and the guys believe their story.”

”The Women are being cared for by Commander Mary.” Looking at me he said, “She’s the head of the Navy medical team with us. She has a name only her mom can pronounce.”

”Anyway Doc Mary- who by the way is still pissed off at you for not being allowed to go in with us- said all the females had been raped except for the ones under 16 because they are worth double back down in Ol' Mexico. Several women were taken away and never returned, seems they fought too hard or wouldn’t uh cooperate with some ideas of fun and were killed.”

EB asked his first question and asked what of the two young girls that pig was in bed with?

The Cpl. looked at his Col. and said “Sir, please let me tell this my way- you know what happens when you rush things.”

Well, now this was a surprise! EB just glared at the Cpl. and said “Save your lectures for later when you can’t embarrass me in front of my friends.” Willy just smiled and shook his head.

Cpl. Steve, after having gotten over his snit, said “As I was saying, before you interrupted “SIR,” the women said that the Mexican Col. would take 2 new girls every week or so and when he was done with them he threw them in with the older ones for use by the troops. The women tried to shield them but all it got them was beaten.”

”OK” said EB , enough of this- their fate is sealed and any more of this will make me take them apart bit by bit.”

”Now, tell me what I really want to know!”  “Right, sir” said the Cpl., suddenly very military, “from the information gleaned by again having them be their own translators, and our “guards” wearing tape recorders and also speaking Spanish, we know this outfit seems to have been used as bait to pull out any organized resistance, for follow on units of better trained troops to deal with. We, of course, aren’t what they expected to find- they have been lucky because the resistance so far has been from local militias formed among locals with little to fight with and easy to run down.”

”How far behind?” asked EB. “Well, as near as we can tell, if the front unit gets hit they call for help, and then hold out till the cavalry rides in ,so I say a day behind to avoid being detected, maybe more. We just happened to be too good for them and they never got a peep out before it was over.”

”How big is this back up unit?”  “As near as we can put it sir, it’s their version of a heavy Battalion with some big guns, maybe 105’s, a few tanks on lowboys, and some Nam era APC’s (Armored personnel carriers). They’re mostly armed with COM block (communist block countries) weapons, some Russian 51’s (about like a .50 cal American), and most importantly to us they have some of those nasty anti-aircraft quad barrel zippers (a 4  auto barreled rapid fire weapon mounted on a vehicle) Charlie used so well in the Nam. Other then that they don’t seem to have a lot.

They have been lucky not to run into a unit like ours. But they are taking a lot of casualties from the local good ol’ boys with their hunting rifles; they’re losing as many as 5 to 6 people a day most days.

The General in charge has taken to hanging anybody caught with a weapon, and he seems to enjoy watching it.”

”That’s about it sir, when do we go after this SOB sir?” EB sat a moment and said, “Soon, son soon.

Call my officers and top NCO’s, and we will meet in the old courthouse.”  “We gonna hold court, sir?” Steve asked in that soft country drawl.

EB looked at him a moment and said “Yowsa, Massa Steve, and we alls gonna be de judges and de juries and de hangmen’s too!! Yowsa!!” Well, him and Willy and Cpl. Steve all howled in laughter at EB’s poor old black man’s imitation and the Cpl. was gone.

I just looked at them, and EB when he quit laughing said “Joe, Steve Black’s family owned my family back before the war of Northern Aggression, as we in the south say.”

I just stared at him with my mouth hanging' open looking for a fly. I finally said “You flat gotta be shitn’ me!!” He laughed and said “No, I’m not- we both joked about it when he came to work because of the same last name, and the fact we are both from Alabama. So one day he did a search of old records and other stuff too hard to go into, and brought it all to me one day and said Well sir, as far as I can see we never sold ya’ll. So I guess you still belong to me sir.

We was already closer then officers and enlisted men are supposed to get so now we was damn near kin folk!! We had a hell of a laugh and been together ever since.

The Corps is his home as it is mine and where I go he goes.  Works well because he knows what I want before I do, and has it here before I need it. Works out fine.

Took a while for some of the younger officers to learn that if Steve asks for it then I’m asking' for it. But in this unit we are all one big family and nobody messes with the Blacks!!’

After spending a long night in a short bed, Willy and me met up with the Col. in his mess hall, and Willy took a deep breath and said, “God!! I love the smell of Napalmed eggs in the morning!!”

Some of the Marines standing in line laughed, but I didn’t have a clue what he was talking’ about.

After loading our trays, we headed toward the table where the Col. and his staff were sitting. Cpl. Steve was sitting next to EB with a note pad lying beside his tray. They all looked up when we approached and sat our trays down.

I noticed a look of irritation on the face of one of EB’s officers, but I couldn’t tell if it was directed at me or Willy, either way it wasn’t good for his health.

After we were seated and introduced, their meeting started up again. Steve was telling EB that from the papers and maps they had recovered from the Mex camp it looked as if a small town about 150 miles south of the battle site was the next intended target of the follow up troops.

And that from looking at the maps it would appear that with a little planning and a whole lot of luck they could maybe give these Mexican invaders a good ol’ American Asswhuppin’.

While Steve was talking’, I was watching’ the officer who seemed to be sucking’ lemons- that ol’ boy had a look that somebody needed to pimp-slap off his face.

I was surprised at this guy’s attitude ‘cause I thought all EB’s troops was hand picked. I nudged Willy’s boot and when he looked at me I rolled my eyes at the dude across from us, he glanced at him and then nodded.

After Steve was thru filling' EB in on what he thought was the most important information so far, he sat back and finished his breakfast. EB sat thinking for a bit sippin' his coffee, which was so bad I was thinking' about heading' to Mary’s Valley to get a good cup.

EB finally looked up and around the table and said “Does anybody have anything to add to Steve's report?” Nobody said a thing for a moment then the lemon-faced officer spoke up and said.

”Col? Why is it that as the Battalion Intelligence officer I haven’t had a chance to look over the papers taken in the raid on the enemy camp, and why are we sitting here listening to a Cpl. give an intelligence report?”

Well, if air made a sound when it hit the floor that would have been the only sound heard. EB looked at the officer and after a moment said, “Capt. Jackson, you have a good point, and one I believe warrants an answer.

Cpl Black has served at my side thru more fights then one can believe. He knows how I think, and he knows what kind of information I need to make the decisions I need to make.

He spent several hours last night studying the captured documents, and in less then 5 minutes gave me a report that would be admired at a Division Staff level.”

