Read Mama Rides Shotgun for Free Online Page B

head. “Wait for the trail boss,’’ she said into my ear. “He’ll tell everybody at once.’’
    A few minutes later, Jack Hollister was about to do just that. With his compact, well-muscled build and sun-beaten face, Jack’s age could have been anywhere from forty to fifty. But I guessed closer to forty, based on his physical ease climbing onto an upended length of log. He didn’t seem as comfortable when it came to actually speaking.
    He cleared his throat a couple of times, and then spoke too softly. “Can I get everybody’s attention?’’
    People shifted and jostled, wanting to see what Jack had to say, but not wanting to lose their place in the supper line. Some of those in position near the front muttered as other riders crowded in around them.
    Suddenly, someone gave a loud, long whistle. The shrill sound silenced the crowd. Jack removed his stained cowboy hat.
    “I don’t know how else to say this but to get right to it. Lawton Bramble died this afternoon. Looks like a heart attack. All of us are already here, a hundred or more. So, we’re gonna go ahead and camp tonight on his land, just as we planned. Then, we’ll ride out in the morning, so we can make our next scheduled stop.’’
    The only sound now was the hum of the generators that powered the cook trailer. I looked over at the big-bottomed woman and her friend. Both of them looked ashamed of themselves, which served them right.
    “Lawton was a good friend to the Florida Cracker Trail,’’ Jack continued. “He’ll be missed. Now, I’m sure the Bramble family would appreciate your prayers. Let’s all bow our heads for a few moments, why don’t we?’’
    As Jack lowered his head, a ripple of prayer rose over the line. I said my own brief piece, asking for safe passage to heaven for Lawton. I looked up and saw that many others were still praying, Mama included. She always did have more than me to say to the Lord.
    I used the time to scan the crowd. The fifty-something cowgirls were whispering to one another. The trail boss snuck a quick look at his watch. And Johnny Adams knuckled away a single tear that rolled down his cheek.
    Later, as Mama and I were sitting in our camp chairs with chicken-fried steaks on plastic plates, I asked her about Johnny and Lawton.
    “Oh, my stars, Mace. Those boys were tighter than ticks on a skinny dog when all of us were young. Lawton’s daddy used to have a rodeo arena on the ranch they had in Himmarshee back then. When those two would saddle up for team roping, nobody else could touch their times. The steers never had a chance when it came to getting past Lawton and Johnny. It was like the two of them thought with a single mind.’’
    I speared a cheesy potato before it slid from my plate. “What happened?’’
    “Mostly, it was over a woman—like so many men’s battles. And then, later, there was some business falling-out, too. Johnny got the short end of the stick, of course, like most people did with Lawton. But the love triangle was the real issue. Lawton swept in and stole the girl that Johnny was engaged to marry. And then Lawton married her himself. Poor Johnny never did find another, and he never did get over it.’’
    “Surely this wasn’t Wynonna?’’
    “My goodness, no.’’ Mama cut her steak into bite-size pieces. “Wynonna hadn’t even got her first Barbie doll lunchbox for kindergarten when all this happened. It was Trey’s mama. Lawton’s first wife.’’ She chewed her meat thoughtfully. “Barbara was her name, if I recall. I sort of lost track of the Bramble family, once they moved their cattle operation to the north of Himmarshee. But from what I heard, the marriage never was a happy one. Rumor was that Lawton had a roving eye. Poor Barb took to drinking hard, so as not to notice it.’’
    I thought of Trey, and how I’d watched in awe with all the other peasants as he reigned over the hallways of Himmarshee High. With all the Bramble money and power, I’d always