Prairie Fire

by Kayt C Peck

  “But, you only have the one son?” the nurse asked.

  “Yes ma’am,” Martha answered, a glint of defiance in her eyes.

  The nurse looked around the circle of family, confused. Judy reached for Kathleen’s hand, gently intertwining her fingers with Kathleen’s. The nurse’s face transformed from confusion to realization to surprise and then amusement.

  “Oh,” she said. The one word said it all. “Well, just don’t forget there’s only two at time during the visiting sessions.”

  “We won’t,” Martha answered.

  The nurse left, and Judy turned to Martha. “When you get time, you might want to give Curley a call,” she said.

  “Why’s that?” Martha responded.

  “He blames himself for Harold getting burned.”

  “Bless that dear soul. It was a fire. Sometimes fire wins.”

  Kathleen continued to hold Judy’s hand, and leaned close to her lover as she joined the conversation. “Curley kept talking about how the trained firefighters started from the back of the fire, going up each side. He thinks if he hadn’t dropped us off at the front of the fire, Harold would be just fine.”

  “Even if he’s right, he only did what we’ve always done at a grass fire. This one was just bigger and hotter than any I’ve ever seen,” Martha said.

  There was a silence. Judy stared at the toes of her boots. “It’s the CRP grass and the wet spring. I pray we don’t see any more fires.”

  Another nurse entered the room. She had a sweet face, an attractive sixty-something woman. She paused, hesitantly, looking at the family group, smiling directly toward Judy and Kathleen.

  “Are you all the Kentons?” The nurse asked.

  “Yes ma’am,” Martha answered.

  “As I was getting off shift, Nurse Johnson suggested I might want to come meet you.” The nurse walked toward them, looking quizzically at Judy. “You look rather familiar,” the nurse said. “Maybe you know my partner, Tandy.”

  Judy stood and shook the nurse’s hand. “The Tandy who owns the Pink Triangle? Why, everyone knows Tandy.”

  “I don’t,” Brad said.

  Judy kicked his boot and glared at him. “You run in a different crowd,” she said.

  Kathleen stood and smiled warmly at the nurse. “Judy took me there once, before I’d decided to move down here permanently. Nice place.”

  “What’s the Pink Triangle?” Martha asked.

  Judy and Kathleen shared glances that clearly said, “How do we explain this?”

  “Well, Martha, it’s a good place to go dancing,” Judy answered.

  “That sounds nice for you young people. Maybe you should take Brad and Julie sometime.”

  “Uhhhh,” Judy answered.

  Brad looked at his best friend with a sly grin. “It might be kinda interesting.”

  Judy kicked him again.

  The nurse introduced herself as Sharon Smith and Judy made the circle of introductions for herself, Kathleen, and the Kentons. Martha leaned close to whisper in Kathleen’s ear as Judy and Sharon conversed.

  “This Pink Triangle,” Martha said in a hushed tone. “Is it one of them gay bars?”

  Kathleen laughed and nodded “yes.”

  “They got ‘em in Amber?” Martha asked, speaking a little louder than intended.

  Conversation stopped and they all looked at the older woman. Martha blushed.

  “Well, I guess we never get too old to learn something new,” she said.

  A ripple of laughter waved its way through the group.

  Sharon looked directly at Judy and Kathleen. “I know you all have a lot to deal with right now, but Mr. Kenton mainly needs rest and drugs. If you two are interested, we’re having our weekly meeting of the Ladies’ Room discussion group this evening at seven in the upstairs room of the Pink Triangle.”

  “Ladies’ Room? I saw one of them down the hall,” Brad said, a wicked smile on his face.

  This time Judy didn’t bother with kicking his boot. She went directly for the shin.

  “Ouch!” Brad said. “That hurt.”

  “Good,” Judy responded.

  “He your brother?” Sharon asked.

  “Sort of,” Judy answered.

  “We claim him, even on his bad days,” Kathleen added.

  Sharon gave Brad her best and most terrifying nurse’s glare. “Better you than me,” she said.

