Absolution River (6 page)

XIV

The drifter began to open his eyes. He noticed he was in a small one-room cabin with a large fireplace on one side. There was movement somewhere and it sounded like someone was cooking. He slowly opened his eyes and was welcomed by the warmth from the fire and the smell of cooking. His level of hunger was blinding and the wonderful aroma in the room only made it worse. It was dark outside and the rain was still coming down hard. His foot had been wrapped and elevated on the end of the bed. He began to get up and the figure came over to him and grabbed his arm. The wounded man flinched and pulled back hard. It had been a long time since someone tried to touch him without the intention of hurting him. The figure backed up and moved back over to the kitchen. The man got up on his own and hung over the bed.

“My name’s Eli. Found you face down in the mud ‘bout a mile from here. You’re a heavy son of a bitch. What’s your name?”

There was no answer, only a look from a face covered in mud. Eyes piercing.

“Come on, I cooked up your catch. Ain’t much but put some potatoes in there, it’ll do for tonight. Come on, ain’t gonna bite.”

The man limped over to the table and sat. In front of him was a bowl of the squirrel he caught earlier that day in a stew. The old man sat on the other side of the small table. He said a prayer for them and the food and he began to eat. He poured a large glass of whiskey nearly to the top and drank half of it.

“What’s your name?”

There was no reply as the drifter began to devour the stew. He looked intently at the bottle of whiskey and the old man got up to grab another glass. He poured it half full and the drifter drank it all.

“I see you like the brand. Made it myself, not sure what you’d call it but it sure does go down smooth. Don’t get much visitors round here. Got some today but wouldn’t call them the friendly sort. Been out here most my life. Ain’t much of a talker either, but you ain’t leavin me much choice.”

“Jackson, Jackson McAull,” the drifter stated in a low, gruff voice that hadn’t been used in years.

“Jackson, how bout Jack, for short, that okay?”

A nod. They sat there quietly finishing the bottle of whisky and devouring the stew. Eli sat up and took the dishes into the small water basin and washed them.

“Got a spare change a clothes there on the bed. Hadn’t worn them in decades but they should fit you now.” Eli turned around so Jack could change. Eli glanced over and noticed the finished plate. A smile. He let the dish sit and moved over to the leather chair. Jack limped back over to the bed in his dry clothes of jeans and flannel shirt and laid his head down.

“You were in quite a state, where’d you come from?”

“Nowhere.”

“I see.”

“Where were you goin’ to?”

“Nowhere.” Jack stated in a dreary, desperate tone.

“I see, I’ve been there, there now.”

Jack faded off to sleep. Early afternoon the next day, Jack awoke to an empty cabin. There was some beef jerky left on the table for him that he could see from his position on the bed. The sun was shining and the fire was still smoldering from the night before. He got up and moved to the door, and stepped outside onto the small porch. There was a chair there and he sat looking out at the forest. In the front of the cabin was an axe and logs that needed to be split. Past the open area in front of the porch was a thick forest. Above that was a towering mountain filled with pine trees moving up to the snow-capped peaks of the Flathead Wilderness Area. Jack closed his eyes and felt the breeze. The pain from his ankle was beginning to fade but it was still large and throbbing. He got up from the chair and limped over to the axe. He removed it from the large base stump with one hand and grabbed a log. He placed it on the base and swung, shattering the log into two even pieces. He did this again, and again, and again. Each strike was a movement against an immovable object. His aim was not to split the log but the massive base below it, to bust through it and into the ground as hard as he could. Eli came out of the thicket and watched the process for several moments. He emerged and walked over to Jack. He set down his traps and musket and began to hand Jack the logs. Shocked by Eli’s stealth, Jack looked at him with sweat dripping down his face and into his thick beard. Jack’s barefoot and broken stance re-positioned and he grabbed the log from Eli. They continued this for over an hour, without a single word spoken. Each man knew this had to be done, as each of them had been doing it their whole lives. Not stopping for the pain but simply accepting it and driving forward with the strength and determination of an axe along its trajectory. Finally Jack stopped out of exhaustion and Eli picked up his things and began walking to the cabin door.

“Come on, I caught lunch.”

They ate lunch on the porch and sipped at the whiskey this time. After an hour of sitting and enjoying the silence, Eli asked. “You’re a private man, I can see that. I can also see you battling somethin’ in ya. Don’t need to know what or why, but its nice havin’ the company. You help me with some things round here and I won’t ask no questions. You’ll need a couple days to get that ankle right.” Jack nodded and looked down, and that is where they left it. Time passed and Jack sat on the porch most days and even on some nights. His leg elevated, staring off into the distance. Eli would come out with him when he wasn’t doing the chores and sit with him and smoke a cigar. Neither would speak, and each finding solace in the company.