”I understand your frustration, but admit it, Capt. Had your section gotten those papers you would have taken several days to study them to death, then you would have had your junior officer write up his conclusions about the information in the papers, and after another day or two for you to decide how you wanted to present it, I would have gotten a report filled with useless information and it would have told me what your people thought I would want to hear.”

Ol' Capt. Lemon-face turned red as a beet and said “Col.. it’s my job to filter information before presenting it to you as a means of saving you time.” It was easy to see EB was getting tired of all this and he said “Capt., having heard Cpl. Black’s report, what part of it struck you as most important?” The Capt. sat back and said “Well sir, I’d need more time to fully check into the facts before I could reply to that.”

Col. Black sat a moment and said “Joe?” I looked at him still chewing my last forkful of food and said, “Yes, sir?” He said “Having sat thru Cpl. Black’s report but not having seen any of the captured documents, what would you say was the most important thing you heard?”

I looked at him and Cpl. Black and then ol’ Lemon-face and said “Well sir, all I heard that I felt was important as in right now, is the fact a small town full of Americans are about to get the ax unless we do something, so that’s what I’d be doing right now, figuring’ a way to save them and also suck these bastards into a trap.”

I then took another bite of my breakfast, Col. Black said , Capt., I know you try to do your best at your job, but sometimes you let logic block out what’s right and most important. Joe here has never been in the service and until this last mission never had any combat experience.

Yet Joe saw instantly the most important bit of information we came up with, and that’s the fact that several hundred of our citizens are about to die and he also in very few words stated the obvious.”

”We have a scouting team on these people right now, and I want, before dark today, a report of how many, where they are and when they will arrive at this town.”

”I want a patrol to approach this town and tell them what’s coming at them, and then I want all the non-combatants out of there, and by daylight I want a solid plan on what we can do to roll up these invaders.”

”Are we all on the same page gentlemen?” They all said “yes, sir” and went back to their breakfast. Capt. Lemon was still red and mad.

So me bein’ me, I said “Look, Capt, you got a burr under your blanket and it’s causing' a lot of problems, so why not spit out whatever’s biting' your ass and maybe we can fix it, cause I’m real tired of you glaring at me like a pure bred bull lookin’ at a bastard calf, and seeing’ as I ain’t got no trinkets on my collar just spit it out.”

Well sir, you could hear smoke hit the floor. He just looked at me and then glanced at the Col. who smiled and said “I believe Joe was addressing you Capt., please don’t let me get in the way of an honest answer.”

Capt. Lemon sat there a moment and said “Fine. I find it distasteful to have gone thru the academy and served my country for 4 years now and I have to be subjected to the insult of eating a meal with two civilians who I feel are not even qualified to be here, much less going on a mission. And I resent that you, sir, find the opinion of a enlisted man to be of more value then my own, or the men in my section- all of whom have many years of basing operational opinions on information processed in the proper manner, and presented at the proper time after careful consideration.”

Everybody sat quietly and after it was clear he was done, I said “Well ok, long as it ain’t nothing personal”, which caused a loud laugh to burst out of the people around the table.

Capt. Lemon stood and said “If I may be excused, Sir?” The Col. looked at him a moment and said “Of course, Capt.” With that he was gone.

Well sir, it was a bit quiet there for a bit, then the Col. said “Well, another problem to deal with, but first let’s get rolling on this situation that’s cooking right now.”

One of the officers said, “Sir, I had a scout team ready to go at daybreak to check out the town and to see about getting them moved out of the way of the trash moving in on them.”

The Col. Looked at the young man and said “Lt. why did you do that?” The young officer said “Sir, because getting those people moved is the right thing to do sir, and using the town as bait is only common sense …sir.”

The Col. nodded and said to the rest of the table, “Gentlemen?  This is what I want from all of you- I want free thinkers, I want people who can decide on a course of action and follow thru on it without me holding your hand along the way.

Men, the type of war we were taught to fight is a thing of the past, and if any thing we are operating more like the Army Special Forces- move into an area, find the locals and train them and arm them and turn them into a solid fighting unit.”

”It takes months of boot camp to turn a civilian into a Marine ready to do all the duties of a Marine, but if we leave out the spit-shining shoes and boots and the dress blues and all the things that make a Marine look like a Marine then we have more time to train people to fight like Marines- down and dirty.

No quarter asked, none given. Make no mistake gentlemen, we are in a war to the very death, the death of each and every invader on our soil, or the death of all of us. And we don’t have time to play nice, take prisoners or listen to the kind of Bullshit the old ACLU used to spout off with. These people are here to kill our people and in fact to kill our nation, and that means we take off the gloves.”

”We are all that stands between these people and our people. As of right now our troops that were in the Middle East are mounting out for the trip back here.

From Intel received they will be landing at or near Acapulco , and will push East then turn North, and when they hit the border the map of Mexico will be changed forever- the people there for the first time in history will have a chance for a government truly working for them.”

”At that time all our troops will move across the border and head north while all the units like ours and militia units of armed citizens will move south, and someplace in between us we will find the Bastards who are raping our women, enslaving our children, and we will kill them without mercy or quarter. If they surrender then they will just die empty handed , if they run they die tired, but die they will.”

Well sir, that ol’ Col. had a way with words. Yes sir, we were pretty much done with eaten' and Willy asked him what was on the burner today. He told his officers to head to their units and start getting' ready for an all out push to crush this new jackass who was coming’ this way.

When it was just the three of us he sat back and said “William? I am going to be needing your help.”  “Doing what?” William asked. “I think I need a new man to handle the Intel unit”. Willy said “Well sir, I agree you do but what about the young Capt. with his panties in a wad??”

Col. EB said “Well, I think he needs a taste of being a real Marine officer instead of being a pencil pusher.” He was a late entry into this outfit and since he had nowhere to go and he is a Marine even if he needs some trigger time so I took him in , this was the first time I saw this side of him…”

”Where would you put him, Col.?” Willy asked, “because he’s no troop leader for sure”. “Well, said the Col. I guess he could be a company XO, I have a company with a major as CO. That should handle it, and so will you take the job?”

Willy gave it 1.5 seconds thought and said “Yes sir and thank you sir.” Willy was really getting into this Marine stuff. Then the Col. turned to me and said, “And you Joe, what do you want to do?”

I said “Well sir, with all due respect sir, just try to move me off that there gunship.” He laughed and said, “I’ve meant to tell you Joe, your fire control was outstanding and your accuracy was the same, you’re a natural.” So I said, “This mean I gotta join the Marines?” He said “No Joe, your going to remain a civilian acting under my authority cause I need to be able to sit around and bullshit with you and Willy. Being as you’re not a enlisted man I can do that.”

