The Cowboy Picture that Came to Life - A Short Story
The Cowboy Picture that Came to Life!
By
Patty Wilkinson
(With sincere thanks to Wendy Maynes for the idea...and brilliant screen-cap)
It had been a long day and she was sleepy as she settled down for the night...the large double bed suddenly feeling huge, her husband away on business. The first few nights had been liberating as she lay spread-eagle...having complete control of the duvet and reading long into the night.... But now on the third night she was missing him...
She glanced at the photograph of her two favorite cowboys in the framed photograph on the bedside table and sighed... One so tall, blond and handsome...But the other had stolen her heart at just nine years old, as he rode across her TV screen. That deep, deep voice, the troubled dark blue eyes...the black wavy hair...Not to mention the tight jeans and fast draw, she thought as she smiled lovingly at her two all time heroes.
She snuggled down...and then something caught her eye...Jess had just nudged Slim and then...oh so slowly he began to climb out of the frame...As he did so he gradually got larger and larger...until he was life size...then just seconds later he was joined by Slim.
The two men looked around them in puzzlement...until their gaze finally came to rest on the woman in the bed.
Jess was the first to react...he flushed up and took a step backwards, “Gee ma’am I’m real sorry...we didn’t mean to come barging in here... in your room...er that is...your bedroom I mean...”
“He means excuse us ma’am,” Slim interjected quickly “we didn’t mean to disturb you.”
“Oh you haven’t,” the woman squeaked, then suddenly remembering that she was wearing an old tee shirt instead of her pretty nightie, pulled the covers up more closely.
“We’ll go ma’am,” Jess said looking even more embarrassed and making for the door...
But the woman came to her senses right away and said, “No please...if you’d like to go into the lounge...and wait I’ll get up.”
Both men looked puzzled, “This here a hotel then?” Slim asked looking around him.
“No... er the lounge is um...the parlor...just down the stairs...I could make you something to eat?” She added hopefully.
“Now yer talkin’,” Jess said with a broad grin.
“Come on pard lets go find this lady’s parlor huh.”
As soon as they’d gone she jumped out of bed and drew the drapes back...surprised to see early morning light flooding in. Then she grinned to herself...what on earth was going on? She’d loved Slim and Jess for over 60 years...and here they were in her lounge...so what was not to like? Just go with the flow girl she said to herself.
She glanced in the mirror and then had the second shock of the day...Her pretty twenty -one year self looked back at her...Hell she was over seventy...and now here she was with that long black hair...the huge dark eyes and that cheeky grin that had won so many hearts. She wondered vaguely if she had died and gone to Heaven... Didn’t they say that you were transformed to how you looked at your very best in life? But then she heard a bark of laughter from downstairs and dismissed the idea...
She pulled open the closet door and was amazed to see her favorite blue jeans there and even more amazed to find they fitted like a glove, her trim girlish figure back once more. She added her all time best tee with the wolf logo and running a brush through her gleaming hair tore downstairs... Oh what fun she thought...to have the body and looks of a young woman and the wisdom and confidence of a lifetime of living under her belt.
She entered the lounge to find Jess with his feet up on the coffee table, hat back at a jaunty angle and whistling softly... Meanwhile Slim was engrossed in her book of American History...
Jess leapt up and both men smiled when she walked in.
“Well howdy,” Jess drawled, “uh can you tell us where we are ma’am? See my pard Slim here...and me, well we had a few drinks last night...celebrating a business deal...and I guess we maybe had a glass or two too many....Moonshine ya know?”
The woman nodded,” I believe it’s really strong stuff...”
Slim’ s head shot up and he said, “You talk really pretty ma’am...but you’re not from these parts I guess?”
She smiled at him, “I think you’ll find it’s you who isn’t from these parts Slim... You see you’ve found your way into the Old country...this is Britain.”
“The Hell we have,” Jess said...then quickly, “uh sorry ma’am but it’s kind of a shock.”
“I can imagine,” she said dryly, “for me too.”
Then there was a pause...
“Did you mention food ma’am?” Jess prompted...
Once both men had eaten two plates of bacon and eggs washed down with multiple cups of strong coffee Jess wiped his mouth with the napkin and said cheerfully,” That was real good ma’am...unusual biscuits...but real good.”
