The Farmer's Sons

* This story has slightly incestuous scenes.*

***

Autumn had just about arrived. We had had our first cold snap and now it was Indian summer, hot days with cool nights.

Willy, Tate, Cleo and Harp were all working for the Sheriff now while juggling classes at the college. We had electricity and hot running water and the boys were talking about having an electric furnace installed. Even JT looked forward to having a hot bath every night.

It was a Saturday. The boys were all in class and had plans to stop at the library afterward. JT and I were just lazing around, me reading and him working on a wood carving he'd started.

Without warning there was suddenly someone out front bellowing, "JT! JT are you to home?"

We both got up and went to the porch and at the bottom of the steps stood a young guy around my age, dressed in jeans and camouflage.

"Hey, Sim, what's up?" JT asked him.

"I'm sorry to come busting in this way but I need to tell you something. When's the last time you checked on your daddy?"

Daddy? I thought. I'd never heard anything about that.

"I took him his supplies about a month ago; I'm fixing to go again soon. Why?"

"Cause I just came by there and something is wrong with him. He didn't see me but I seen him. He was wandering around in his night shirt and acting real stoved up. Looked like he hadn't had a meal or a wash in a week and he moved like his arms were hurting him. I thought you should know."

"I appreciate it, Sim. I'll go see him right now."

Sim turned and went off down the hill and I turned to JT.

"Your daddy?" I asked.

"He lives back in the woods, kind of like a hermit. He don't like people bothering around him, that's why I never introduced you." JT said.

"Well, you're going to now." I told him.

"He's all the way back in the woods; you don't want to go crashing around out there. I'll go see him and come right back."

"You'll take me or I'll just follow behind." I said. "Let's go."

JT didn't look happy but he knew better than to argue.

We went around back and followed one of the paths. The trees were just on the edge of turning colors, they had that dry sharp look and the sunlight filtered through the leaves as we walked.

"My daddy is kind of a character." JT said. "So, just be warned."

"Like son, like father I expect." I replied.

We walked for at least an hour and sometimes I couldn't even see a path but JT didn't falter. It seemed like we'd reached the deepest part of the woods when he stopped.

"Now, daddy ain't going to be too happy about me bringing a stranger by so he might act ugly at first." JT said when he turned to me.

"Thanks for warning me." I said. "Are we there yet?"

"Actually, we are." he said.

He led me through another stand of growth and we came into a clearing. There was a tiny shack built to the side with a door and two windows in the front. There wasn't any porch, just a big rock as a doorstep. A tin smoke stack poked up out of the mossy roof.

"Daddy, it's me." JT called. "Don't shoot me."

He led me over to the door and turned the knob and I followed him inside. It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the dimness but when they did I saw an older man lying on the only bed, staring back at me.

He struggled to sit up and said, "What are you doing bringing people I don't know to my house?"

"It's a long story." JT replied.

"He heard you weren't doing so well and needed to check on you and I came along." I said.

"I don't remember sending out an invite." he said, staring at me stony faced.

"I invite myself." I said. "Now, what's wrong with you?"

He was sitting up with an odd posture, both arms held out from his sides but not moving. Plus, he obviously was in pain. He didn't reply to my question.

"What's wrong with your arms?" I asked. "You look like a chicken trying to fly."

"There ain't nothing wrong with me, just go along with the two of you." he said.

Trying to be polite didn't work so I took the bull by the horns. I walked over to where he sat and pulled the sleeve of his night shirt up his arm. His forearm was mottled with an ugly bruising and there was an odd kink in the middle of his forearm.

"Your arm is broken, you old nut." I said.

"I'm just bruised, it'll be alright. Just leave me alone." he said.

As soon as I touched his other arm, he writhed with pain.

"I guess that's just bruised, too." I said. "You're going to the hospital to get those looked at."

He looked incredulous, and then pissed off.

"You ain't coming in here and ordering me around in my own house." he said. "Now get out of here before I shoot the both of you."

"With what, your toes?" I asked. I looked around and saw that there was no food visible or even a bucket of drinking water. It looked like he hadn't been able to do much for a long time.

"Listen to me, you old coot." I told him. "You're coming with us or I'm dragging you through those woods by your shirt collar, so stop your arguing. You can go with us or wait for the undertaker to come and move you."

