Page 30 of Long Pig
Even though she would study the area so she would know where to find the larger pieces, she rarely came across them again. It made her smile. Someday she would learn the landmarks of her ranch like her grandmother had.
Today her goal was to reach the shallow caves that she could see from her back door. They looked small in the distance, but they were actually quite large. She’d hiked this way many times before. Carefully, she checked the area for signs of a mountain lion or even a bobcat, but found nothing. The dogs entered the caves, but she hung back. Even looking into the confined space bothered her. They didn’t go very far back, and maybe someday she would get up the nerve to look inside.
Something tingled on the back of her neck, and she turned. The area around her was undisturbed, so she stared farther into the distance. She could see her house, and it looked as small as the caves had. Tracking from her home, she found the road that went past her property and saw blowing dust.
A white vehicle emerged, most likely an SUV, but she couldn’t make out much about it. The strange feeling persisted. Several people lived on the other side of her property. A vehicle on the road was normal. Not that there was much traffic, but once or twice a day, someone drove past.
She called the dogs and cut her hike short. She was overreacting, but the hike was no longer soothing, and she had a new piece of furniture to work on. After she finished Louisa’s project, Louisa sung her praises in town. A woman called to see what she could do with an old turntable cabinet, and Willow took the job. She was eager to get started.
The following day, Dale took his truck to Show Low for new tires.
“You want to tag along?” he asked.
“No, I’m going to the library to look at some rock books. I’ve seen a few online, but I want to find a really good one.”
“Rock book?” he teased.
“Yeah, you know, that stuff your boots crunch when you walk,” she teased back.
“Crazy just like your grandmother,” he muttered.
She saw the smile. He’d once said her grandmother was an old hippie, and she didn’t mind the comparison. Maybe she would order a flowy dress for a special occasion like chopping wood. Dale would get a good laugh out of it.
An hour later, she and Dale left in separate vehicles. Willow left the dogs in the house.
“Be good, and I’ll bring you back a treat,” she told them.
They were always well-behaved, but it made her feel better to say the words when they gave her sad eyes for leaving them.
Dale kept driving when she turned into the library parking lot. The library was one of the few modern buildings in the old western town. It sat off the main highway, which was considered Main Street. A strict, high-demand, religious sect ruled the area, and the library was never crowded.
“Hi Willow,” one of the ladies behind the front desk said.
“Hi Paige,” Willow replied.
“What can I help you find today?”
“Rock books,” Willow said with a grin.
The clerk smiled back. “Perfect for where you live. You might come across fossils and other fun rocks out there.”
Paige had helped her with vegetarian cooking, geological maps of the area, and local history. She never batted an eye over any of Willow’s requests.
For the next two hours, Willow wrote down names of books she would eventually buy. Her collection of petrified wood was growing quickly, and she’d also discovered crystals and jasper. Now that her eyes were open to what lay at her feet, it was becoming a passion the same way refinishing furniture was.
After the library, her next stop was the feed store. They carried large bones for the dogs. The store was located at the west end of the highway, a half mile from the town limits. Her greeting there was similar to the library. It suddenly occurred that in a small way, she was accepted and no longer a stranger. Everyone knew Dale, and most people greeted him warmly when they were out together, but they said very little to her.
She didn’t belong to the prominent religion in town, or any religion for that matter, but at the feed store and library she was recognized with a smile.
The owner of the feed store always had a child or two underfoot. Willow had no idea how many children he had. Five seemed to be the norm in the area, but some couples had ten or more.
“Hey, you two rascals,” the owner said. “Go to the back and grab some chicken feed. If you’re good for another five minutes, I’ll let you feed the babies.” He turned to Willow after they ran off. “Bribery may be forbidden in the Bible, but I use it on the kids because it works.” He winked and finished ringing up her order.
Willow had no idea that bribery was in the Bible at all, so she simply smiled and thanked him before leaving. She’d attended the prison Christian services for a short time but never felt comfortable. Religion was something she had little interest in. Thankfully Dale felt the same.
“It’s a private issue,” he once told her. “I’ve prayed before, and I’m sure I’ll pray again, but that’s between me and God and not someone appointed by men here on earth to interfere with.”
“What if God were a woman?” she’d fired back.