Well that got me wondering’ so I said “Well sir, how ‘bout Cpl. Black? He’s an enlisted man.” Well sir, ol’ EB as usual was ready. He said “Joe, Steve is in fact a Cpl. Only because he’s flat out refused to accept a field promotion to LT. and  is in fact an enlisted man, but as Orwell said, on the farm all animals are equal, some is just more equal.” And also he said with a big grin , Steve said he would sell me if I tried to make him be an officer !!” which brought a big belly laugh from all of us..

I nodded, but made a point to ask Willy later if he knowed who this Orwell dude was and where he hailed from. And what the hell did critters have to do with all this? These marine folks was mostly crazy as a box of rocks, but like a box of rocks, they was damned handy in a good fight!!!

It was now 3 days since the battle, and after getting all the information needed to carry out a bluff the Marine Commo people took over using the Invaders comm. set and called in the daily report known as a sitrep.

Today was Trial day for the bastards who were the shooters and rapists. The “drafted peasants” were present but not on trial. They were brought in all together and stood in front of 5 officers who had read over the reports from the interrogators and from the women themselves.

The senior officer looked them over and then read them the charges ranging from crossing the border as an act of war, to murder and rape compounded by kidnapping. When the charges were read off most just stood and started at the floor, but a few were spouting off. The translator said the mouthy ones were telling the others that these weaklings weren’t going to do anything.

The officer in charge called for a vote of the judges. After they were written out and counted the head officer read the verdict, which was Guilty of all charges.

He then had the results read to the vermin standing in front of him, and when that was done he then sentenced them to death by hanging. At that reading a loud moaning broke out and the mouthy ones were stunned into silence. The Judge then told the guards to move them outside and carry out the sentence.

The prisoners were moved out in back of the building and when the entire command less guards were there, the first five of the 15 survivors were led to the gallows.

The mouthy ones were first and started screaming and fighting their cuffs. After their feet were strapped and a hood was passed over their heads the charges were read again and the sentence, and with a nod to the man who had hold of the drop lever the trap dropped and they fell into Hell.

And in 2 sections of five the remainder were sent to hell also, Last and in fact least was the fat little ass who called himself Col. When he was brought out and saw the last 5 still swinging his knees buckled he was dragged to the gallows and dragged up the steps, screaming and pissing his pants where he too fell to hell! not a tear was shed and with that they were hauled to the former town dump and buried with the rest of the trash.

After that was done a meeting was held as to the issue of the unwilling members of the bandit gang- the indentured peasants. They were such a miserable and poor bunch and the female prisoners had looked all of them in the face and said none of them had committed any crimes against them.

The Col. had an Officers call which I guess is a big way of sayin’ meeting’, and me and Willy went along. The Col. asked for input on how to deal with them, but most had no idea what to do with them. After a bit I said “Well Col. I have an idea that may help out.”

EB said “Lets hear it Joe.”  So I said “Lets bring in the two oldest ones and question them as to what these ol’ boys did in Mexico. I said I think a few of ‘em was vaqueros” EB looked at me funny so I said, “Cowboys, Col.” He nodded and had the 2 men brought forward, and had the translator ask what the two of them could say about these fellers.

Turned out that 5 of them had worked cattle, and one was a horse wrangler. EB looked at me and raised that eye brow, so I asked the translator to ask what the others did before. Mostly they was farm hands, used to working' the soil.

So I said “Well sir, I got a big bunkhouse out there at the ranch, and can sure use some real cattlemen,” which got a glare from Willy, which I got to smile about. “And god knows I need a horse wrangler.” As for the rest, they can start being big time gardeners come warmer weather, and till then they can work around the place cutting wood or whatever the ranch foreman comes up with.”

The translator repeated it to the older men who all but fell to their knees, and calling' me patron- one was trying to kiss my hand, which I rescued with an effort. The rest were brought over and the jabbering' started all over again with even more results. Lots of tears and thank you’s.

I told the translator that the foreman was Los Indio as were the other hands and anybody not putting' in an honest day, or tryin’ to run off was looking at bein’ turned over to them to be toyed with for a few days.

Well sir, I thought I seen scared folks before, but them ol’ boys turned white and started shaken’ and babbling’ what turned out to be promises of being the best hands a Patron could ask for. That done, they went to the ranch.

With that done, we was ready for lunch, so we trooped back into the mess hall and settled down. The young LT from the day before came in looking down right scruffy and well in need of a shower..and headed to the Col

He reported that the scout team had made contact with the folks in the town and they was more then willing to move here. Seems there was an old mine there and they was working the tailings when the war started. Not knowing what was goin’ on, they had just tucked in and was waitin’ the storm out.

I saw ol’ EB staring off like he does and then he asked a bunch of questions which the young man answered very well. EB looked at him and said “Tell me son, did you get all this first class information over the radio from the patrol on the ground?”

The LT. kinda looked a bit sick and said “uh, well sir, uh ,not exactly.” EB made that come on motion with his hand, and the young man said “Sir, I decided if this was as important as you seemed to think, that I would go along as an extra pair of eyes to look it over.”

EB asked him if he took over the scout team, he said “No sir, those guys have been working together for a long time. I just went along and watched and learned and tried to keep up. But what I reported to you is a compilation of what we all saw and filled in as an after action report.”

EB smiled at him and said “Very good, Marine, now eat your lunch.” The young officer said “Sir, my men are waiting and they haven’t eaten, so I’ll go with them and find some chow.”

EB said “No son, go get your men and after they’re taken care of you come on back here.”  “Yes Sir” said the lad and jumped to it.

After his tired and dirty squad were seated and eating, the LT returned and EB said “Sit down LT”, and then the Col. went over to get a fresh hot tray which he brought back to the LT, then he returned to his seat.

Now, I was watching’ all this and making' notes and not sayin’ a thing, so we all finished eaten' and sat back with our coffee, and EB looked at me when I took a sip of it and turned and looked at the cooks, and called out to the head cook, who came right over and said, “Yes Sir?” Col. EB looked at him and said “Sergeant, do you drink coffee?”

The cook said “No sir, I drink tea sir. If I might ask sir, why does the Col ask sir?” God these ol’ boys took forever to say a few words with all the yes’n and sir’n and all that crap. But I guess some of that is just their way, hell I even called him sir sometimes, mostly when I was wantin' or getting something I wanted.

EB told the cook to have a taste of coffee and poured him some. The cook took a drink and almost spit it out, and looked at EB with horror in his eyes and said “Sir, I may not drink it, but I sure as hell know a good cup from this horse piss Sir.”

