Ganado: a novel

by Manolo Mario

  He ran off a continued string of insults echoing much of these same sentiments. With each repeated item, his face contorted in anger even more. “When it comes to the small ranchers, well, they are a bunch of imbeciles that live to make my negotiations with buyers more difficult.”

  “You actually negotiate with the buyers? I thought they called for a price.”

  “You heard that horse shit from the others who like to bend over and take it in the ass! The lying thieves from La Habana come here to kiss my ass. I get more than the rest!”

  The ride could not finish fast enough for Galo. His thoughts conflicted with intuitions. On one side, this guy seemed to work hard to an obsession, and he was filthy rich. On the other side, he was as stingy as one could imagine. He also gave himself a little too much credit. ‘To get a deal with this guy will not be easy. Luna would want to screw me and I don’t know how to make it look like he is and still consummate a decent arrangement. I need to go and think about it.’ Luna insisted he stay for lunch.

  The epitome of stinginess peaked when lunch arrived. It consisted of red yams, a root fed to pigs in these parts, and a beef stew ladled over white rice. The beef was as tough as one could imagine even after four hours of stewing. Galo realized it probably came from the cattle’s leg, a cut usually reserved for dogs. No matter, he could not feel insulted. The Luna family sat at the table and ate the same food. Galo wanted to end this visit, but the meal requited a lot of chewing and it took a long time.

  Mercifully, lunch was over and Galo lit up a cigarette. He and Luna moved out to a bench located under a tree a hundred meters from the house. Before sitting, Luna stood off to a side and peed. When he sat, he broached the nature of Galo’s visit. “So, you are trying to get into the cattle business and are looking to work a deal, what deal?”

  Galo hesitated. He didn’t think he wanted to get in a deal with this guy, but figured he would test it anyway. “Simple. I buy your novillos at a higher price than the current buyers would. I pay you for the animals once I sell them. In the higher price I will pay, the rent for the land and the interest for the use of the money would be included. In essence, the novillos would not leave your possession until I paid you in full. If the buyers come, you send them to me.”

  “How much more would you pay?”

  “We would need to work through that, but there is a good price at which it all makes sense.”

  Luna lifted his hat and scratched his head looking back towards his ranch house. He never left the gaze. “Nah. I can negotiate better. I’ve done well and expect to continue as much.”

  Typically, Galo would have continued to entice in order to get a deal. With as much cattle as Luna owned, he could be a threat if the buyers bought all of his novillos. But for some reason, Galo thought it would be better to retire and think this through.

  “Señor Luna, thank you for your hospitality. I guess the opportunity cannot happen here and now. Congratulations again for having such a fine ranch and family. If you are coming to town for the rodeo, perhaps we can talk again.”

  Luna stood and offered his hand. Galo reluctantly took it knowing where it had been. Luna tightened his grip and drew Galo close. He scowled and spoke in a deliberate manner. “I think your venture thing doesn’t work. I’m afraid you’ll have to go back to where you came from. This town is difficult; doesn’t welcome newcomers. If anyone takes your deal, they’ll be sorry. And one more thing, don’t send your ugly black lackey out here again! I don’t like lazy pieces of shit around.”

  A surprised Galo turned red and managed to free his hand. He weighed giving Luna a good education on the proper use of expletives, but decided to walk away and let it pass. Perhaps he learned a lesson from Elio after all. He mounted his horse in one leap and galloped as fast as he could before he did something he would regret.

  The ride back into town was a calming ride and it took less time than the ride out to Luna’s ranch. As he worked his way through the maze of streets and after a point when he thought he was lost, the street opened up to the town’s central park. He rode on the side of the road that ran along the park following the music. He dismounted at the post where other horses were tied and walked his way towards the glorieta. There were many people spread throughout the lawn and trees on sheets and blankets. Others were standing around the band. Many of the people had food and drinks. Off to the right he spotted his girls skipping. Rona was not too far dragging the crawling boy back onto their sheet. As he knelt next to Rona, the music stopped to the applause of the crowd. The conductor bowed and bid everyone farewell.

  Galo gave Rona a peck on the cheek as Galito climbed on top of him. He fell back feigning being overpowered. Rona leaned over and kissed him. The girls noticed and made a big fuss as they ran over and jumped on top of them all. One would worry that Galo would be crushed by the weight of all his family, but he managed to wriggle away and stand.

  “Who wants ice cream?”

  The girls looked up surprised that he wasn’t under them. The scrambling on the ground stopped as quickly as it started in a chorus of ‘I do’s.’ This was followed with plenty of dress straightening and brushing grass off the little guy.

  * * *

  39 Popular card game played by four players with teams seated opposite each other.

  40 Gruta is a grotto.

  41 Glorieta is a gazebo.

  42 Young man

  43 One hectare is approximately 2.47 acres. Luna’s property was around 10,000 acres.

  Chapter 41

  Monday morning promised a fine day and Galo felt refreshed. He enjoyed his way with Rona Saturday night when the kids finally gave out. It cost him a trip to church on Sunday and having to hear a priest talk about the sins of the town and as he perceived earlier, there were plenty. The mass took long, but mostly because of the number of people attending. There wasn’t a space open in the pews and the sacrament line would have gone out the door if it did not curve to either side in the back. Also, the organ player missed a couple of notes, or so Galo’s ear told him. And while Galo was not an avid attendee, he did feel a sense of renewal. Moreover, it gave him cause to maneuver a repeat with Rona later that night.

