Chapter 11 The Quickest Heartbreak in Winze County
“Dang it.”
“Hello to you too, Joseph.”
“Howdy, Sam.” He stopped a few feet short of the creek bed.
He held out his hand motioning to her to hand it over.
Sam looked down at the open applejack she had been swigging.
“Oh, this be yours?”
“I was wonderin’ ‘bout it being a might short my last trip up.”
“Now, that might hap’ be me.”
“I gave you that bottle of fancy Italian wine Uncle Henry brought in from Atlanta. Can’t you leave a man’s liquid warmth alone?”
“That was Christmas! And it’s weak as creek water compared to your applejack.”
Joseph gave a short laugh. “Probably why Uncle Henry didn’t mind giving it to me in the first place.”
“Come over here and I’ll share it with you.”
Joseph stretched the back of his neck, considering. “You offering to share my own applejack with me?”
He waded into the water, got real close to her. He felt the heat between them and…
Snatched the applejack and jumped back out of the creek.
“You gotta behave Sam, I got Miss Shelia and Goatman gonna be here any minute. We got to figure a way to get a goat of his into this here creek and smelling daisy fresh.”
“Miss Shelia?”
“If you’d just step foot in a town happenings or the church some Sunday, you’d know more town folk.”
Joseph almost gushed. “Miss Shelia’s about the talkin’ est thing you ever did hear. She’s about this tall…”
He smiled before he even realized he was smiling.
He showed Sam her height based off a spot just about at his heart level.
“She knows more stories than pert near anybody I’ve ever met.”
Sam walked out of the creek stepping up level to him. She put her hand up to her shoulder. “About this tall?”
Joseph saw the flicker in her eye and frowned a second.
“She’ll be here any minute Sam. I promise you two are going to love each other. She’s bringing Goatman for a picnic. We got a plan.”
They both heard the grey horse Shelia road before they saw her.
Shelia moved from side to side in her saddle.
“Your daddy’ll tan your hide if he saw you not sitting side saddle.”
“My daddy expects me to use her like a pack mule. Why, she’d have her feeling hurt if I didn’t treat her like a real working horse.”
“I’ve got someone I want you to meet!”
Joseph spun around, turning a full circle.
“Sam? Sam?… Don’t be that way Sam! Get out here! It’s in Sam’s nature to be a might skiddish around people she ain’t kin to. She lernt her hiding and tracking skills from her Grandpappy Old Ben.”
“You’re related to Old Ben?
Joseph stared at Shelia a second tring to figure how she figured that. “Oh, no, Sam and me go way back tho’ My Ma’s ma and old Ben trapped up against each other. She’s as close as kin tho’.”
Sam brushed back tears and sprang out of the bushes right next to them both.
Everyone but the ole grey horse jumped.
“Miss Shelia, this is Sam.”
“Why, oh my! It’s such an honor to meet you ma’am!” Shelia swung a leg over her horses back and landed surefooted right next to her.
Talking the entire time.
“Ole Ben’s Granddaughter! I can hardly believe it! I’ve never been kin to anyone famous. You simply have to stay for our picnic, Goatman is on his way.”
She turned to face Joseph, “Why didn’t you tell me you had someone else in on the plan?”
When she turned back around, Sam was gone again. Joseph was so focused on every word coming out of Shelia’s mouth, he wasn’t even certain where she went.
“Sam! I know I’m a bit much and I never hush up. But, it’s mamma’s last nights fried chicken and I gots German potato salad too!”
“She can hide from a hawk,” Joseph pointed out.
Joseph and Shelia both jumped as Sam popped her head up from the other side of the ole grey horse.
“Fried Chicken? Why didn’t you say so?” Sam said a bit too loud.
“Well, surely I should have. And the only thing I like more than talking is listening. Can you tell me what it was like to be raised by a ledgend wilst we fix the vittles?”
Joseph and Shelia went to spread out the blanket.
Sam disappeard again as Goatman and at least a half dozen goats came noisly up the trail.
He hallared out while he was still approachin’. “Joseph, Sheliah? It’s me goatman.”
“Sam’s here too!” Shelia hallard back… “or was just here.
Sam came walking up the trail behind Goatman as quiet as a field mouse hiding from a snake.
Joseph caught the look in her eye but thought little of it. Sam had a Cherokee streak about her when she’d been into the applejack, and he reckoned that explained it well enough.
“Been trailin’ you pert near two miles now, Goatman.”
He jerked around to see her. “Most younguns’ might believe that Miss Samantha, but I ain’t green.”
“How’ve you been you old goat?” She lept up behind him and hugged him like he was her pappy.
“Better now that I see you! And that food! What say you and me go have a seat?”
Sam helped Goatman across a couple of slick rocks to the blanket of food.
Shelia noticed how tender she was with his old bones.
Goatman looked at Sam like she was a sight for sore eyes.
They all tore into the food family style not much caring where fingers landed. Shelia kept glancing at Sam, wanting a story, but afraid to ask a second time.
Sam kept glancing back at her uncomfortably.
“What’s it like being raised with Joseph?”
Sam responded with a question instead of answering Shelia.
“How long have you known him?”
“Well, he’s pert near my daddy’s age.”
“I beg your pardon? I’m slap inbetween you and your daddy age wise! Don’t rush the grim reaper.”
Sam laughed at that. She took a deep breath, buring what ever she was feeling under a wave of fresh air.
“I can tell I’m going to love you Shelia… Here’s your story. I’m not much of a teller mind you.”
“See this here scar?” She pointed high on her shoulder.
“Yes, a gun graze?”
“You’re good, you a healer?”
“No, but Ma Daniel, she lives in town and taught me a touch.”
“I trade medicine with her. She makes a fine doctor. Well, that there is where Joseph shot me.”
Joseph rolled his eyes like he had heard this version of the story before.
“I grazed you! I shot the cougar on the shelf behind you!”
Sam totally ignored him.
She pointed to her temple.
“See this gash?”
“Oh my! You must have bleed like a stuck pig!”
“Worse than a sixteen year old virgin! We like to never got it to stop… That there is where Joseph hit me square in the face with a sling-rock.”
“I was aiming for the rabbit.”
“And this one!”
“Okay, that’s enough. Here’s one!” Joseph showed a knife wound down his left arm.
“What happen?”
“Sam said thank you for the rock!” Goatman shouted out the ending.
They all laughed. The laughter continued throughout the meal.
To this day, no one was certain when or how the goats got washed.
It involved Sam walking home with Miss Shelia.
Applejack.
The creek.
And a promise to clear out Goatman’s soap inventory for double the money.
Best smelling goats and goatman ever.