Daniel stepped a bit closer to us then and spoke to us in a lower voice.
"I hope that you all aren't overwhelmed by the welcoming here. We like to treat our business partners very well and you are here on official business."
My dad nodded at that.
"We are appreciative, Daniel. Maybe you can show us to our rooms and we can then go over a plan of attack."
Daniel nodded at that. Daniel and my dad lead the way with Arnold and me behind. At the end was the porter with our luggage. Greta stayed behind with Lisa, I noted. A private elevator off on its own was the one that we would use to take us to our suite of rooms. We were on the highest floor, which was nice. The floor was a brightly lit one with a huge arrangement of fresh flowers on a table. There were only six doors on the floor with numbers on them. The porter went to one of the rooms first and opened it with a key he produced from his black jacket. The door opened to a very, very large room. It had a small kitchenette in it as well as a TV viewing room, a small office and two doors that probably led to bedrooms.
"This is where you will stay with Arnold, Luke. Lauren's suite is next door, but is connected to your own by the door near the kitchenette."
The porter then removed my dad's and Arnold's luggage off before opening the door to the other room. I followed Daniel and my dad in there while Arnold walked to the kitchenette he shared with my dad. Probably to get a beer, I surmised.
My suite was much smaller, but very nice nonetheless. It had a small refrigerator and a microwave and a small living room too. I went to what I presumed was the bedroom. It was. The bed was queen-sized and had a large window that overlooked tall trees. What a vista to paint, I thought to myself. Smiling, I left the bedroom and rejoined the others.
"This is great," I told Daniel.
He smiled back.
"I'm glad."
A little while later, we were all seated at the small dining table waiting for room service to bring up our dinner. Even Greta came up for that. I noticed that she was a lot more subdued now. Maybe Daniel had intimidated her. Maybe it was my dad and brother; I had no idea. I had asked her what she thought was good on the menu. She half-smiled and suggested the burger so I went with that. Partway into our delicious food, my dad spoke.
"Well, Daniel. To be honest, I think that tonight is the best time to get out there and see the hogs in action. The kids and I can be ready to go at about midnight. Is that too soon for you?"
Daniel shook his head at that.
"No. Not at all. We can all get into one truck and do some scouting. I can bring some rifles and some spotlights too."
"Sounds like fun," said Arnold before taking a sip of his beer.
I then noticed that Greta seemed to deflate a bit and I wondered if she felt like she was being left out. I then looked at my dad and Daniel as they conferred. I then considered the fact that my Daniel introduced my dad first to everyone we'd met. He'd also addressed my dad about mostly everything and I understood what was going on. They were very traditional here, apparently, with men speaking first and leaving exchanges with women for the end. It didn't bother me much as I wasn't of their culture and was only here temporarily. I also was interested in Daniel in a personal nature and didn't want to make any waves about anything - yet. But then I looked back at Greta. Was she bored? Was she disregarded much because of her gender and age?
Taking a page from Daniel's book, I turned to him.
"Daniel?"
He turned from my dad to me and smiled.
"Yes, Lauren?"
Lord, I was learning to love that smile.
"What about Greta? Was she going to come along with us?"
Daniel's smile disappeared a bit then as I suspected it might. I did notice Greta perk up and sit a little straighter in her chair.
"Ummm...I don't know if that's Greta's thing."
My dad spoke up then.
"Well, whether or not it is your sister coming along, having someone else come along might be a smart thing. More people to learn," he said before taking a bite of his burger.
Daniel nodded at that.
"I can see the wisdom in bringing along another and I can definitely find someone among the farmers who would love to accompany us. Greta, however -”
"Would love to come along!" she finally interjected.
I watched as Daniel and Greta stared daggers at each other.
"Come on, Daniel. I might be good at this," she pleaded.
"Greta, it is going to be late and dangerous. Plus, you aren't good with a gun."
She then pointed to me.
"What about Lauren? She's smaller than I and makes a living at it. How do you know how well I will do if you don't take me along?"
Great argument, I thought. Daniel wasn't biting, though.
"There's isn't anyone like Lauren with a gun, Greta, so she is not someone to compare yourself to."
I blushed at the praise and stared down at my plate. I sadly watched as Greta deflated in her seat. Daniel kept staring at her, though.
"How about this? If things are safe enough tonight, you can come along tomorrow night."
She half-smiled at that. "Okay," she grumbled.
Daniel then looked back at my dad. "I know who to bring along for this tonight. He hates the hogs like no one else I've ever seen."
"He good with guns and being patient?" asked Arnold.
Daniel nodded. "Yeah. He did two tours in Afghanistan. He is very good at doing nothing for long stretches of time and then activating at the drop of a hat."
Sounded like someone who would do well, I thought.
"Do you know of anyone who knows how to dress and cook a hog?" I asked of Daniel.
Daniel turned to me and smiled again.
"I know of a couple, but they are probably unavailable right now. What do you suggest?"
I blushed as I sat a bit straighter in my chair.
"Well... If we catch one tonight and keep it 'til tomorrow morning, we can slaughter it, dress it and cook it then over a spit if you have anything like that."
"I'm sure we can throw a spit together for something like that."