  His first diligence mid-morning was to meet with an attorney, and at the suggestion of his defender in La Habana, Fortuna, he worked his way to the offices of Albergue and Zamorra on Commerce Street. He entered the nondescript building and climbed the stairs to the second level, where he found the door with the brass nameplate. He knocked and pushed the door open to see a man with a well-pressed guayabera escorting a young lady with puffy eyes holding a handkerchief in her hand. Galo stepped aside to let them pass and waited patiently. He could hear the man reassuring the young lady while leading her down the stairs.

  The office was average in size. An empty reception desk surrounded by chairs for waiting covered the bottom portion of the light mint walls. Several prints in dark frames lined the upper portion of the wall and an areca palm sat in a corner. Two open doors away from the reception desk led to the respective attorneys. Galo turned as the front door opened once more.

  “I am so sorry my dear fellow. Please accept my apologies for making you wait.”

  “No apology is needed since I’m here without an appointment. I am looking for Ricardo Albergue. Is he in?”

  “I am standing before you. And may I say that I envy your voice. My God, that is surprising!” The lawyer stretched his hand out. Galo shook it. “I am Galo Bartolo.”

  Albergue pointed towards his office and they walked in. His office was painted much the same. There were stacks of files in credenza of the same dark wood as his desk. It sat against the back wall and below a wide window, open to let the breeze come through. The various papers on his desk were flapping; kept down by the series of odd paperweights. These ranged from smooth rocks to an iron. “Please take a chair, Sr. Bartolo,” and Albergue sat at his desk. Galo took his normal stance in the chair opposite and lit a cigarette.

  “Señor Bartolo, what
can I do for you?”

  “Your name was given to me by an associate of yours in La Habana, Enrique Fortuna.”

  Ricardo Albergue attested to his friend Fortuna and went on and on about how they went to school together at the University of La Habana. It took a while to have him run out of breath.

  “Counselor, I moved here recently in an effort to start a cattle operation. It is my aim to do so with limited capital and believe that there is a formula that will work. The main consideration is that I will not own land, just the cattle.”

  “No land? Just the cattle.” He scribbled on his pad.

  “The animals will stay on the property of the rancher as collateral since I will not pay for them immediately. I’ll pay when I sell them. To ensure all that is done is purely legitimate, I would like to have contracts attesting to the actions taken.”

  “You’re joking! Do you actually think that these ignorant ranchers will go for that?”

  “Do I believe so? Five of them have agreed and shook hands on it.”

  “Coño, that’s incredible … and fantastic.” Albergue slapped his hand on his desk with joy before continuing. “I understand and think that you are being proper. But, these guajiros will not think so. Many think that a contract is an insult. Their handshake is enough to them.”

  “Yes, I gathered as much. So, I’ve been careful on the introduction of the subject and made sure they understood it was for their own protection. Which, it is, but also for me.”

  Albergue looked to the sky and brought his hands together. “Oh, thank you, God! For once I am going to deal with a living, breathing, intelligent human being! Why hasn’t Fortuna sent me more?” Galo grinned and looked towards the ceiling as well. He didn’t wish to miss the apparition should one emerge.

  “Though simple, I want you to draft three versions of a cattle purchase contract. One contract would be simple and drafted on one page that would work for the independent cattlemen. You know, the small ranchers, the guajiros. It would be straightforward and call for a single price, define my debt responsibility, and explain the responsibility of the seller as collateral holder. It may be wise to state that the rancher shook hands on the deal.”

  “I guess that’s a good idea, Bartolo. But what makes you think that they can read?”

  “I don’t know. Can you sketch? Perhaps if you drew hands shaking, it would work.” The attorney burst out in laughter and continued on his notepad.

  “A second contract would be a little more involved in setting the same definitions, but would further define the interest on the unpaid portion as being encompassed within the price in the bill of sale.”

  “At what rate should we apply?”

  “There is no rate. It’s included in the price.”

  “Then, we’ll simply say so. Good?” Albergue looked up lifting his brows.

  “All right then. Finally, the third contract would be extensive and cover the clauses in the first two, but also include penalties for non-performance on the part of the seller. This is the part I need protection in case one of the big fellows decides to change his mind.”

  Albergue kept writing even after Galo finished his explanation. In return, Galo did not disturb him. He stubbed the remaining butt and lit another.

  “Galo, let me suggest that the Bill of Sale would specifically denote a set price or a market price whichever lower. This clause would offer you some flexibility if your negotiation with the eventual buyer doesn’t materialize as well as you would want. This suggestion is based on your premise you could negotiate a better price. I also suggest for the second and third contracts, those that are more involved, there should actually be three documents, a Bill of Sale, a Borrowing Agreement, and a Rental Agreement. In each separate agreement, I could provide further protections than in one agreement.”

