Nice Shootin' Tex

by Cyndia Rios-Myers

  "Ready for some dirty work?" he asked me with a smile on his face.

  I laughed at that and then buckled my seat belt. "Well, I have my ratty clothes on."

  Daniel took his time looking at me from head to toe. I warmed up at his scrutiny. He then looked out the back of his truck window before looking back at me. After that, he unbuckled his seat belt and reached over and unbuckled mine. He then reached for me and pulled me across the smooth bench seat. As soon as I was next to him, he put his hand on my face and lowered his mouth to mine. My heart almost stopped when I felt his skin on mine. He kissed me once, twice, three times before pulling back and looking in my eyes.

  "Just so there is no confusion," he said in a deep voice.

  I reached my own hand out and touched his face.

  "I wasn't confused," I whispered back.

  "Good," he replied before kissing me one more time.

  He then pulled back and smiled at me. I was stuck in some state of shock. I was far away from Texas, the ranch, my truck, my art, and my house. But sitting there in Daniel's arms, I felt like I'd finally gotten home for the first time ever. The feeling shocked me to my core. Still, I smiled back.

  "Good," I replied.

  He then patted my leg and smiled again.

  "You'd better get back to your side over there before you dad decides to come and string me up and cook me over a spit."

  I laughed at that and did as he requested. Still, he held my hand for the entire ride to his house. It was the best feeling ever.

  A lot of people were waiting for us at his house. At least fifteen. They all stared at me sitting in his front seat as we pulled in.

  "My, that's a lot of people," I said with a flush on my face.

  He laughed at that.

  "No, it's not! That's just my family coming to watch the slaughter."

  With that, we climbed out of the truck and walked towards Arnold and my dad as they got out of their truck. Greta joined us then and Betty stepped up to us too to greet us. The warm reception made me calm down instantly. We then went through the obligatory introduction process with my dad being introduced first, followed by my brother and then me. I was the one that received the most scrutiny. It made me almost fidget uncomfortably. Still, I warmly greeted Daniel's three brothers and his mom. Maria, his mom, did not stare at me in a hostile manner but in a guarded one. Still, I smiled as I had to make a good impression on her. She was very pretty and very young looking; I wondered how old she was when she had Daniel and his siblings. I was then introduced to his brothers' wives and to all of his nieces and nephews. There were so many names to memorize!

  Arnold was talking about something with Chris and Daniel to his brothers, which was when my dad pulled me aside.

  "Do you like this fella, Lauren?'' he whispered.

  I didn't have to look at Daniel to know who he was referring to. I blushed as I looked down to the ground.

  "Very much so, dad."

  My dad nodded at that.

  "That's okay. That's good. He seems like a fine man."

  I smiled at him when he said that. He wasn't done though.

  "But you have to do as I say here. They are very traditional here and if you want to fit in, you are going to have to play along."

  "I know," I said.

  "You are going to have to let Daniel, Chris, me and Arnold kill the hog and do most of the work. You should do all of the cleaning out and seasoning with the women, though."

  I looked at the hog tied up to a stake in the ground. He had a bowl of water and food next to him so at least he'd been treated well in the night.

  "That sounds wise, pa. I'll do that."

  He nodded at that. Just then Daniel and the others joined us.

  "Ready to do this?" Daniel asked as he looked at me.

  I blushed and shoved a few strands of hair behind my ear.

  "You know what? Since it was you guys that caught him, I'll just sit back and watch while you kill him. I'll let Greta know what's going on, though."

  "Sounds good to me," said Arnold.

  The men excitedly took off towards the inside of the house for weapons presumably. Greta stood next to me.

  "Thanks for trying to invite me last night. It would have been cool to come along."

  I smiled at her.

  "You are welcome. I think you would have enjoyed it.”

  She sighed. "Great. But at least I get to get elbow deep in pig entrails, huh?"

  I laughed out loud at that. "Maybe tonight you can come along."

  "Hopefully."

  Just then, Maria approached us.

