She’ll be fine and all with Mama Priss, ’specially after the poultice does its job. But I’m gonna miss her somethin’ terrible.”

“You will?”

“’Specially nights like this, when I’m sittin’ by a fire, all alone.”

“You’ll think about this trip, and your thoughts will turn to Gentry. And you’ll wonder how she’s doing,” Rose said.

“I will for a fact.”

Phoebe said, “You’ve surprised me again, Emmett.”

“How’s that?”

“I hadn’t realized your feelings for Gentry were so sincere.”

“Well, they are,” I said. “My feelin’s for her run deep.”

She nodded slowly, then said, “I’m glad to hear that.”

To Rose, she said, “There is a certain redeeming quality flitting about him that’s hard to pin down. But every now and then it shines through.”

“Well, thank you,” I said.

We sat quietly a moment, and then Phoebe said, “You told us what was sad about Gentry’s smile. What was the funny part?”

I chuckled.

“Please,” she said. “Tell me.”

“I would, but I don’t want to make you mad.”

“I promise I won’t get angry. Now please, tell me.”

“Well,” I said, “Gentry’s sittin’ there by the fire, and her poultice is meltin’.”

“Go on,” Phoebe said.

“And I was lookin’ at it from a distance, and when she turns to the side, one cheek sort of looks like a stallion’s pecker.”

Phoebe jumped to her feet and shouted, “For the love of God!”

Then she stomped off to join the others.

Rose shook her head and said, “Really, Emmett.”

I said, “I think Phoebe just broke her promise.”

 


 

 

 

28.

 

“It’s about that time,” I said.

“Please, Emmett,” Gentry murmured. “Just a few more minutes?”

We were a quarter mile from camp, on my blanket, on trampled grass at the top of a steep hill. Dawn was breakin’, and the smell of Phoebe’s coffee had caught up to us. I’d grown rather fond of her sissy coffee of late, and that was just one of the things I was gonna miss about her when we got to Newton. Her odd way of payin’ a compliment and then gettin’ furious with me was another.

“It’s nearly daybreak,” I said, “and we ain’t had breakfast. Then it’s an hour to Copper Lake, and when we get there, we’ve got six barrels to fill.”

Gentry let out a yawn. “Can we just lie here a few minutes and talk?”

I didn’t want to lie there and talk. The stink on her face made me want to gag. It was so vile I doubted my horse would take an apple from her mouth. I wondered how Gentry could stand it. She couldn’t have grown used to it. If it were me, I’d rather be pimply.

“Can we, Emmett?”

“Well, we spoke some last night,” I said.

“Last night was more about ruttin’ than talkin’,” she said.

“Well, it was good ruttin’.”

“It was,” she agreed. “But sometimes a girl needs more from a man than an eager ruttin’ partner.”

“That makes sense.”

“So can we talk? Just a few minutes?”

“Okay. But just a few minutes.”

“Will you hold me first?”

I put my arm under her head and winced, thinkin’ about her poulticed face bein’ up against my chest. At first, due to the smell, I hadn’t wanted to. But the way she settled into me, the top of her head was between my nose and her face, so the stink weren’t half as bad. I was so happy about it, I kissed her hair.

“That was sweet of you, Emmett,” she said. 

“What would you like to talk about?” I said.

“Well, is there anything you’d like to ask me? Anything at all?”

I thought about it a minute.

“There is one thing,” I said.

“Good! That’s a start!”

“It’s somethin’ I’ve been wonderin’ awhile.”

“Well, ask it then,” she said.

“Okay. What I was wonderin’ is, when you’re ruttin’ with cowboys and miners and such, what thoughts do you have?”

“What?”

“I was just wonderin’ what you think about while you’re bein’ fucked by all them men.”

Gentry started to speak, then didn’t. After awhile she sighed, and said, “Well, I mostly just think about the two dollars I usually get to keep, and what it’ll buy.