True Grit Read online

  Sigrun came home. She made herself dinner, and stayed in the living room while she ate. She put the dishes away, then showered and dressed in yoga pants and a short-sleeved shirt. She knocked, then came in.

  "Skuld called, said it was bad." She went over, and they did their touching-forehead thing. "With your shield," Sigrun said.

  "Or on it," said Wraith.

  "I'll be back," said Sigrun. She came back with candles, this time blue, black and silver ones. She turned off the TV, put on the strange music, and turned off the lights.

  "Do you..." asked Saber.

  Sigrun motioned for him to stay. Sigrun pulled back the covers, took off Wraith's socks, and put on peppermint cream. She worked it in, making Wraith moan. She rubbed Wraith up her calves. She took off Wraith's yoga pants and rubbed her legs, moving them around in the sockets. She did each arm, and palpated her belly, gently. She gave the cat to Saber. The cat fell asleep in his hands, and so he carefully put the sleeping kitten on the floor on the edge of the comforter. Roxie yawned, flexed her claws, and fell asleep again.

  Sigrun flipped over Wraith, and had her remove the camisole. Saber and Sigrun both grimaced at the edges of black and bubbled crimson under the bandage, still wrapped in plastic wrap. Sigrun left the plastic wrap on the cuts, bruises, and the burn scar. With delicate fingers she worked primarily on her head and neck. She stopped, and carefully covered her with the sheet.

  "She's sleeping," she whispered. She stood, then came around to Saber's side of the king-sized bed that took up most of the room.

  She did the same for him, with his feet, legs, arms. She turned him over, dug out the knots he had the size of boulders, and stroked his hair.

  "Move over," she said. He cradled Wraith in his arms, and Sigrun stroked his hair until he slept.

  Saber woke early because a cat was plunging its tiny claws into him. He petted it, and it curled up to sleep. He saw something moving, and found that Sigrun had been busy. There were blue and silver mylar balloons floating in the bedroom, and his letters were tied to the cords. He smiled, held Wraith closer, and fell asleep again.

  He awoke to find Wraith corralling a floating balloon by catching the string with her toes. She brought it down to her, opened the letter, and smiled, tears streaming down her face. He grabbed one and pushed it her way. She grabbed it, then opened another letter. He handed her tissues, and watched her laugh as the kitten awoke and began chasing balloon strings all over the bed. He went into the corner, snagged the last one, and brought it over to her. She hugged and kissed him, then imperiously dragged off his yoga pants and boxers. She grabbed his cock, squeezed it, and felt it come alive under her hands. She grabbed a condom out of the drawer, rolled it on, stripped off her clothes, and straddled him. She pounded him, sweating; the plastic long since gone from her bandages. One became red with blood, but she ignored it, nipping and clawing at him, rising and falling at a punishing pace until she let go with a howl, and he let himself go, too.

  He managed to get her off of him without staining the sheets with blood. He ran to the bathroom, threw away the condom, wiped himself off, and grabbed the first aid kit. He handed her a wet wipe while he cleaned and re-bandaged her wound.

  "You're lucky you didn't pop a stitch," he said. "I'm not that good at field surgery."

  She grunted with the pain. "Small price to pay for your love," she said. "Now, hunt me some food."

  "Yes, Ma'am," he said, and dressed himself again.

  He found two breakfast sandwiches in the microwave, ready to warm, and fresh-squeezed orange juice in a carafe. He made a tray, and brought it in to her. They stayed in bed, doing what little needed to be done on their tablets, and watched insanely stupid movies. They ordered enough pizza, chicken wings and fingers, and cheese sticks, for two days. They ate like low-class kings, drank soda, and read books.

  Sigrun came home, looked in on them, snorted, showered, dressed in soft yoga clothes, and climbed in bed with them. She stole the cat from Wraith, stole the remote control from Saber, and put on a movie so funny they nearly spewed soda on the cat with their cackling laughter.

  Improvement

  Alo finished creating the new rabbit mix. The rabbits loved it, and they grew fat and had rabbit babies. He sealed the lid; it would last for two days. He was figuring out how to put it into pellets for sale, but that seemed so... commercial. A few of the brand-new Wolfpack took on learning his mixes, and Alo had already supervised them shredding beets to go into the horse feed. They got a cut of his take, but that was well worth it. He was stretched thin, and farming out tasks was the very first thing Inola taught the Wolfpack to do.