It was mid-afternoon and Jack heard a shot going through the forest. He immediately was on his guard and came to his feet. He noticed that his ankle was feeling much better and it was even holding his weight. He moved to the tree line and scanned the area. Jack sat quietly in a concealed area behind some bushes with a clear line of site to the cabin and to all of the avenues of approach. He heard some rustling and cussing coming from the north and he moved to see what it was. Something began to come busting out of the brush fifty feet from his position and he lay low until he could determine the source.

“Son of a bitch! Damn stupid–cockamamie!” shouted Eli as he was dragging a large deer out of the brush. Jack relaxed and walked over and surprised Eli.

“What the! Where’d you come from? Get over here and grab this, you lazy bastard,” Eli said, exasperated. Jack walked over and grabbed the deer, and they dragged it the next five hundred feet to a line outside of the cabin. They proceeded in cleaning and gutting the deer expertly.

“You done this before?”

“As a boy.”

“Ah, so he speaks, and he was a boy at one time, well shoot!”

Jack had the slightest of grins almost imperceptible under the beard.

“We gotta get you some shoes so you can help me do some real work now you’re feelin’ better.” They finished with the deer and cooked the best cuts of venison and drank some more of the homemade whiskey. Eli came out of the cabin as Jack was sitting out front, relaxing in the shade of the hot Montana afternoon.

“Here,” Eli said as he handed Jack a pair of moccasins he had made years back. “Made these too big, take ‘em.”

Jack took the moccasins that were light tan in color with a tread that Eli had fire hardened. He placed them on his feet and they fit perfectly.

“Ah, perfect,” Eli said. “Come on’ get off your lazy ass and help me clean this deer.”

As they got up Jack’s ears perked and said quietly, “You expecting anyone?”

Eli shook his head, “Had some folks come by yesterday, can’t say it was a friendly neighborly visit though.”

Eli stepped down off of the porch and glanced around the row of trees that lined the dirt road leading to his house. He could see a faint outline of an SUV with a great deal of dust behind it. The vehicle was moving quickly and would be in front of the cabin in moments.

“Not sure who-” Eli stopped as he turned and noticed Jack was gone. “What the-”

The vehicle skidded to a stop in the open dirt area in front of the cabin. The door opened and there was a tremendous amount of dust that followed the visitor. Eli put his arm up to keep the dust out of his eyes. Through the dust came a beautiful woman.

“Ma’am, you runnin’
from
somethin’ or
to
somethin’?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, neither. Just wanted to get here as soon as I could. Left early this morning to find you but got turned around, glad I found you today though.”

“Got a name by chance?” said Eli.

“Oh, I’m sorry, the name’s Marie,” as she extended her hand to shake his.

Eli made a grunt, nodded, and returned the gesture, “Would you like a drink or something?”

“Love one, thank you, ran out of water a while back. Didn’t think I’d be out this long.”

“These mountain roads have a way of taking you into them, drawing you in and never letting go. As you can see,” as he was walking away from her and his arm outstretched to show all that he had.

As they walked up the porch Marie asked, “You been here long?”

Eli stopped at the door, “Wait here.”

A few moments passed and Marie glanced at the surroundings. Eli emerged with a glass of tea of his own concoction, “Oh, not long, forty years maybe,” as he went to sit on one of the rocking chairs.

“May I?” Marie asked pointing to the other chair.

Eli gestured to her and she sat. They sat for a moment. “So…what can I help you with miss?” Eli asked with a big grin short of a few teeth.

The smile surprised her and she said, “Well, I’m with the Department of Agriculture…”

“They got a department for that now?”

“Uh, yes sir they do,” as she smiled again politely. “I’m here to discuss a logging corporation that has been going through major parts of Montana and forcing residents off of their property. They are forcing them to sign away their deeds-”

Eli cut her off. “Yes I have seen them. But I ain’t goin’ nowhere.”

“But sir-”

“The world has a way of finding you. I know it did and I know it does. I’m a coward, miss. Ran from my problems years ago and though I ain’t moved much in the last forty years, I’ve been runnin’ the whole time. I’m not sayin’ somehow I become a better man through the years or nothin’, simply sayin’ I’m too old and too tired. Sometimes you ain’t through runnin’, sometimes the runnin’ through with you.”

“Well, just thought I would warn you, it’s my job.”

“Appreciate it ma’am, mighty kind a you.”

