THE ROUGH RIDER AND DAVY CROCKETT

 

By: Kenda

 

 

 

 

 

The black Buick flew down the highway. The open windows circulated summer air through the vehicle, as the two boys in the backseat sang with gusto.

 

"Ninety-seven bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-seven bottles of beer, ya' take one down, ya' pass it around, ninety-six bottles of beer on the wall! Ninety-six bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-six bottles of beer, ya' take one down, ya' pass it around, ninety-five bottles of beer on the wall! Ninety-five bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-five bottles of beer, ya’ take one down, ya’ pass it around...”

 

Cecilia Simon shot her husband a weary glance. This was the fifth consecutive round of “Ninety-Nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall.”

 

"I wish you'd never taught them that song!” Cecilia shouted over the wind tunnel the open windows created.  “I can take two rounds of it...maybe three, but five is a bit much."

 

Jack laughed. "Look at it this way, Cece, at least it's keeping them occupied. They haven't asked us once in the last six hours how soon we'll be there."

 

"That's true. And A.J.'s the only four year old on the block who can count to one-hundred. Of course, he counts backwards when he does it, and he has to be singing about beer at the same time. Not exactly something most mothers would want to brag about, but if anyone asks I’ll just say he takes after his father's side of the family."

 

Jack smiled broadly as his eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, taking in the two smiling singers in the backseat. "That's okay by me. You tell anyone who asks that both of my sons are a chip off the old block."

 

"I'll remind you of that, Jack Simon, the next time one of your ‘chips’ puts crayons in the toaster, or lets white mice loose in church."

 

"I'm sure you will," Jack said ruefully, at the same time allowing himself a small smile at the thought of his sons' most recent exploits.

 

A.J. had been the one who ruined the toaster by toasting ten crayons in it one morning, and Rick had taken three white mice out of their cage in a Sunday School classroom and let them loose in the sanctuary. Of course, "It was just an accident, Dad. They kinda got away from me. I didn't do it on purpose," Jack had been told by the young sinner.

 

"Well, we won't have to worry about toasters or church services for the next seven days," Jack said.

 

“No, I don’t suppose we will,” Cecilia agreed, in deference to the fact that the Simons were spending the next week camping in a remote area of northern California. Or at least as remote as Cecilia would allow.

 

The family had begun camping for one week each summer when A.J. was two. Cecilia's only demand was that there had to be bathroom facilities and a way to wash up. Boy, had she been surprised, and even a little angry, when the bathroom facilities Jack presented her with were nothing more than an outhouse, and the means to wash up came from an old hand pump.

 

Fortunately for Jack, the four of them had a wonderful time that first year. So, despite the inconveniences, Cecilia had agreed to camping again in the two years since that first trip. Jack and his sons loved the outdoors, and camping was the perfect solution when it came to keeping two active boys busy for a week.

 

Jack smiled with gratitude when his wife poured him a cup of coffee from the thermos she had tucked by her feet. The Simons had left the house at four-thirty that morning. Jack carried the still sleeping A.J. to the car and deposited him on the backseat without the youngster ever awakening. A tired Rick had stumbled along behind his father, and had fallen asleep before the car was two miles from home.

 

The first three hours of the trip were peaceful, the early morning stillness broken only by the quiet words that were exchanged between Jack and Cecilia as the car sped north. The boys woke shortly before the family stopped for breakfast at a roadside diner at eight o’clock.

 

The travel time since that stop had been filled with boyish laughter, teasing, some bickering, and one squabble over a toy car that Cecilia had quickly put an end to. Now the noise in the vehicle escalated as the boys bellowed the repetitious song that was one of their favorites.

 

Glancing sideways at his wife, Jack smiled. "Only a few more hours and we'll be there, hon. How many more times can they possibly sing it?" Before Cecilia could answer him, Jack's smile turned into a teasing grin. He joined in the singing, that act of mischief only further encouraging the boys' enthusiasm.

