''Your secrets are as safe with me as under the Seal of the Confessional," he assured her.
That sounded a bit Catholic, but still...
"Thanks" said Sally, gratefully. She was beginning to think that maybe 'Judge' Priest wasn't such a bad old stick, after all.
"And don't be too hard on yourself. All young people have done things that they look back on with regret. So just remember, you are no worse and probably a lot better than anyone else your age, and probably a lot smarter than you realize."
Mr Priest was a wily old coyote but, after all, he couldn't be right about everything! Still, a hopeful smile decorated Sally's bovine features at the thought.
"Was it a local boy you had your cap set for?" He asked her.
"Hmph! Just some stupid cowboy. More interested in his horse than me." she grumped "Oh, I don't even wanna thing about him anymore, Mister Priest. Nothing worse than throwing yourself at a body and being rejected... why, it's... it's just undignified! I'd rather hear about you... I mean... did you do silly things too, when you was a young'un?"
She was also intrigued a little about the son and daughter but... well, it was just a feeling, but she sensed some pain there, a wound she oughtn't dig around in.
Address me as Hon. Hiram Priest, esq.
"Was it a local boy you had your cap set for?" He asked her.
"Hmph! Just some stupid cowboy. More interested in his horse than me." she grumped "Oh, I don't even wanna thing about him anymore, Mister Priest. Nothing worse than throwing yourself at a body and being rejected... why, it's... it's just undignified! I'd rather hear about you... I mean... did you do silly things too, when you was a young'un?"
She was also intrigued a little about the son and daughter but... well, it was just a feeling, but she sensed some pain there, a wound she oughtn't dig around in.
"Silly things? Oh, plenty of times," Hiram answered. "The Summer of '47 comes to mind. There was a girl in our town, that would be Essex, Connecticut. She was the Parson's daughter, and her name was Ann Mariah. All the boys had their caps set for her, and I, foolishly, thought I had a chance with her. And, if you don't mind my saying so, I wasn't so hard to look at. Hmmm, years ago," he muttered.
The old codger lifted his glass and took his liquor neatly.
"But I didn't know how to let her know my feelings, so I wrote her a love letter. I cringe when I think back at the flowery prose I used. I thought I was giving Shakespeare a run for his money. Lord. Anyway, I went up to her in the town square and handed it her, blushing and awkward."
"She asked me if she should read it then and there, and I said, "Yes". I thought it was a good idea." He shook his head ruefully. "She read it, and as she did, her mouth opened in horror. And she handed it back to me and said, "Oh, I am sorry! Have I led you on? I don't believe I have. I am sorry but I don't feel the same way about you. You are a nice person, and I'm sure there's some other girl out there who would like this sort of thing," she waved my letter at me, "but it's not me." And she handed it back to me as if it were on fire."
"Who knows what me life might have been like if she'd liked what I wrote to her."
He reached up and tugged at his open suit jacket lapels as if to straighten himself out.
Sally smiled sadly at old Mr Priest's tale, and placed her hand gently on his arm.
"You surprised her... she panicked. It wasn't what you wrote, and it wasn't you, you just... you just didn't know how girls worked, that's all." Sally said with some authority. She didn't know for sure, but she put herself in Ann Mariah's shoes and imagined how she would feel if a boy did that to her. Embarrassed, confused, trapped a little, yes. She would be nice, too, and she would hand the letter back, and breath free.
Indeed, the man who got Sally Cutts would have to tread more softly than young Hiram Priest had done with Ann Mariah all those 30 years ago.
"You know.... if you ever fall in love with anyone in Kalispell, let me know: I'll give you some advice on how to woo her" she suggested, perhaps not fully in jest.
Ralph made his suggestion, Fortner seemed interested so the veteran bartender would now be on the lookout for this Baur jasper next time he came in.
"Thanks, Ralph. Yes, please point him out when he's here. As you can see, we're anxious to get things rolling at the digs."
"Say," Would you like to set on up for yourself," he waved his hand at a half-empty liquor bottle.
