The Texans Read Free

understand why he wasn’t treated like the man he appeared to be. Pappy figured that maybe time and patience were the only things that would ever make a man out of Odell, but those were two things that Pappy had little of. His old bones had just about run their life’s course, and he’d never had much patience even when he was younger.
    A stubborn stump that had to be dug out of a field, a cranky mule that needed shod, or any other kind of hard work was something he could butt his head against until the job was done. He didn’t mind things that got in the way of his plans, as long as he could lay hands on those problems and bend them to his will. He was sure he would eventually carve a good farm out of the brush, but he was by no means confident where anything concerning raising children was concerned. You could butt heads with kids all you wanted and not get anywhere for your troubles. He felt he had done a terrible job with his own children, evidenced by the fact that his only son was so inept as to be unable to even travel from Georgia to Texas without getting himself killed, thus leaving Pappy with Odell to raise.
    â€œYou turn in, but sleep light. I’ll wake you later and you can relieve me on the porch,” Pappy said.
    â€œI was planning on going over to the Wilson place.” Odell thought Pappy was getting all shook up over nothing.
    â€œYou’re going to do what? Are you out of your mind?”
    â€œSomebody needs to warn the Wilsons.” Odell was instantly proud of himself for thinking up such a quick and commonsense excuse to leave.
    Pappy grunted begrudgingly. “You go ahead, but hurry back here as soon as you’ve given them word.”
    â€œCan I take your horse, or at least one of the mules?” Odell asked. It was four miles to the Wilson place.
    â€œNo, you’d just lose whatever you rode,” Pappy said. “Anyway, those long legs of yours are about as fast as any saddle horse can walk.”
    Odell knew there was no sense arguing and started along the trail that led up the river. The moon was bright enough that he could see his way as plain as day.
    â€œDon’t you get to mooning over Red Wing and forget to come home,” Pappy called after him. He chuckled to himself after the boy was out of earshot.
    Odell would have mumbled some smart-alecky remark but thought he had better not risk it. Pappy was hard of hearing if you were trying to get his attention for something you needed, but sure enough, if you were a hundred yards from him and mouthed off in a whisper, he would hear you. Odell spent the first two miles grumbling to himself about that crotchety, cantankerous old coot. He was danged near a grown man, and it was high time he left home. He was bigger than any Texan he’d ever met, and he didn’t need anybody bossing him around like he was some snot-nosed kid.
    His temper and his desire to see Red Wing put wings on his feet, and it took him just half an hour to reach the Wilson place. His mood brightened when he came within sight of the house. The moonlight was so bright he could even make out somebody on the front porch. His heartbeat quickened. She was waiting on him like she had for most nights during the last month.
    His lifted spirits were short-lived when he noticed the horse tied to the corral beside the house. The Prussian had beaten him there, and his hopes of stealing a kiss would have to wait for another night. He stopped in front of the porch and studied the shadows of Red Wing and the Prussian sitting side by side with their feet in the grass.
    â€œHello, Odie.” Red Wing always called him that.
    â€œHerr Odell, it’s good to see you.” There was something about the Prussian’s strong accent and buttery voice that made Odell envy him. It was smooth as a kitten’s purr.
    â€œIt’s good to see you too.” Odell thought nothing of the kind. For some reason he always felt belittled in the