He sat staring at me like he was seeing some new kind of creature.

"Do you hear how that boy is talking to me?" he said to JT.

"You met your match, daddy." he said. "Arguing won't stop him."

"Get some pants on him." I told JT. "And pack him up some clothes. He may need to stay awhile."

"I will not." he said.

JT found a pair of overalls near the bed and began the fight of getting him into them.

"Stop fighting, you mean old cuss." I said. "I can just as easy conk you over the head and we can drag your ass to the hospital without you even knowing it."

"He'll do it, too." JT said.

He got his father dressed and boots on his feet and while JT packed up some clothes, he and I stared at each other.

"Nobody died and left you boss around here." he told me.

"Well, somebody is about to if they don't take better care of themselves." I replied.

It was hard to maneuver him up from the bed and out the door and when we stood outside I asked JT, "Is there a closer way to the road, somewhere that you can meet us with the car? I don't want to wear him out with that walk."

"Yeah, I don't know why I didn't think of that. There's a path that's not even half as long."

"You take the clothes and get the car and meet us on the road. I'll take care of your daddy." I told him.

Turning to his father I asked, "Can you find our way to the road?"

"I've lived here since I was born, you idiot. I didn't fall on my head. I can lead you that path with my eyes closed."

"You go, JT, and hurry. We'll meet you down there." I said and he took off through the woods.

"Come on, you old goat, it's just you and me now." I said, putting my shoulder under his better arm so that he could lean on me.

"I don't need any help, I'm perfectly fit." he said, drawing away.

"Suit yourself." I said. "But if you fall down again, I just may leave you for the raccoons to eat."

I could tell that he hurt with every step he took, there was soon sweat beading on his brow and he had almost no color.

"How long has it been since you had food or drink?" I asked.

"I'm used to doing without, don't you worry." he replied.

We hadn't even been walking for five minutes and he had to lean against a tree trunk to rest. I stood beside him, waiting for him to recover his strength.

"What are you to my son?" he asked.

I wasn't sure how to answer so I just said, "We're very good friends."

"My boy and I don't have any secrets, I know what he likes." he said to me. "Are you two fucking?"

"What the hell." I thought.

"As a rule, he's fucking me." I said.

"That's what I thought; he wouldn't act so pussy whipped otherwise. Okay, if you're getting the good stuff from my son then you can deal with the bad from me. I don't think I'm going to be able to walk to the road."

I thought for a minute and then I said, "I'll have to carry you."

"A skinny little pup like you can't carry a grown man." he said.

"You're nothing but a big bag of bones; I've probably carried groceries heavier than you."

I turned my back to him and backed against his chest.

"Put your arms over my shoulders." I said and when he did, I crouched and caught both of his legs under the knees and pulled them up. He was heavy but not too heavy and I began walking forward.

"You're tougher than you look." he said over my shoulder.

"And let that be a warning to you. Now, you're the navigator."

He rode along, telling me where to go and when to turn. We were both sweating like horses and I said, "You sure are a stinky old man."

"And you're a smart mouthed young one." he replied. "What do you expect when I couldn't even reach my own dick to piss for the last two weeks? You'd be ripe, too."

"When I get you back home, I'm scrubbing you down with a brush.' I said.

"We'll see about that." he replied.

"And if you give me any shit, you may accidentally drown in the process."

"I wish you'd been my son so I could have beat you every day of your life." he said.

"And your bones would be rotting out someplace where nobody would ever find them. Now, shut up and concentrate on getting us out of these damned woods."

It didn't take a whole lot longer until we stumbled out of the woods onto a paved road. My car was parked about twenty feet down the road and JT eased up to where we were.

"Now what happened?" he asked when he saw me carrying his father.

"Nothing, it's just that this old fool is so weak from hunger and thirst that he couldn't take the walk."

"Don't believe him, I just told him that so I could get a ride." he said as I eased him down onto the ground. If JT hadn't grabbed him, he would have collapsed onto the road.

"I made some sandwiches and a jar of coffee." JT said. "They're in the car."

We helped him to the back seat and got him situated, and then I got in beside him. I keep a blanket in the car and I folded it into a soft pillow on my lap.

"Rest your broken arm here." I said and he grudgingly did.

The sandwiches and coffee were in a bag at my feet and as I unwrapped one, I could see how hungry he really was. He couldn't use either arm to feed himself.

