The Unknown
by Patricia Henry
Chapter Five
For several minutes Slim searched, but no Andy. Slim was afraid that Andy would ride out, blindly traveling in the dark, hurt instead of common sense guiding his horse. But he finally found the young boy in the barn.
�Andy?�
�Can�t talk right now. I promised Jess I�d brush Traveler every day until he got back. I meant to earlier today but...well...I got to get this done. This is important to Jess so...�
Slim touched Andy�s shoulder. The young boy grabbed for Slim. Slim held his brother close to his body. He could feel Andy�s body shaking hard.
Andy cried out, �Why? Why�d he have to die?�
The first time Slim had ever heard Andy cry was when their father died. The last time had been when their mother died. Each time Slim had never heard anyone cry as hard or as long. Andy had cried so much that Jonesy had threatened to get the doctor. Slim had felt helpless, scared, even tongue tied of what to say to his brother. He was filled with those same feelings now. �Let�s sit.�
As they sat side by side on a hay bale; Andy wiped his shirt sleeve across his tear reddened eyes. Slim wanted to say the right words. Words that would comfort his brother. But he was lost to what those words would be. He couldn�t explain why this had happened. He couldn�t offer consolation when he himself felt so lost.
�I know this is bad,� Slim began.
�Why, Slim? Why now? Jess was so happy here.�
�Andy, I don�t know.�
�All that happens here is death.� Again Andy wiped away the tears but more fell, soaking his face.
�That ain�t true!� Slim replied more gruff than he meant to.
�Jess never had much. Had to fend for himself since he was fifteen. And now when he�s finally part of this outfit, it�s all taken away from him.�
�Who are you crying for, Andy? Jess or yourself?�
Andy swung his head around to stare angrily at Slim. �Don�t you care what happened to Jess?�
Slim�s eyes blaze with fury. �Of course I care. At first I wasn�t sure about Jess. But in just a few months he�s become a part of this outfit as much as any of us. I came to depend on him both as a ranch hand and even more as a friend. Despite his teasing and sometimes his stubbornness, I don�t think I�ve had a better friend than Jess. And-� Slim choked on his words. He bent his head so Andy couldn�t see his face. He wiped at his eyes, as tears threatened to fall.
But Slim lost the battle and Andy saw the tears.
Andy had never seen his brother cry, even when their parents died. Slim had not cried. For a long time, Andy had wondered why. Then Jonesy had finally confided that Slim had cried but alone, in private. Slim kept his head down, trying not to expose his face to Andy. But Slim�s body now shook with grief. Andy had always seen Slim strong and self confident. Seeing his brother like this, scared the young boy. He reached out and patted Slim�s arm. �I�m going to miss him too, Slim.�
Slim swallowed hard before he answered, �We all will. But we got to get through this.�
�That�s what you said when Ma and Pa died. Maybe it�s better not to care. Just to-�
�Andy, do you regret that you knew Jess?�
�No! After Pa died, I never thought I�d laugh again. But I had a lot of fun with Jess. Like the time him and me put salt in the sugar bowl. I ain�t never seen your face so puckered as when you drank that coffee.�
As tears continued to wet his cheeks, Slim chuckled. �I had forgotten about that. You two sure got me good then. I never knew when you two were going pull something.�
Andy laughed out loud. Then just as quickly his laughter died. �Slim, what are we going do without Jess? The place won�t seem the same. Funny, how he became a part of us so quick.�
�I know what you mean. We can replace a ranch hand. But I don�t know if we�ll ever replace his friendship. It was as if Jess was kin. But we�ll get through this, Andy, as best we can. We got to go on. We got chores to do and�we got to go on.�
Andy wanted to be strong for Slim. He tried his best not to cry another tear. He sniffed several times but he couldn�t stop himself. And once he started, he couldn�t stop. His body shook hard as he sobbed.
Slim pulled the young boy to his body. He felt his shirt dampen then get soaked. Andy cried until he felt sick. But still he cried. He never noticed that Slim�s face was tear streaked.
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