  "Critical tasks," said Inola, "are your job. The rest, you supervise to be sure they're done right. You feed and walk the horses, I rescue and train them. You get good enough and love the horses, you can do it too."

  Or work with me, thought Alo. I need to get both packing and distribution down. Get these guys some driver's licenses and a delivery truck. He sighed. Have to pay them well enough so they can afford a truck. He popped his head up with a new thought. I can buy the truck!

  He stood, stretched, and did his warm-ups, right there in the barn. Inola snorted as she went into the tack room and came out with a long lead.

  "Go swim, fighter boy," she said. He snorted, and went to the main house to meet up with Undine.

  Nantan drove up to the main house right as Alo crossed over to the house. "Right on time," he said.

  "On it," said Alo. He helped Undine out of the truck. "Land softly," he said, as she stumbled.

  "Trying," she said. "Let's go change," she said. He took the downstairs bathroom and she the pantry.

  They changed into their shorts and swim trunks. He walked her out to the solarium and up the ladder. Paco, their physical therapist, was just giving Vu a hand up to the ramp. She went down first, and smiled.

  "Get in," she said, and grabbed a towel from the bin at the base of the ramp. "Water's fine."

  "It's always fine," grumbled Undine. "It's a heated pool."

  "Chop chop," said Alo. "Let's go. I've got two lectures to listen to, notes to take, a paper to write, a research project to complete on plant life cycles in hydroponics beds, and Tito needs an extra hand on the Whistler Way house."

  Undine growled at him, but she went up the ramp. She laughed, and belly-flopped in the water. She wasn’t impressed with the hurry of it all.

  "Crazy woman," said Alo. He followed up the ramp, and slipped into the water.

  Paco was a physical therapist and a kickboxer. He had them stretch, then soon had them kickboxing in the water with floaty "weights."

  Undine did everything at half speed. "You guys are so fast," she complained.

  "Proper form is more important than..." said Paco.

  "Weight or speed," finished Undine, gasping. Paco let her do simple arm movements while he had Alo do faster, more complicated punches and strikes.

  He went back to Undine, got her to swim away from a fictional shark. They both did laps; Alo's much faster. They were both ready for a shower, drink, and snacks in half an hour, and Alo helped Undine get out and walk down the ramp.

  "Next!" yelled out Paco. "We're burning daylight here!" Jake and Carl walked up the ramp, laughing.

  Alo and Undine both hit the shower next to the pool to rinse off the water. Undine fell into a soft patio chair, gasping. Alo handed her a towel. She dried off, and Alo passed her a fizzy water. He took a lime water for himself, and dried himself off. He ate apples and slices of cheese off a plate.

  "I could get used to this," he said. He stood. "Goodbye, ladies and gentlemen, I have to change."

  "You make me tired just thinking about your schedule," said Undine.

  Alo laughed. "I've got it easy. Ajai does coursework, walks dogs, cleans houses, house-sits when people go out of town, pours and assembles miniature Harleys for Ghost, and wait, there's more. Sometimes she has time to work on bikes with Bonnie, who runs around smiling because Killa and Ghost both
came back to work."

  "Well, damn," said Undine. "Gives me a complex."

  Alo finished his food, and stood. "I don't want to be her scheduler," he said. "Bye!" He put the plate in the plate tray to be brought to the kitchen, and took his towel with him to change.

  Undine watched him go. "What courses can I take?" she asked.

  Vu looked up from her book. "Go learn how to make the Navajo rugs. Or, learn how to make them out of alpaca and angora wools."

  "Well, damn," said Undine. She stretched and stood. "Looks like I have to finish the rugs I got, and find me a teacher." She took her plate to the plate tray, and stretched again. "I'll be looming in the distance," she said.

  Vu threw a pillow at her. "That is the worst pun I've ever heard."

  "Oh, no," said Undine, throwing the pillow back. "I've got worse up my sleeve."

  "If you keep it up," said Vu, "I'll go in there and read trashy romance novels to you, rather than your space operas."

  Undine cringed as if slapped. "You wouldn't," she said.