"If you want food, you're going to have to let me feed you." I said.

"Like some kind of big baby?"

"No, like some crazy old man who ought to know better." I replied. "Now stop getting on my nerves and eat something."

"I'm glad to see you two getting along so well." JT said from the driver's seat. "This should be a real interesting next couple of days."

I slowly fed him bites of sandwich and sips of coffee and I was glad to see his color returning. He ate everything on offer in no time.

"You know this is a waste of time." he said as we pulled up at the EU. "They're just going to send me right back home."

"Not if I fracture your skull before we get inside." I said.

It was another effort to get him out of the car and I was glad when an orderly showed up with a wheelchair. I practically had to wrestle him into it, though.

Inside, they took one look at him and started to work immediately. When they saw the kink in his arm, they rushed him into a room and said that they'd be right back with a mobile x-ray. He lay on the bed, complaining about wasting his time.

A nurse came in and began the procedure to register him.

"Are you all family?" she asked.

Before anyone else could answer I said, "This is my grandpa." and stroked his forehead. He looked at me like he wanted to bite my hand.

"And this is my uncle JT." I said. He looked at me with a half grin.

"I can see how concerned you are for him." she said to me and he glared at me. "What happened?"

"I fell down the side of a ravine in the dark." he said. "The night caught up with me before I got home."

"And he knows every inch of those woods." I said to JT. He glared at me again from the bed.

"I just pulled some muscles." he said. "Rub some liniment on me and I'm good to go."

"And he spent the last two weeks hiding out and not letting anyone know he was hurt." I said to the nurse.

"You can leave now." he said to me.

"We see a lot of that sort of thing. People just get set in their ways." the nurse told me.

"Yeah, like concrete." I replied.

Luckily, the x-ray techs and their machine showed up right then. We waited outside the room while they took shots of both arms and shoulders.

When they were done, the nurse came back in and asked, "What is your full name, sir."

"Jebediah Hawkins." he answered.

"Lord, your parents hated you, didn't they?" I said.

"Jebediah is a bible name, you be respectful." he replied.

"But you're no bible man." I said.

"And do you have any insurance?" she asked.

He looked up guiltily.

"We probably need to sign him up for Medicaid and Medicare and anything else he can get." I said.

"I'm not taking charity..." he began and I whirled to face him, my finger pointing at his mouth.

"Just shut it." I said. "JT and I have already had this argument once and I'm not repeating it."

"Do what he says, daddy, or you'll regret it." JT told him.

He gave me a baleful look but didn't argue any more.

When the paperwork was all filled in, it was time for a signature.

"I'll sign for him and take responsibility and then he can just make an x, if that's alright." I said to the nurse.

"Happens all the time." she replied.

Even though it was extremely awkward, he managed to put an x on the line by my holding the clipboard up to his hand.

"You're a lucky man to have a grandson who takes such good care of you." the nurse said as she left.

"Yes, grampy, I know you appreciate me." I said to him and he gave me that flat reptilian stare again.

Shortly after, the attending physician came in. Grandpa had broken his right arm and dislocated his left shoulder, both fairly minor. What wasn't minor was that in the intervening two weeks, his arm had started to knit crookedly and would need to be re-broken. Numbing it wasn't even an option.

With just a quick maneuver, the doctor popped his shoulder back into the socket and bound it up for him.

Then it was time for the breaking.

"Serves you right, you old goat." I told him as I grasped his left hand. "Just hang on to me and don't look."

I didn't look either but I heard the crackle as the bones were separated once again. Grandpa turned pale and just about squeezed my hand into jelly.

"Huh, I've probably had bee stings that hurt more than that." I said.

"If it had been you, you'd be lying in the floor passed out in a puddle of piss." he replied.

More x-rays were taken and examined and finally a man with bandages and a bucket of plaster came into the room. The actual cast didn't take long at all and eventually he was ready to be taken home.

It was dark outside by now and as we sat side by side in the back seat I asked, "Can you wait to eat at home or do you need something right now?"

"I can wait, I don't trust store bought food." he replied.

"Why does that not surprise me?" I said.

When we arrived back home the boys were still out and the house was dark. We helped Grandpa up the hill and up the porch steps and when we stepped inside, JT threw the switch for the kitchen ceiling light.