 

"Seventy-eight bottles of beer on the wall, seventy-eight bottles of beer, ya' take one down, ya’ pass it around, seventy-seven bottles of beer on the wall. Seventy-seven bottles of beers on the wall, seventy-seven bottles of beer..."

 

Cecilia sighed as she picked up her newest issue of Ladies Home Journal. 

 

Two little girls, Cecilia thought as she started reading an article on the latest matching fashions for mothers and daughters.  Why couldn’t I have had two quiet little girls who don’t like to camp and sing about beer?

 

___________________

 

 

The first full day of the Simons’ camping trip dawned bright and sunny with a slight breeze blowing off the sparkling lake. Jack was up at five-thirty. He took advantage of the early morning splendor, enjoying the hour of peace that would be his only leisure time that day. Once the boys were awake activity would abound. Both Rick and A.J. found it impossible to be idle for even a moment.

 

Jack sat at the lake's edge looking east. He watched as the sun rose over the water. Glancing at his watch, Jack wondered if the boys would be up by six-thirty, their normal waking time, or if they'd sleep a little longer this morning. Smiling, Jack thought of the two sleepy campers he had seen off to bed at nine o'clock last night.

 

The Simon family had pulled into the large state park at four the previous afternoon. Rick and A.J. hung out a back car window, waving and shouting, "Hi, Ranger Bill!" to the man at the park’s entrance.

 

The red-headed had ranger waved back, then tousled the hair of each boy as the car came to a halt beside his wooden booth.

 

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite campers. The Rough Rider and Toby. How are you guys doing?"

 

"Great, Ranger Bill!"

 

"Fine, Ranger Bill. We're here to go camping," A.J. informed the man.

 

"A.J., it looks like you've grown a foot since last summer. Pretty soon you're gonna be taller than your big brother." The ranger had winked at the little boy. "Then maybe you'll get a chance to be the Rough Rider, uh?"

 

"It'll never happen," Rick shook his head. "He might get taller ‘an me, but he's never gonna be the Rough Rider, Ranger Bill."

 

That comment set off an argument in the backseat that Cecilia put a stop to as the ranger leaned down to talk to Jack.

 

"You're favorite spot is reserved for you, Jack. Other than another family who's camping about three quarters of a mile away, it's just you, Cecilia, the boys, and that lake. Oh, and all those fish, too."

 

Jack had laughed as he replied, "Thanks, Bill. We'll head back there then. It'll probably take us what’s left of the afternoon to get settled."

 

Ranger Bill looked into the backseat.  "You boys take a walk up here to see me this week, but only because you want to come see me, not because you have to come see me. All the rangers are on alert. We've got a sign posted in the ranger station that says, Caution: Rick and A.J. Simon are here this week. Be prepared for anything.”

 

Jack and the boys were laughing as Jack drove the Buick down the paved road that would take them to their campsite. Cecilia had shot her husband a dirty look.

 

"What?" Jack questioned.

 

"I don't think it's funny, Jack. I bet we're the only family the rangers are on a first name basis with."

 

Jack shrugged. "So we've needed their assistance once or twice. That's what they're here for."

 

Not once or twice, Jack. Four times in two years, if I remember correctly. And I do remember correctly."

 

"I'm sure you do," Jack had sighed as his wife continued.

 

"The first year Rick fell out of that tree on our second day here. We thought his arm was broken, and had to go to the ranger station for First-Aid, then had to take him to the hospital to have it X-rayed. Two days later, A.J. slammed his fingers in the car door while he was getting his teddy bear and we had to go to the ranger station again to get ice for the poor little guy. Really, Jack, he was only two years old. I thought you would have been watching him closer than that."

 

"Yes, dear," Jack had replied while resisting the urge to roll his eyes. He had no idea why these incidents had to be brought up, as if he didn't recall them perfectly well himself.

 

"Then last year Rick dropped that rock on his foot while you guys were building the campfire and we had to have Bill give us ice, then A.J. locked himself in the outhouse and Bill had to come get him out. It's no wonder we're like family to them."