  Chapter Three

  The Ladies’ Room

  They pulled the car into a space at the back of the Pink Triangle, just where Sharon Smith told them to park. They were late. Judy and Kathleen half-forced Martha to go with them to the hospital cafeteria for dinner while Brad and Julie stayed in the ICU waiting room. Her son promised to call Martha’s cell phone if there was any news or changes. At first, all three women picked at their food. After a couple of bites, physical need overshadowed appetite suppression from emotional trauma. They ate like the ranch hands they were, hunger ceasing all conversation as food went from plate to belly. Judy couldn’t decide if the hospital food was that good or if they were just that hungry. Only then did she remember there had been no breakfast, and lunch had been a can of mixed nuts and sodas Kathleen and Julie bought at the gas station while Judy filled the car with gas.

  The hospital volunteer at the information desk informed them that the Comfort Inn across the road had a special price for patients’ families and gave them coupons for the rooms. After checking into two rooms, one for Judy and Kathleen and another for the three Kentons, the three women grabbed quick showers and a change of clothes. When Judy and Kathleen stepped out of their room, they noticed that Brad’s car had moved from the space where Martha had parked it when they first arrived. Judy knocked at the door to the Kentons’ room. Brad answered the door, wearing the bathrobe his wife had packed for him and toweling still wet hair.

  “Where’s Martha?” Judy asked.

  “She’s at the hospital with Julie,” Brad answered. “She told me to tell you two to go on to this Ladies’ Room thing tonight. We’re fine, and we want stories tomorrow. Mama’s downright curious.”

  “And you aren’t?” Judy asked.

  Brad grinned. “Well, maybe a little.”

  They finally arrived at the Pink Triangle at seven fifteen.

  “I hate being late,” Kathleen said.

  “Don’t worry. I’m sure they’re on gay standard time,” Judy responded. She looked at the wooden steps leading up to the second floor room. “All the years I’ve been coming to the Pink Triangle, I never even noticed that room existed.”

  They could see lights in the windows, and as they stood looking toward the room, they heard a burst of laughter.

  “I wonder if it’s a potluck,” Kathleen said.

  “If it is, tonight we’ll bring more pot than luck,” Judy said. “They’ll understand.”

  Kathleen looked at her lover with a sly smile. “You brought pot?” It was common knowledge that Judy was a marijuana virgin.

  Judy blushed. She swatted Kathleen lovingly on the ass. “Let’s go inside.”

  The stairs creaked some as they ascended toward this mysterious Ladies’ Room. Judy noticed new wood on a couple of the steps, obviously recent repairs. The door at the top of the stairs opened and a woman with short brown hair wearing a leather bomber jacket smiled a greeting.

  “Welcome,” the woman said. “These creaky stairs are better than a door bell.”

  “We rely on Useless and Somegood at home,” Judy answered.

  “Useless and Somegood?” the woman asked.

  “Our ranch dogs,” Kathleen answered.

  The woman stood to the side, ushering them into the room. “I like that. My dog’s name is Nearly.”

  “Nearly?” Judy asked.

  “Nearly Human is the full name,” the woman responded. “Welcome, I’m April Sims. I’m sort of the coordinator for The Ladies’ Room.” She offered her hand, and Judy shook it firmly. Judy was pretty sure she’d just found her new best friend. />
  The room was full. Women sat in a huge circle of chairs and couches. Some of the younger women along with a couple of children sat on the floor toward the center of the circle. One little girl, around five years old, happily played with a pair of Barbies. She was in the middle of changing outfits from beachwear to evening attire. A young woman with spikey short hair and wearing a softball jersey sat beside the child, helping her play but looking out-of-place holding a miniature evening gown.

  Judy looked around, but it was almost too much to take in at once. Conversation ceased as all eyes focused on the new arrivals.

  “Well, don’t I feel like a Guinea in the hen house?” Judy said.

  A wave of laughter broke the group silence. Women started to shuffle seats, making room for the new arrivals. April brought two folding chairs to the circle and placed them in space made open by the group.

  “Welcome,” said a handsome Latina. “Come, sit beside me,” she said, indicating the chairs April had just placed; a third empty chair was on her other side.

  “This is my partner, Sophia,” April said, introducing the Latina.

