Christmas With Hover Hill

by Risner, Fay

  Bud drove toward the back fence, watching on both sides of the pickup. “That cow in the plum thicket might need help. See how she's straining.”

  Elizabeth stared where Bud pointed. “Yes.”

  Bud pulled up close to the cow and stopped. “We'll watch her for a moment and see if she's going to deliver by herself. I'd rather let nature take its course.”

  “What do you do if the cow needs help?”

  “I pull the calf out for her which isn't always easy out here in the open,” Bud declared.

  The cow bellowed in pain as she doubled up with a contraction. A set of tiny hooves stuck out of the swollen opening. Another contraction caused a small black head to follow, and one last contraction brought the calf's body easing out. Amid the bloody fluid, the calf flopped to the ground.

  “Mercy, that was a long way to drop. Is the calf going to be all right?” Elizabeth asked, her eyes glued to the calf.

  “That drop is usually enough to get the calf to breath. Watch. You can see his sides thumping.”

  The cow turned around, nosed the calf and started licking it. The calf's head came up, and it bawled a greeting to its mother. Soon it was struggling to get on its feet. In fifteen minutes, the calf was nudging the cow's side, working its way back to her bag.

  Elizabeth's eyes sparkled. “How wonderful was that! Thank you for bringing me. I enjoyed witnessing that baby's birth.”

  “I'm glad. That's the way I feel when I see every baby born. It never gets old, and I've seen a lot of births,” Bud shared.

  By the time they sat down at the table to drink Hover's freshly made coffee, Elizabeth's nose was running. She pulled a tissue out of a box on the counter and sneezed repeatedly into it then blew her nose.

  Hover stopped peeling potatoes and stared at her. “Farmer, feel her forehead to see if she is feverish. I knew no good was going to come of her swimming in ice water and sledding with you on a cold, windy day.”

  “We were in a sleigh not a sled,” Bud corrected as he laid his large hand on Elizabeth's forehead and covered her eyes. “She doesn't feel extra warm to me.”

  Elizabeth sniffled. “I think I caught a little cold is all. A few pills and some hot tea should do the trick.”

  “You better get in bed and cover up. Rest will help,” Bud ordered.

  “I agree with Farmer,” Hover said as he put on the tea kettle. “Tea coming right up after you get in bed.”

  For the next three days, Elizabeth didn't know which of her caregivers was the most irritating. Bud stopped in on his way to check the cattle. He'd immediately put his hand on her forehead to see if she was feverish even though she protested she was feeling better. Hover did his usual hovering, watching for signs of improvement or decline to report to Bud the minute he came in the door.

  On the fourth morning just outside the bedroom door, Hover and Bud conferred about whether Elizabeth should see a doctor. She heard every word they said. She yelled at them that she wasn't going to the doctor so stop talking about it. She was getting better all the time. Colds were hard to get rid of sometimes, she reasoned.

  On the fifth morning, Elizabeth woke up and found she could breathe without straining for a wheezy breath. Her throat wasn't sore when she swallowed. Once she was up and perched on the couch, she found she'd made it through mid morning without sneezing. She went back to her bedroom and dressed for the rest of the day.

  Hover gave her a careful once over when she appeared in clothes. “How do you feel?”

  “I'm fine today. No sneezing and watch. I can breathe without wheezing.” She took a deep breath.

  “Will wonders never cease,” Hover droned tersely.

  Elizabeth pulled a chair over by the living room window and read a book while she watched for Bud. He drove by without even looking over to see if she was there. She had expected a wave from him at least. She excused him with the fact he didn't expect her to be well enough to sit by the window.

  Bud stopped by on his way back from checking the cows. By then, Elizabeth was fuming.

  “Good morning, Lizzy. Just checked the cows and wanted to check on you,” Bud said as he stepped inside.

  “Don't good morning me. You could have asked me to go with you to check the cows.”

  Bud took his hat off and turned it in his hands. “Well, I would have done just that if I'd known you were feeling well enough to go with me.”

  “You should have stopped to find out, before you zoomed on by the house,” she growled.

