Posted March 9, 2022 / Maude Potee
Arabella chased after her and headed her off, just in time, before she got to the bar. There was one last chance to stop her mad career.
Maude felt the girl's hand on her shoulder in an attempt to stop her, but she shrugged it off. "Noooo!" she cried. "I have to stop him." She turned to Arabella with tears in her eyes. "Can't you see that this will be the ruination of us. The ruination, I tell you. So what if he won't talk to me anymore? What difference does it make once he's tasted demon rum and consorted with hussies."
"Mrs Potee, if you do this now, your husband will never forgive you. I must bring you to your senses with a shock!" she cried dramatically. The, well, frankly ugly looking woman looked as she might well be expected to in such a confrontation. "You are a good Christian woman, I am too nice a person to slap your face, thus I must do this!" Arabella cried, and grabbing Mrs Potee, gave her a great big kiss on the lips!
She then stood back and waited for a reaction, the devil dancing in her eyes.
Maude fell back against the unopened door. Her eyes were bulging outward, and her right hand flew up to her mouth and covered it. Her breathing was hard and, for a while, that was the only sound in the steaming hot kitchen.
"No!!!!!!!!" Maude cried. "No!!! So you are no more than a Jezebel!" That was the only name she could come up with after a rapid search of her memorized Bible. Then she remembered. "You Delilah who would sap a man's strength and bring him to blind ruin. You now turn your wiles on a poor church woman such as myself."
She staggered away from the door and threw herself so hard into a kitchen chair that it skidded two feet across the floor.
"Repent!" she gasped. "Repent before it's too late!"
Posted March 9, 2022 / Franklin Fortner
"Well let's get going!" Horace gushed excitedly. "And come on, Miss Caroline. you can watch some."
Fortner looked Caroline in the eyes and nodded his assent slightly and secretively.
Caroline caught the look and gesture then simply nodded almost imperceptibly. It was all part of the job and if customers were going to be fool enough to drink too much and get involved in over their heads in card games, that wasn't on her. She never made anyone do anything of the sort.
"Alright, hon, I'm comin'," she accompanied the man right to the table then stood behind him when he plopped down into an empty chair.
"Good luck, hon," she wished him then thought 'he's gonna need it.'
Franklin sat across from him, then promptly stood and asked, "Does anyone want to be a third hand in a poker game?"
Priest slowly shook his head. It wouldn't do for him to get caught up in a game of chance, especially since he had a fiduciary interest in the outcome.
"Oh hell!" remark Potee. "We don't need no third player."
"Maybe not .. but maybe someone just to deal the cards, Frank countered. "Hey Caroline. See if someone can spell Ralph. Maybe he wants to play or deal?"
"Everybody can feather their nest, but it's not just anybody that can lay an egg!"
Posted March 10, 2022 / Arabella Mudd
"No!!!!!!!!" Maude cried. "No!!! So you are no more than a Jezebel!" That was the only name she could come up with after a rapid search of her memorized Bible. Then she remembered. "You Delilah who would sap a man's strength and bring him to blind ruin. You now turn your wiles on a poor church woman such as myself."
"I am a woman of the church too, like the Samaritan woman at the well!" cried Arabella, calling to mind the Gospel of John, and enjoying the drama of it all immensely. It was as well that she ended having a career on the stage, else her thirst for such melodramatic scenes might have eventually done for her.
"It is the Kiss of Peace I bring!" she declared, advancing upon the poor woman, enjoying her horror. It was all just parlour games to the Mudd child.
She staggered away from the door and threw herself so hard into a kitchen chair that it skidded two feet across the floor.
"Repent!" she gasped. "Repent before it's too late!"
"Do you really think I am full of sin, sister?!" Arabella cried "If so, then you must scourge me, you must drive out my devils!!" she demanded. This was fun, and it was distracting Mrs P from making trouble in the bar. She hoped Mr Fortner and Mr Flandry and Caroline would appreciate that.
Posted March 11, 2022 / Maude Potee
"It is the Kiss of Peace I bring!" she declared, advancing upon the poor woman, enjoying her horror. It was all just parlour games to the Mudd child.
She staggered away from the door and threw herself so hard into a kitchen chair that it skidded two feet across the floor.
"Repent!" she gasped. "Repent before it's too late!"
"Do you really think I am full of sin, sister?!" Arabella cried "If so, then you must scourge me, you must drive out my devils!!" she demanded. This was fun, and it was distracting Mrs P from making trouble in the bar. She hoped Mr Fortner and Mr Flandry and Caroline would appreciate that.