EB said “Thank you, Sgt. That will be all.” He then smiled at me and said “Ahhh Joe, I find you delightful to be around!” I had not a clue in hell what he was getting at so I just smiled back and kept shut.

I think he caught my face when I took a sip and realized how bad this stuff was. And he did something about it. No fuss, no muss- just asked a polite question and solved the problem. And didn’t beat up on the cook.

Right then and there I saw the whole picture of this man and his troops just as clear as a bell. He ate after his men were fed. He ate what they ate, He slept in the same conditions they did. If they were wet, He was wet.

He gave no orders that he wasn’t prepared to do himself. He was right in the thick of the firefight on the ground with his men. His men would charge hell with snowballs for him, but if they did he would be in front of them and first thru the door.

He knew everything about his command, he knew his people, he knew about their families, and he truly cared about all of them. And they cared about him, and right there I knew I wanted this man as a friend for the rest of my life as I had Willy.

After the LT was thru eating Col. asked him to walk over to the patrol with him, and the two of them approached the table and the 8 men sitting there all snapped to their feet. I heard EB say “Stand easy men,” and he then went around to each and every one of them shook their hands and thanked them for a good job and told them to stand down for the day.

He then shook hands with the young Sergeant and the LT and came back to our table, where he looked at his coffee cup and, making a face looked over at the cooks and the head cook walked over with a pot of steaming coffee. He poured the first cup for the Col. who took a sip and said “Very good, Sgt. Thank you.” The cook said “Thank you sir, for showing me a problem and allowing me to fix it.” He then poured all of us a cup and leaving the pot walked back to his serving line.

I took a careful sip and smiled real big and settled back and said, “You ol’ boys need me I’ll be right here or sleeping’.” And they all laughed. I raised the cup in salute to the cook who smiled.

I’m sitting here in this empty house, wanting my family here with me. I don’t know that there is a real threat here at this point, but EB and Willy seem to think we need to leave them in the valley until this next shooting scrape is over and done with. As for me, I’m tired of this war crap.

I’m just a simple cowboy who wants to raise fat calves, cuss my horse and if I’m lucky, kick Dog without getting caught. Like that’s gonna happen!

I’m bored, pissed off, lonely and feeling’ sorry for myself and I’m apt to shoot the next poor SOB that rubs me wrong.

And now I hear a  Hummer coming’, and whoever it is will no doubt piss me off more. I’m in the mood for a good fight, maybe I can find an early waken' griz- that would be about right.

When I made it to the door I saw Willy stepping' out of the Hummer and I said ”What the hell you want?” He just looked at me and shook his head and said “I go out of my way to find some little thing to make you almost human to be around and here ya are snapping' like a gut shot badger.”

”Fine” I said, “give it to me and go away.” He laughed and opened the back door of the hummer and out stepped Mary!! And as she ran to me, Willy and his wife walked behind with my babies!!

After all were settled inside and the fire built up and both babies in my arms and Mary sittin’ on the arm of the chair, Willy told me that the Col. thought it might keep me from biting somebody if they brought my brood home.

I was too happy to snarl at him, but would save the thought for another time. The downside was, they didn’t leave Dog up in the valley, but I’m getting smart so I never said nothing about it.

After a while I was willing' to let them put the babies to bed but I did oversee the job and they seemed to be ok at it. But ya never know.

Willy and I found a bottle of JB and sat by the fire talking’ about what was goin’ on with the plan to wipe out them folks coming’ up from the south.

He told me the Col. had his Mexican talker givin' a story about how them folk up there had hit a big vein of gold and was holdin’ a low profile on it, and from what they could tell they was sittin' on a big bunch of it, waiting to haul it out when the road opened up for the spring.

And just as ol’ EB figured, that ol’ boy in charge told them to keep goin’ and he would hit the place in about a week.

Our man doing’ the talking’ told the other radio man kinda on the sly that the fat Mexican was really mad about it, and was calling’ the general all kinds of names.

’Course that was a lie, ‘cause we hung his fat butt but it was a good lie just the same.

So, we had a week to get it all set up. We didn’t believe the Mexican General would try to move his heavy equipment up into them mountains, so the plan was gonna involve 3 attack units.

EB was gonna have a small but heavy armed force up there to bait ‘em in, and when the fight got hot we had people who were gonna be hiding' in the timber hit ‘em from all sides.

We was figuring’ the General would come up there to make sure none of “his” gold wandered off in the troops’ pockets and that was even better! ‘Cause about the time he was yelling for help and more of his ground troops started climbing up there they was gonna get hit by Willy’s wolf pack who was gonna hit and run and pick ‘em apart.

Then the rest of us would come out of hiding all around their heavy equipment and hit them with everything we had, but EB wanted to save any thing we could- tanks was kinda in short supply up here in the mountains as was artillery.

So, it looked like maybe we could do a lot of good for America and ourselves at the same time. Whatever, I had my family here and was happy.

Willy and the Mountain Witch left and Mary and I were alone. Well, as alone as the babies would let us be, but that was wonderful too. I wanted to haul them out to the living room by the fire with us but Mary seemed to have other thoughts so we put that on hold for a while- maybe a long while.
Next morning bright and early we were awakened from the best sleep I’d had in a while by the sound of my son demanding food!! Soon to be joined by my daughter. OK, so I really can’t tell one baby crying' from another, but this is my story and I’m telling it my way!

So we got up, Mary to deal with the kids, and me to fire up the wood heat and get some bacon out of the cold room. Soon the house smelled like smoked bacon, and there was home made biscuits baking in the oven. After the eggs was done we set down as usual, me with Spring and Lil' Willy in his mom’s lap… at least I think that was the order of it- sometimes their mom dressed them in each others clothes to mess with me and I had to check the plumbing to tell just who I had.

As usual, Spring was fussing with the eggs, and as usual, her brother was being a pig with his moms eggs, that’s why she always got an extra one. I had finally gotten away with letting Spring gum a piece of bacon, and she did like that. And her mom stopped smacking me over it after she saw how much the kid liked it. I was looking forward to them sitting in their little chairs making a mess for Mary to clean up. I was smart enough to not say that tho.

Life was back to normal, well as normal as it ever was around me.  Dog still hated me, I hated him back, Mary put up with both of us. Shooting that damned Roan was not in the cards either, mostly ‘cause of Mary making a pet out of him with carrots.

I often wonder why I don’t just grab a different horse. It’s not like we only have 50 or 60 of the things, what with the ranch herd, and then Willy bringing every horse in Montana over here to be fed. What did them damn Indians do for horse feed before us white folks showed up?

I asked him that one time and he said something rude, which Mary and Whatshername thought was funny.

