A Simple Farmer

I would like to thank my editing team for all their hours of hard work making my stories worth reading, Both Maria and Andy Inoz without them no one could read my work.

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A Simple Farmer

Chapter 1: Growing up on the farm

All Rory knew was farming and ranching. Being born and raised on a farm, he hadn't learned anything else. He went to a small rural school in the Colorado. The nearest town was four miles to the west and had a population of fifteen people. The next town was about five miles to the east and had thirteen inhabitants. His nearest neighbor lived two miles up the road.

Obviously, there weren't many eligible girls to pick from in the community and, with his shortcomings, Rory wasn't a great prospect anyway. Although good looking, he was rather shy and kind of a loner, usually avoiding parties and events. When he did attend social gatherings, Rory would generally sit way in the back and hope that no one noticed him.

In addition to being shy, Rory did not have a good command of the English language. His writing was adequate, but his speech suffered from an occasional stutter and, often, poor choice of words to express his meaning. Sometimes he would try to compliment someone and unintentionally insult them, a problem that persisted into adulthood. He didn't go to college.

Sadly, his parents were killed in an automobile accident, and although nothing could make up for the pain of their loss, at least the insurance was some consolation.

Fortunately, Rory was good with his hands and became a respected community mechanic, and farmer. Not having a woman or children to support allowed him to save a lot of money, which he was able to use to buy a piece of land, support himself, and run his new ranch.

Rory's relatives all lived nearby. Not only did they care for each other, but they also helped and looked after others in the family. For example, Rory kept generators and other farm equipment in his barn, and almost twenty acres of stacked alfalfa hay, which family members were welcome to use whenever the need arose, as he was free to use their equipment.

The previous four winters had been mild, and additional feed hadn't been required so, besides the alfalfa, Rory also had several ensilage pits completely full, and had to dig two more that year.

The days were lonely, running a ranch on your own, so Rory would go to Denver once or twice a month. He'd found a motel that had an abundance of 'working girls' who would supplement their annual income by performing favors for needy men. One of these lovely ladies removed Rory's virginity at twenty years old, others made sure it didn't return.

Despite his liking for Denver, Rory didn't spend much time there, because his ranch was home, even if he had no one to share it with.

Well that wasn't exactly true. For a time, Rory did have company. He thought himself quite fortunate to meet a lovely girl called Tina.

Tina was originally from Kansas. They met at a livestock auction and fell in love. She was quite principled and strong-willed, refusing to stay at the ranch until Rory had built a nice house for her. Being in love, he hired an architect who developed ideas for a range of ranch houses from simple to huge. Rory would have been happy with something plain and functional, but Tina had her heart set on an embarrassing monstrosity, so that's what they built, of course.

She was an old-fashioned girl, initially wanting to wait for marriage before 'going all the way', but things got heated a couple of times and went farther than either of them intended. Tina came to Rory one day and told him that she might be pregnant. Rory was happy and wanted to take her to the nearest church and get married straight away.

Before 'tying the knot', they went to the local doctor seeking tests to confirm the pregnancy. They became confused and concerned when he directed them to the nearest hospital for more tests. When the test results came back, it was really bad news. Not only was Tina not pregnant, she had a mass in her uterus. Tina had stage four uterine cancer, and died in Rory's arms less than three weeks after the diagnosis.

Rory was devastated at losing his mate, and could not contemplate risking his heart by getting involved with someone new, and allowing himself to become vulnerable again.

Life went on, before fate intervened.

Chapter 2: The storm

He was twenty-eight years old when the first major storm in decades hit eastern Colorado. He'd never experienced as much snow, or the problems caused by such a storm. Rory woke to no power, but he was well-prepared with a diesel generator to supply his household needs. After firing up the generator, Rory had light and heat, so he was able to fix breakfast and complete his normal morning routines.

After eating, he headed outside to prepare the tractor for the day ahead. In expectation of the storm, he'd fitted a blade to the tractor two days previously, so he was able to grade a path through the snow to the cattle which had to be fed and watered.