Poor Mrs. Potee had never felt as dirty in her entire, Christian, threadbare life. She listened to Arabella rationalize her actions but it didn't wash with Maude. What could she do? While her mind was turning over and over what her next steps might be, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, again and again, and with determination that would have made the dirty-handed Lady Macbeth proud.
Maude stood up and ran to the door that she thought led to the saloon. When she got to the door, she grabbed the greasy knob and pull it open. She gasped at the sacks of flour and cornmeal on the floor, and onions hanging from pegs.
Wrong door!
Undeterred, she moved to the other door and threw it open.
"Horace!" she cried. "Horace!"
Posted March 11, 2022 / Caroline Mundee
Caroline was a bit surprised, she had thought the Judge was going to be playing cards against the now liquored up Potee but it was her boss instead. No matter, any halfway decent but sober player should be able to beat this drunk.
Franklin sat across from him, then promptly stood and asked, "Does anyone want to be a third hand in a poker game?"
Priest slowly shook his head. Again that surprised Caroline.
"Oh hell!" remarked Potee. "We don't need no third player."
"Maybe not .. but maybe someone just to deal the cards," Frank countered. "Hey Caroline. See if someone can spell Ralph. Maybe he wants to play or deal?"
Caroline had to grin, she'd never seen Ralph turn over a single card since her arrival months back, he bartended plus was the place's bouncer if necessary. But she turned toward the counter, "Ralph you wanna play cards or deal?"
The answer came right away, Ralph shook his head, "Nope!"
"Yer outta luck boss, I've seen two men play poker before. You got yerself two," she pointed out the obvious with a grin.
"Everybody can feather their nest, but it's not just anybody that can lay an egg!"
Posted March 11, 2022 / Arabella Mudd
Arabella watched Mrs Potee make her hilarious exit from the kitchen at last. Well, she had done her best. She dropped, laughing, into her chair wiping the tears from her eyes and picking up her peeler and a half-skinned spud. "Oh dear..." she sighed, smiling.
She didn't listen out for what Potty Potee perambulations were transpiring in the bar-room. She just sang to herself as she denuded the potatoes.
🎶We shoulder'd guns, and march'd and march'd away,
From Baxter Street, we march'd to Avenue A,
With drums and fife how sweetly they did play,
We march'd march'd march'd in the Mulligan Guard🎶
Posted March 13, 2022 / Frank Fortner
Caroline had to grin, she'd never seen Ralph turn over a single card since her arrival months back, he bartended plus was the place's bouncer if necessary. But she turned toward the counter, "Ralph you wanna play cards or deal?"
The answer came right away, Ralph shook his head, "Nope!"
Franklin shrugged.
"Yer outta luck boss, I've seen two men play poker before. You got yerself two," she pointed out the obvious with a grin.
"It looks that way," he admitted.
Horace all but licked the inside of his now empty glass. This was not lost on Frank.
"Ralph!" He called. "Another for our guest of honor!"
"Okay, Mr. Potee," he said, returning to the homesteader. "Straight poker? No jokers, and a dollar ante?"
Horace pulled his soiled hat off his head and let it slide to the floor at his feet. "Makes no never mind to me. I'm good at all games of chance." He slapped his hands together and then rubbed them greedily as if about to pounce on a feast.
Frank deftly shuffled the cards, sending them from one hand to the other in one beautiful spray of black and red, after which he dealt the cards rapidly.
Horace won the first two hands, and with each victory, Horace became ever more gleeful.
"Pop goes the weasel!" he exclaimed, raking the pot from the middle of the table toward his growing pile of cash. "Like stealin' candy from a baby!"
Fortner looked perturbed, sighed, and then dealt another hand.
"I'll open with three dollars," Horace announced, dropping the equivalent in cash and coin on top of the ante.
"I'll see you and raise you two dollars," Fortner said, adding five dollars to the pot."
After seeing the raise, Horace squinted at this hand and slapped some cards down on the table. "I'll take three," he requested.
"Here's your three, and I'll take one," Franklin said as cards flew across the table.
"Are you bluffing or are you drawing to a straight or a flush?" the homesteader asked of no one in particular, as he arranged his own cards." Soon he slapped a ten dollar bill on the pot."
This was good, to Horace's mind. Already he'd turned one-hundred and ten dollars into at least one-hundred and sixty. It would only get better and better...
Then it happened; something completely unexpected and unwanted.
"Horace!! Horace!!" It was Maude.
His wife, Maude, flushed and angry, came barrelling across the saloon floor. He'd never seen her so angry.