  “I like that Albergue so long as it doesn’t kill the deal because of its complication or because there is too much paper.”

  “I completely agree. Perhaps I will take sketching lessons.”

  Both gave a hearty laugh. Galo liked the attorney and it was mutual. “I’ll have the simple contract finished by tomorrow. For the others, I’ll need a week or so. Is that all right?”

  “I think that will work real fine. Thank you, counselor.” Galo extended his hand.

  “I appreciate you coming in and asking for this work. I am getting a little tired of these marital cases where infidelity is involved.”

  “Oh, you must be speaking about the young lady who left as I arrived. She seemed to have been in tears.”

  “Exactly and unfortunately. Imagine, she cheats on her husband and then wants an attorney!” A demonstrative Albergue explained with his arms in the air as before. He stood and collected his notes before showing his new client out.

  ***

  Having completed the tasks with the attorney, Galo looked for Frank at the hardware store. After taking time to show Galo around and meet some of the ranchers, Frank was back at his job. He worked special, custom sales at Cisneros and Sons, where most of the needs of the town and of the ranchers would get solved. Frank was creative and would employ the store’s own blacksmith to manufacture unique parts required by a customer. This made him a favorite of most ranchers. Usually there was some urgent need that directed an individual to the store. It could be an axle joint or a screw or a chain link that held off a particular job. And while most big ranches had their own blacksmith, the individual would be busy with the ranch’s own horseshoes and carts.

  It was a chain link that Frank worked for a customer in the back of the store when Galo stepped in. Frank presented the piece to the customer. “There you have it. I think this will work.”

  “Thank you. I think you saved my ass, Frank. Thanks!”

  The young customer, holding the link as though it was a diamond ring saluted and headed for the front of the store with the person that brought Galo to the back. Frank yelled out to them. “Collect from this customer the price of his ass! Better yet, don’t charge so low. Just get paid for the chain link!”

  Laughter broke out down the hall as Galo smiled and shook his head.

  “Galo, how are you? What’s happened since we last spoke?” They shook hands.

  “Lots Frank; I now own five thousand novillos!”

  “Coño, really? So, you convinced a guajiro of your scheme?”

  “Actually, I convinced five guajiros, none of the big five mind you. They will take some work. In the meantime and in any case, I would like to sign up more cattlemen. Maybe it will spark something.”

  “I am surprised, but I know I shouldn’t be. You are a stubborn ass and nothing should be different.”

  “Frank, for the animals being acquired, I need your help with their identification, because I cannot rebrand them. Most will come from different ranches and will stay with the ranch. As a result, I need to keep records of them and make sure they are not getting sold from under me. What do you suggest?”

  Frank became perplexed and thought a moment. “Wait a minute, I don’t understand. The cattle will remain on the land where they currently are?”

  “Yes, that’s right. You gave me a quick earful about capital. As we understand, I do not have the capital to buy land, so I will rent the land and hold the cattle on it.”

  “That’s amazing. And guajiros accepted? Wait another minute, why won’t they sell the cattle from under you?”

  “At least five did agree. I believe they want to make the money I am offering and won’t sell, but to make sure I need to go about the identification of the cattle. What would you do?”

  Frank removed his hat and scratched at his hairline. “You can’t brand them, but you need to make sure the cattle is yours. How about tagging the animal with an earring?”

  “An earring, like a pearl? What do you mean?”

  “An earring, like a woman, but not a pearl. We can make a simple, but identifiable shape that would go on the animal with a thin screw and be held in place with a nut on the other side. It
would go on the novillo’s ear.”

  Frank gestured in his explanation managing the implement on an imaginary beast. Galo observed quietly and his head seemed to move as it followed each facet.

  “I see. Would it be heavy on the ear?”

  “I guess a little. It depends on how large you want it.”

  “I think I would want it heavy enough to have the ear knocked down without hurting the animal as it moved around. It would make it easier to see which ones are mine from far away. I would look for the one with the one ear up. Frank, do other ranches use this method?”

  “No, not that I recognize. Each ranch has their brand on the cattle’s hindquarter. This will be unique to you, but in case of the flies, we need to design a unique emblem and you probably want to register it in the public records as if it were a brand.”

  “I like it, Frank! Let’s do it. What do you need?”

  Frank took Galo to the rear yard where the blacksmith worked under a makeshift covered shack. They went around and around on ideas that would work on a small screw and bolt. After a seemingly interminable period of time, Galo settled on a capital G with an arrow going from southwest to northeast. The “G” would stand for Galo and it would fit on a round flat chip. It was simple enough for the blacksmith to make a die. The die would be placed over and hammered into a small round metal plate. The imprint would remain on the chip, which would be soldered onto the top of the screw.

  “Frank, thank you for this great approach. I guess you are now the godfather of the ‘Arrowed G’, a good name for the operation. What do you think?”

  “Hell, if I thought you were going to make it so, I would have offered a ‘B’ for Bartolo!”

  “How many can you make?”

  “I think we have enough materials for a thousand or so.”

  “Well, that’s a start. I’m going to need a lot more.”

  “How much more?”