I nodded.
"Sounds like a plan."
"Can you do those things?" he asked.
"Absolutely," I said. "I'll be happy to teach anyone what I know too," I added in a gentler tone.
His smiled widened. "I can think of at least a handful of people. Greta included."
Greta's nose scrunched up at that. "Is it...gross?" she asked in a teenager tone of voice.
I sighed. "Well, some aspects are less than pleasant but if you do it enough it stops bothering you. It's a good thing - knowing how to do everything with the hog. Hunting it, killing it as kindly as you can, slaughtering it, cooking it and eating it."
I noticed Daniel staring at me out of the corner of my eye as I watched Greta. Her squeamishness had disappeared and was replaced by something else - interest. I then knew that she was probably a bored high school graduate who probably got in trouble to stay amused. This might be good for her.
She then nodded. "Okay. That might be cool."
"Actually, it will probably be pretty hot and smelly, but it will not be boring - I promise you that."
She laughed at that. "Good. Because I know boring pretty well."
I watched Daniel stare daggers at her then. Greta then stared down at her plate of fries and her burger. We sat around for a while longer, enjoying our food and a couple of beers. I noticed that Daniel had a beer too. I wondered if he had a problem with alcohol or not. I'd heard that many Native Americans got addicted to it easily.
Daniel and his sister stood up a few minutes later at the same time, and I wondered if he'd signaled her in some sort of way.
"We'll leave you to your food and to your room for the time being. I'll be back in about four hours to pick you guys up outside."
My dad and Arnold stood up and I did the same.
"Thanks for everything so far, Daniel. It has been more pleasure than
business which is nice," said my dad.
Daniel beamed at that. So did I.
"I'm glad to hear that, Luke."
"Well, you obviously know where to find us. Lauren here will walk you guys out."
I blinked in surprise at that but quickly warmed to the idea. After saying our goodbyes for the time being, Greta, Daniel and I walked out to the main lobby.
Greta made herself scarce by standing at the other side of the lobby and looking out the window. Daniel stopped and smiled at me again once we stepped outside of my dad's door.
"I'm glad that things are going so well," he said to me in a quiet voice.
I smiled, wondering what he was talking about specifically - us or the hog hunting.
"Me too. Our operations are meshing so well and everyone seems to be really committed to taking care of this hog problem."
"That too," he said in a deep voice.
I blushed and softly laughed at that.
"Yeah, I'm glad that's going well too."
He sighed then. "I have no idea when I'll be able to get you alone to talk again."
"That would be nice," I whispered back as I looked deep into his dark brown eyes.
He looked at my lips and his face went serious then; II felt like I was being slowly engulfed in flames. I looked at his lips and wondered what they would feel like on my own.
Suddenly, he took a deep breath and laughed.
"And then again, maybe it's a good thing that we have to...wait a little while."
I laughed too.
"I can appreciate that."
He took a calmer breath and then looked at his sister who looked bored as she drew faces on the window with her finger.
"I've got to get going, I think."
"Yeah, the poor thing looks bored."
He smiled.
"Yeah, who likes being a third wheel?"
That warmed me inside.
"We'll see you tonight," I said to him.
"For sure," he replied.
I then turned back to Greta. "It was nice meeting you, Greta,"
She whipped her black hair around as she faced us.
"Oh. You too, Lauren."
"If there is a hog to slaughter tomorrow, you'll want to wear clothing you don't care for. Maybe rain boots if you have them."
She mocked gagged at that and I laughed.
"Sounds good, Lauren," she said after laughing herself.
"Good night, Lauren," said Daniel in his husky voice.
"Good night, Daniel," I whispered back.
With that, I entered my dad's room again with Daniel watching my back. The feeling it caused in me was a safe one, I found. Arnold was sitting on the couch in front of the TV with a plate full of fries in front of him.
"'Bout time," he said before shoving another bunch of fries in his mouth.
I grabbed a napkin off of the top of the table and threw it at him in response. Fratricide, indeed.
Surprisingly enough, Daniel and I did find the time to be alone together that night - for a whole ten minutes. My dad, Arnold and Christopher - the Army Vet/angry farmer went after a hog while Daniel and I lagged behind.
"You were so wrong about the hyenas earlier tonight," he said as he laughed out loud.
I recalled the conversation with his sister in his truck earlier on and I laughed out loud.
"I know."
"Because it is the sisters that kill all of their siblings in their clan."
I laughed even more.
"I know. I just didn't think your sister having that knowledge would be good for you."
He nodded. "You are right about that. She'd kill me in my sleep if she could."
I shook my head and sighed, as I ducked under a bush on a trail that we'd seen everyone go through just a minute ago.
"You know, it is hard to be a little sister. Trust me - I have two older brothers so I know what I'm talking about."
He shrugged at that. "Maybe Greta's had it rough. She is the only girl out of five kids."
"Four brothers?" I said.
He smiled. "Yep. Me, and three others."
"Your poor mother," I said with a smile.
His smile went softer then. "Yeah. She's had it rough. My father died in a car accident when we were kids. She's been going at it alone for a long time."
I softened too. I gently put my hand on his warm forearm.
