Tom and Sue
The next morning as Sophia feared, I was thinking about leaving tonight to go and check on Tom. I will have to take the path we did last night, using the creek to wash away my scent. Sophia wants me to stay. I said my other blood brother may need me. Well at least we will have today, our new smaller family, she is bawling. We get into a group bear hug, then I roll a huge cigar for everyone. They sit and smoke the cigars, everyone has their own tales about Oliver, that they shared with each other. Our mood is improving, having our discussion about Oliver, along with the cigar that everyone was smoking. Sophia says she will fix breakfast and Lucy said I want to help you. It’s been a while since we have cooked together. I tell them that a little berry cobbler would be good for dessert. Lucy said, “you will get whatever we fix.” Yes, Ma’am I said. I asked James if she always that sassy now. James says, “yes Sophia had taught her to stand up for herself and unfortunately she wears the pants in our household.” I remember the day y’all moved into y’alls den and how Sophia had jumped you and Oliver and then she told Lucy to take notes on how to keep her bear in check. I about died a little latter when Lucy had told you she would cut you off. She learned quickly from Sophia.
Wasn’t long that the den was being permeated by delicious smelling aromas. I know, I smell sausage which we don’t get very often, and the unmistaken smell of sourdough bread. Lucy says it’s almost ready y’all can’t come in until its done.
We hear Lucy say come and get it. Along with the sausage and sourdough bread was eggs and porridge. There was a loaf of bread for each of us. I must say I was disappointed no berry cobbler. We all dug in and had a feast of bears. I’m fat but happy now, and about to go into the living room and lucy say’s hold on I have something else. She walks over to the oven and pops out a berry cobbler for everyone. My eyes lit up and I tell Lucy how great of a sister she is. She about in tears, tells me I’m a great brother, and she couldn’t stand it, if she was to lose me. Then myself and James, excuse ourselves to the living room, Lucy speaks up, ok Sophia and myself is going into the living room, for our break now, while y’all clean the kitchen, and don’t forget to clean the oven well, the berry cobbler had spilled and is now baked on. I’m thinking to myself, damn you Sophia, you are the cause of this. But then I remembered we all must all help each other out. James says he will clean the whole kitchen; I only need to clean the oven. I said deal, in about 20 minutes James said he was done with the kitchen. This damn oven with everything baked on so hard, I’m not even half done. Then James speaks up Yeah, I’ve had to clean the oven twice now, after Lucy fixes cobblers. 30 minutes later the oven is clean.
I go into the living room and it is filled with smoke. Sophia and Lucy have a very fat cigar, that they were smoking. I was thinking I don’t even need to roll one for myself, I just have to inhale. Well, I rolled me a fat Cigar and everyone else almost done with theirs, said to roll them another one, so I did. The household is calm and we are talking, and having a family meeting. Sophia then speaks up and tells me she wants to know everything that I know about Oliver’s death, and events afterwards. I just told her I was sitting on the hill, with James and we heard Dale and Rob talking about how that son a bitch killed 3 dogs, and that they glad he is dead. Then while waiting for help to get Oliver out of the mountains, they ripped open his belly and pulled his guts, lungs, and his heart out. Sophia screams OH MY GOD, I cannot hear any more right now.
We changed what we were talking about, and started talking of all the happy times, the family had together. We talked about this spring, when we had come out of hibernation, and sliding down to the stream. How Lucy caught the largest native trout and I started a fight with her. How Oliver broke the fight up and made me apologize to Lucy. I then said I miss him so much. I then talk about Rob calling Oliver the marijuana bear because of his weight after field dressing was 420 pounds. I tell everyone looks like we have become the marijuana family, I then remind everyone, that we need to do other means of finding joy, before turning to the marijuana. For like the next 3 days lets agree to keep it in our system we need it now. After 3 days we must try to get weaned off the marijuana. The family agreed to this. We sat there full from breakfast and didn’t even think about eating lunch. Lucy says around 5 pm she a little hungry now and its mine and James’s turn to fix supper. I look at Lucy like that’s women’s work, I was going to tell her that, she can’t cut me off. Then I thought, she is right, this is a family, we all need to share responsibilities.
I tell James let’s just do fried fish and fried tatters. Then we can also do a berry cobbler. James said yes sounds delicious. We both prepared the tatters to fry and get the fish battered up. James will do all the frying while I fix the cobbler. I mixed all the ingredients including the honey. Now I’m placing it in the oven thinking about payback maybe, I’ll spill a little cobbler. Well supper is on and we call the sows to the kitchen. Everyone enjoyed the fish and taters. Then I brought out the cobbler. Lucy says wow twice in a day I don’t think I have ever had cobbler twice in a day. After supper, I tell Lucy she has the stove and Sophia can clean the kitchen. Wow, that look could have cut right through me. I go in the living room and I hear Lucy say damn you, the oven is clean. I just knew it was going to be a mess. Lucy then helps Sophia to make quick cleaning of the kitchen.