  Bud slapped his hat back on and opened the door. “I'm sorry I didn't stop here first. It's good to see you all better.” As Bud backed out the screen door, he assured her, “I'll make sure to pick you up for the next check. Have a good day, Lizzy.”

  As the door shut, Hover droned loudly in the doorway.

  “What's your problem?” Elizabeth asked.

  “I was just wondering which side of the bed you got up from this morning. I am willing to guess it was the wrong side,” Hover droned.

  “You are very funny,” she snapped at him.

  “It is a very good thing then that one of the two of us is in good humor this morning. You sure put Farmer on the run with your poor mood,” Hover scolded.

  “I did, didn't I? Oh dear, I don't know what comes over me sometimes,” Elizabeth groaned.

  “From the look on his face, I would say Farmer does not know the answer to that, either. You should apologize to him if he is brave enough to come back for more of your bad disposition,” Hover suggested.

  Bud stopped in front of the house the next morning. Elizabeth heard the thud of his boots as he came up the steps. He opened the door a crack and threw his straw hat inside. “Am I welcome this morning?”

  “Depends,” Elizabeth said.

  Bud stuck his head around the open door. “On what?”

  “If you are going to ask me to ride along with you to check the cattle or not.”

  “You betcha. If you want to come, let's go,” Bud said as he scooped his hat off the floor and put it back on his head.

  After the initial introduction to Bud's cattle, Elizabeth found she enjoyed the rides. Bud went back to coming three times a day to check for new calves. Sometimes, it was Elizabeth who spotted the new calf and mother hidden behind a bush or in a gully. She stayed in the pickup while Bud tagged the calves. The mothers pawed the ground and bawled a heated, foaming around the mouth protest when Bud manhandled the babies to put a tag in their ear.

  Sometimes, a cow stomped and bellowed until Bud climbed back into the pickup. Other times, a cow would chase after him until he was safely in the seat. Elizabeth wasn't about to get out after she watched the angry mothers protecting their calves. She rolled her window down while she watched. That was as close as she wanted to get.

  Soon the trips to the pasture were back to twice a week when calving was over. The second week of May, Bud showed up with bread sacks wadded in his hand. “I thought after I check the cattle we might go mushroom hunting. Got any boots you can wear, Lizzy.”

  “Afraid not. Will my snow boots do?”

  Bud shrugged. “Guess they will have to.”

  When they stepped out on the porch, Elizabeth noticed the stock trailer hitched to the pickup. Hollow thuds came from one end of the trailer to the other, causing it to shudder. “What's in there?”

  “My bull, Romeo. It's time to take him to the pasture so he can get busy with the cows.”

  “Oh, I see,” she said, blushing.

  Bud backed the trailer up to the wire gate, opened it and swung open the trailer door. Heavy thuds came close together as the trailer shook. Out the opening exploded a large black bull. He ran a short distance and stopped. His upper lip curled back to his nose as he raised his head and smelled the breeze. Romeo gave a loud, bellowing bray, and cows raced to greet him.

  Bud closed the gate. “Now that's done. We can go mushroom hunting.”

  The timber was alive with sounds since the birds had migrated back. They were flitting f
rom the ground to the trees with dry grass and hay for nest makings. Squirrels scolded, and crows caw loudly when Bud and Elizabeth approached.

  Elizabeth didn't know what to look for, but when Bud found a patch of morels he showed her. She studied the tan tips hidden in the leaves.

  From then on, she inspected the leaves and dead trees closely. “I've found one.”

  Bud cautioned from several feet away, “Don't take another step until you look around your feet. You don't want to step on any mushrooms hidden in the leaves if you can help it. Usually you will find several more.”

  “You're right. I see six more now that I'm looking.” Elizabeth bent over to pick the mushrooms and moved on to keep up with Bud.

  When she heard the trickle of water, she edged near the branch to look at it. Bud came up behind her. “That's the branch you got stuck in last winter.”

  “I thought it might be. Not very deep is it?”

  “Never is. Sometimes it goes dry. Just your luck there was water under the ice when you stepped on it.”