  "Lauren, right?" she said in a strong voice.

  Nervously, I swallowed before nodding.

  "Yes, Ma'am."

  "Come with me to get the seasonings. They are in my truck."

  I gulped again.

  "Yes, Ma'am."

  There were so many things I'd rather be doing. Submitting myself to Arnold's teasing. Getting my boots pooped on by a hog. Walking my dad's ranch barefoot. Getting gored by a boar. Still, I followed her off the driveway and down the street. I waited to be spoken to first.

  "You like my son?" she asked me.

  I swallowed. "I do."

  "You a good girl?"

  "I am," I nervously answered.

  "You go to church?"

  "Every Sunday."

  "You ready to have kids?"

  Oh my Lord. I felt myself pale and sweat at the same time. I brought my hand to my forehead and dried it.

  "I am," I answered.

  She said nothing else as we arrived at a white, two door truck. She then opened the door and pulled out a bag that held bottles of seasonings, and a few heads of garlic and a mortar and pestle in another. I took them from her. We walked back to the house at a slower pace.

  "I hope that you are not taking an interest in Greta just because she is Daniel's sister."

  I took my time answering her.

  "I am not. I've known her for less than a day, but she kind of comes off as being...bored. I just wanted to be nice and include her in some of the things we were doing."

  Maria sighed at that. "Well, she is bored. And she is trouble, but she is trouble because she is bored." We walked a couple more feet until she spoke again. "Do you really think she can have a future hunting hogs?" she asked with a skeptical tone.

  "I don't know, Maria. I don't know if she's a good hunter or a good shot. Those things can be taught though - if she has an interest. There are other aspects to this job too, though. She can keep track of hog sightings. She can dispatch people to the areas where hogs are known to be. If for some reason you guys can build a business out of this, she can keep the books. She can market your business. Trust me - hogs and their killing is a growth industry."

  My voice had gained confidence as I spoke about my business and I liked that.

  "Huh," she said as if considering it.

  We then got to Daniel's driveway. She looked at me once and I saw Daniel's eyes on her.

  "I'm a good shot, you know."

  I smiled. "Good."

  "I'll kill you if you hurt my son."

  I swallowed at the threat.

  "Yes Ma'am," I replied.

  She nodded at that. We then walked up the driveway where Daniel and Greta stared at us with widened eyes. Greta mock-cringed and then grabbed my arm, taking me to a card table that was erected under the shed were the pig still lived. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as Daniel pulled his mom aside.

  "Did she read you the riot act?" Greta asked.

  I shook my head. "No, no. Not at all. She just asked me what my life was like in Texas. I told her."

  "Sure, she did." She sarcastically added. She then sighed and pulled me towards her and Daniel's sisters in law.

  "Come hang out with us. You'll be safe here."

  Lily, a pretty one with green eyes smiled at me. "Yes. Maria is quite the battle ax."

  I smiled and allowed myself to relax a bit.

  We wa
tched from the side as Arnold and Daniel raised rifles at the pig's skull. Two loud bangs resonated through the lands around us. The pig dropped soundly to the ground. Chris took Arnold's proffered gun and shot at the pig's skull a third time. After that, they carried the pig over a tarp and set it there. My dad came over then and stuck the pig in the jugular. Blood spilled out of the pig and onto the tarp. The hog was then hoisted up under the garage with one line attached to each back leg. Arnold put a large, plastic lined wastebasket under the boar's head. My dad then slit the pig from groin to neck and then proceeded to skin the pig. He then asked Daniel for a tool. Daniel nodded and then produced a reciprocating saw from a shelf in the garage. After plugging it the power cord, he handed it to my dad. After turning it on, my dad leaned down and cut the hog's head off. After that dropped into the trash can with a large thud, he turned to me with a smile.

  "You are up, Lauren."

  I got off of the folding chair where I'd been seated and then turned to look at Greta.

  "You ready for this?"

  "No," she said with a scrunched up nose.

  The women laughed.

  "Well, let's just get it done then."