"You would defy your own wife and the Almighty in a devil's game?" She screamed. And, stopping at Caroline, she let the saloon girl have it. "And YOU! You hussy! You evil woman!" And then, mistaking Ralph for the saloon's proprietor, she could only spit, "Flesh peddler!!"
Horace was too dumbfounded to counter her vitriol at that point, and Franklin tried to look serious expect the corners of his mouth appeared to suppress a smile.
Posted March 14, 2022 / Caroline Mundee
"Ralph!" his new boss called. "Another for our guest of honor!"
The bartender did not run about willy nilly fetching people drinks - his job was in the title - bar tender. He dutifully poured another drink though. Meanwhile Caroline, who was standing behind Potee, knew that was her cue.
"I'll get it for ya, hon," she spoke down to the top of Potee's head and went to the bar, returning with the new full glass to set by the man's right arm.
Thus fortified the card game went on, at first Potee was winning with regularity, no doubt confirming his earlier confidence, well Caroline would call it 'overconfidence'. But Caroline knew what was really going on and this winning streak would swing over to Fortner and before this over Potee would lose whatever money he had brought with him. Probably Fortner did not even need to cheat, just outplay a drunk. But then came an interruption to the proceedings.
"Horace!! Horace!!" It was Maude.
His wife, Maude, flushed and angry, came barrelling across the saloon floor. Caroline did not know her from Adam...make that Eve.
"You would defy your own wife and the Almighty in a devil's game?" She screamed.
"Think it's poker," Caroline smirked.
And, stopping at Caroline, she let the saloon girl have it. "And YOU! You hussy! You evil woman!"
Caroline stiffened, for the moment she didn't retort but her eyes narrowed in anger.
And then the woman rounded in the direction of Ralph, spitting out, "Flesh peddler!!"
Alright that tore it! Caroline now snapped, "Fuck off before I make you regret those words."
It was the one thing that could set the normally cheerful young woman off, any insinuation of her being a whore.
Posted March 16, 2022 / Franklin Fortner
"You would defy your own wife and the Almighty in a devil's game?" She screamed.
"Think it's poker," Caroline smirked.
And, stopping at Caroline, she let the saloon girl have it. "And YOU! You hussy! You evil woman!"
Caroline stiffened, for the moment she didn't retort but her eyes narrowed in anger.
And then the woman rounded in the direction of Ralph, spitting out, "Flesh peddler!!"
Alright that tore it! Caroline now snapped, "Fuck off before I make you regret those words."
It was the one thing that could set the normally cheerful young woman off, any insinuation of her being a whore.
"I ain't afraid of you or any Jezebel in this town." Then she spun around and faced Horace who, up to that point, sat with his head in his heads and stared at the pot in the middle of the table -- now gone cold. "Gather your things and come home with me. NOW!" she demanded.
"But everyone was having so much fun, Mrs. Potee," said Frank with a fair amount of obviously feigned innocence.
"Too much fun!" Maude retorted. And again, to Horace, "Are you coming?"
Horace had enough; years of obeying his overbearing wife and, now, humiliated in front of the whole saloon and his newly minted friends. "No!" His voice of harsh. "So get out of here! Get out of here now before I throw you out!"
An impressive silence few over the normally noisy establishment. All eyes turned to Maude.
"I am afraid you are making a big fool of yourself," she countered. "Please leave before it's too late."
Horace was having none of it. "I told you to get out of here, woman!"
At that, Maude turned heel and stomped out through the saloon's half-doors, leaving them swinging in-time before they quieted.
"Ready for another hand?" Frank asked Horace.
"Sure am, Mr. Fortner, sure am." answered the sod buster.
"Would you please be an angel, Caroline, and get our guest another drink? And after that, may I please see you for a minute?" He pointed to the door that led to the kitchen. To Horace, now puffed up with masculine pride, he said, "Take a breather, champ. I'll be right back. This is just business."
"Everybody can feather their nest, but it's not just anybody that can lay an egg!"
Posted March 17, 2022 / Arabella Mudd
Arabella had just finished peeling the last of the spuds and put them in the big pan with some water and a pinch of salt, but she didn't put them on the hob yet because she wasn't sure cookie was ready for them. She did put some more wood in the range, though. She was just about to wash some dishes when, of all people, Mr Fortner and Caroline came in.
This was unusual. The only time Fortner came in here was when they all had breakfast together first thing in the morning: Caroline always missed that, the old lazy bones. She was pretty sure that she had never seen the two of them together in this room where all the real work was done.
"Oh!" she exclaimed "Do you two want to 'be alone'?!" she asked, and gave Cara a questioning, and somewhat impish, look.