The Jewels of Nebraska, Episode 8 -A Date With the Chickens

Click to start this series from the beginning. 

The rolling white crests of the Colorado river dodged boulders below the road they traveled on. The walls of the canyon were so steep the whole sky looked like a stripe of light blue in a shaded green. She couldn't figure how it was the trees weren't falling into the river growing in places that were more vertical than not. It was beautiful, nothing like Ruby had ever seen.

She didn't give a damn.

All she could think about was her brother, left back by the road a couple days ago now. It was her bright idea to run off, now look at the mess they were in. The county orphanage didn't seem near so unreasonable now.

There were no guard rails or nothin' along the cliffside road. Only good steering and brakes to keep the car from going over the side.

They met a car coming the other way at a narrow spot in the road. A young couple. After some negotiatin', Caleb agreed to drive in reverse to find a spot where the two cars could pass. He guided their vehicle backwards in the shaking mirror. Ruby tried not to think about the steep ledge.

She looked into the eyes of the young woman in the car they were facing. She wished they could see Ruby's sad story in her eyes and rescue her with them to Hollywood—at least that's where she decided they were from.

Truth be told, the other girl wasn't any happier that the kidnapped runaway. The two stared at each other with blank faces and hollow eyes. Maybe if, they were a little closer and maybe if that old windshield was a little less dusty, she mighta seen that lady's red eyes and the bruises round her neck.

Caleb cursed continually. He cursed in that Christian way that ain't cursin' but still is to anyone that can tell it from Shinola.

The truck lurched suddenly backwards. The left rear wheel went over the side. Ruby shrieked instinctively jumped from her seat, folded down the wind shield glass and climbed out on the engine cowling, it was hot under her hands and knees. The truck tipped back but as Ruby climbed out on the front fender, it settled back. She was about to jump off when confronted by a chorus of voices.

“NO, DON'T!”

“Don't move young lady.” Said a voice behind her. The groom had jumped from his car and walked towards Ruby with his hand held out.

“For heaven's sake child.” pleaded Ester.

Ruby's eye's found Caleb's. He had a hateful look hanging behind his mustache. For once he had nothin' to say.

Ruby glared back wondering if he was thinking about the same thing she was: the night before.

“Sit like a lady girl,” Caleb grumbled from across the campfire.

Ruby's knees were already tight together but she spread her dress down over her knees to appease his temper. It seemed nothing could keep him from his foul moods, still she felt like she had to try.

“Don't be shooting me that willful look girl.”

“But I didn't even...”

“Don't back talk! What kinda mama raised such barn-mannered little hussy.”

Ruby raged inside, but bit her tongue. He would sure beat her if she spoke up.

“I bet I know what type your mama was: little hussy, big hussy, praise be oh Lord.”

Ruby couldn't take no more. She jumped to her feet, her eyes all angry red. She could have crushed a med-cine bottle in her teeth right then.

“My mama was... is... she used to... She's is a real lady you know. You don't know nothin' bout manners anyhow you old... clodhopper.”

Caleb shot up from where he sat, stepped clean over the fire and lifted ruby up by her arm. He unfolded his pocket knife, nearly dropping it in his shaking hand, and cut the twine that tethered her ankle to the log she was sitting on and tied her hands together in front.

“You 'bout to learn some manners girl.”

He marched her into the woods towing her by the wrists. Ruby flashed a glance back at Ester who looked straight ahead at the fire, her coffee cup frozen and inch from her lips.

A good hike from the campsite Caleb found a fallen tree around waist high. He yanked Ruby over it with the rope that bound her hands and lashed the free end to her ankles leaving little room between the two and the girl draped over the log like a saddle on a horse.

I had taken my belt off to discipline my Ruby once or twice... no it were just once. It was terrible. I didn't have the stomach for it. Fortunately, just the mention of my belt did the trick after that one time.

From that once, she knew well enough the sound; Caleb's belt slapping through the belt loops when he yanked it off. Ruby bit her lip and let the pain come out in silent tears and a secret drop of blood in her mouth.

HE beat her a good ten times with that belt. Caleb was enraged by her silence. He dropped his belt put his hand stiffly to her backside for all he was worth. Finally, the cries escaped Ruby's lips. Caleb's hand came to rest on her cotton dress, he was panting quivering. He looked upon her as if frozen in a trance.

