Page 31 of My Cowboy Freedom
He looked mildly disappointed. “Not really.”
“So, okay. We cool?”
“No, we’re not cool. Was it a one-time deal? Or are you going to snap, and—”
I threw a french fry his way. “Do you seriously think the state of Texas would let me out if I was going to snap?”
“Parolees snap,” he argued. “They snap all the time on the news.”
“I won’tsnap.” I scrubbed my face with both hands. “Okay. I did snap. But only once in my whole life, man. And that was a very different deal.”
He watched me warily. “How was it different?”
“That wasn’t so much a snap as it was a slow-burning fuse. Ten years of taking shit. You know what I mean? It was, ‘You can come after me and it’s one thing, but if you come after someone I love, you’d better bring a fucking army.’ It was that type of snap.”
“Oh,snap!” He glanced over to see what I thought of his fancy wordplay.
“Hahaha. Not funny.”
He was silent for a bit.“But you killed someone? Because they messed with someone you love?”
“I was convicted for voluntary manslaughter, yes.”
“Doesn’t even seem like a crime, though, does it? A man’s supposed to protect the people he loves.”
“I agree.”
“That is some fucked-up shit right there.”
He slapped the steering wheel before reaching for the radio. Soon he was bobbing his head in time to Hank Williams.
Apparently, he was satisfied I wasn’t a secret spree killer.
“All right.” He nodded. “Back to the ranch. Your secret’s safe with me. I won’t tell a soul.”
“Again,” I pointed out the obvious. “It’s a matter of public record.”
“Well, yeah.” He glanced at me. “I know that.”
The rest of the ride went quietly. Cattle watched us pass without much interest. The horses seemed more wary. They jerked their heads as we sped by, as if they had to establish their turf.
We rolled under the Rocking C’s arch at lunchtime, and despite the hamburger and fries I’d eaten, I was glad to see we hadn’t missed it. I piled my plate with fried chicken and potato salad, even as I gave a discreet glance around for Rock. He wasn’t there yet, or maybe he’d eaten before. I didn’t think I was considered an outsider anymore, but I still sat down at the picnic tables behind the bunkhouse.
Julio appeared a few minutes later.
“You can join us now, you know.” He lowered his head. “That was some dumbass shit yesterday. Boss says if Texas says you’ve served your time, that’s enough for us.”
“Well... I—”
“And between you and me, I’d have killed him too.”
“Who?”
“Tad says you killed some asshole who... you know.” At this, he did some eye thing I didn’t understand. “Raped your girlfriend.”
Oh.Wait.“What?”
“Look,” He glanced around and lowered his voice. “I won’t tell nobody. I think it’s cool, you know? Stand your ground.”
