chair and sat down to enjoy a cup of coffee herself, she looked both men in the eyes and said, "Please take care of my dear Ollie. He's not what he used to be, but in his head, he is still ten feet tall and bulletproof. He is my entire world. I can't live without him. Please bring him back to me."
Evan reached out and took her hand, looked her in the eye and said, "Ma'am, I promise you we will use every precaution and will fight tooth and nail if it comes to it to make sure we bring him home safe to you. Just say a prayer or two for our safe return and we will do everything we can on our part. I'm sure everything will be fine."
"Well, I have faith in you boys," she said welling up with a tear. "You're like family to us now. It was very scary and lonely around here over the past year until you two and Griff began coming around to check up on us. It sure has made a difference in our outlook on the world and our future."
"Ma'am, the pleasure and the honor has been all ours," Jason said.
The back door opened and they heard Ollie's familiar knock. He walked into the room, hung his hat up on the hook on the wall, and said, "Well boys, our ride is ready."
"So what's our ride?" asked Evan.
"We're gonna take that old Massey Ferguson tractor I've been tinkering on. I had an old six foot Bush Hog mower deck that was junk. I pulled the blades, PTO shaft, and everything else that was no longer needed and tossed it. I tack welded a foot high rail around it, added a sheet of half inch plywood to make it not so rough to sit on and basically made a flat pickup bed out of it. I'll hook the three point hitch up to it, lift it up off of the ground with the hydraulics and you guys can ride back there in style. Heck, I can even throw a hay bail on it if you guys want something a little more cushy. It being a diesel, it just sips fuel putting along like that, and being open cab and you guys being in the open, if we run into trouble we can just bail off of the thing and run. Most importantly though, I've had that ol' tractor for forty years and Isaac should recognize it from a distance and know it's me. Maybe that will calm that ill temper you fellers had the pleasure of experiencing," Ollie said as he sat down at the table and joined them.
Evan and Jason just looked at each other and simultaneously said, "Sounds good."
"Well, drink your coffee and let's get a move on. It'll take a little while to get over there and I've got to find out what's goin on with Isaac or it's gonna drive me nuts."
"Yes Sir," Jason said as he sat his empty coffee cup on the table. "Thank you Ma'am for the outstanding coffee as usual," he said to Mildred as he stood up from the table.
"Well boys, enjoy it while you can. We are getting down to our last bit we had stored, and since I didn't hear coffee on your list of barter items, I imagine we will be running out soon," Mildred said.
"Well, stop wasting it on us then," replied Evan. "We don't want to eat into your stores like that."
"Oh nonsense," she said. "If you can't be a good host then what's the point of this world anyway?" she said.
"C'mon boys, she'll talk your ear off all day if you let her," Ollie said as he leaned over and gave her a kiss.
"She grabbed him and gave him a big hug and kiss and said, "Now you come back to me you ol' coot. I can't work these cows alone!"
"Yes Ma'am," he said with a smile.
With that, Ollie, Evan, and Jason all walked out of the house and went around to the barn to get the tractor. "I see you are wearing the pistol I gave you. Good!" said Evan pointing at the .45 on Ollie's hip.
"Yea, well, I didn't want to get any lip from you so it's just to shut you up," Ollie said in reply.
Evan just chuckled and said, "Whatever it takes."
"Well boys, climb on," Ollie said as he climbed up on the old red tractor and fired it up, belching diesel smoke into the air. Evan and Jason hopped on the old Bush Hog and sat down, rifles in
Evan reached out and took her hand, looked her in the eye and said, "Ma'am, I promise you we will use every precaution and will fight tooth and nail if it comes to it to make sure we bring him home safe to you. Just say a prayer or two for our safe return and we will do everything we can on our part. I'm sure everything will be fine."
"Well, I have faith in you boys," she said welling up with a tear. "You're like family to us now. It was very scary and lonely around here over the past year until you two and Griff began coming around to check up on us. It sure has made a difference in our outlook on the world and our future."
"Ma'am, the pleasure and the honor has been all ours," Jason said.
The back door opened and they heard Ollie's familiar knock. He walked into the room, hung his hat up on the hook on the wall, and said, "Well boys, our ride is ready."
"So what's our ride?" asked Evan.
"We're gonna take that old Massey Ferguson tractor I've been tinkering on. I had an old six foot Bush Hog mower deck that was junk. I pulled the blades, PTO shaft, and everything else that was no longer needed and tossed it. I tack welded a foot high rail around it, added a sheet of half inch plywood to make it not so rough to sit on and basically made a flat pickup bed out of it. I'll hook the three point hitch up to it, lift it up off of the ground with the hydraulics and you guys can ride back there in style. Heck, I can even throw a hay bail on it if you guys want something a little more cushy. It being a diesel, it just sips fuel putting along like that, and being open cab and you guys being in the open, if we run into trouble we can just bail off of the thing and run. Most importantly though, I've had that ol' tractor for forty years and Isaac should recognize it from a distance and know it's me. Maybe that will calm that ill temper you fellers had the pleasure of experiencing," Ollie said as he sat down at the table and joined them.
Evan and Jason just looked at each other and simultaneously said, "Sounds good."
"Well, drink your coffee and let's get a move on. It'll take a little while to get over there and I've got to find out what's goin on with Isaac or it's gonna drive me nuts."
"Yes Sir," Jason said as he sat his empty coffee cup on the table. "Thank you Ma'am for the outstanding coffee as usual," he said to Mildred as he stood up from the table.
"Well boys, enjoy it while you can. We are getting down to our last bit we had stored, and since I didn't hear coffee on your list of barter items, I imagine we will be running out soon," Mildred said.
"Well, stop wasting it on us then," replied Evan. "We don't want to eat into your stores like that."
"Oh nonsense," she said. "If you can't be a good host then what's the point of this world anyway?" she said.
"C'mon boys, she'll talk your ear off all day if you let her," Ollie said as he leaned over and gave her a kiss.
"She grabbed him and gave him a big hug and kiss and said, "Now you come back to me you ol' coot. I can't work these cows alone!"
"Yes Ma'am," he said with a smile.
With that, Ollie, Evan, and Jason all walked out of the house and went around to the barn to get the tractor. "I see you are wearing the pistol I gave you. Good!" said Evan pointing at the .45 on Ollie's hip.
"Yea, well, I didn't want to get any lip from you so it's just to shut you up," Ollie said in reply.
Evan just chuckled and said, "Whatever it takes."
"Well boys, climb on," Ollie said as he climbed up on the old red tractor and fired it up, belching diesel smoke into the air. Evan and Jason hopped on the old Bush Hog and sat down, rifles in
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