  Vu pulled up a book on her tablet. "He untied the stays that held her heaving bosom in place..." Undine fled, with her rolling tippy-toes gait, and headed to get changed.

  "That's just mean," said David, wheeling in Mishina, in her electric-blue, bathing suit finery.

  Mishina cackled. "Woman needs a little poke to get her where she needs to go. This one, you just tell her. Vu, get off your ass and go code something. Don't you have more coyote stories to translate?"

  Vu stood, smiling down at Mishina. "There are always coyote stories to translate. There are hundreds of them." The two of them sang "The Song That Never Ends" as David pushed her wheelchair up the ramp. David and Paco shared an eye roll, then they helped get Mishina in the water, still singing lustily.

  Later in the day, Henry found Vu banging out yet another coyote story on her laptop. She had her Sioux friend Sota translate the words from Paiute, and he was on video. Undine had her loom on its easel in its clamps. It was a rectangular rug-sized piece of wood, with screws all around the outside. Strings of blue hung vertically, and Undine wove horizontally with a steady touch. The "yarn" were long pieces of old, holey T-shirts, cut into strips. Undine struck a deal to buy the discards from several charities and used-clothing stores. Carl was doing complicated beadwork, his gnarled hands steady. Billie and Mishina sat in their wheelchairs, carding alpaca wool for Numa, nodding at Vu telling the story.

  Inola burst into the room. "Henry, call from Doctor Yates. Two ponies, freezing half to death."

  David rose. "I'll go too." Inola, Henry and David ran out of the room to get the ponies.

  "Those poor things," said Vu. "I wonder if we could make some sort of horse blankets?"

  Jake grunted. "Not a bad idea."

  Undine snorted. "Guess I'll have to learn real weaving, not this rag stuff."

  "One leads to the other," said Vu. "Got lots of video you can watch. We'll need to set up a loom," she mused. A big one."

  Jake and Carl both cackled. "Go right on ahead," said Carl. "The sales from the blankets should cover the costs of adding onto the house just fine."

  "Don't have to add onto the house," said Jake. "Been figuring it out. I want one as well. We knock out this wall, lose the little closet next to this wall." Jake knocked on it. "Move one of the panes from the pool room in the far corner, move it back."

  "Could work," said Vu. Let's call up some plans for Tito."

  "Can use plant fibers and dyes for some work."

  "We need us some fat sheep," said Vu.

  "No," said Carl. "Just order some wool from the Dine and have it shipped here. Color doesn't matter, or quality, so much. It's going to horse blankets, not clothes."

  "More washing, carding, and spinning," said Undine. "Not yay."

  Jake cackled again. "You got something better to do? Besides, we need to recoup the cost of that pool."

  Undine sighed. "Outvoted again," she said.

  The ponies were black and white, and there were many willing hands to keep them warm and fed. They were named Ebon and Moon, and they became quite playful when they got warm and fat again. Tam and Nico fell in love with them, and Nantan tried to figure out how to buy them from Henry and Inola.

  The Dine were very helpful with plans for the loom and for wool, which was washed to get the lanolin out. They got the specs, and two Wolfpack members came by and took out the closet. They rearranged the room, and were able to make a semicircle of chairs, tables, projects, and the loom in the corner. It was huge, taking up half the room. The wheelchair-bound Owl Pack members handled spindles, spinning the wool into yarn. They had an actual spinning wheel in the corner.

  Carl was delighted. "From high tech to low tech," he said. "Appropriate."

  "It's winter," said Undine. "What else we gonna do?"

  "Point," he said, and they all got to their projects, Vu reading to them the entire time.

  Ivy herded Grace and Hu into the van, and put on the movie. Bao put one baby in the car seat, and Callie another. Bao hopped in the back, the "torture seat," as Ivy called it. Callie took the wheel. Ivy made sure both the baby strollers, the diaper bags, and the two snack and drink bags, front and back, were in. She hopped in, put on her seatbelt, and they headed out. Ivy put on her favorite rock, then promptly fell asleep. Callie laughed, and switched over to an audiobook. The babies burbled and played with giant plastic car keys, the girls watched their movie and made hooked rugs, and Bao closed her eyes.