“Anything I can do before I leave?” as she was finishing her lemonade.

Jack emerged from behind the cabin and gave Marie a start. She was shocked at his appearance. Dirty, wearing clean flannel shirt and jeans with brand new looking moccasins. He was in his mid forties from what she could tell but with all of the facial hair it was hard to determine. He held his hand out to her and smiled. She returned the favor but paused for a moment on his eyes, she was unable to look away until she realized he had noticed this.

Eli said, “Who the hell is this guy you’re investigating?”

“He’s, well, from what I gathered, very well connected in the state. There isn’t a great deal of information on him or about him. His co-workers won’t discuss a single detail. His family was even hesitant to say anything. What they will say is that he is not a good person. I’m not exactly sure how that translates into criminal charges, but I’m still working on it. There have been a series of accidental deaths throughout this area and other areas he has been in. There are so many connections, but none concrete enough to do anything.”

“What kind of
man
is he?” Jack insisted.

“You mean what do
I
think of him?”

Jack nodded.

“He is despicable. The lowest form of humanity this world has seen, only my opinion,” as she made a slight nervous smile. “End of the day it doesn’t matter what I think, only what I can prove.”

“Don’t discount your mind and what it has to offer miss, some things in life can only be found in the mind, and in the…” as he pointed to his chest. This very intense man caught Marie off guard. Not only the intensity but with the calm that accompanied it.

“Thank you gentlemen for your time,” as she handed the empty glass to Eli. She walked away from the porch and got back into her Jeep Cherokee and turned around. As she shifted the Jeep into drive she looked at Jack with curiosity, a brief moment in time. Eli glanced over at him as he was watching the Jeep drive off. Jack walked over to the deer that was strung up and began to slice. Eli put some chewing tobacco in his mouth as he was prone to do after a meal and began to help.

Sitting in the homemade chairs Eli built, Jack and Eli shared a bottle of whiskey while sitting in front of the big fire. In the night sky thousands of stars were visible out there in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere isn’t only a place but also an idea. The path to nowhere is not found by many, and travelled by even less. Those that find it are the most desperate, clinging to what ounce of humanity they could escape life with and holding on to it in a place where none could touch it.

“What kind of man are
you
Jack?”

Jack continued to look into the fire.

“Are you a good man, or do you fall into that other category? That gray area most of us end up in at some point.”

Jack continued to look into the fire, unsure of how to even answer the question. There were times in his life he was convinced of his righteousness. His many years in prison brought a great dark cloud over those convictions.

Jack began as the whiskey took affect, “I was working some odd jobs out there in Flathead County near Essex. Bussing tables, bartending when they were short, taking trash out. Doing odd jobs at people’s homes. Anything for cash. There was a woman who would come into the bar I was working a couple times a week. Real sweet lady, you know? She was a single mom and she would only come in for one drink at the end of her shift at the supermarket. We wouldn’t speak much but she always smiled at me and I wasn’t used to it. I had grown to like her a great deal. You see, I had come from a horrible place for the last couple years before that and I wasn’t used to being around other people yet, and she was the first to really notice me. One night there was a rowdy group of regulars who came into the bar. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, as we had a lot of seasonal workers come through and they spend most of their paychecks there. The woman had her usual one drink and left the bar out the back exit. The group of guys, after pounding a few drinks, left the same way right after her. I grabbed the trash to take it out to make sure she left without any trouble. It was pretty dark in the back dirt lot, as there was only one streetlight. The group of guys made catcalls at her but I was hoping they were too drunk to realize what they were doing, and would be gone. One of them, there were three, came over to her and asked if she wanted to come with them. She was polite, as I could see from where the garbage cans were, but the man insisted. He began to grab her and touch her. Once he grabbed her by the arm and began to pull her to their truck, I yelled for them to stop. The other two men came out of their running truck and asked what I thought I was doing. Mind my own business, they said. I could not do this. The man holding the woman, Julia was her name, threw her down on the ground. I could see the pain in her face, and the fear. The three men walked over, I didn’t want any trouble, I told them.” Jack took a swig of the whiskey bottle that he had in his lap. “They said that I had already found it and repeated that I should mind my own business. I could not do this. They approached me and began to shove and poke. They were extremely drunk and I didn’t want to hurt anyone, not anymore. Finally one of them took an empty beer bottle out of the trash that I had just emptied and broke it on the brick wall next to me. I pleaded with them to stop. The man with the broken bottle thrust it into my face a couple of times. He was slow and clumsy, but mostly just drunk. One of the thrusts cut my cheek almost clean through.”