We sit around in the living room and have us a cigarette we are calm but we need to keep a level in our body. We had a good time talking for a couple hours, and then I said it was time, for myself to leave to go and check on Tom and Sue. Everyone was sad to see me go, James wanted to go with me. I said no Sophia and Lucy need a boar bear around the den until I return.
So down to the stream I go and I walked the stream though the culvert and then follow the stream a good way to hide my scent. I continue out the mountain, staying about half way up the mountain where my scent won’t be as noticeable for the bear hounds. As I’m going, I decided to check on the young bear couple I met before meeting Tom. I get to their den and knock; no answer I go in the den is empty. Where are this young couple? Are they OK?
I then decide it’s time to go and check on Tom and Sue, I hope they are ok! I get to their den, and it looks very different, everything has been moved to one area. Tom says hello brother, how are you doing. I tell Tom I’m not doing very well, that Oliver was killed, day before yesterday. Tom was very sad to hear this. I then ask if he had seen the other young couple and he says oh yes Myself and Sue watched both them, get shot from the same tree, day before yesterday. We heard hounds and thought, they were coming for us. But they were chasing the other couple, and the dogs were almost catching them, they went up a tree. They remained treed in that tree, for almost 2 hours when the hunters came, and shot them both out of the tree. I said that’s horrible they seemed really nice. I then thinking OMG where is Sue. So, I ask Tom where was Sue. About that time, I hear Sue say I’m here in the bedroom, as she comes out with a paw full of their belongings. I asked what’s going on. Tom says after watching them being shot, Sue states she knows of a county, 2 counties away that doesn’t allow bear hunting, and you can grow big and old there. So, we have decided to move there. I tell Tom that I would miss him brother. And he said yes, I can’t thank you enough helping to get my life back, and finding and helping me get this marvelous sow.
They said they would be moving out tonight after dark and it is illegal to kill bears after sundown. They said they going to lay down now for a bear nap, that everything is packed. I tell them, that I would snooze with them, if they didn’t mind. They were delighted I would be staying for a short period of time with them.
Upon waking I had a great Idea; they have lots of stuff to transport so, I’ll help them move. Tom and Sue are now awake, I tell them, they were ecstatic. Tom says that the 2nd best thing that has ever happened to him, was me, and Sue was the best. I was happy being 2nd best.
Time to go to work now, we all get all that we can carry, there were just a couple things left, Tom told me I could have anything left, on my return trip home. We have 45 miles to cover tonight to get into a safe county. So, it’s no Lolley gagging around, we are on a mission to complete.
We have made it inside the county lines and is safe. Sue said there’s a small shelter she knows of, only a mile away, that they can stay in, while searching for a good den. So, we go to this little shelter, she is right, its small, we must leave all their belonging outside, and the 3 of them retired for a bear nap. Once they wake up, they have a little to eat, we decide to head off in 3 different directions to look for a den. We will meet back here at dark.
We all headed off in our own directions to find a den. Tom and Sue both get back to the shelter right at dark. They asked each other if they found a den or seen Ben. Their answers were no. They are wondering what could of happen to me. I was on my way back to them, but it would be over 4 hours after dark, before getting back to the shelter. I made it back after midnight, they were still awake hoping I was ok. I tell them the good news; I found a very nice and large and spacious den for them. I tell them it was almost dark when I found it. I was determined to find y’all a den, I knew the time frame that there was no way, I would make it back to the shelter before dark. I’m just so happy I found y’all a den.
They get a good night’s sleep in their little shelter. Sue is so happy that she is getting a den, in a county that doesn’t allow bear hunting, and they can grow old together. The next morning it is getting all their belonging, to their new den. It didn’t take as long as yesterday, since I was zig zagging, trying to find a den. It only took us a little over 3 hours to get there. We had a quick snack to eat and Tom and myself head out hunting. Between the 2 of us, we were able to kill 3 deer, 2 turkeys, and a couple possums. Tom zig zagged until he was able to run down a rabbit also. We take all the game back to Tom’s new den, to dress and freeze. Sue said give her 3 of the back straps, and she will prepare them for supper tonight. She already had the den smelling delicious, that wonderful smell of sourdough bread.
Sue said just rest after y’all get all the game in the freezer, and she will let us know when supper was ready. I was just remembering, it’s been over 2 days now since I have had any marijuana, but I’m so happy helping Tom and Sue. I havn’t had time to think about Oliver. About then, Sue said supper is ready. Tom and myself go in; wow she has a feast prepared. We all had a backstrap of deer. She also had both possums and rabbits fried to perfection. Collard greens prepared with 5 pounds of bacon, and a loaf of bread a piece. Sue tells me she wanted to make sure he ate good; I couldn’t thank you enough, for everything you have done for us this year. After eating our main course, Sue goes to the oven and out pops a strawberry rhubarb pie one for each of us. I tell Sue she trying to butter me up, to stay. Sue said you are always welcome here. I tell her thanks for the hospitality, but I will have to leave shortly, so I can get home before morning arrives. I feel good leaving y’all behind, knowing y’all are safe. I must get back to Sophia, Lucy, and James. I don’t know if they are even still alive! What will I find when getting back to the den?
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Dale Thacker Aurthor 
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