"Electric lights." Grandpa said, looking around. He saw the new sink that stood against the wall and said, "And indoor water, too. Getting kind of fancy around here."

"Yeah, we've got all the latest 19th century conveniences. Sit down and I'll cook you something on our new-fangled stove." I told him.

I walked over and pointed and said, "This is called a refrigerator."

"He wouldn't act so smart if you smacked him in the mouth once in awhile." Grandpa said to JT.

"I'll leave that up to you. I want to keep my arms and legs and head." he replied.

I made him a big plate of scrambled eggs and some toast and a cup of chamomile tea. When I sat down beside him, he glared.

"If you want to eat, you're going to have to be fed." I said, picking up a forkful and hovering in front of his mouth. He sat with his lips pressed into a tight line.

"If you don't open your mouth, this fork is going in your eye." I said.

That opened him up. I fed him bites of egg and bites of toast and when I gave him a sip of tea he said, "My mama always fixed me cammy tea when I was feeling poorly."

JT was preparing a meal for the rest of us while I fed Grandpa and I had just given him the last bite when the boys arrived. They climbed the hill and Willy was the first to enter. When he saw us at the table he said, "Grandpa?"

"I ain't Clark Gable." Grandpa said.

The rest of the boys came in behind him and stood staring.

"Did I just grow two heads all of the sudden?" Grandpa asked.

"Sorry, I was just surprised. Gentlemen, this is our grandfather. Grandpa, this is Cleo and Harp Brown."

"Brown?" Grandpa shouted. "What are they doing in here? We're feuding with the Browns."

"Oh. Lord, here it comes." I said.

"Those days are over, Grandpa." Tate said. "Fact is, they practically live here now."

"Pleased to me you, sir." Cleo and Harp said one after the other.

"Your great grandpa shot our cow." Grandpa said.

"Dear God have mercy." I said. "If I have to listen to a cow story after the day I've had I'm going to have a nervous breakdown."

Grandpa looked over his shoulder at me and said, "Sissy." and then turned back to the boys.

"I'm real sorry to hear such a thing." Cleo said. "And I apologize for my great granddaddy. I'd be happy to pay you for the cost of the cow."

"Apologize is more than he ever done." Grandpa said. "You've got real nice manners. That old fool was drunk, said he thought the cow was a bear. He couldn't half see even when he was sober. And the cow wasn't worth nothing; she didn't even give milk no more. But I truly appreciate your offer."

"Supper's ready." JT said. "Talk while you eat."

When we were all crowded around the table, Cleo said, "What happened to your arms, sir?"

"This smart ass city fella pushed me down a hill and then kicked me at the bottom." Grandpa said.

"That don't surprise me none." Willy said, totally deadpan.

Grandpa just sat and gaped.

The boys began to talk about their day and their jobs while they ate and I caught Grandpa more than once looking at the food on my plate. I picked up his fork and fed him a mouthful, then started alternating bites between us. He wound up eating more than half of my food.

Tate, who was sitting next to Grandpa said, "I don't want to be rude but you smell pretty high, Grandpa."

"And that's our cue." I said. "You're getting scrubbed down before you go to bed. You smell like a goat."

"Are you going to let him talk to me that way?" Grandpa asked Willy.

"Better he should scrub you down than me, I gag easy." Willy replied.

I got Grandpa on his feet and herded him down the hall. When I turned on the new bathroom's light, Grandpa said, "A tub and everything. You all are living high on the hog."

I stood him so that he could rest against the sink while I started the water to fill the tub. Then it was time to get his clothes off.

"I don't how we're going to get that shirt sleeve over your cast and your other bandage." I said.

"It's old, just cut it off." Grandpa said.

I got the scissors from the cabinet and began to cut. It took some figuring out but after a couple of minutes the nightshirt lifted out of his overalls and fell to the floor.

Harp came in just then and asked, "Is it okay if I take a piss? I'm about to burst."

He took a stance at the trough and you could hear the heavy stream hitting the porcelain.

"Better here than the kitchen floor." Grandpa replied.

I undid the hooks on Grandpa's overalls and they dropped to the floor just as Harp turned around. I heard him gasp and I probably did so, too. Grandpa's dick was even bigger than JT's, so long and thick that it seemed impossible. His balls, as big as duck's eggs, hung in a long sack halfway down his thigh.