 

"Honey, I remember all of those incidents, believe me. But the boys love camping, and they're none the worse for wear because of it." Jack glanced at the backseat then and proclaimed, "Besides, Cecilia, your two sons and I have had a long talk about camping injuries and how rough they are on Mommy. So this year no accidents, right, guys?"

 

"Right, Dad!"

 

"Right, Daddy!"

 

Cecilia had simply sighed at her incorrigible trio of men, then couldn't help but laugh as she felt two arms encircle her neck and A.J.'s voice by her ear. "But you're a good nurse, Mommy, so don't be mad at us if we do get hurt."

 

Rick joined in and added as he leaned over the front seat, "Yeah, Mom, you're a great nurse. The best. And pretty, too. A.J. and me are real lucky."

 

Cecilia tweaked Rick’s nose. "You and A.J. are full of baloney, Rick. Just like your father."

 

Jack had thought then, That might be true, but at least my two baloney-filled sons have gotten their mother calmed down. Yep, two chips off the old block, all right.

 

The remainder of that afternoon had been too busy for Jack's sons to get into trouble. The whole family pitched in and unloaded the car, then Jack and the boys went pitched the big tent. Once that job was completed, the three Simon men erected the pup tent the boys would share that Rick had received for his ninth birthday back in April.

 

Watching the sun climb higher over the lake, Jack chuckled as recalled what he discovered Rick was up to three weeks earlier.

 

Jack was putting A.J. to bed one evening, father and son discussing the up coming vacation.

 

"So, sport, are you and Rick looking forward to having your own tent this year?"

 

A.J. had nodded and smiled. "Yeah, we are. Rick's even gonna let me sleep in the tent if I pay him enough before we leave."

 

At that remark, Jack had questioned the four year old as to what he meant.  A.J. had then told Jack that he was paying Rick five cents a week so that he could sleep in the tent, and not outside of it, as Rick had told A.J. would be the case if Rick didn't get enough money from the younger boy by the time they left on vacation. From what Jack could gather, Rick was already ahead by fifty cents, and looking to gain at least twenty cents more in the weeks ahead.

 

After A.J. was asleep, Jack had a talk with the nine-year-old extortionist. That talk ending with, "And you'll pay Andy back not only the fifty cents you owe him, Rick, but also two percent interest on that money."

 

After a brief explanation about interest and how it worked, and what two percent of fifty cents was, Rick was sent up to bed, Cecilia and Jack shaking their heads at his latest scheme. Later, Jack realized that Rick had gotten around his punishment. There was a lot of candy being shared in the backseat on the long drive up to the national park. It didn't take Jack long to figure out who had been conned into buying all that candy. Jack knew every penny of Rick's allowance had gone to paying back his brother, thereby leaving the older boy with no spending money.

 

Rick's either going to grow up to be a shifty car salesman, or we'll be visiting him on a regular basis in jail.

 

By the time the site was set up the previous evening, everyone was hungry. Cecilia had Jack take the boys for a quick swim so she could prepare supper. After the meal had been eaten, the family had taken a four-mile hike around the lake. As they were heading back to their tents the sun was setting. With a mile to go yet, Jack picked up A.J. and settled him on his hip. The little boy fell asleep like that as his father walked, his head resting on Jack’s shoulder.

 

There were no songs around the campfire that first night as Jack laid the sleeping A.J. in the pup tent, a tired Rick following with only a minimal amount of protest. Jack and Cecilia enjoyed the quiet of the evening as they sat and talked underneath a starlit sky before retreating to their own tent, knowing the next day would be full of activity.

 

Jack's mental review of their first vacation day was brought to an end as two hands covered his eye and he heard a sleepy, hoarse voice by his right ear.

 

"Guess who?"

 

"Mmm, let me see. I think it's Rick."

 

"Nope, you're wrong."

 

"Oh, I know! It's Mommy."

 

"Nope."