I think I ride that roan ‘cause I wanna see him earning' his feed and also on the off-chance if he broke a leg, well you get the picture. ‘Course, I’d need 25 preachers swearing' an oath that the leg was broke “before” the bullet.

Sometimes life’s harder then it needs to be. Mary says if I was to calm down and be nice the world would be a better place. Right, like that’s gonna happen.

Women are strange critters. Mary couldn’t understand why in the world I would give my son a rifle for Christmas, and I couldn’t understand why a man wouldn’t.

At least Willy sided with me on that one cause he gave Lil’ Willy a real nice hunting’ knife, Mary and the Morning witch , just looked at us and went to the kitchen, ‘course that was months ago but she still brings it up ever chance. I never seen so much head shaken’ in my life, but then I still can’t find what it is that she keeps lookin’ at on the ceiling, but she sure looks up a bunch. When she ain’t lookin,’ I sneak a glance up there too, but it’s as empty as Dog’s head.

The Foreman Tom had come down with his wife, who could still ride a horse carrying’ a baby or not, nice lady, nothing like her sister.

Next morning while tryin’ to convince Spring that eggs was real good by taken' bites and smacking' my lips like a silly fool, I heard steps on the porch then pounding' on the door. I hollered to come in, it was Tom, and he was right agitated- said a big ol’ Grizzly had busted into the lower corral during the night and killed two horses and the rest took off- one was bleeding pretty bad and the bear tracks was following them.

I handed Willy to his mom and started getting my cold weather riding’ gear on, ‘cause  spring in the high country of Montana was what most folks call winter.
I grabbed my old saddle gun but Mary said , ”JOE” !! I turned to her and she said “That peashooter ain’t going to stop a bear!” Well I just stood there for a moment then thought, “She’s right.”

But it was what I had handy. Then I thought of the guns in the fancy cabinet left when Shiloh bailed out of here. I went into his old den and opened it and sure as hell there was a big 50 cal. Sharps buffalo gun- now that would roll this damn critter. I grabbed a belt of shells and headed out to meet Tom and the other hands. Tom had saddled a horse for me, but it wasn’t the Roan. I looked at him and he said Joe the Roan is one that’s running and we don’t know which one is hurt.

Well, now I was mad- first of all ‘cause of the dead horses, second ‘cause he might have hurt that Roan, and that would really hurt Mary. So me and Mr. Bear was gonna have us a come to Jesus meeting’.

We rode out in a spring wind that was bitter cold as only it can be up here in the mountains. Following' this brute was easy ‘cause he made deep tracks and was following a blood trail, them horses ran a couple of miles, which is a long ways flat out running’. We found them backed up in a boulder pile wild-eyed and scared- one was bleeding real bad. We edged into the open and a couple of the hands moved in slowly talking’ to them. I was watching’ the heavy brush and not liken’ it a bit, and I decided to get off the strange horse and be standing’ on my feet if it came to it.

I had that Sharps all loaded and cocked and standing’ with my back to the hands and the horses. Then I heard a loud crashing' in the timber and something coming’ at me like a freight train. I heard them hands start levering' rounds into the pipe on their rifles, and I told them to let me have first shot.

Well, it was getting closer so I raised that heavy cannon and sighted in on the thing coming’ at me, and out of the brush came that damn Roan.

Well, I woulda pulled the trigger but he was leading' the biggest  Grizzly I ever did see right at me!! damned fool just ran right past me and there came ol’ man bear. I put the front post on his chest and touched the set trigger and all hell blew up-  that cannon about knocked me on my ass .

I thought my shoulder was broke, but that bear just stopped right in his tracks and looked at me. I was fumbling with the lever to clear the chamber and reload, and was just closing the breech when he decided that I was the fault with the hurting' he was goin' thru, so there he come again.

This time I was ready, and cut loose again and reloaded while he was sliding on his belly right at me. He hit me like a ton of rocks and I remember going down and a lot of Pain.

After a while I was starting' to feel like I was awake, ‘cause I was freezing my butt off, so I figured I had passed up hell and was heading' up instead of down, but I didn’t wanna go, so I went to fighting’ them Angels that was dragging' me up and finally I heard Tom yelling’ at me to stop fighting’ and opened my eyes. Them ol’ boys was tryin’ to drag me out from that bear, who thank god and Chris Sharps was dead as could be.

They got me on my feet, and I moved things a bit and decided I might live. I asked one of them to hand me that Sharps which he did. I opened the breech and found I never got that last shot off.

I then turned and looked at that Roan who was standing there lookin’ like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. I cocked the hammer and raised it up, took aim, and said “Tom, don’t say a word.” He said “Well ok- one word and then I’ll shut up.”
Well, I thought that was fair ‘cause nobody ever won an argument with one word, so I said “OK, say it then stand back.”

He said “ Mary”. I stood there a minute and then lowered the rifle and looked at him and said “You know I hate you, right?” Tom smiled and said “Yep, you told me the day you fell off that horse.”

Well now, I never fell off a horse in my life, and was about to start in on that when he gently took the cannon and lowered the hammer saying “Lets not have an accident while your hating' me ok?’

It took us a long time to skin out that bear and get the hide ready to go. I took great pleasure in hog-tying' that roan and then tying' the hide on him.

Lordy did he go crazy!! Best damn rodeo I ever did see, and that ol’ bear stayed on !!

When he was to tired to fight any more we headed out.

I was feeling’ pretty good when we got to the ranch yard where Mary came out and fretted a bit over me what with all the dirt and stuff on me. I was kinda wishin' I was bleeding a bit- that’s always good.

Then she saw the Roan standing’ there trembling and shaken’ which I thought looked good on him, but Miss Mary, as the hands called her, turned and looked at me, then all of them, and said, “If that hide ain’t off that horse in 10 seconds you’re all gonna wish the bear had won the fight!”

Well sir, them ol’ Indians had their knives out like it was a bad day for Custer all over again- it’s a wonder they didn’t cut each other. Tom was standing’ there shaking his head, and said, “Miss Mary, I tried to tell him, I really did. But you know how he is.” She patted that traitor on the arm and said “It’s not your fault Tom- I shouldn’t have let him out without me around to keep him in line.”

As soon as that hide hit the ground that roan backed away snorting' and pawing' the ground. Sure, I thought. It’s dead now, be brave. Mary went over to him and he settled down. She then said “Come on, baby,” and walked toward the horse pen and that dirty son of a spavin broke down jackass  followed her just like a puppy.

I really do hate that horse, and he was gonna meet his maker soon real soon- he might fall off a cliff. ‘Course I’d wanna make sure he had a real old saddle on that day.

