Lou stretched as she woke up. She all ways tried
to be the
first up and dressed. Sliding off her bunk she grabbed her clothes and
quickly
slipped into them trying not to wake the others. She made her way to
the door
and stepped out into the early spring morning. The weather was finally
beginning to warm up she noticed.
As she stepped off the porch, she heard a low
groan and
looked across the yard. There coming around the side of the barn was
the
largest bear she had ever seen. She started to scream, then to call to
the
others and Teaspoon but nothing would come out of her mouth. And the
bear was
getting closer.
She backed up slowly until she was against the
door of the
bunkhouse. Reaching behind her and never taking her eyes off of the
bear she
pulled the latch and opened the door.
As soon as she stepped inside and slammed the
door shut, she
called to the others waking them, “There’s a bear in the yard!”
Buck was the first to his feet a questioning
look on his
face. Jimmy had pulled his gun as he fell out of his bunk. Kid had
jumped up
grabbing his gun also, but at least making it to his feet first. Cody
had sat
up cussing since doing so had caused him to bump his head on the bunk
above
him.
Lou just stood in the center of the bunkhouse
looking at
them and pointing at the door. “B…b…bear,” she said again.
“What do you mean bear, Lou?” Kid asked.
“There’s a bear outside in the yard,” she said
again.
“Yep, that’s a bear,” Jimmy stated matter of
factly looking
out the window. “And it’s headed this way. He raised his gun and
started to
take aim.
Stepping up beside him Cody put his had on
Jimmy’s arm.
“Hold on a second he looks familiar. I think that’s Bart.”
“Bart?” Lou questioned as she and Buck peered
out the other
window. “Cody how do you know a grizzly?”
“Friend of yours?” Jimmy asked his voice
dripping with
sarcasm.
“Might be,” Cody answered. “Ran into him on that
special run
for Teaspoon a few weeks back. Some hunters were trying to kill him.
The fella
that raised him asked me for help before he died,” he said as he moved
toward
the door.
“Cody, you ain’t thinkin’ about going out there
are you?”
Kid asked.
Cody grinned, “Sure am. He looks harmless
enough.” Cody
walked out the door and started to step off the porch as the bear
ambled up.
“Bart, what the heck are you doin’ here? I thought I told you, you
couldn’t
follow me and to get.”
Bart groaned again, and lay down at Cody’s feet.
“Now Bart,” Cody said, “you can’t stay here.
Town’s no place
for you. Someone will want your hide or worse yet you on the dinner
table.”
Bart began to growl then stopped and rolled over
like a very
over grown dog that wanted to play. He made a swipe at the back of
Cody’s legs
that made Cody sit down hard. Cody was at a loss here was the largest
grizzly
he’d ever seen wanting to play.
“Um, son, just where in heaven’s name did you
find that?”
Teaspoon asked from the porch of the bunkhouse.
“I kind of helped him and a friend of his out
when I made
that decoy run a few weeks back,” Cody replied. “Teaspoon, I thought he
understood he had to stay up on that mountain. Guess he decided to come
for a
visit though.”
While Cody was speaking the porch had filled up
with the
other riders. Jimmy still held on to his gun. Buck and Kid stood
staring in
disbelief at the sight before them. Lou, she lost all color in her face
when
Bart put his paw on Cody’s shoulder and then proceeded to lick Cody
upside the
head.
“Teaspoon, he’s all alone. The fella said he’d
raised him
from a cub after his momma was killed. Don’t ya think he could stay for
a
while?” Cody pleaded. “I promise I’ll take care of him.”
Teaspoon didn’t answer him right away. After a
moment he
said, “Good God Almight.” Then added as he headed back toward the
tackroom and
the bottle of whiskey he kept hid. “Like you can get rid of a critter
that
size!” he shouted shaking his head. He mumbled to his self, “These boys
are
making this job of mine, more than interesting. Next thing I know
they’ll be
telling me Lou’s a girl!”