After feeding the cattle, he began clearing snow from the dirt road running past his farm, which was really a state responsibility. However, after taking care of the main roads, there was little time left for the needs of country folk.

Rory was making good progress when he noticed a bump ahead in the snow, which was about to change his life. He maneuvered the blade as close to the bump as possible, not knowing whether it was a cow or something else. As his blade passed close to the bump, snow fell from the side of a small white car. He saw the face of a little girl, with her eyes closed, through the window glass. Taking a deep breath, he stopped the tractor and climbed out. He ran back to the car and quickly cleared the rest of the snow off the side windows. With trepidation, he saw two people inside the car. Rory realized that, if the car was running while covered in snow, then the two inhabitants might be dead from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Rory opened the car door and exhaled with relief when he saw the little girl open her eyes. He dropped his head and just started saying, "Thank god... Thank god... Thank god..."

"Hey, are you ok?" he asked the little girl.

"I am Rory... Is this your mom?"

She didn't answer. He waited a few breaths before asking, "What's your name?"

She held up four fingers.

He smiled at her and asked, "You are Four?"

She nodded her head.

With a big smile he said, "Glad to meet you Four. I'm Rory."

He held out his hand to her, but she didn't take it.

"Four, I have to get you and your mom out of the car and into the tractor. From there I'm going to take you somewhere so you can get some food and rest. I will come back and get your car after I have you two settled in. Is that ok?"

Four stared at him for what seemed like a long time.

Rory was about to try again when she finally spoke, "Mommy's very tired. She needs to sleep."

Rory smiled and said, "I have a nice soft bed for her to rest on, but we need to get her somewhere warm and safe. Ok?"

She nodded.

It took some effort to move the little girl and her unconscious mother out of the car and into the tractor. Somehow, Rory managed to get them both onboard, then slowly turned the tractor around and headed back to the house.

Once at home, he carried each person from the tractor and into the house.

The huge house, that he had built for Tina, essentially contained two master bedrooms. He had never lived in the house, but had it furnished and kept it stocked with groceries and supplies 'just in case' he needed to use it someday.

Rory carried the unconscious woman, with the four-year-old following behind, and went directly to the second master bedroom, which contained a king-size bed already made up for guests, not that he was expecting any.

Four and her mother were his first guests ever. Rory stripped the mother to her underwear, thinking that she would sleep more comfortably that way, positioned her between the sheets and tucked her in, turning on the electric blanket.

The girl kissed her sleeping mother, then Rory led her to the dining area and offered to fix her something. He cooked a couple of pancakes and some bacon, then served her at the table with juice. Four started eating like she hadn't been fed for a week.

Rory told Four that he would give her mother something to drink to avoid dehydration. He took some juice and water to the woman, who was only half-awake and, with some effort, got her to drink about a half glass of each. He called it a success and returned to the daughter.

"Hey Four, your mom is doing well. She drank some of the water and juice."

Four looked relieved.

Chapter 3: Rory, Four and chores

"So, do you feel like helping me with the chores or would you rather stay here with your mom?"

Rory had 147 head of cattle to feed and water, to keep them healthy during the severe weather conditions.

"What if mommy wakes up?" she asked with concern.

"I will leave her a note so that she will know where we are, and what we are doing, and when we will be back. Would that be good?"

She thought for a while before answering, "I will go with you if you want me to."

The fact that she was willing to trust him brought a smile to Rory's face.

"Let's make a note for your mom, and then we'll get out of here."

It didn't take long to find the cattle. He had them all in one field where he was feeding them corn stocks, but now that the snow covered the stocks, there would be no more feed.

Rory had already loaded hay and a water tank onto a four-axle wagon, which he pulled with the tractor. Once they reached the field, Rory unbelted the hay and dropped the bales.

The cattle were soon all over it.

He deposited a stock tank not far from the feed, then ran a two-inch hose from the tank on the trailer to the stock tank. Next, Rory had Four 'help' him turn the valve to fill it.

She was full of questions, as four-year-olds tend to be.

"Do the cows have names?" she asked.

"We don't usually name our livestock out here, Four. There are almost a hundred fifty head here and, even if they had names, I wouldn't be able to remember them."