Ruby tried in vane to wipe her eyes and nose against her bound arms. The rough bark dug into her stomach. Caleb suddenly turned and walked away.

“Where you?... Please,” Ruby gasped. “please cut me loose? I can't hardly breathe!”

“When you've learned your place girl,” Caleb said. "When you joyfully honor and obey.”

Ruby looked upside down at his boots stomping back to the campsite. The knots held fast.

“Girl, you stay right where you are,” Caleb said. His voice was as unsteady as the teetering truck.

“My name ain't 'girl' you crazy old man,” Ruby said. She smiled right at him and jumped off the front fender of the truck and landed with the grace of a ballet dancer.

“NOO!” hollered Ester and Caleb together. The truck rocked back until it hit on the rear axle and rested more stable like.

She stood on the road with her arms folded proudly. “My name's Ruby, and don't you forget it.”

She knew she was going to get a beating that night and sure enough, she did, worse than before. Cept it didn't seem near so bad when she remembered the pee-in-his-pants look Caleb had on his face when he thought for sure she had sent him over the Cliff.

Ruby didn't realize she had it better than the young bride in the other car. She also didn't know that young lady left that heavy handed husband when they returned to Parump, Nevada—not Hollywood as it turned out. It was all because of a defiant young girl she met on the road one day.

They would meet again one day, but of course she didn't know that either.

Few mansions in Omaha were as big and grand as the one that stood before me. It was bitter cold with a light snow and a steady wind. A hot humid kitchen, though I dreaded them most other times, seemed a might welcome thing right then.

My job waiting tables at the country club had got me all sorts of work at big parties and weddings. I'd even quit my job at the flour mill. My Pa and Bill laughed at me whenever I left the house in my tuxedo lookin' waiter get-up. I didn't pay them no heed though. They knew I was bringing in more money than they were.

I never stopped thinking of Charlotte. It had been over two years since I'd seen them beautiful eyes at the train station, but they were like a painting in my mind. I was losing hope I'd ever see her again. She probably went back to wherever she came from on that fancy rail car.

The butler began shouting as soon as I walked in the back entrance and stomped the snow off my boots. He seemed to have it in for me the rest of the night, working me harder than any of the other waiters.

“I don't like the look of this one,” He said in a haughty English accent every time I entered the kitchen. I began to get nervous and started dropping things, forgetting things, and he just yelled at me more. I didn't much like the look of him either, though I couldn't say exactly why.

It didn't take him long to decide who to send to the chicken barn when a kitchen maid dropped a whole tray of eggs. Me of course, not the clumsy girl who'd broken them.

I reached for my coat in the closet.

“If you're going to take so long as to require a parka, you needn’t return,” said the butler.

Tempted as I was, I left my jacket on it's hook and headed out into the cold.

I had barely made it halfway to the barns when I saw a figure trodding and limping through the snow and falling down every few feet. I thought it was strange, but kept my appointment with the chickens until I heard it during a lull in the wind.

Crying.

“Hey there,” I yelled when I got closer. “You okay?”

The woman reeled around nearly falling again in her surprise. I raised the lantern high, but she was too far away, I could only see her outline against the snow in the moonless night.

“Ma'am, Should you ought to be someplace warm? This weather could kill a steer.”

The woman backed away from me, soon falling again. She got up and ran towards nothin' in particular it seemed.

“Wait, why you running? I'm only trying to...” I darted after her.

“Go away, you can't stop me, I must find her.”

“All you're gunna find out here is your death lady.”

I caught up to her and spun her around to me. All I could see was a flurry of fists mixed in with the snow.

“Hey now! Just wait a minute.”

“Leave me be!”

She turned and tried to run again. Before I knew what had happened I had grabbed the poor girl and hoisted her over my shoulder. All I could do really. She wasn't about to listen to reason and with one hand on my lantern I couldn't figure another way to get her to safety.

“You'll freeze! No kiddin', this cold will kill you... and me, if we don't ”

“No! Let me down!”

Her fists pounded my back as I carried her towards the closest structure I knew wouldn't get fired for entering with a thrashing woman on my shoulder: the barn.

I set her on a wood bench and held her down for a good minute while she struggled to get up. I kept my head down. Though I had her arms under control, her head was thrashing every which way.