 

"I know. It's my youngest son, Milton," Jack teased.

 

"Milton! "Who's Milton?" The hands were removed from Jack's eyes as A.J. launched himself into his dad's arms. "It's me, Daddy."

 

Jack roughhoused with his youngest for a moment, then said, "Oh, that's right, your name's not Milton. I forget though. What is your name, little boy?"

 

“It's A.J. But you can call me Andy, Daddy."

 

Jack laughed as he tousled the already tousled hair. He was the only person who called A.J., ‘Andy’ and both he and his youngest son recognized that fact as being something special just the two of them shared.

 

A.J. settled in his father's lap and looked out over the lake.

 

"Is Rick still sleeping?" 

 

"Kinda, I guess. He's a little awake and a little asleep, I think. He's grumpy."

 

Jack laughed. "He always is when he first wakes up, just like your mother. Not like you and me. Right, sport? We like the early morning sunshine, don't we?"

 

"Yeah!"

 

"Do you need me to take you to the outhouse, or did you find your way there already?" 

 

"I got there okay. I didn't even get locked in like last year. Rick showed me how not to yesterday so I would remember."

 

"That’s nice. Rick's a good big brother, isn't he?"

 

"Yep."

 

Jack and A.J. sat together another twenty minutes. A slightly sleepy, and still slightly grumpy Rick, finally appeared at fifteen minutes to seven.

 

As Rick came to sit by his father and little brother, Jack teased, "Oh, so here's Sleeping Beauty now."

 

"Very funny, Dad."

 

"You're right, Andy," Jack said while reaching out to rub his hand over his oldest's back. “He is grumpy.”

 

Jack gave Rick a few minutes to wake up, then suggested, "Hey, guys, how about an early morning dip in the lake?"

 

"Right now?" A.J. asked incredulously, eyes widening.

 

"Sure," Jack replied.

 

"Won't it be awful cold?" Rick asked.

 

Jack elbowed his nine year old. "What's the matter, Rick, ya' chicken?"

 

Jack's eldest couldn't resist a challenge. “No way! I'm not chicken!" Standing up, Rick exclaimed, "Come on, let's go!"

 

As Jack and A.J. stood, Jack caught sight of Cecilia heading towards them.

 

"Come on, Cece! We're taking a quick dip in the lake!"

 

"Jack, no, it's too cold! They'll get sick." 

 

"Oh, they will not. They'll be fine. Come on and join us."

 

"Absolutely not! You three might be crazy, but I'm not."

 

"Oh, come on, Cecilia."

 

"Yeah, Mommy, come on," A.J. said as he ran to his mother and tugged on her hand.

 

"Yeah, come on, Mom. Or are you chicken?" 

 

"I'm not chicken, but I'm not stupid either." 

 

After a chorus of, "Come on, Mom," "Come on, Mommy," and "Come on, Cecilia," the woman finally gave in.

 

"Okay, okay, but let me put on my swimming suit."

 

"Don't do that. This is just an informal ‘come as you are’ dip in the lake," Jack said. Cecilia was wearing a pair of shorts and an old shirt of his, while Jack and the boys were still in the gym shorts they had slept in.

 

Cecilia reluctantly agreed to the craziness then as husband counted, "One, two, three, last one in has to cook breakfast!"

 

Jack took off running with Rick close behind him. Cecilia grabbed A.J.'s hand and raced for the lake, too. The woman and her youngest son beat Rick to the water's edge by a big toe. Everyone screamed as the frigid water hit their feet, then they laughed and splashed while teasing Rick and telling him he was cooking. Cecilia finally put an end to Rick's protests by assuring him that everyone would help make breakfast. The water was too cold to enjoy for long. The Simons ran for their campsite to retrieve towels and dry clothes.  As Cecilia had promised Rick would be the case, everyone assisted with breakfast duty.

 

After they’d eaten, the Simons spent the rest of the morning fishing.  After a lunch of grilled bass, they hiked through the woods. The trails the family traveled were well marked. Rick and A.J. picked up rocks, and leaves, and other treasures along the way the only little boys find interesting.

