Beware the River
Page 13
“Come on in the kitchen for a glass of iced tea, Mattie Ruth.” Gram laughed, and put her arm around her sister’s shoulder. “Them younguns don’t know what good eating is, do they?”
We were all silent and lost deep in our own thoughts when Billy said, “Just think BJ, if that had happened to our buffalo there wouldn’t have been anyone to warn us about the dam. We would have been asleep in the cabin when that wall of water came crashing down on us. Just like that Tsunami in Japan. Those people didn’t stand a chance and we wouldn’t have either. I wonder if the roar of the river would have woke us before the water hit?”
“I hope we would have slept through it.” James was staring out the window with a far away look in his eyes. “If I had looked out the window and saw the water bearing down on me I would have stroked out long before it even reached us. You know I have a weak constitution.”
“You’re right about one thing though,” I agreed. “If our buffalo hadn’t been protected and raised by Grandpa Siler, we would most certainly be sleeping with the fishes right now.”
I lifted the heavy painting carefully and hung it on the nail above the fireplace. That was where it belonged and if I had anything to say about it that would be its permanent home. As I did, I gazed into the now calm, peaceful eyes of the buffalo and laughed. I had almost expected him to snort or wink or blow snot on me, but nothing happened. “This is where the painting belongs.”
“Well, you have certainly had a change of heart about the painting, haven’t you?” Gram was grinning from the doorway. “And you know, come to think of it so have I. It doesn’t look so out of place now.” She reached up to straighten the painting. “You boys run on upstairs and shower and put on a pair of BJ’s sleep pants and a tee shirt, while I wash those nasty clothes. You know you can’t sit down at my table covered in filth and spider webs. We’ll have lunch ready when you finish.”
“Mom, we have something to show you when we come back down.” I peeped around the door to the kitchen and grinned at her with my best I know something you don’t know grin. I wanted to get my camera. I was sure her reaction to the gold nuggets would be priceless.
“Okay, honey.” She smiled, putting milk, eggs and butter in the fridge.
“Are you making homemade biscuits, Gram?” James asked.
“Don’t I always make biscuits when you visit, James?” She turned to Mattie Ruth and smiled. “That boy loves my biscuits better than a bear loves honey. And Billy loves my hot blackberry cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Then she turned to me. “And we all know how much BJ loves country ham. So we’re having country ham biscuits, blackberry cobbler with homemade vanilla ice cream, fresh sliced cantaloupe and a big pitcher of sweet ice tea.”
“I got here just in time.” Mattie Ruth grinned from ear to ear.
Never had three boys moved so fast to get in and out of the shower. James was the first one in, so Billy and I sat down on the floor to wait our turn. “Can you believe that after all these years your extremely generous great, great, great grandpa and the buffalo came back to warn us about the dam?” Billy was still amazed by the events of the last few weeks.
“And leave us a freaking fortune!” James called from the shower.
“I can’t imagine why the buffalo would help us after our kind slaughtered his. He must have really been grateful to Great Grandpa Siler.”
“I know, right. Talk about never forgetting a favor.”
“And to think,” James said, stepping out of the shower in a blast of steam, “we were so terrified of the buffalo, when all he wanted was to save our lives. And now we will never get to thank him.”
“He doesn’t want thanks. He paid his debt of gratitude to Great Grandpa Siler by warning us about the dam. He can rest now. I’m glad the painting is hanging downstairs so we’ll always have something to remember them both by.”
“BJ,” Billy called, as I took my turn in the shower and inhaled the delicious aroma of fried country ham drifting up the stairs. “I doubt any of us will ever forget the buffalo that saved our lives.”
“Nope,” James agreed. “Not in a million years.”
“Thanks for being an animal lover Great Grandpa Siler.”
A short while later, I grabbed my phone, set it to record a video, and raced down the stairs shouting, “Hey, Mom…guess what?”
The End
Acknowledgements
A million and one thanks and my heartfelt gratitude go to the extremely talented artists who contributed their artwork to this book. In my humble opinion they are the best in the business. Check out their websites to view more of their amazing art.
In order of appearance:
The Dust Devil Daniel Eskridge. danieleskridge.com
Eye of the Legend Maria D’angelo mariadangelo.com
Buffalo Stampede Jack Wells jackwellsart.com
Warewolf Eye Tammy Letart fotosearch.com
Buffalo Crossing Jerry Lafora jerrylaforadesigns.com
Under the Covers Bethany Minervino cargocollective.com
Buffalo Moon Karen Slagle. artistwebsites.com
Sacred Buffalo Teresa Vecere. teresavecere.com
The Buffalo Vanguard Daniel Eskridge. danieleskridge.com
The White Buffalo Daniel Eskridge. danieleskridge.com
Train at Tillery Dam Matthew Irvin mirvin@carolina.rr.com
Gold Mining Classroom Clipart classroomclipart.com
Buffalo Nickel Greg Joens gregjoens.com
Photos and other art.
Three Boys Fishing Back cover art fotosearch.com
Photographs of the river, the dam, and the danger sign by yours truly.
About The Author
Kitty Margo grew up in a small North Carolina town nestled between the Pee Dee and Rocky Rivers. She has always had a love of storytelling and kept her children entertained with the make believe characters who called the riverbank home. When she decided to put her thoughts to pen and paper, her stories evolved into a lifetime love of writing.
Kitty has three amazing sons, and four darling grandchildren. She enjoys cruises with her girlfriends, traveling to historic destinations, reading, Myrtle Beach, and spending time with her grandchildren.
She still lives in her small North Carolina hometown with her youngest son, a songwriting and beat making wizard, so there is never a dull, or quiet, moment.
This author loves to hear from her readers. You can contact her at kittymargo@hotmail.com or on her website at kittymargo.com.