“Leave me be! I've got too... She's... I've got to...”

“You gunna promise not to run back out in that cold?”

“No, no!”

“Then we got ourselves kind-of a standoff.”

“A 'standoff' what does that even mean!”

Her fight had tempered some, but I kept a good hold of her and hunkered down low beside her all the same.

“I guess you don't read no cowboy stories do ya.”

"Certainly not!”

“It means as long as you keep fighting and don't promise me on your mother's name not to run, I can't let you go.”

“Well alright then, I promise.”

“You promise what?”

“I promise on my mother's good name, God rest her soul, I will not run out into the cold.”

“Okay,” I said.

I let go of her shoulders and sat back on my feet. She was a young woman, though her face was red and dry from the cold. She brushed her ragged hair from her eyes.

I near fell over and turned white as a ghost.

“Charlotte?” I said.

Continued in Episode 9

The Jewels of Nebraska, Episode 7 -Not a Daughter

Click to start this series from the beginning.

“Oh, there he is!” said Polly.

A figure limped along the road towards the waylaid troupe of players. Janet and Bernard sat on the running board of the long car, sharing a cigarette and singing a song, Kenneth was throwing rocks down the embankment trying to hit a particular tree. Jean Francois stood beside the car, trimming his immaculate eye brows and mustache in the rear view mirror. Jules sat reclined in the third row seat with the door open, one ham-like leg hung out of the car. He occasionally nipped from a flask when no one was looking, though everyone knew. Polly had been picking wild flowers when she saw Herman.

“What's wrong with your leg? I thought you went for help?” Janet said when Herman reached the car and leaned on it for support.

“The leg is the price for what I hope will be good advice. It is thought our trouble is a matter of air mixture and perhaps dust.

“I told you we weren't out of gas,” Kenneth said. He shook the car and put his ear to the open gas inlet.

“Good heaven's boy!” Jules supported himself from slouching further with one arm, while replacing the flask in his vest pocket.

“Kenneth, do you know of this air mixing doodad. It seems we have to give it more air and less fuel.”

“I'm an scenic artist, not a mechanic.”

“You're a stage hand,” said Janet.

“A lazy one,” said Jean Francois.

“You read Jules Vern, that makes you more a mechanic than the rest of us,” said Herman.

“I just know you can fix it Kenneth,” said Polly. She clasped her hands behind her and twisted back and forth causing her skirt to swirl.

“Fine,” Kenneth said throwing one more rock at the tree and missing, “I'll take a look.”

William was so thirsty he had stopped thinking about being hungry. He could hear the stream from the road. It was a long steep gulley. He guided himself along the trees until he reached a bare patch of gravel. He dug his heels in which sent a small avalanche of stones plummeting down towards the bottom of the gulley. One rolled under his foot and soon he was rolling down the side himself, gaining speed and loosing control.

The sun pierced William's vision when he opened his eyes. What had happened? His head hurt and was swimming in dizziness. His hand was lying in the stream. He remembered rolling down the steep slope then... He felt his sore head. It was wet. He looked at his hand.

Blood.

William managed to roll up onto all fours. His mouth was still dry as brown paper. He scooped a couple of handfuls of water from the stream, drank some and washed the blood off his head. He started to drink from his hands again but plunged his face in like and animal and began gulping. It was the best, coolest water he ever tasted. He drank and drank. His gulping and snorting was the sort of thing that would get him walloped by me, his papa, and later his sister. It was when he stopped drinking that he noticed the snorting wasn't coming from him.

He carefully looked up. Across the stream and down some, just a few yards all told, was a mountain of chestnut fur. The bear stopped drinking and looked up as though it could sense William's open jaw. It sniffed the air and snorted loudly. William fell back on his britches and clamored backwards like a crab. The bear walked into the stream towards him.

 

“Don't run ya,” said a voice from the top of the gulley. “Run and she will think you taste better.”

William froze, but did not take his eyes off the bear. The bear froze as well.

“Gud ya, now you stand,” the voice said. “On feet. Go, do.”

William hesitated, the bear's nose probed the air, sniffing.

“Taller eez less tasty. Go do, go do.”