 

At three o'clock that afternoon Cecilia was reclining in a lawn chair by the campsite, engrossed in a novel. The boys and Jack were by the lakeshore tossing a football between them. Cecilia glanced up to watch upon hearing Rick's laughter. Noticing one family member was missing, she called, "Jack! Where's A.J.?"

 

Jack held onto the football Rick had just thrown him. "Isn't he up there by you? He said he was going to sit by you and play with some toys he’d brought along."

 

"No, he's not up here!” Cecilia put her book down and stood. “I haven't seen him!"

 

Jack hurried toward his wife with Rick at his heels. He tossed his oldest son the football, then cupped his hands around his mouth.

 

“Andy! Andy!”

 

Cecilia added her voice to her husband’s. "A.J.! A.J.! A.J., where are you?”  The woman looked at the thick woods behind the campsite, her heart picking up its beat as she thought of her four year old lost somewhere in that dark maze that stretched for miles.

 

Just as panic was about to set in, Cecilia heard a quiet voice from the pup tent mumble, "I'm in here."

 

Cecilia hurried to the tent's opening. She pulled back the flap and saw her son curled in a ball, lying on top of his sleeping bag. She crawled in beside him.

 

"Honey, what are you doing in here? Are you tired?"

 

"No,” A.J. grimaced. “I've got a tummy ache." 

 

Cecilia laid a hand on A.J.'s forehead as Jack poked his head in the tent's opening. "Does he have a fever?"

 

"He doesn't seem to." Turning her attention back to her youngest, Cecilia asked, "Where does it hurt, A.J.?"

 

The boy pulled his knees tighter against his abdomen and moaned, "Everywhere." 

 

Cecilia turned to look at her husband. "See, this is what happens when you let the boys go swimming at seven o'clock in the morning.

 

"Cecilia, an early morning swim doesn't cause stomachaches. It's been a busy day, it's hot, and he's been running around at full speed since sunup. I'm sure that's all it is. I think he's just overtired. You want me to sit with him for a while?"

 

Though the woman was still angry with her husband over his decision to let the boys swim while the water was still so cold, she didn’t want to argue with Jack in front of them.

 

"No, I'll stay with him. You go ahead and take Rick swimming like you promised you would. If I need you, I'll come get you. Would you have Rick get a few of A.J.’s storybooks out of the car before you guys leave?"

 

Jack nodded at his wife, then reached out to pat A.J.'s leg. "You rest a little while, sport. By the time Rick and I get back you'll be feeling better."

 

"Will you take me swimming then, too?" A.J. asked.

 

"Sure," Jack replied, while at the same time Cecilia replied, "No!" 

 

Jack sent Rick on the errand for the books. Upon his return, Rick told his father, "We don't have to go swimming, Dad. It won't be any fun without A.J. anyway. I'll stay here and read to him. I don't mind."

 

Jack smiled fondly, "No, Rick, Mom wants to stay with Andy right now. Come on. Let's go swimming. By the time we're done, maybe your brother will be feeling better and the three of us can go again. If he's not, you can read to him then, okay?"

 

"Okay," came the reluctant response. As Rick followed Jack to the lake he mumbled, "But it ain't gonna be no fun without A.J."

 

Jack laughed to himself. One minute Rick's black mailing Andy for his allowance, and the next minute, no matter what we do, it just isn't going to be any fun if his little brother can’t come along.

 

___________________

 

 

An hour later, Jack and Rick were back at the campsite. Cecilia was still sitting with A.J., who was feeling somewhat better.

 

As Jack and Rick were rummaging through the various snacks

Cecilia had brought along, Jack came across something he found interesting when he picked up the marshmallow bag.

 

"Cecilia! Cecilia, come here a minute!"

 

Rick stood next to his father eating potato chips as Cecilia crawled out of the pup tent and approached them. "What, Jack?"