  Once they had reached Bud's boundary line, he looked at his watch. “Guess we should head back to the house. The robot can fix our find for lunch.”

  “This has been so much fun. I've never gone mushrooming before,” Elizabeth said.

  “How come?”

  Elizabeth saw curiosity written all over Bud's face again. She hated being careful how she answered him. “My family lived in the city. We didn't have woods to walk in.”

  “Which city did you grow up in?”

  “Humboldt, Iowa but I haven't been back there for a long time,” Elizabeth said, trying to cover her tracks.

  Bud stopped walking, crammed his hands in his jean pockets and leaned against a hickory nut tree. “Lizzy, what are you running from?”

  Elizabeth gasped at his bluntness. She stared at the ground, unable to meet his eyes. “I suppose all of us try to get away from something at some point in our lives. Some just run faster than others.”

  Bud pushed. “Want to tell me from whom and for what reason you're running so hard?”

  Elizabeth debated her answer. Should she tell him or keep still? She studied Bud. He sounded so earnest she was tempted, but the voice in her head warned her to keep what was wrong to herself for now. “No, I can't just yet.”

  He placed his hand on her shoulder with a tight grip and made her look at him. “Are you in danger from someone?”

  “No,” Elizabeth said quietly.

  “Fine. I won't say anymore for right now anyway. Some day I hope you trust me enough to tell me what's wrong. I just might be able to help,” he told her earnestly.

  When they reached the house, Bud dropped the two bread sacks in the kitchen sink. “We found a nice mess of morel mushrooms. You can fix them for us, Robot.”

  Hover Hill said disdainfully, “I have not been programmed to cook anything from the wild.”

  “This is mushrooms similar to what you buy in the grocery store. They're just plant life not a squirrel or rabbit,” Bud shot back.

  Elizabeth put her hand over her mouth to keep the smile from showing. This is going to be so good.

  Hover picked the bottom of a bread sack up with two fingers and dumped the mushrooms in the sink. “I should hope that is all they are. Still I do not know what to do with them.”

  “I can tell you how to clean and cook them. Cover them with cold water and sprinkle in some salt. That gets all the bugs to come out of the mushrooms.”

  Hover droned sarcastically, “Bugs! This dish sounds more delicious as you explain it.”

  “The bugs won't hurt you if you eat them, but they crawl out and die in the salt water.” Bud mumbled, “Most of them anyway.” Hover's head went up impatiently as Bud continued, “You leave them set a while and drain the salt water off. The bugs will go down the drain. After that, you gently cut the fresh mushrooms in half and wash out the dirt.”

  Hover stared into the sink. “Dirt? What else could there be in this disagreeable fauna besides insects and dirt?”

  Elizabeth giggled. She couldn't help herself as she watched Bud struggle with his composure, trying to keep calm. She wondered if he lost his patience if his cap would end up flying into the sink.

  Bud managed to keep his voice calm. “The next step is to heat oil in a skillet and dipped the pieces in a beaten egg mixed with a little bit of water and coat them with flour or cracker crumbs. Shake some salt and pepper on the pieces and put them in hot oil. Only takes a few seconds to brown each side.”

  “Is that all there is to it?”

  “Lay the browned mushrooms on a paper towel to soak up the excess oil and put them on a platter. They will be ready to eat,” Bud said.

  Hover turned to Elizabeth for encouragement. “Bear with me while I learn to be a woodsy cook like your farmer.”

  “You will do just fine, Hover. This is a new experience for both of us. I've never cooked or eaten a wild mushroom so don't worry. I won't know whether the mushrooms are cooked the way they should be or not when you're done,” Elizabeth said kindly.

  “Thank you for your encouraging confidence, I think,” Hover cracked.

  When Hover had a paper towel full of fried mushrooms, he held the platter out to Bud. He picked up one and tasted it. “This is great. You did a good job, Robot.”

  “I am glad you approve, Farmer. I was really worried that I would displease you,” Hover said defensively as he placed the food on the table.

  “Robot, when we quit finding mushrooms, I'll catch us some frogs. I'll bet you will be just as good at frying frog legs,” Bud goaded.