She looked sad.

"If you have a favorite you can name her," he added.

She looked around.

"What about that gray one? Can I name it?" she asked excitedly.

"That critter there is a mean old cow. She is one of the most protective of her calf. She is a full bred Brahma."

From the look on Four's face while he was talking, she absorbed his every word.

Her trust and seeming adoration was starting to melt his heart.

"Is it a girl or a boy?" she asked.

"All of these here are girls. Did you know that a cow is a bovine that has had a baby, called a calf?" Remembering that he was talking to a four-year-old, Rory further explained, "So all cows are girls. Boy cattle are called steers or bulls."

She looked at him with amazement in her eyes.

"I am going to name her Gray," she said.

"I think she is my favorite. She reminds me of mommy."

"Oh?" he prompted.

"Yea. Mommy is protective of me too. She never let Pit touch me the whole time we lived with him."

Concerned, but not wanting to alarm her, Rory gently asked, "Was he your dad or stepdad?"

"No. He was mommy's boyfriend, but I hated him. He was really mean to mommy and I didn't like it."

"Is that why you left?" Rory asked

"I don't know. I just woke up in the car and momma was driving."

He nodded his head.

"It sounds like it was a good thing you got out. Your momma sounds like a good momma, just like old Gray over there."

Four responded with a brilliant smile. Rory had no way of knowing that was her first smile in over a year.

After reloading hay for the evening feeding, they pulled the tractor to the well head, hooked it up and refilled the water tank. Rory disconnected the hoses and left the tractor.

They returned to the house and Four immediately went to her mother's room. Rory poured more juice and water before joining them. He knocked, then entered the room, and was gladdened to see Four snuggled against her mother.

Four held her finger to her mouth, indicating that Rory should keep quiet. "Ssshhh, she's still sleeping..."

Rory whispered, "She has to drink the juice and water, or she might dehydrate. We can't have your momma getting sick, now can we?"

He could see her thinking. "Ok," she said a few seconds later.

Rory put the glasses down on the bedside table, and helped the woman to sit up, being careful to keep her covered. She was barely conscious, slurring that she just wanted to sleep.

"Come on now. Just drink this, and then you can go back to sleep."

She kept complaining, which was expected, but she drank the water and some vitamin-enriched juice. Rory was concerned by her pale complexion, but she finished the drinks, and he laid her back down and adjusted the covers.

Four immediately snuggled up to her mother again.

He put his hand on Four's shoulder to get her attention, causing her to jump in fright and let out a gasp.

Realizing that he had shocked her, Rory immediately stepped back with his hands raised in a surrender gesture.

"I'm sorry Four."

Four took a breath, and then timidly smiled.

"That's OK."

She might be OK now, he thought, but he had seen a look of terror on her face. Clearly, something was wrong, and he was determined to understand her reaction. After a few moments, Rory's commonsense kicked in, and he guessed the underlying issue.

"Four, it's OK baby... no one, and I do mean NO ONE, will ever hurt you in these parts. If I'm not here to protect you, I will have someone else here in my place."

Four's face filled with relief and gratitude.

"I will make us some dinner. You can stay here with your mom, or you can help me if you want."

Four kissed her mother and slowly moved off the bed.

Rory could tell that it wasn't an easy decision for her to make, but the desire to be needed outweighed her desire to stay with her mother. It was quite touching.

Rory took some cooked chicken out of the fridge and started to cut it up. Pointing to the cabinet, he asked Four if she would get him something to hold the chicken pieces. She brought him a small bowl. He smiled and showed her how much chicken he was cutting up, which prompted her to swap the small bowl for one of a more appropriate size.

Four then pulled out the mayonnaise and pickles. She got a spoon and scooped out the mayonnaise, while Rory sliced the pickles for her to add to the chicken. Four selected some onions from the bin and then some celery. Rory peeled the onions and cut them up along with the celery. He did all the cutting, but Four did all the mixing and, finally, they had enough for several chicken and salad sandwiches.

"Four..." he said.

She looked at him.