Ralph looked at the bottle, he made it a point not to drink while on duty. He had to always be sharp in case there was real trouble for he was the bouncer in this place. It would not be smart for his reflexes to be dulled by alcohol.
"Just a shot I suppose wouldn't hurt none, sure," he then poured himself, held it up.
"Here's to the Stardust then!"
And proceeded to gulp it down in proper shot style.
"Say," Would you like to set one up for yourself," he waved his hand at a half-empty liquor bottle.
Ralph looked at the bottle, he made it a point not to drink while on duty. He had to always be sharp in case there was real trouble for he was the bouncer in this place. It would not be smart for his reflexes to be dulled by alcohol.
"Just a shot I suppose wouldn't hurt none, sure," he then poured himself, held it up.
"Here's to the Stardust then!"
And proceeded to gulp it down in proper shot style.
Franklin bolted down the rest of his red-eye, provoking a cough which he covered with the fist. He was a businessman through and through, though some might suggest a crooked businessman, but he always thought of the long game.
With the mine taking up more and more of his time, Franklin began to worry about the future of the Stardust. He would not always be around to look after its interests.
"Ralph, your loyalty to the Stardust and your understanding of the saloon business, has me thinking." He reached into his coat's inner pocket and pulled out a cheroot. "I am thinking ..seriously thinking.. of making you a part owner of the Stardust. I'm thinking, maybe, twenty percent owner. Depending on what you think, we could have the papers drawn up tomorrow."
He lit his cheroot by flicking a matchstick with his thumb nail.
"What do you think?"
Address me as Hon. Hiram Priest, esq.
Sally smiled sadly at old Mr Priest's tale, and placed her hand gently on his arm.
"You surprised her... she panicked. It wasn't what you wrote, and it wasn't you, you just... you just didn't know how girls worked, that's all." Sally said with some authority. She didn't know for sure, but she put herself in Ann Mariah's shoes and imagined how she would feel if a boy did that to her. Embarrassed, confused, trapped a little, yes. She would be nice, too, and she would hand the letter back, and breath free.
Indeed, the man who got Sally Cutts would have to tread more softly than young Hiram Priest had done with Ann Mariah all those 30 years ago.
"You know.... if you ever fall in love with anyone in Kalispell, let me know: I'll give you some advice on how to woo her" she suggested, perhaps not fully in jest.
"Well that's about the nicest thing anyone ever said to me, Miss Sally," Hiram said. "You have such nice manners. Were you raised around here or did you move here from somewhere else?"
To Hiram's mind, she seemed to have an upbringing that spoke of different surroundings and influences. It reminded him of the parable of the Sower with the bag of seed. Some seed was cast on stony ground and it never flourished, but the seed that landed on fertile ground took root and grew robustly. So it was with humans.
He looked at Sally Butts with a new feeling of affection and care. It was then that he wanted to be her benefactor and her guide.
"Well, back to what you were saying, if I'm ever lucky enough to find someone who'd put up with me, you'll be the first to know."
"Well that's about the nicest thing anyone ever said to me, Miss Sally," Hiram said. "You have such nice manners. Were you raised around here or did you move here from somewhere else?"
“Oh, my Daddy was a Reg’lar from before the war, I was born in a Army fort and mostly grew up in ‘em, ‘cept when the big War was on, then me and Mama went and stayed with Daddy’s sister in Vermont, that was where Mama died, just after the War in ‘66.” She shrugged. “The last time I seen her, she knew she was dyin’. She asked to be buried back home in Mexico, Dile que me entierren de nuevo en Ciudad Acuña, mi pequeño fauno… but they just planted her in a grave up there” she said sadly.
“I was only eight. All I remember about it was the snow. The snow was so pretty. And the bells, tollin’ so deep.”
He looked at Sally Butts with a new feeling of affection and care. It was then that he wanted to be her benefactor and her guide.
"Well, back to what you were saying, if I'm ever lucky enough to find someone who'd put up with me, you'll be the first to know."