  Kathleen dropped to the chair beside Sophia, placing a hand on the woman’s arm. “Please forgive my Guinea-bird here.” Kathleen smiled and tilted her head toward Judy. “She tends to say what’s on her mind.”

  Sophia hugged Kathleen. “Don’t I understand? I have one of those too.”

  Judy dropped to a seat in the proffered chair. “Sorry we’re late. We’ve been at the hospital with a friend.”

  “Glad you came,” Sharon Smith said from a seat on the other side of the room.

  “Thank you for inviting us,” Kathleen responded.

  Judy saw Tandy, owner of the Pink Triangle, sitting beside Sharon. They exchanged a quiet wave hello.

  “I told Kathleen it would be fine. I was sure you’d be on gay standard time,” Judy added.

  The ball player reluctantly playing Barbies spoke. “April’s got us trained. Discussion starts at seven.”

  “You make me sound like a task master,” April said. A wave of playful agreement rippled through the room. April blushed but smiled. “Okay, maybe a little bit, but damn, people have things to say.”

  “Speaking of which,” a woman said, a hint of reprimand in her voice. “As I was saying, I really want this group’s advice.”

  Judy looked at the speaker and was confused. The woman obviously bought top line designer clothing, and she sported perfect fingernails painted a lovely purple to match her outfit. Still, the bow in her hair made Judy’s gaydar peg out at a total zero.

  “I don’t understand why my husband insists on sitting around the house in his underwear. Why, I caught the neighbor looking in the living-room window last weekend, and she looked way too pleased at what she saw.”

  Kathleen leaned to whisper to Sophia. “Did she say husband?”

  Sophia raised a finger and spoke to the group. “If I may interrupt for a minute, Sara Jean. We may need to explain to our newcomers that this is a group open to any woman – as long as she is open minded – lesbian or straight.”

  “My goodness, yes,” Sara Jean said. She looked directly at Kathleen. “They advertised this as a Lambda meeting, and I showed up thinking it was a chapter of my college sorority. Had so much fun, I kept coming back, and I swear these women help me understand men better than any group I’ve ever known.”

  Judy sat with her mouth open, staring at the woman. Kathleen gently pushed at Judy’s jaw, closing the open mouth.

  “Anyway, what do you think?” Sara Jean asked the group.

  “My husband does the same thing,” said the woman sitting on the couch behind the little girl playing dolls. “When they say ‘home is their castle,’ they mean they want to be comfortable and…well...just be a guy.”

  Judy’s mouth dropped open again. The woman sitting beside the mother on the couch stifled a giggle and looked at Judy. “Hi, I’m Mo.” She jerked her thumb toward the woman beside her. “She’s my sister. She comes to help keep me in line,” the woman said.

  “Well, what do I do?” Sara Jean asked. “How do I get him to stop?”

  “You don’t,” Judy said. All eyes turned to her. “Well, you don’t. Oh, if you nag long enough, you might stop it for a while, but he’s not going to change. Not ‘cause of nagging, anyway.”

  “She knows of what she speaks,” Kathleen added. She leaned an elbow on her knee, placed her chin on her hand, and looked intently at her lover. “She can be very…male, sometimes.”

  Judy directed a cheesy grin at Kathleen, and the group laughed.

  “She’s right,” said another woman dressed in the same softball jersey as the young woman sitting on the floor. “He’ll listen. He may nod agreement, but he won’t change unless he wants to for his own reasons.”

  “So what do I do?” Sara Jean asked, a note of desperation in her voice.

  “Close the shades,” April said.

  “What?” Sara Jean asked.

  “When he’s watching TV in his BVDs, close the shades,” Mo added.

  “And you might want to have a little talk with your neighbor,” Mo’s sister said.

  Sara Jean’s eyes narrowed angrily. “I like that idea.”

  “Does he like football?” April asked.

  Sara Jean looked at her mockingly. “Well, duh. He is a guy, and he was the team captain in high school.”

  “What’s his favorite team?” April continued.

  “The Cowboys, of course.”

  “Go buy him a nice soft set of lounging pajamas with a Cowboys’ logo.”

