They went back to the oak grove. Jed broke brittle branches from a tree
that had fallen and died, and Pete built a fire. He opened the sack of
food, cut strips of bacon, and inserted a stick of green wood into the
hollow handle of a frying pan. The wood lengthened the handle, so that
Pete was able to hold the frying pan over the fire without burning his
hand. He cooked the bacon, and when it was done he laid all the slices
at one side of the frying pan and scooped a generous portion of
already-cooked beans in beside them. Mr. Simpson brought three slabs of
clean bark, and Pete divided the food into three equal portions.
They were hungry, for they had worked hard, and since there were no
spoons or forks they had to eat with their fingers. It was, Cindy
thought, a delightful way to dine, and she had never known that bacon,
warmed-over beans, and stale biscuits could taste so good. After she'd
eaten her portion she was still hungry, but she purposely avoided
looking at the nearly empty sack. The food had been intended for one
person, not three, and there was just enough left for a skimpy
breakfast.
"I'm full," said Mr. Simpson, throwing his slab of bark into the fire.
"I am, too," Pete said. "How about, you, Cindy?"
"Um-um-yummy." Cindy did not want to tell a lie.
The grazing horses raised their heads and stared hard toward something
which only they knew was coming. Pete and Jed got to their feet, and
their hands hovered very near their holstered guns. A moment later two
horsemen appeared on top of a hillock and started toward them. Pete
grinned reassuringly. "It's all right. I know them. They're Cal and Sim
Macklin."
The horsemen came near, and one of the riders shouted, "Hi! You old
Boomer!"
"Who are you calling 'Boomer'?" Pete shouted back. "And who 'boomed'
any harder than you two?"
"Can we have some wood for a fire?"
"Sure thing," Pete said. "These are Jed and Cindy Simpson. They're with
me."
"Glad to know you," Sim Macklin said cordially, and Cal added his
greeting.
The two men cared for their horses and came into the oak grove. Cindy
liked them immediately, for they seemed to be a special kind of men.
They were quiet, but they were self-assured and gave the impression that
they could take care of themselves anywhere.
"Had anything to eat?" Pete asked.