William eased to his feet. He was a might unsteady, what with the incline and his dizziness. The bear took a step back and made a belch-like grunt.

“Gud, now you walk, go.”

William didn't like the idea of turning his back to the bear and climbing up the bank. He liked the idea of going anywhere else even less.

“Where?” William said as loud as he dared.

“To bear. Look eyes ya.”

“Whaaat?”

The bear took a step into the water.

“Go do, look eyes. No run.”

William swallowed and took a step down the slope and another into the stream. The bear backed up onto the opposite bank.

“Gud, gud, keep walk. Look eyes.”

Williams slowly crossed the stream towards the beast. Looking into its small dark eyes. The bear turned on its haunches and lumbered away with a snort.

William started breathing again. He looked up towards the voice. He recognized the large black hat from the man on the road the other day. The bad man, Ruby had called him. William started making his way up the steep bank.

At least he wasn't a bear.

The climb up was arduous. The fall down was quick but the climb up, especially where there were no trees to hang on to, seemed to take forever. When William reached the top. Kohn was sitting in his truck. The passenger door was open. William did the only thing there was to do. He got in.

The man had in his hand a large leaf. Spread on it was a gooey green substance. Kohn handed William the leaf. William looked down at it, dumbfounded. Kohn took the boy's hand and brought it up to the wound on his head.

“OOOW!”

The green goo burned against the bloody spot high on his forehead. William allowed his hand to drop but Kohn plastered it back.

“Ow.”

William noticed a rifle sticking up from behind the seat.

“Why didn't you shoot him? I coulda been kilt.”

Kohn started the engine and clicked off the parking brake. He had shifted through the gears before he bothered to respond.

“Walking towards bear eez work better than gun ya. Mato go on and be mato, boy go on and be boy. Eez better.”

“Mato?”

“Ja mean Bear.”

“You injun or somthin?”

“Depending is on who you ask.”

“I'm askin' you.”

“Ya. Born in Sverige, but yes, injun I think, ya.”

Ruby looked at the twine tied to her ankle and the other end tied to the bumper of the truck a few feet from the rock she was sitting on. Caleb muttered to himself and he extracted the tent from the back of the truck. He talked constantly whether or not there was anyone listening 'praise be oh Lord'. He especially couldn't keep his trap shut about Brother Tobias. 'Brother Tobias said this, Brother Tobias said that, Brother Tobias' word, his truth, his disciples, of which Caleb fervently counted himself as one.

'Brother Tobias's, wives.'

They had never even met the man, just answered an ad in a magazine, purchased some books and bibles and written a bunch a letters back-n-forth. They were on there way to live with him in some sort a village or community or somethin.

Ester was sitting in the shade reading the Tobias 'bible'.

Even though it kinda hurt, Ruby made a game of jerking her leg and snapping the twine taut. It made a sound like a washtub bass.

“Quit that girl,” Ester said, “we don't wanna get up Caleb's ire.”

“Why's this thing necessary?” Ruby said giving the line one more defiant tug.

“Girl, you run off three times.”

“'My right. This here's kidnappin.”

“You'd starve out there.”

“Like my brother!”

“Keep your voice, girl. Why you always gotta do evil, you better learn to behave.”

Ruby kept playing with the twine but stopped short before it made a sound.

“Ester, how do you know what's evil and what isn't. Some German killed my papa and that was evil sure enough, but if my papa killed some German girl's papa does that make him evil too.

“God puts a conscience in us to tell us what's evil and what's not. If it feels bad, that means evil is in you, and you should get on your knees and pray for forgiveness.”

“So if it feels good, then it's okay?”

“Good heaven's no girl! That's what is specially evil! You should pray right straight for even thinking such things."

“I ain't yer daughter. You should just turn me loose for the law catches you."

"We answer to God's law and God has told Caleb you belong with him.

It's a shame-n-all you if you got no kids y'own but...”

Ester laughed.

“What'd I say so funny?”

“Girl, You ain't gunna be a daughter.”

Ruby looked puzzled.

“An don't you forget. I'm the one in charge so don't be getting' no ideas otherwise. I had him first girl. I'm the one in charge.”

Ruby felt the blood drain from her face. Suddenly the rope around her ankle felt like a thick, heavy chain. 

She would try again tonight, and this time she could not fail.

Continued in episode 8