Written for Steemit: A love story occurs during a time anomaly. A woman from today somehow steps into an anomaly and meets a cowboy asleep on his ranch, in his bed, in the 1850's. ©Jeff Kubitz 2016 - All Rights Reserved.

Song of Angels - Chapter 12

Mindy Woczlewski courtesy of Nastya Muratokova

Please read and vote for the previous chapters:

Song of Angels - Chapter 1

Song of Angels - Chapter 2

Song of Angels - Chapter 3

Song of Angels - Chapter 4

Song of Angels - Chapter 5

Song of Angels - Chapter 6

Song of Angels - Chapter 7

Song of Angels - Chapter 8

Song of Angels - Chapter 9

Song of Angels - Chapter 10

Song of Angels - Chapter 11

While Mindy did her things, Cyrus was off toward the GEAP. While she was still asleep, most likely, she did not rise before dawn like he did; Cyrus broke the ice for the stock and pulled hay with a pitchfork into the feed troughs. Just on the other side of the split rail, cedar fence from where it sat in a great, tall stack.

That done, he saddled Cutter and was off at first light. Some might think he galloped away but he walked Cutter and it took hours to get to the road. He followed the wagon track from his ranch the whole way. It was not much different than the surrounding desert except over the years, Cyrus had removed all the rocks from road and he owned a grader that was drawn by two oxen. There was much less sage and tumble weed in the road than in the surrounding desert.

For a trained eye like that of Cyrus, the road was easy to see. Unlike what most people think about life in those times, the average person went around in a highly alert state. Like a well trained army scout, the average settler was adept at what could be called woodcraft or desert craft as a matter of daily survival. While he rode, Cyrus constantly looked for tracks, listened, and looked for ambushes and off in the distance. It was the only way to stay alive.

The difference between a soldier and a settler? The settlers did not get paid by the government. The dangers from people? Not that long ago, Utah was part of Mexico and now and then there were banditos or an occasional scouting parting that might come through just looking what was there to see if they could take it back. There were Indians, of course, mostly Paiutes because this was their native land. There could be bad men passing through, sometimes desperate runaway slaves headed west.

Cyrus was so far out that he was really off the path of the road to which he headed. His ranch could not be seen from five miles in any direction and the only thing that gave it away at that distance was some cottonwoods and some cedars. His source of firewood and that was only the tall ones. A body had to be near of a mile to see there was a wood there.

As he rode and watched, Cyrus had plenty of time to think about Mindy. She was really something and had a forceful personality for a virgin. She was not shy or coy or at least he did not think of her that way. Her clothes were so exotic that he thought they might be silk and that she was rich.

Her jacket, she called it a parka, was the strangest part of her clothing. He had never seen material like that and the thing had metal zippers. She had said it was full of foam. He did not know what she meant, foam like on a beer? The whole jacket was so light. She should have froze to death before she walked into his house.

Beautiful, at least to Cyrus, well he thought she would be beautiful to just about anyone. She was easy to talk to; he did not understand a lot of the things she talked about, never had heard of them. Her skin was far softer than Claire's though she had softer hair. Mindy had stout hair, really thick strands of hair. He had been tangled in it a few times already and not a strand broke.

Her teeth were perfect. He had never seen a woman with teeth that perfect in his life. Claire had some crooked teeth, was missing four, and she brushed them regular but Mindy's teeth were the absolute whitest he had ever seen. All of them looked good except one had a silver decoration on it that he liked. The one on her jaw left of the middle. He had never seen that on anyone.

There were so many strange things about her and he was truthful to her. He thought he was in a dream when she showed. Mindy was not from a dream. This dream was lasting for days now and he liked it. No, he did not like this dream he loved this dream.

Once he found the Geap, he thought that would answer a lot of his questions. Maybe an hour to go and he would be to the road.

Mindy had walked across the desert, not seeing the road he was on and came in at the far south of the woods. Cutter liked that spot about 300 hundred yards from the house. Good grass there but he should not have let Cutter stray that far while he slept. Cyrus made a note of it. He did not want to lose Cutter. He did not want to lose Mindy. No, not lose her like Claire.

He decided that he became lazy. Did not really care about much. He had lost care in just about everything other than running his ranch. Even there, the hole in the corral had been in the fence for the longest time.

The cattle just went in and out as they pleased and Cyrus did not care and he could not recall just how many years had passed with the corral like that. He left Mindy and went to repair the fence and gather the cattle for two reasons. One, his behavior was fairly close to what he thought might have been rape. Cyrus was not that type of man. Even though he lived out here, he was a well raised Christian boy and Anglican man both by the Mereweathers and his parents before them. So, for one, he had embarrassed himself. He behaved very badly, far outside his character.

For two, if Mindy did decide she liked him and he thought she really did, he did not want her to see just how run down he had let the ranch go. A couple of times, over the years, maybe three, yes three, his mother arranged for women to come with her and Dad for a visit. None of the women wanted to stay. Compared to Mindy, not one of the other women compared at all.

Cyrus knew Mindy was a virgin but he found that to be unbelievable at twenty-six? Maybe she was some sort of nun before she met him but she said, of all things, she sold metal pipe. Strange, mysterious, insatiable woman is Mindy Woczlewski, thought Cyrus. Uncustomary for him, just as he was about to reach the road, he said out loud, "Oh am I glad I waited to remarry Claire."

He reached the road. Off in the distance to his right, maybe half a mile, he saw a big bump covered in snow that he knew should not have been there.

He had not seen a human or horse track and did not expect to see any at all at this time of year. Only fools traveled in the winter, Cyrus laughed. I have one such fool at my house and I am glad fools travel in the winter. The sun popped out behind high clouds and he saw bright reflections from the bump. The Geap was facing south.

Cyrus rode to it. The entire top was covered in snow turned to ice and a drift was against the passenger side, curled around the front and the rear bumper. He saw the tires and dismounted from Cutter.

"I saw wheels like that once years ago," Cyrus said to himself. It was the last time he had heard the angels sing, as Mindy called it. In amazement, he brushed the snow off with his gloved hands and uncovered metal and window glass. Amazed he said, again out loud, "Perhaps I should not have shot at the last one I saw, though it looked nothing like this."

Cyrus had not seen the last one up close and thought it was some sort of devil. So, he had shot at it until it went away. He did not think he had hit it.

He tried pushing the Geap, oh, it was a 'Jeep'. It rocked. He could see the coach had doors but Mindy had them locked and the parking brake on. Cyrus knew nothing about these things. The snow fell off the rear end in a clump from his rocking and he saw his first license plate and read it, "Illinois."

I really do love her and Mindy is neither touched in the head or a liar. Not able to do much of anything with the Jeep, Cyrus completely flabbergasted, regained self control, mounted, Cutter and headed home. "That sure would be good to have around this ranch, and you would be good to have around here too, Mindy."

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