Mary came back and looked me in the eye said, “Tom, please find Joseph a new horse, a gentle one that he won’t fall off of, and maybe a deaf one that can’t hear all the rotten things he says to it.”

Well , I just stood there strain' at her, and she then said, “From this day on, the roan is my horse. Nobody rides him but me. And if you or any of the fools that think you’re in charge goes near him, I will not be happy. And if I’m not happy, then you know who will need to come stay a week or so??

Right then and there I heard the sound of doom. It was real loud and it had a name- it was She who nobody talks about. The hands were all getting white-eyed and Tom said “Miss Mary- please don’t do that, OK?”

”We won’t let him near that horse ever again. And you know if she comes here she stays with my wife, and it’s too cold to sleep out in the barn right now.”

I swear that man was groveling like a dog. I said are you sure you ol’ boys are really kin to the fellers that did in ol’ George Armstrong?

Mary looked at me and said “Joseph” (she knows I hate that name) “go in the house and clean the rifle and put it away, please…”

Then she asked which of the hands had taken that big ol’ wolf hide and turned it into a nice wall hanger. One of the hands said “Me, Miss Mary”. She smiled at him with a million watts of smile and said “Can you do something with this bear?” He lit up and said “Sure I can.”

Now up until I heard him talking to Mary, I thought he only spoke Lakota. I asked him if he learned tanning from his elders, and he looked at me like I was crazy and said, “Hell no, Joe. I went to school in Denver for 2 years to learn how to do this stuff.” Well, so much for the wild red man of the plains act.

Taking my wounded pride along with the Sharps, I retreated to the house and obeyed the Queen and cleaned the rifle. Then I cleaned up and poured myself a glass of Jimmy B and sat in front of the fire. With a sweet bundle on each shoulder sleeping, I couldn’t take a sip, but that was fine .

Pretty soon Mary came in from her bath and sat down and took my drink, and held it up for me to sip. Then she took a tiny taste and made a face, and said “You know, Joe, if you drank a better grade of hooch you’d be in a better mood all the time.” Well, I couldn’t slug her with a baby in each arm, so I stuck my tongue out at her, which got a good laugh.

She said “That bear rug is gonna come in real handy here in front of the fire. I looked at the floor and said “Oh?? Why?” She smiled and said, “Use your imagination, Joseph.” I’m a bit slow at times but I ain’t stupid .

The next day started out like all the rest- me tryin’ to make Spring eat a bit of mashed up egg, and her gumming a hunk of bacon to death. I’d trade babies, but then I wouldn’t get any egg, because Lil’ Willy has a lock on that part of the day.

Now, if the damn bears would stay out of the horse pen, and Tom would stay at his house, I could get to the early morning chores- mainly napping' in front of the fire with my babies in my arms. Life is good

A late storm blew in two days later and stopped everything in its tracks for a week or so. We was busy feeding' the cattle thru it, yea and the damned buffalo. Some kings of the plains- comes a little blow and here they come knocking' everything over and hogging' the hay-

One old bull , bigger'n a tank just flat walked thru the corral like it wasn’t there. Wouldn’t go around, just lowered his head and kept walking’. I was so Pissed off I took the Sharps out onto the porch and was, of course, caught red handed by Mary and the hands. They all think the  thing is majestic.  Right. So, I told them they by god could rebuild that pen and not come spring- like right now.

I wonder why I put up with all the crap around here- nobody listens to me except them Mexican hands and they don’t understand a word I say- they just smile, take off their hat and nod a lot, then go right back to whatever they decided to do that day.

But I gotta give ‘em credit, they are workers and doers. Mary is learning' to talk Mexican. I pity ‘em ‘cause then she’ll be working’ them like slaves. ‘Course, they would do that regardless of what language she talks at ‘em- in fact I suspect there’s a game goin’ on ‘cause I’ll see her talking to them and pointing and they are all nodding' and zip, they go right to it.

I asked Tom if he thought they understood English, He said, “Hell Joe, I been round you white devils all my life and I don’t under stand a word you say.” ‘Course Mary and Tom’s wife busted up laughin’so I showed them- I stomped off to a nap!

Soon tho, the snow melted, the breeze warmed up and the scouts
said the enemy was starting' to prepare for their next jump, so one fine day we all came together and Willy laid out the final plan that EB and him had cooked up.

EB and a bunch of his band of Merry killers would slip into the town and send out the folks living' there. Some of the lady Marines was gonna be seen wearing' girl clothes instead of BDU’s.  The few men that would be out and about was all lookin' like they was miners digging' in the dirt.

A bunch in the old mining camp, more laid up in the timber back out of the way, and Willy’s wolves all along the trail to pick off the re-enforcements coming’ up there.
They had it laid out so we wouldn’t be talking’ on the radios much, if any, and then on a real hard to find channel with scramblers.

I was with the group that was gonna hit their main unit after the fight really got going. With nobody shooting’ at them we figured they would relax and we could nail ‘em good.

The day of the battle things went more or less as EB and Willy planned it. The big shot himself went up that road/trail with his troops, and when they got to the camp they only saw a couple of people out and about, clothes on the lines and smoke coming’ from the chimneys.

After watching a bit, they sent two men down to talk to the miners about giving up their gold, and were told nope. They told their boss and he opened fire with everything he had. It was funny to watch, according to the guys who were hiding in the timber. They said after shooting’ about a thousand rounds into the old cabin till it was about to fall down, they just got up and started walking’ down the hill. Then the “miners” opened up with machine guns and 16’s and AK’s and pretty much wiped out the ones sent down by the boss BG.

He then flew into a rage and they really opened up, but were making so much noise they never heard the single shots from their rear and gillie-suited Marines picked them off one by one, meanwhile as predicted, the fool ordered more men up the trail .

After about ½ a mile they were so strung out they was in single file, and Willy’s wolf pack, getting to play Indian with their bows, started picking off the end of the bunch. They were just dropping one at a time until one screamed, and they all turned around and were hit with dozens of arrows. A few got off a few rounds but it was over pretty fast. Now I found out that you don’t die right away from an arrow unless it’s like in the head or maybe heart, so a lot of them ol’ boys paid a dear price ‘cause the wolves wasn’t none too gentle sending' them on over the river. Why they was a playin’ with them bows is beyond me.

I had no idea that Willy had condoned scalping, but there it was I guess. And some of them ol’ boys was still alive, but I guess they had some rough handling' coming’.

As soon as the bunch goin’ up the trail started shooting’, the ones in camp jumped up and ran over to that side of the camp and hunkered down to see what might be coming’.