  She sighed and stood up then. I then heard the scraping of a chair and watched Betty (who turned out to be Daniel's aunt) get up.

  "Don't count me out," she said.

  Maria got up from her chair then too.

  "Alright. I'm coming," she grunted.

  My dad then handed me a small but very sharp knife.

  "Lauren's hands are small. She is the one best suited for this very delicate procedure," he said in the way of explanation.

  With that, I sighed and stared at the pig.

  "We want to be sure that we don't poke holes in any of the organs as we remove them. It will spoil the meat, and the organs that we might want to eat too."

  With that, I dove in with my hands and began to surgically remove all of the organs and entrails. After I did the most of the cutting, I got Greta to put her hands in the pig. She made ridiculous faces as she stuffed her arms in the animal.

  "Oh, get out of there," said Betty, making a move to go in herself.

  "No! I'll do it," Greta said with force.

  She then took a deep breath and carried on with the less than pleasant duty. I caught Maria smiling at her out of the corner of my eye. After all of the entrails had been removed, Arnold, Chris and Daniel removed the hog from the ropes it was suspended from and laid it on a long table with a tarp covering it. I then turned to Daniel.

  "Umm, we need to wash our hands before we season the pig."

  "Of course. Come on."

  He then walked me and Greta into his house. It was a very nice and spacious home. He had a large flat screen TV in his living room and a couple of leather couches. The coffee table sported a bunch of hunting and gun magazines. There was a small dining room to the left with what looked like an unused table. The kitchen was sunny and looked pretty modern looking, though the appliances looked unused. Greta went straight to the kitchen sink where she turned the water on.

  "Come on. You can use the sink in my bathroom."

  Nervously, I followed him into a bathroom that also looked pretty modern.

  "Can you turn the water on for me? I don't want to get blood all over your faucet."

  He smiled at that.

  "Sure."

  After I covered my arms in soap and water, he spoke.

  "Did my mom give you the third degree?"

  I looked up at his reflection in the mirror.

  "No. Not at all. She was very nice."

  He laughed out loud at that.

  "Liar. My mother is not nice at all."

  Still, I would not betray what his mother told me.

  "So you are not going to tell me what she said."

  "There is really nothing to say, Daniel," I said with a blush.

  He gently ran his hand through over my ponytail and then kissed my cheek.

  "Whatever. I'm heading back out to amuse the others."

  "I'll be right out."

  Fifteen minutes later, the women and I were shoving garlic cloves into the pig along with other seasonings. We then covered the pig with salt inside and out, another untidy job. I watched as my brother and dad drank soda and hung out with Daniel and his family. No one drank alcohol.

  Finally, a rod was affixed to the hog; it went from his mouth to his rear. He was tied up twine to help secure him in one position.

  "How long till he's done?" asked Greta.

  My dad furrowed his brow as he looked at the pig.

  "Four hours give or take."

  "Four hours?" protested a few of the kids.

  Still, they were amused by turning the pig round and round over the fire. Daniel went to talk to his brothers for a couple of minutes before coming back to Arnold and I.

  "My brother Paul agreed to turn the pig for the first hour. Would you guys like to go on a drive on the reservation?"

  I smiled and nodded at that. My brother and father agreed to come along. I sat in front with Daniel while Arnold and Pa climbed in the back seat of his truck. Daniel pointed out the archaeological sites which was exciting. He then drove us past the cultural center but told us that it was closed for renovation. He then drove us past the schools. Some were renovated but others looked very old.

  "We are doing what we can to get them all renovated as soon as possible. It is our aim to get our children the best education that money can buy."

  I smiled. Daniel reached out and squeezed my hand at that. He then drove us around the hiking trails, which was exciting as well.

  "I think that these areas are the ones we should hit tonight," he said as pointed to them.

  He then turned back and looked at me as he spoke again.

  "I've got to get you guys out to see as much as possible before you drive out tomorrow."

  The thought of leaving Daniel made my breathing stop. My distress must have showed on my face because he smiled at me.