 

Jack grinned. "To my recollection, we didn't have a campfire last night, did we?"

 

"No, you know we didn't. We were all too tired."

 

"So, if we didn't have campfire, that means no one has had any marshmallows yet, right?"

 

Cecilia was exasperated with her husband and his game, Cecilia replied sharply, "That's right, Jack. No one has had any marshmallows. What's your point? I've got a sick child I need to get back to."

 

From behind his back, Jack produced the bag of open marshmallows that was half empty. "Well, I'll take a stab in the dark and guess that our little boy with the tummy ache has been into the marshmallows this afternoon.

 

"Oh, no," Cecilia said as she, Jack, and Rick walked toward the pup tent. Crawling inside, Cecilia asked him, "A.J., did you get into the marshmallows?"

 

"Yes."

 

“When?”

 

“After lunch.”

 

"Why did you do that without asking first? And how come you ate so many?"

 

A.J., who all ready at the tender age of four knew when he needed to use his charm to beguile the fairer sex, turned pitiful eyes on his mother.

 

"Well, last year the ones you brought were stale. Everybody hated 'em, and no one would eat 'em, so I was just testing these to make sure they were okay. Then once I got started, I couldn't control myself."

 

Jack had to turn away and cough in order to cover the laugh that was trying to break through at this confession.

 

"Well you should have told me you wanted to try them. I would have given you a few, but not half the bag for goodness sake! It's no wonder your tummy hurts."

 

With that, Cecilia left the tent, making room for her oldest son who was itching to get inside and be with his brother for a while. When she and Jack had walked far enough away, they both burst out laughing, then laughed even harder as Jack offered his wife a marshmallow from the bag he still held in his hand.

 

Rick crawled in beside his brother, "How ya’ feelin,’ kid?"

 

"Not so good. I feel like my insides are marshmallowed together."

 

"Well, you shouldn't have eaten so many, dummy. I think you over did it."

 

"I know, but last year those marshmallows Mommy brought were awful, and I just wanted to make sure these were okay."

 

"Yeah, the ones she brought last year were pretty bad. Real stale. Were these?"

 

"No, these were just right."

 

"Good, ‘cause a campfire just isn't a campfire without marshmallows." Rick reached out and patted A.J.'s arm. "Want me to read to ya' for a while?"

 

"Sure."

 

By the time Rick had gotten through two storybooks, the tummy ache had passed. A half hour later the youngest camper was running around playing, and showed no signs of ill effects from his afternoon adventure in vacation cuisine.

 

That night after the sun had set, the family sat around a campfire, toasting some of the marshmallows that had caused so much worry earlier in the day. It wasn’t a surprise to anyone that A.J. had no desire to partake in the marshmallow eating. Jack teased the boy by waving a stick full of roasted marshmallows in front of him until Cecilia put an end to it.

 

"Jack, honestly, you're worse than a little kid sometimes with your teasing. And then you wonder where Rick gets it from. Leave A.J. alone for Heaven's sake." Jack just laughed at his wife, but took the chastising to heart as he promised, "Okay, Mommy, I'll be good."

 

Soon the evening quiet was broken by four voices singing an array of songs from “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore” to “Bingo.” As darkness settled over the campers, Jack told the boys a story was full of adventure, and just a little scary - the kind of tale young boys like best.

 

As Jack finished Cecilia glanced at her watch. "Okay, that's it for tonight, boys. Time for bed."

 

"Oh, Mom! Just a little longer.”

 

"Mommy, please, we’re not tired.”

 

Cecilia rose, pulling A.J. up with her. "No, absolutely not."

 

"But, Mom, it's vacation!" 

 

"Rick, that's enough now. It's over an hour past A.J.'s bedtime, and a half hour past yours. You boys have had enough fun for one day. Now come on, you and A.J. make one last trip to the outhouse, then it's off to bed," Cecilia ordered while handing her nine year old a flashlight.