  They made good time, even with potty breaks and a visit to a diner to feed the babies, then themselves. Soon, Ivy would see her daughter Damia again at the special ranch that catered to severely autistic children. Ivy took over the driving, impatient to see Damia. She parked the van in the lot, and waited while the instructor walked the pony up to the van. Ivy opened the doors, and let Damia peer in from her heightened vantage point at her new brothers.

  "I have two brothers," she signed.

  "Yes," said Ivy. "And Grace and Hu are your sisters."

  "Big family ride ponies?" asked Damia.

  "Yes, on Henry's ranch," signed Ivy.

  "I live Henry's ranch?" asked Damia.

  Ivy sucked in a breath, then let it out again. "Must build house first. But yes. Or live and we visit, like now."

  "I live Henry's ranch now?" asked Damia. "Have pony for me?"

  "And me?" signed Grace.

  "And me?" signed Hu.

  Callie sucked in a breath. "We just got the duplex the way we like it," she moaned. "With a mother-in-law house and all."

  Bao grinned wickedly. "We can leave her behind to manage two rentals. She can even rent them to Chinese people, and dragon-mother them. She'd love it."

  Damia made an impatient wave of her hand to end the byplay, and signed again. "I move soon. I want Mommy."

  Ivy tried not to cry. "I want Damia," she signed. She said, "Babies are loud."

  "Listen to loud baby noises," said Damia.

  Dr. Hoit came up on the other side of the pony. "We've been experimenting. Loud noises, bright lights, tapes of babies crying. She even went to a grocery store. She's nearly meltdown free." She signed to Damia. "Damia amazing girl, amazing progress."

  Damia sat up straighter in the saddle. "Not sack in saddle," she signed. "Know Henry house save ponies."

  "Yes," signed Ivy. "Some ponies here are from Henry's farm."

  "I am pony girl," signed Damia.

  "So is Inola, our trainer," said Ivy. "You must meet her."

  "She have baby too," signed Damia. "Loud baby. Use music not hear loud baby sound. I like Backstreet Boys." She spelled the name, and Ivy laughed. Grace and Hu were a little slower, then they got it. They started singing Everybody.

  Ivy touched her daughter's hair, and sang, Hu and Grace joined in. Callie covered her mouth, trying not to cry. Bao smiled down at Hu, and stroked her hair as well. Then, stunningly, Damia opened her mouth and sang. Her voice was rusty, discordant, and off the beat. Ivy slowed down the son
g to accommodate her daughter. They ended raggedly, their voices out of sync. That was the most beautiful song I've ever heard, thought Ivy. Both Dr. Hoit and Jemma, the pony handler and animal therapist, had tears running down their faces. They both wiped their eyes when the song ended.

  Ivy reached forward, and touched her daughter's hair again. "Fast hug okay," signed Damia.

  Ivy hugged her daughter briefly, then stood back. "Thank you," she signed to Damia.

  "Go home with Mommy now," signed Damia.

  Ivy looked at Doctor Hoit. The perfectly groomed woman looked out of place in the driveway next to a little girl on a dappled pony.

  Dr. Hoit shrugged. "How soon can you build the house?" she asked.

  Callie's fingers flew over the keyboard. "Henry says you can live on the other side of the stream, he'll build a little bridge. Tito says he knows an auction, two-story farmhouse for sale for one dollar. Moving costs about twenty-two thousand, house in good shape. Land is going to a wildlife corridor, whatever that is."

  "Place for wildlife to live and to cross over to more territory," said Ivy. "Done and done. Tell Tito to do it, and we need a concrete pour." She froze. "What am I gonna pay Henry?"

  Grace looked up at Damia, sitting correctly on her pony. "Give him a pony girl. Inola will love another horsey person."

  Ivy laughed. "Sorry," she signed to her daughter. "Making plans. Must move house. Not know how long it will take."

  "Why can't we move our house?" asked Grace. She signed it at the same time she spoke it.

  "Too big," signed and spoke Hu. "Besides, Grandma will get new families in, and boss them around."

  Bao let out a laugh. "She probably will," she signed and spoke.

  "We need a loan," said Ivy, struggling to keep calm. Damia is coming home! She screamed over and over in her head.

  Dr. Hoit said, "You get me two more of these wonderfully trained and gentle ponies, I'll give you a lot of that," she said. "And, we have a boy waiting on Damia's bed. Our waiting list is..."