"I'm sorry. My mom died five years ago after a sudden illness."
He gently covered my hand on his arm with his own hand and took a deep breath.
"Thank you," he whispered back.
We stopped then. My heart slammed in my chest as he brought his hand to my cheek and gently caressed it. He looked at my mouth then and I knew that he was thinking about kissing me. Instead, he sighed and gently moved his hand and my own.
"Maybe we should catch up to the others."
Yes, slow would be good, I mused. I didn't want to do anything that might mess up my budding relationship with Daniel.
"Okay," I replied.
"They might need us you know," he added as we began to walk up the trail again.
"Oh, I know. I got gored the last time I went after a boar without waiting for help."
That stopped him in his tracks.
"Gored? Really?"
I smiled, suddenly proud of my injury.
"Yep. Went to the E.R. and everything."
"Did you scar?"
I nodded and began to walk again.
"I did. It's about five inches long on my leg."
He began to walk with me.
"I didn't see it when you had a skirt on earlier."
The thought that he checked my legs out made me blush. Thank God for the dark.
"Well, my boot covered it."
"Let me see it."
I turned to him and laughed. "No. Maybe if you take me out to dinner sometime I'll show you."
He laughed at that. "Done. I will take you out and you'll show me your scar."
"That's a deal," I said with a smile.
We stopped then. He stood so close as he stared down at me.
"You're in trouble, you know." He whispered.
"How so?" I whispered back.
"I've got you in my sights now."
I swallowed and looked him in the eye.
"Good," I whispered back.
Just then we heard steps sounding heavily on dried undergrowth. He smiled at took a step back and walked towards the noise. It was my dad, Arnold and Chris. Chris and Arnold were all smiles as they carried a tied up hog our way.
"Whoa! You guys got one?"
Chris nodded at that.
"We did. Your dad taught me how to make a quick snare and a minute after we left it, this guy walked right into it."
"These hogs here on the reservation haven't had to worry about traps and hunters for a long time. If you get in aggressively, Daniel, you should be able to get a lot of them. They'll catch on to trapping after that, though. That's when dogs come in handy."
Daniel nodded at that. "I'm all ears, Luke."
We placed the hog in the back of Daniel's truck and headed out to the next spot where I was able to show off my shooting skills. I'd been in the front of the trail with Arnold behind me, Daniel and Christopher behind him. My dad was at the end of the trail with a rifle. Suddenly, a grey blur of fur ran from right to left. Quickly, I took the safety off of the Winchester I held and then worked the finger level at the spot I thought it might have gone to. I smiled as I heard a pig squeal. Suddenly, I saw another blur of grey. I quickly worked the finger level again before shooting that guy down. I smiled as I heard that one squeal too. Arnold patted my back before going to check out the hogs. Daniel smiled at me before checking out the pigs himself along with Chris. I heard another shot which must have been Arnold, probably taking one of the guys out of their misery. My dad stood next to me as he watched Arnold teach Daniel and Chris how to tie the hogs.
"Like shooting fish in a barrel out here," said my dad.
&n
bsp; I nodded.
"I know it. What are we going to do with three hogs?"
Arnold came out then.
"Two. Your shot hit one of them in the belly. He's not good anymore."
Daniel carried one hog while Chris carried another. Daniel's biceps and triceps were popping through his shirt and I stared. He caught me staring. Embarrassed, I demurely dropped my eyes.
"I looked up the disposal procedures for hogs in the county, Luke. We'll be getting rid of these two right after we drop you guys off at the hotel."
That marked the end of the night which was okay by me. I was exhausted. After a warm goodbye and the promise to pick us up at 1 p.m. the following day, we left Daniel and Chris in the parking lot. It was three thirty a.m. by the time I got out of the shower and got into bed. Right before I nodded off, I heard a buzz on my cell phone. Taking it off of my nightstand, I checked the message. It was from Daniel.
Smiling, I eased up on my bed and turned my lamp on.
"Hey. Nice shootin' Tex," it read.
I laughed, even thought it was not the first time I'd heard that expression.
"I hope I wasn't showing off," I replied.
"Not at all," he replied. "Put your phone on silent. I'm about to call you."
I almost squealed in excitement over that. I picked up after the second ring.
"Why aren't you sleeping?" I asked him with a smile.
"I just got back from getting rid of those two pigs. I still have to shower."
I asked him where he lived and he told me that he had a small house on the reservation near his mom's house. We talked about my house for a while before I started yawning on the phone.
"Uh oh. It's somebody's bedtime," he teased me.
"I know. I'm awful."
"No, its fine," he said with a smile in his voice.
He then asked me about what I would need to slay the hog tomorrow. I told him what materials to bring for the slaying. I told him about what seasonings and herbs to bring too. He then sweetly bid me good night and I did the same for him. I fell asleep with thoughts of Daniel in my head.
The next day was a good one. I dressed shabbily in a ratty t-shirt and jeans. I even put my old boots on. My hair I secured in a tight ponytail. I was excited to see Daniel when he came to pick us up. I rode in his truck while dad and Arnold followed us in their truck.
Nice Shootin' Tex Page 21