Read Online Beast of the Field by Peter Jordan Drake - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Peter Jordan Drake
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that football game? Gomer got licked by that gal, their little sister, but then Junior whipped their big boy and two of the smaller ones by himself.”
Millie smiled. “Sort of…not really.”
“How about when Junior took on that mule we used to have—what was that mule’s name?
“Teddy.”
“Yes, Teddy. You have a great memory, Mil. Anyway, those two going at it like brothers, that mule trying to bite him and push him against the side of the stall, Junior punching and kicking him. Neither one of them would give an inch. Junior was always quick to fight. Stubborn and he had a quick temper and lucky for him he was big too.”
It came to her, sort of. Junior punching that mule in the face like it was a man. Those two grunting and spitting at each other while they fought. Using their big shoulders and big bellies to force the other this way and that.
Something must have shown in her face.
“Good,” said Tommy. “Now just put these memories you have of Junior into the army. And keep track of the dates on the letters, and the places. There’s a story unfolding here.”
May 15, 1918
Hoboken, New Jsy.
Little Brother,
Well, I never would of thought it, but I am the first Donnan to ever see the ocean. We are about to board the boat. So one last quick goodbye from the Good Old USA. I miss you all. Look out Kaiser Bill, here comes hell! Jr.
“Hoboken, New Jersey. Picture it. Smoke stacks, steam ships, the Woolworth Building and the rest of the New York skyline. Re-create it in your mind. Build a world around your big brother,” Tommy said, “then put him in it.”
Millie was trying. The world part was easier than the brother part.
“Keep reading. Look where he is next.’
May 19, 1918
Little Brother, Dover Eng.
Boy o boy you should see Merry Old England. This is the place for you, T. It is so pretty here, prettier than anywhere in the Good Old USA. The English Channel is wonderful, the air is so clear with no dust. Quite a nice place. I keep seeing these airoplanes flying around an I cant keep my eyes off of them. I think maybe you should join up and become a flyboy. These guys make a buggy look like a snail, and they do loops and dips and all kinds of things.
I have to go now. Im in Merry Old England, little brother, can you believe that? Your dopey big brother walking the same ground as King Arthur. If I see Old Billy Shakespeare, Ill tell him you said hi—HAHA!
My Best to All, Jr.
Tommy was starting to get that light in his eye, that life in his step as he paced the mow floor talking. “But think about it,” he said. “This is England in 1918. War is the only thing in the world over there. An old and dreadful war. They’re tired, weak, wounded, sick to death of the war. Now here comes these Yanks, like Junior, pink-cheeked and ready for a fight. Can’t you hear him talking to me? It’s like he’s talking right to me. Go on, from this point on, your big brother is fighting in a war.”
Little Brother, France, June 2, '18
From now on the censers are going to be "cutting" these letters up even more than they have been already.
We are still in Northern France, and we are still drilling. I
Millie smiled. “Sort of…not really.”
“How about when Junior took on that mule we used to have—what was that mule’s name?
“Teddy.”
“Yes, Teddy. You have a great memory, Mil. Anyway, those two going at it like brothers, that mule trying to bite him and push him against the side of the stall, Junior punching and kicking him. Neither one of them would give an inch. Junior was always quick to fight. Stubborn and he had a quick temper and lucky for him he was big too.”
It came to her, sort of. Junior punching that mule in the face like it was a man. Those two grunting and spitting at each other while they fought. Using their big shoulders and big bellies to force the other this way and that.
Something must have shown in her face.
“Good,” said Tommy. “Now just put these memories you have of Junior into the army. And keep track of the dates on the letters, and the places. There’s a story unfolding here.”
May 15, 1918
Hoboken, New Jsy.
Little Brother,
Well, I never would of thought it, but I am the first Donnan to ever see the ocean. We are about to board the boat. So one last quick goodbye from the Good Old USA. I miss you all. Look out Kaiser Bill, here comes hell! Jr.
“Hoboken, New Jersey. Picture it. Smoke stacks, steam ships, the Woolworth Building and the rest of the New York skyline. Re-create it in your mind. Build a world around your big brother,” Tommy said, “then put him in it.”
Millie was trying. The world part was easier than the brother part.
“Keep reading. Look where he is next.’
May 19, 1918
Little Brother, Dover Eng.
Boy o boy you should see Merry Old England. This is the place for you, T. It is so pretty here, prettier than anywhere in the Good Old USA. The English Channel is wonderful, the air is so clear with no dust. Quite a nice place. I keep seeing these airoplanes flying around an I cant keep my eyes off of them. I think maybe you should join up and become a flyboy. These guys make a buggy look like a snail, and they do loops and dips and all kinds of things.
I have to go now. Im in Merry Old England, little brother, can you believe that? Your dopey big brother walking the same ground as King Arthur. If I see Old Billy Shakespeare, Ill tell him you said hi—HAHA!
My Best to All, Jr.
Tommy was starting to get that light in his eye, that life in his step as he paced the mow floor talking. “But think about it,” he said. “This is England in 1918. War is the only thing in the world over there. An old and dreadful war. They’re tired, weak, wounded, sick to death of the war. Now here comes these Yanks, like Junior, pink-cheeked and ready for a fight. Can’t you hear him talking to me? It’s like he’s talking right to me. Go on, from this point on, your big brother is fighting in a war.”
Little Brother, France, June 2, '18
From now on the censers are going to be "cutting" these letters up even more than they have been already.
We are still in Northern France, and we are still drilling. I
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