  Hover turned toward Elizabeth. “Beth, he is not serious, is he?”

  She giggled. “He might be. I've heard of people eating such things.”

  “Oh, joy!” Hover droned.

  The next morning, Bud stopped by the Maidrite Diner for breakfast. Susie delivered his plate of eggs and sausage gravy over biscuits. “I was going to call you if you didn't stop in this morning.”

  “What's up?”

  “Mr. Winston called to tell me he plans to be here the first of June for his month's stay. He asked me to hire the house cleaners for him.”

  “Well, we knew he'd be coming soon,” Bud said matter of factly.

  “I told Mr. Winston I'd tell the woman living in the house that he'd be here in two weeks. He said he didn't know anything about Elizabeth staying in his house this winter. He said he hadn't given anyone permission to use his house. He was pretty huffy when he wanted to know her name. When I said Elizabeth Morris, he said not to worry about the matter. It was all right with him she was in the house so just tell her he was coming.”

  “Mr. Winston was surprised that Lizzy was living in his house, but he changed his tune as soon as he found out it was her. Curious isn't it?”

  “Very. I felt like I was in trouble for not checking with Mr. Winston in the first place. Sure gave me some relief when I found out he didn't mind Elizabeth living in his house. Still I'd sure like to know what is going on with that woman. She has a problem of some sort for sure.”

  “She does, but so far I haven't been able to get her to confide in me. I'll give Lizzy Mr. Winston's message when I stop by today,” Bud assured her.

  When Bud parked by the house, he looked up at the window, but he really didn't expect Elizabeth to be standing there. She spent time in the office, working on a book now that he didn't need to check the cows so often. These days, he had to go in and interrupt her when he wanted to talk to her.

  Bud opened the front door and stuck his head in. “Anyone home?”

  Hover came to the kitchen doorway. “Where else would we be, Farmer?”

  “Just being polite by announcing myself, Robot,” Bud replied defensively.

  Elizabeth came to the office doorway and grinned at them. “What Hover meant to say was come in. Isn't that right, Hover? Is the coffee pot still on?”

  “Yes, Beth. I will bring coffee right away.”

  “Two cups. Right?” B
ud asked.

  “I can count,” Hover droned.

  “Come in to the office and have a seat. What's going on this morning in your world?” Elizabeth asked cheerfully.

  “Ate breakfast at the diner this morning. Now I'm headed home,” Bud began.

  “How are Susie and her family?”

  “They're doing great.” Bud rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Go on. I sense a but,” Elizabeth encouraged.

  Hover set the steaming cups on the edge of the desk. He moved back to the door and stopped to listen.

  “Susie had a call from Mr. Winston yesterday. He asked her to send house cleaners in before the first of June so the house would be clean for his stay. She told him his house guest had the house sparkling clean so no need. He seemed surprised to know he had a house guest. He asked for your name. Susie gave it to him.”

  Elizabeth licked her dry lips. “I see. Go on.”

  “Mr. Winston said that was fine with him that you were here. He said to let you know he was coming and hung up,” Bud said, searching her face with his eyes full of questions.

  Elizabeth looked at Hover. “Well, we all knew that Hover and I'd be leaving by the first of June. The next two weeks will pass fast. We'll leave before my – uh – Mr. Winston gets here.”

  “Do you really like living in this house?” Bud asked.

  “Of course, I do. This has been a very pleasant stay,” Elizabeth said. “Hover, do you agree?”

  “I agree,” Hover droned.

  “For some reason, you don't want to be here when Mr. Winston comes? Is that the jest of it?”

  “Yes, you got it,” Elizabeth said.

  “All right, how about you and Hover move in with me for the month of June while Mr. Winston is here,” Bud offered.

  “We couldn't impose on you like that,” Elizabeth protested.

  “No reason not to. I have a big house with plenty of room. As far as Mr. Winston would know, you left for parts unknown if that's the way you want it. I'd be the only one that knows. As long as I'm offering to help you out, I sure would like to know why you're hiding here though,” Bud pushed.