 

Rick turned to look at Jack in an effort to enlist his father's help. "Sorry, buddy, but the general has spoken. Do as your mother says now. There going to be plenty of time left for fun in the next five days. You're not going to miss anything."

 

Rick sighed, knowing he was fighting a losing battle. He took A.J.’s hand and led him up the trail to the outhouse, the flashlight illuminating the way.

 

 

            Fifteen minutes after the protests had started, both boys were asleep in their tent.  Jack and Cecilia walked hand in hand up a moonlit trail. They didn’t wander to far from the campsite, but rather, went just far enough so they could have some private time while their sons slept the heavy sleep of two children who had been outdoors all day.

___________________

 

 

Two days later, the weather changed. Although the sun was shining, a cool front had moved in and the Simon's woke to a morning temperature of just fifty degrees. While Jack prepared breakfast and Cecilia aired out sleeping bags, Rick and A.J. scrambled around the area playing Rough Rider and Davy Crockett. Rick had his cowboy hat on, and A.J. was wearing his coonskin hat.

 

 Cecilia had to laugh as she thought, Kind of an odd combination, a cowboy and a frontiersman, but at least they're happy, busy, and not arguing over who's going to be the Rough Rider and who's going to be Toby.

 

As Rick led his brother toward the nearby woods, Cecilia

called, "Boys, don't wander off!"

 

"We're just goin’ up this trail, Mom!  We're goin’ exploring!"

 

"All right, but don't go too far. And stay together!"

 

This was the first year Cecilia had allowed the boys to wander together up the nearby trails for a short distance without supervision. Rick had accepted the responsibility with maturity that made his parents proud. He had followed the rules Jack had set down by not wandering out of earshot, and at the same time keeping an eye on A.J.

 

"Geez, Mom, I'll bet the Rough Rider's mother and Davy Crockett's mother didn't tell them not to go too far!"

 

"Well, I'm not the Rough Rider's mother or Davy Crockett's mother, now, am I? I'm your mother, and I'm telling you not to go too far, or your exploring will come to a quick end, Cowboy!"

 

Rick rolled his eyes. "Okay, Mom." Grabbing the front of A.J.'s shirt, Rick pulled the blond toward the trail. "Come on, Davy, we've got to kill us a bear before breakfast."

 

The two boys stalked the pretend bear for a few minutes. Rick stopped when he noticed a trail he had never seen before.

 

"Hey, I wonder where this trail goes?"

 

"Rick, Daddy said we're not supposed to go up any trails he hasn't taken us on before, remember?"

 

"Aw, A.J., come on. Let's just follow it a little ways." 

 

A.J. shook his head, the tail of his coonskin hat hitting him in the face as he stood his ground. "No, we'll get in trouble. I'm not going."

 

"Come on."

 

“No.”

 

Rick sneered at his brother, then looked up the trail one last time. While he was tempted to break his father's rule and explore it, he wouldn't if A.J. wasn't willing to come along. No matter how disgusted he was with his little brother, Rick wouldn't leave the youngster alone in the woods.

 

Rick looked down at his sibling.  “You're such a goody, goody, sometimes."

 

A.J. shrugged his shoulders. He didn’t care what Rick thought of his decision to follow the rules. Further arguments were stalled by Jack's voice calling, "Boys! Breakfast is ready!"

 

Upon hearing that, the hungry campers raced to the breakfast table, the angry words and unexplored trail soon a thing of the past.

 

 

 

___________________

 

 

The temperature never rose above sixty degrees that day. The strong wind coming off the lake made it seem even colder to the southern Californians.

 

Cecilia made sure her men had jackets on when they went fishing at ten o'clock. The previous year, Jack had discovered that the best fishing spot was a half a mile away, so that's where they headed. Cecilia remained behind, choosing instead to relax in a lawn chair while reading her novel.

 

At eleven-thirty Cecilia looked up from her book when she heard voices in the distance. Jack was carrying Rick, his legs taking long strides as he hurried toward the campsite.  A.J. ran alon