“It’s a deal!” she said cheering herself up by plastering on a smile and thrusting out her hand. She wasn’t dumb enough to promise to say the same to him, of course. Not that she was expecting to find anyone anytime soon.
"Ralph, your loyalty to the Stardust and your understanding of the saloon business, has me thinking." He reached into his coat's inner pocket and pulled out a cheroot.
Ralph waited, not another pay raise offer?
"I am thinking ..seriously thinking.. of making you a part owner of the Stardust. I'm thinking, maybe, twenty percent owner. Depending on what you think, we could have the papers drawn up tomorrow."
Ralph blinked. He had not saw that coming. True, he was loyal to the place but the man had to be aware that there was no love lost between them.
Fortner lit his cheroot by flicking a matchstick with his thumb nail.
"What do you think?"
"What's the catch? I mean for you to just gimme part of the place, what are you expecting from me then? Before I agree to anything, I gotta know that much," Ralph felt it fair.
Address me as Hon. Hiram Priest, esq.
“Oh, my Daddy was a Reg’lar from before the war, I was born in a Army fort and mostly grew up in ‘em, ‘cept when the big War was on, then me and Mama went and stayed with Daddy’s sister in Vermont, that was where Mama died, just after the War in ‘66.” She shrugged. “The last time I seen her, she knew she was dyin’. She asked to be buried back home in Mexico, Dile que me entierren de nuevo en Ciudad Acuña, mi pequeño fauno… but they just planted her in a grave up there” she said sadly.
Priest turned appropriately solemn.
“I was only eight. All I remember about it was the snow. The snow was so pretty. And the bells, tollin’ so deep.”
He looked at Sally Butts with a new feeling of affection and care. It was then that he wanted to be her benefactor and her guide.
"Vermont's a real pretty State, Miss Sally. Sometime you ought to take the train there and see if for what it really has to offer. Those lovely woodlands that turn orange and red in the fall, covered bridges, and little hamlets full of nice, down-to-earth folks. Your Mom could have done much worse for a final resting place."
He rubbed his eyes.
"Well, back to what you were saying, if I'm ever lucky enough to find someone who'd put up with me, you'll be the first to know."
“It’s a deal!” she said cheering herself up by plastering on a smile and thrusting out her hand. She wasn’t dumb enough to promise to say the same to him, of course. Not that she was expecting to find anyone anytime soon.
The old roué wanted to do more for Sally.
"Tell me," he asked in confidential tones. "How much you getting paid at the Stardust? It's been awhile since I've looked at the books."
"Ralph, your loyalty to the Stardust and your understanding of the saloon business, has me thinking." He reached into his coat's inner pocket and pulled out a cheroot.
Ralph waited, not another pay raise offer?
"I am thinking ..seriously thinking.. of making you a part owner of the Stardust. I'm thinking, maybe, twenty percent owner. Depending on what you think, we could have the papers drawn up tomorrow."
Ralph blinked. He had not saw that coming. True, he was loyal to the place but the man had to be aware that there was no love lost between them.
Fortner lit his cheroot by flicking a matchstick with his thumb nail.
"What do you think?"
"What's the catch? I mean for you to just gimme part of the place, what are you expecting from me then? Before I agree to anything, I gotta know that much," Ralph felt it fair.
Franklin nodded. "I can see you're a businessman at heart, Ralph. That's a fair question." He looked Ralph up and down. "I am looking for someone I can trust, and I trust you. And, like I said, it's important to me that the Stardust operate soundly and efficiently. You fit the ticket. So, if you're wondering what you're bringing to the party to get 20%, I'm saying that it's your expertise. You know the history and you know where all the bodies are hidden. But, if you feel that if you want to put money in the pot, how about $100. If you don't have it all at once, we can take it in pieces."
"It's a smart business move for both of us," he added. "Priest can draw up the papers tomorrow, .. or tonight if he isn't too busy with his solitaire," he joked.