  "We'll have to clean out your old room back at the ranch, Laura."

  I turned to my dad with a furrowed brow.

  "Why is that?"

  "Chris and Daniel have decided to come on out to the ranch for a couple of weeks for some on the job training."

  That was good news. That was the best news! I wanted to clap. I wanted to cheer. Instead, I gave a slight smile.

  "Oh? When?"

  "One week from Monday," Daniel said to me.

  One whole week. One week and one day. Would I really have to wait that long to see him again? Still, I smiled.

  "Good."

  With that, we drove back to Daniel's place. We spent the rest of the evening taking turns turning the hog while we all got to know each other better. Daniel's brothers, Paul and Doug were car mechanics. Jeffrey was a police officer. They all made jokes about each other's shooting that were funny. Finally, the topic of American Sharpshooter came up.

  "So how well did you do, Laura?" asked Paul.

  I blushed and shook my head.

  "I can't say, unfortunately. But I did enjoy it."

  "Oh, come on. Give us a hint."

  I sighed while I considered what I should say.

  "Well, how about I tell you about a top secret weapon I shot instead?"

  "Good enough. Spill."

  While not naming the gun, I told them about its accuracy, rate of fire and weight as well. They were very impressed.

  With yet one more hour to kill before the hog was done, Betty, Maria and Greta pulled me aside.

  "You should come help out with the potatoes," Maria said.

  "Sure," I said, blushing again.

  We then retired to Daniel's kitchen. I took care of the garlic while they mashed the potatoes. I also helped season them which impressed them very much.

  "Wow, Lauren. These potatoes are awesome!" gushed Greta.

  I smiled and gave her my thanks.

  "Do you cook for your father and brother?" asked Maria.

  "W
hen I lived with them, I did."

  Maria looked from the dishes she was washing and looked at me.

  "You mean you don't live with your father?"

  I blushed. "No, I do not."

  "You live by yourself?"

  I nodded. "I do. I make enough money to support myself which is what I do."

  "It is not acceptable for a young woman to live out on her own before being married," she indignantly said.

  Crap. This was where I had to stand my ground, I knew.

  "It is for me, Maria."

  Betty and Greta stared at me in shock.

  "What kind of girl are you? You go out and shoot with guns and slay pigs! You don't live with your father and your brother. You go off to a different state to go shooting with a bunch of men! This is not proper behavior!" she nearly yelled at me.

  Sure, I had a thing for her son but I would not let her insults stand.

  "I am the kind of girl who goes out and shoots gun and slays pigs. I am the type of woman who doesn't live with her father and brother. I am the type of woman who goes to a different state to go head to head to shoot with other men. I am proper and that is my behavior."

  "Your ways are too different from ours. You won't fit in!" she exclaimed.

  Just then, I watched Daniel and his brothers storm into the kitchen. Daniel stood in front of his mother and stared her down hard.

  "How dare you insult my guest, mother?" he said in a deep voice.

  The rest of his brothers stared her down too.

  "Daniel. She is nice. She is respectful. I will give her that. But she is not a good match for you. I am sorry but it is the truth," said Maria. She didn't sound sorry, though.

  I deflated then and leaned against Daniel's counter. Greta quickly stood by and whispered in my ear.

  "Don't listen to her, Lauren. No one is good enough for Daniel in her eyes."

  Daniel looked to be seething with anger.

  "It is my choice as to who is a good match for me or not, mother. It is not yours."

  He looked like he wanted to say more, but Paul put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

  "Mother, it appears that you are under the weather and are not in the kind of shape to entertain company. Perhaps you should go home," said Paul, the eldest of Daniel's siblings.

  Wow. Paul was telling his mother to leave. With a scowl, she threw down the dish towel that she held in her hands and walked out of the kitchen. She grabbed her bag off of Daniel's couch and then walked out. As soon as she was gone, Daniel spoke to his brother Paul. Paul nodded and indicated that everyone else should leave save for Daniel and me.