Page 26 of Cowboy Dreams

“Eighteen? Maybe not.” I’d started at fourteen, with an older boy from my school. Furtive, rushed handjobs, and in public we pretended not to know each other, but even the bullies of a public school thirty years back hadn’t stopped us.

“Looked like one, anyhow, and I was ten years older. I…” Joe’s voice trailed off.

“I know you helped him. Iknowyou.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t want to give him a bus ticket and just send him off. Odds were, he’d be homeless on his knees in some alley, a few days down the road. But I was saving for a new truck. Didn’t have a lot of cash to spare. So… I gave him the old one.”

“You what?”

“He was a good kid. I sold my pickup to him for a dollar, transferred the title right and proper at the license bureau. Warned him not to get in a wreck with no insurance. Gave him fifty bucks for gas money. He tried to blow me as thanks after that. Had my zipper down on the side of the road, driving me home, but I told him to hurry up and get out of the county before his dad got wind of it. Gracie at the license bureau is a gossip.”

“You gave him your truck.”

“Was just an old beater I planned to trade in. Might’ve got three hundred bucks for it, not more. I figured he could at least sleep in it. Having a place that’s yours matters.”

My heart did something odd, a flood of swelling warmth in my chest, close to bursting.This man.I set a hand on Joe’s knee. “I knew you’d help. You never heard from him again?”

“Nope. But he didn’t exactly have my phone number and I’m not on social media. I didn’t want for him to look back and I told him so. I hope he found something good out there.”

“Me too.” I steered along the quiet two-lane road, my hand on the warm denim of Joe’s thigh. “How long ago was that?”

“Ten years back.”

“We could search online.”

“Not sure I want to know. Boss never got no calls for references. I did ask.”

I could understand not wanting to find out. Truck or not, a young gay man with no family and no money was in a lot of trouble out in the big world. Some of them made it. Some got used and abused and into drugs, and died out there. “Let me guess. Gracie gossiped and Morse found out.”

“Yep. He tried to put out a warrant for a stolen truck, but we had the new sheriff by then. Breyer asked me and I told him the sale was all legal, and he told Morse he couldn’t haul his adult kid back home with a fake warrant. Luckily, it didn’t come to his ears for two days and by then, Frankie could’ve been anywhere.”

“No wonder Morse hates you.”

“Yep. Was probably good I didn’t have a vehicle for a while. I’d’ve hated to be alone on the road with Morse prowling about and the weight of the law behind him. He came to my work, y’know. Told my boss he had to ask me about a crime. Got me alone behind the barn and gut-punched me a couple of times, asking where his kid had gone. I was lucky my boss thought it was a bit hinky and came looking for me.”

I wanted to ask if Joe told the sheriff, pressed charges, but obviously not with Morse still on the job out there. “Son of a bitch.”

“Yeah. I stayed close to home for months after that. Went out with the other hands. Well, I didn’t have a truck.”

“That’s…” I didn’t know what to say. Disgusting? Infuriating? Just plain wrong?

“After that first time, he never raised a hand to me. Never said nothing when other people were around. Ten years now, time has worn that anger down some, I bet. But I can’t wait till he retires and won’t have the uniform to hide behind.”

I had to ask. “Did you ever tell the sheriff anything about it?”

“I did maybe say Morse was mad at me about the truck, when Sheriff Breyer came asking. Well, Sheriff could tell that. He’s not a stupid man. He told me to keep my nose clean, but he’d keep an eye on Morse.”

“That’s something, anyway.”

“That’s everything. The old Sheriff would’ve helped Morse punch me. The man at the top matters. If he’s fair and lawful, we’re all safer. If he’s prejudiced and mean and just out for himself, everything under him goes rotten too.”

“I guess I’d better change my voter registration to the Circle K so I can help keep Breyer in office.”

“Might be smart.”

I gave Joe’s knee a squeeze and let go to make the turn up the drive. “How do you think the council will vote?”

“Oh, they’ll give you the permits. You said, ‘Half a million dollars,’ and their tongues practically hung out.”

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