Now I ain’t no military guy, but even I know to watch the back door, but them fools never looked behind them.

We walked right in the back door and just hosed ‘em- not more then 10 or 15 returned fire, but we was all hunkered behind their trucks and stuff, so they never even nicked anybody.

After it was over, I was flat blown away by the fact that we had no KIA and only 8 or 10 wounded. I asked Willy and the Col. how this could be and they both said, “pick your fight, pick your battleground and never fight fair. If you can shoot em in the back, do so. Always shoot from cover and never give them a chance.”

EB also admitted that if this was a crack unit of real military, it would not have played out this way. Willy said “If you can get them in a bunch, and hit ‘em hard and fast with everything you have by people who know what they are doing, well, they ain’t got a chance.”

Well, I guess I seen to much TV or movies, ‘cause I thought these fights would be really bad but it wasn’t so. I still can’t understand it- how had this bunch survived the run all the way up here?

Willy summed it up with “Well Joe, they just hadn’t met up with Marines yet.” Should have seen that coming’ a mile away.

So, we collected all the crap they didn’t need and the Col.’s men spent days hauling’ it back to their base. And it was an odd assortment of stuff ‘cause the Mexican army bought the cheapest crap from anybody who would sell it.

But they had a lot of drug money to buy most anything, so I guess by the time all the big shots down there got thru taken' their bite, it didn’t leave money for the best.

News was real scarce about how things was going in the outside countryside. Here we was holdin’ our own, but we knew the folks outside of our area was hurting' big time, and it was frustrating to not be able to help them. But it wasn’t time, as EB said. We could only scout out groups of enemy combatants or plain ol’ BG’s of which there was plenty. EB’s plan to send out patrols soon as it dried out more was a good idea but I figured if anything was movin' in the new Indian Country, Willy’s folks would know about it before we did, so I had no idea what EB had in mind.

Me?  I just wanted to sit by the fire and rock my babies and hope that bear hide got done soon; I had been thinking about that a lot. Nice thought when you’re in the dark with a bunch of other men all painted for war and getting ready to sneak-attack some bad ol’ boys.

I’ll be the first to admit I’m not much into this war thing. Oh sure, I love my country and all that, and them bastards came at us, and it’s up to us to stop them, but, I’d just rather raise cows, ride my horse and love my family. But, come next time ol’ EB decides to go after some BG’s I’ll be there like a grinning like a fool.

Funny thing is, Mary ain’t one of them clinging women, she knows it’s got to be done and that’s it. If we didn’t have the babies she’d be right there in the thick of things, and I love her for it, but I’d rather she be home with the kids.

Hard news wasn’t easy to come by, lots of short wave on the air, but most was just people repeating rumors or making' stuff up just to feel important. Once in a while we would hear some military radio traffic but most of it was scrambled in a way EB’s comm. folk couldn’t open up.

EB said it was most likely our troops down in Baja kicking' butt. But we had no way to know for sure. The long-range patrols were moving out and staying out for a couple of weeks- usually big enough to handle about anything they was apt to come across.
Once they sent a hummer for me with orders to dress warm.

Well, I knew this meant I was going on a chopper ride, so I was happy. Seems one of our patrols had bit off a big chunk and opened up a hornets nest of BG’s. They had called for help, so we got ready to move in at dawn. The patrol was holding its own against about 100 or so scumbags that were raiding' the small farms and ranches and our people just happened to roll into an ongoing fight at a farm and swept in and rolled up the BG’s.

A few got away and here come a bunch of trash that made that bunch in that old Road Warrior movie look clean and smelling' good.

Our patrol got hunkered down with the folks at the farm who only had about 5 shooters, so with only a couple of hours lead time our people dug in and set up a good defensive position and was holding their own, but was running low on ammo.

EB decided to just send a pair of gun ships in to smack them BG’s and then fly back the wounded. So we was up an hour ahead of the sun and heading to the fight.

We were in radio contact with the patrol and knew where to find the BG’s, so we just flew in low and kinda slow- they had no idea there was a chopper around much less 2 gunship’s.

At the first burst they looked like ants boiling out of a kicked-over log, but they did have fight in ‘em- those choppers got several bullet holes in ‘em and the other door gunner in my ship caught a hit right in the armor vest.

Knocked his air loose a bit and set him to cussing', and a good job of that!! Good to hear a pro cussing’.

Well, it was more of a shooting match then them Mexicans gave us but they never had a chance, and ya know, not one tried to give up.

Maybe they had heard of EB. Anyway we wrapped them up- maybe a few escaped but if so it was from hiding’, not from running’ or standing’ and fighting’.

We got landed, and a few scouts set out running down the “Gomers” ,as they called ‘em. I kinda like that. Gomers. uh huh.

Well, we would hear a shot or two, then a bunch, then quiet a bit, then all over again, and after a bit they came back hauling’ one of ours dead and 4 wounded.

Cornering a wounded anything will get ya hurt, so we loaded our people and a couple of the farm folks that needed patching' and left- the patrol was remaining there until we sent back some replacements .

When we landed, EB and Willy was there to see our people off the bird, and into the hands of the docs as all them corpsmen was called even if they wasn’t full docs.

Then him and Willy came over to my bird, and we, along with the other gunner, carried the dead marine to the hospital.

EB saw the other gunner holding his chest a bit, stopped us and looked at his chest which was really bruised and yelled for a corpsman and two came running- one helped the gunner and the other carried the dead man with us.

I was really having a hard time with this. We had fought two pretty big fights with little or no wounded, and in a small brush with a few dipshits we get 4 shot up and a dead Marine. Didn’t make sense to me. When I asked EB and Willy, they just said that was just the way it went. Man could race motorcycles all his life and never break a bone- get out of bed, trip on a shoe and break his neck. They summed it up as Shit Happens. I guess so.

I got a ride home and Mary ran out to meet me. As we went in I looked over by the fire and by golly, there was as pretty a bearskin rug as I ever did see. I smiled, and Mary smiled, and it was so good to be home.

War is hell, but coming’ home to a home full of love is heaven. So maybe God made it that way a purpose.

It’s been quiet here on the ranch- nobody needing shooting’. Since I stopped fighting with the Roan, Mary is happy.

Dog got his butt kicked for lying’ on the bearskin rug- not by me!! By Mary!! I laughed for days over the look on that mutt’s face.

I stopped laughing when Mary quietly said maybe I should try to be a better example to the kids. I’m not sure what she means by that. I work hard enough, I don’t cuss a lot…around the kids, Anyway, I stopped with the dog stuff… for a while.

