Following supper, Roy's clothes were dry enough to wear. After changing, he helped Sara get the boys into their beds. Despite their protests, Abe and Billy were fast asleep in a matter of minutes. Pouring Roy another cup of hot coffee, Sara dragged Roy to the front porch swing. She was still in her lightweight dress, and there was a mild chill in the air, so Sara shivered.
"Are you cold?"
Sara nodded.
Before she could stop him, Roy jumped to his feet to grab a thick quilt from inside the house. She leaned forward and Roy wrapped the blanket around her small body. Holding her, she felt wonderful to Roy. Don't be a fool, Roy, she is just trying to be polite, Roy thought. Besides, you're much older-by twenty-some years-and you don't need another grave added to the Folsom family plot. Sara looked into Roy's eyes and then frowned.
"What's going on inside that head of yours Roy?"
Roy lied. "Nothing; why?"
Sara placed her head on Roy's chest and snuggled in close. Unidentifiable feelings swept over Roy, and he felt intense pleasure holding her in his arms. If possible, Roy was certain he would never let go of Sara. Since his youth, Roy believed this moment with Sara, was one of the most pleasurable experiences of his life.
Growing up, Roy did not have many friends. His father Thaddeus insisted on Roy getting an education. Unfortunately, the one-room school house only covered the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic. On school days, Thaddeus would take Roy on horseback to the nearest road into town. There, Roy would hitch a ride with his friend Stanley in his family's buckboard wagon. Mr. Riddle, Stanley's father, also picked up two more friends, Robert, and Franklin, while driving into town. These four boys were never far from mischievous behavior and the bane of the town-folk.
Their tomfoolery was not dangerous or damaging, but just enough to capture the attention of Sheriff Dawson. After chiding the young men for their sins, Sheriff Dawson would often buy them a round of root beers in the saloon. Other than school, there was not much for young men to do in their small town and so Sheriff Dawson entertained the four boys with stories of his youth. After a good laugh, Sheriff Dawson would push the young boys in the appropriate direction of home. The long walk provided Roy and his friends, time to tease each other, tell jokes and dream about growing up.
Along the road home, the Santa Fe railroad tracks followed close by the dirt road for a mile or two. The dusty road then continued between the canyons, but the train tracks headed up the mountain. Several miles further, the railroad line crossed paths with the road once more, but then the tracks headed northwest. Whenever a train would pass by, the boys made every effort to get the train engineer to blow the whistle. They averaged three shrill outputs from the whistle before the train would disappear around the bend and begin climbing up into the mountains.