  Mo laughed and slapped her knee. “That’s brilliant.”

  Sophia tilted her head to one side, looking at April, and spoke softly, almost to herself. “Cowboy lounging pajamas…good idea.”

  April cleared her throat. “Or Broncos. Broncos might be better for some…guys.”

  The group laughed.

  “Luckily, our nearest neighbors are five miles away,” Kathleen said.

  “Unless you count cattle and horses,” Judy said.

  “Well, I seem to have an old cow living next to me,” Sara Jean added. There was more laughter.

  “Where do you live?” Tandy asked Judy from across the room.

  “On a ranch on the far side of Dulson County,” Judy answered.

  “You had a grass fire up there today, didn’t you?” one woman asked. “I saw it on the news. Someone got hurt.”

  “That’s why we’re here,” Kathleen explained. “He was our dear friend and neighbor, Harold Kenton. We’re here to support him and his family.”

  “How is he?” Sharon Smith asked.

  Judy took a deep breath. For a moment, she’d forgotten the worry and fear for the man who was like a father to her. “Second and third degree burns on twenty percent of his body, but he’s stable. Pretty drugged up, though. He’ll have to have knee surgery. That’s how he got burned. Knee gave out and he couldn’t run from the fire.”

  “My goodness. He’ll be in the hospital for some time,” Sharon observed.

  “I live over near the hospital,” Mo said. “You need a place to stay?”

  “We got a room at the Comfort Inn. We have to get back to the ranch tomorrow. We’ll be looking after both places while the family is here,” Judy said. She paused, thinking. “Would you…would you mind if we gave your number to Martha, Harold’s wife? I know her. She’ll stay right here in Amber until Harold’s able to go home. She may need options.”

  “Once he’s in a regular room, they’ll let her stay with him,” Sharon said. “But that may be awhile.”

  “You bet,” Mo responded. “Would she mind staying in a lesbian house?”

  “She’s fine with Kathleen and me,” Judy said. “But it did take some getting used to for her.”

  Kathleen laughed. “You should have heard how shocked she was to learn that Amber has a gay bar.”

  “I was too,” Sara Jean said. “Told John, my husband, and he wants to come here dancing
, but I think he secretly wants to watch you women.”

  Tandy laughed. “Bring him,” she said. “We’ll get one of the fellas to make a pass at him, and he’ll never come back.”

  The group laughed, especially Mo. “Let us know what night,” she said. “So we can watch the show.”

  “I will. I most certainly will,” Sara Jean answered.

  Before the evening was over, everyone had their chance to talk, although at eight o’clock, they took a break and hit the potluck table like vultures on a carcass. When Judy and Kathleen protested they hadn’t brought food, various women forced paper plates into their hands and advised on which dishes were the best. Most recommendations ended with a confession that the one the advisor had brought was best. Between eating the meal they’d shared with Martha and taking small portions of all dishes, Judy and Kathleen were seriously stuffed by the time the group disbanded and they headed down the stairs toward their car; their pockets held scraps of paper with various names and phone numbers.

  They were saying goodbye to new friends in the parking lot when Kathleen’s cell phone rang. Judy held her breath, fearing bad news about Harold. She sighed in relief when she heard Kathleen speak.

  “Pookie, how are you?” Kathleen walked to a quieter spot behind the stairs. Judy was relieved. She knew of Pookie, one of the young lesbians Kathleen had mentored back Colorado. Mo was just finishing giving Judy her recipe for red beans and rice when Kathleen returned, a worried crease between her eyes.

  “Everything okay?” Judy asked.

  “When it rains, it pours,” Kathleen answered.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Let’s talk about it in the car,” Kathleen said.

  Judy said nothing, but watched her lover’s face closely as they got in the car, Judy in the driver’s seat. “Now tell me,” Judy said.

  Kathleen took a deep breath. “Do you remember Pookie? You met her when we went up to get the last of my stuff in Colorado Springs.”

  “Forget Pookie? Not likely. First time I ever really got to know someone with a pierced tongue and eyebrow.”

  “That’s my Pookie. Well, her step-father kicked her out of the house.”