Willy and his little lady came out and stayed a few days. Tom wasn’t happy but they stayed with us, so he was off the hook and out of the barn.

Willy says the Col. has his troops scattered all over the country looking for Bad Guy’s , but with thin luck, they found a few here and there but it was a short thing. Nobody from our side got hurt, and they didn’t live so, all in all, life’s good.

After they left it was really quiet for a couple of weeks, and I spent most days in the saddle with the hands mostly just getting out in the sun and fresh air.

The ranch women and the Mex hands are trying to plant the whole damn ranch in vegetables- guess they never heard of meat and taters. Women is strange critters but ya gotta love ‘em.

The cattle are looking really good, but we have several funny looking calves- seems the big ol’ Buffalo bull decided to do some cross pollination- but they are cute little things, and beefalo eats just as good as any other meat. Guess I should have seen it coming, but I never thought about it- maybe someday our whole herd will be crossed- make some bigger, meaner cows!! Them wolves might have more trouble then they want. A few more tanned wolf hides around on the walls would look good, too.

I noticed after Willy’s …woman, was here, that Mary started correcting my way of talking. She’s really been on the fight about it. Well, really she’s been sweet about it. I tried to tell her I didn’t know no better, but that argument lasted about as long as a flash bulb at the Miss Nude Universe contest. I lost, of course.

I tried to tell her that I talk just fine, but she tossed in the wild card- asked me if I wanted our kids to punctuate every sentence with a cuss word. I got upset and said “I damn sure as Hell don’t do that. Shit….”

Uh huh. Ever wonder what your boot tastes like when you been walking thru cow “droppings”? Well it’s pretty bad.

On top of that, she’s been reading my Journal when I’m gone and showed me all the things I been doin’ wrong…well, I mean “ all the things I’ve been doing wrong.” crap. Oops, this is hard.

Anyway, she won as she does these days. She says “Joe?  We need to talk, come over here to the bear rug.” Now that’s fighting dirty as can be- ain’t a man alive can win lying on a bearskin rug with a beautiful wife. But losing is fun, so I’m trying to clean up my ways, a bit.

She’s right tho cause I noticed when I’m in the house the kids watch everything I do, and then jabber sounds at each other. I think they have their own language. Mary just laughs at me. I also noticed as they got older that Spring, after watching Willy eating eggs like a little pig, decided she liked em too, so now we cook a lot more eggs. “Course, she wants me to feed ‘em to her, which is a lot of fun, and she still gums the hell….uh… she really likes her bacon a lot.

They spend a lot of time on that rug near the fire, so I put a big ol’ screen in front of it and that solved that for a bit. They are two of the sweetest things on Gods green earth. I can’t wait to take my son hunting. Mary laughs and says I best be thinking ‘bout taking Spring too, ‘cause she won’t be left out of anything. If her brother eats a bug, then she’s gonna find one for herself. Well, you know what I mean. They don’t eat bugs. Do they? I asked Mary about that, and she said they will put anything in their mouths, so now my boots stay on the porch.

Mary and me took a ride up to the Valley and spent the day and night there. The old place sure has some wonderful memories. There wasn’t a bearskin rug there but we did fine without it.

But come morning we was both fidgeting around like a hound passim’ peach seeds, and at last I said “Wanna go home and get the kids from Tom’s?” That girl had that Roan saddled before I could pull my boots on, and talking’ about that Roan… that nag is just a kitten around her and I swear it sticks it’s tongue out at me. I’m watching’ to catch it, then we gonna have us a coming’ to Jesus meeting’. But of course Mary, who has eyes out the back of her head, said “Joe… I’m warning you, this is my horse and if you think that bearskin rug can’t be nailed to the barn door, just try something and mister you can say goodbye to a lot of nice things…best be thinking about it mountain boy…”

God, I hate that horse but I love that old bear rug so…. Taking the coward’s way out I denied any idea of what she was talking about, and she just said “uh huh”, in the way she has…

Some day I’m gonna ask Willy how he gets along with his woman so well, but then maybe I really don’t want to know. Might scare the “Heck” out of me.

Well, anyway, spring and summer was meeting up. Heck, I don’t even know what month it is. But who cares? Time stopped meaning anything back a while ago. The sun comes up when it’s supposed to and sets when it’s done for the day. What more do ya need to know?

The hands found a dead calf today- looked like a big cat took it. Didn’t do much in the way of feeding on it,  Tom says it’s an old tom that is going downhill fast, can’t hunt anything else and can’t hardly chew it after he gets it. We both hate to have to kill it, but figure we will. We moved the cattle away from the area a pretty good bit and left the calf for him. I hope he just stays with his kill and passes in his sleep. I must be getting old to think this way, but things have changed so much.

There’s no cattle market to worry about getting cows to, no buyers, meat’s over-running the grasslands- deer and elk for the taking, hell…heck, even Willy’s people spend more time just looking at the buffalo then thinking about eating them. Things that was so important are now a thing of the past.

We have more baby critters around then one can believe. Willy brought in a big ol’ Appy stud horse and now everything running in the horse herd has spots on it’s butt. Man, them are some cute babies!!

Mary went out with me to look at them. We took the kids with us- she and Tom's wife made baby carriers that you can wear in front so they can see, too.

We rode around a bit and Mary said “Joe?  Lets pick out the horses for the kids right now, so they all are ready to ride and be ridden together”. Well, now that was a really good idea, so we spent the morning riding around the horse pasture looking and sweetly arguing about which ones. We picked out two beauties, too.

After we found the ones we wanted, Mary kept riding around a while, then said “That one” and pointed at a very nice filly. I said “Thinking about getting a new one for yourself?” She just smiled and said “Well, I figured we might as well get the third colt picked now…..” It took about 5 minutes to sink in and I stopped dead still and said, “Run that by me again?” She just smiled and said “Joe, why do you think I wanted to visit the old cabin in the valley?”

Well sir, I was flat out froze, I couldn’t even think of a smart remark. All I could do was ride over to her, lean over and hold her close, which wasn’t in the cards with the kids in the way, and they both let us know they didn’t care for a family hug like this.

We headed home, my heart was all swelled up, and I had a thing in my throat that I almost couldn’t breathe around. I wanted to yell out-loud but the swaying of the walking horses had rocked the kids to sleep so we just held hands and enjoyed the warm breeze and the smell of sun-warmed babies and horses.

I don’t know what’s coming or what’s in the future, I just know that God has smiled on me and gave me so much more then I ever would have had if not for that EMP thing.

I guess out of even hard, bad times comes good.

The End…………………………..or is it?