"This is the best chicken sandwich I have ever eaten."

The young girl giggled and smiled brightly.

After finishing dinner and cleaning up, Rory told Four that they needed to feed her mother a sandwich, so they took the food to the bedroom. Again, Rory helped the woman to sit upright, then tried to feed her the sandwich. She ate two bites and drank another glass of water, which made him happy.

"Four, would you like to help me feed the chickens? I have to feed them, gather their eggs, and feed the pigs."

Her eyes grew huge. "You have chickens and pigs?"

Rory didn't tell her that the eggs and bacon came from these farm animals.

They went outside to a small shed, where buckets and feed for the animals were stored. He selected a five-gallon bucket for himself, and a similarly shaped one-gallon bucket for Four. Rory filled her bucket with chicken feed and his bucket with a combination of ground corn, soy, pinto and some more chicken feed.

Four proudly carried her bucket 'like a big girl' over to the chicken coop. Inside the coop Rory spread the feed from his bucket in the trough, where the chickens immediately gathered and started pecking at it.

He told Four that her feed was the most important, even though there wasn't as much, so she had to spread it over the top. She carefully completed the task, distributing the feed across the trough. The chickens were blocking her, and she laughed, and patiently worked her way around them. She chuckled when they tried to feed right out of her bucket. She even started to pet a couple of them as they became more friendly. It was the best entertainment that Rory had witnessed for some time.

Next, they used Four's bucket to collect the eggs. Rory allowed Four to gather most of them. They took the eggs inside, washed the shells off for looks, put them in containers, and stacked the containers in the washroom refrigerator. He thanked Four for her help.

"Are you ready to feed the hogs now?" he asked.

They loaded up with the same types of feed, but this time Rory carried two five-gallon buckets, while Four still had her one-gallon bucket.

"Mr. Rory... You need to get me another bucket so we can carry the same amount," she reasoned sincerely.

Rory had to explain that there were no more buckets of that size. He felt terrible about disappointing her. He had never experienced that sort of feeling for anyone before.

Rory fetched a small bale of alfalfa, cutting the wire, and showing Four how to separate and throw it over the fencing for the hogs to eat, in addition to the grain.

After feeding the animals, they drove the tractor and trailer down the road to the broken-down car. Rory winched the car onto the trailer, then they returned to the farm, where Rory backed the trailer into the Quonset hut.

Rory went to retrieve their suitcases from the car, but found no luggage at all.

"Where were you living?" he asked Four.

"We lived by Chicago," she replied.

"That is a nice place to live," Rory commented.

He was surprised. It was at least a two-day drive, without stops, from Chicago to his Colorado farm. To make a drive like that without baggage was crazy. Something was not right.

Chapter 4: Evidence of domestic abuse

Four's mother was still asleep, and there was still plenty of daylight, so Rory drove the young girl thirty miles to a clothing shop in Flagler. He had Four select some tops, pants, socks, and undies. Guessing her mother's size, and hoping for the best, Rory bought a nice robe for the woman. At least, he reasoned, she would be covered until she was well enough to choose her own clothing.

Next stop was a grocery store, where Rory had Four pick out some items. When they got to the candy aisle, he was surprised by Four's lack of interest. She kept her eyes down, facing forward and not looking at anything. Rory thought that was unusual behavior for a four-year-old child, who would normally be excited by candy. He started to become angry that Four should have become conditioned this way.

He stopped mid aisle and said, "Four, please pick something from here."

He watched her shake as she picked some Hershey's chocolate bars and a Snickers bar. She fearfully held them up to him, almost as if she expected to be smacked.

Rory was nearly moved to tears.

"You can have more, if you like."

She put them in the cart and said, with a tremulous voice, "This is all I want."

When they arrived home, it was apparent that Four's mother had been out of bed to use the bathroom, but was now back in bed. After rousing her a little, Four and Rory fed the woman some more juice and water.

After making her comfortable once more, Rory took Four into the family room, turned on the television, and showed her his collection of DVDs. She picked out 'Despicable Me', which they watched together until Four started getting tired, and Rory tucked her into bed with her mother.