“Uh that was toast actually... Sainsbury’s best Multi Grain bread,” the woman said cheerfully.
“Um...sure,” Jess said looking slightly puzzled, “real good anyways...”
“So what do we do now?” Slim asked.
It was still very early and so she said,” Well I usually go and watch the News on the TV.”
Both men looked totally befuddled...
“Come on I’ll show you...”
Jess and Slim sat transfixed as the news reader read out the headlines from the box in the corner of the room...
“How the hell did he get in there?” Jess asked, “I never saw him arrive either.”
“Beats me,” Slim replied, “Must be some kinda dwarf to git in that little old box though.”
The woman just giggled and said nothing.
Then a few minutes later there was film coverage of an inner city shoot out...the police taking on some mad man shooting into the crowd.
Quick as a flash Jess drew his gun and slammed a round of bullets into the screen, which exploded loudly.
“Oh my Goodness,” the woman cried, ”what are you doing!”
“Well hell I was just protectin’ ya ma’am...that fool guy was about to shoot us, didn’t ya see that?”
“But...but it’s not real, well not happening now anyway, ” she muttered looking at the debris that had once been her widescreen multi channel TV...now a pile of smoking rubble.
“He’s right,” Slim said earnestly, “I guess that box is real dangerous ma’am....”
She just sighed, if she was dead and in Heaven...or maybe just dreaming ...well what did it matter?
“Sooo,” Jess said re-holstering his gun and wafting a hand to disperse the smoke and smell of chordate, “what do ya do for fun around here?”
“Well I’ve got something I really think you gentlemen will like,” she said opening the door and leading them out, through to the back yard...
They walked on past flowering shrubs and roses until they came to the end of the garden...bordered by a wide river....
Jess looked in wonder at the river before them and then up at the towering trees opposite, tier after tier of green...up to the perfectly blue sky, “All this yours?” He gasped.
She nodded proudly, “Well this bit of it yes...we have the fishing rights...as to the view well I guess that’s just thrown in for free...”
Jess and Slim exchanged a grin...
“Think I’ve just died and gone to Heaven Pard,” Jess said.
Then turning to the woman said, “You got poles ma’am?”
They spent the day down on the river bank fishing and she spent the day with them.
They told her all about their life on the ranch...about shoot outs and cattle drives...about outlaws and mustang hunts...They even told her about the wild times they had in the saloon...the fun things Mike came out with and what a stickler Daisy was for washin’ and paintin’.
“I can see you ain’t too picky,” Jess said lying back in the long grass and looking back at the three hundred year old cottage where she lived.
She looked lazily back at her beloved home...maybe the windows could so with a wash leather she agreed...and a lick of paint here and there wouldn’t go amiss...but hell life was too short...She was retired now after a busy life all she wanted to do was enjoy herself...
“So what do you get up to?” Jess asked
“Painting...pictures that is,” she said with a grin, “not barns...or even houses...Writing stories...visiting my friends...here and abroad...always busy...”
“Way to be,” Jess agreed, and then as the hot sun beat down he lay back in the long grass tipped his hat over his face and to the gentle sounds of cooing wood pigeons and humming bumble bees took a quick nap.
Then as the sun slid down behind the woods opposite he built a huge camp fire and they had a cook out eating all the fish they’d caught...
When the last morsel had been enjoyed Jess turned to the woman and said,” Know what, it would be real good to wash that down with something...you got a saloon nearby? “
She laughed,” We sure have...well a Public House...a Pub we call it, build about 1870, so you should feel right at home.”
It was a blessing that road works at the far end of the village had stopped all through traffic and so she didn’t have to try and explain about the workings of the internal combustion engine... thinking cars would be one step too far for Jess and he’d end up emptying his Colt into one, like the TV.
However before they left she persuaded the cowboys to leave their guns at home.
“You see it’s not really common practice to wear guns out and about in this country,” she said gently...
“Well I dunno,” Jess said feeling kinda naked without his gun...
“You’ll be quite safe,” she said quickly, “folk around here don’t tend to carry...it’s not like the big city you know...”
He was finally persuaded to leave his gun at home as was Slim...
“Tell you what you can keep your hunting knife in your boot,” she said with an encouraging smile....
He grinned at her...”So how the heck did you know about that?”
She just winked, “That would be telling.”
The locals were used to the woman arriving in the pub with some outlandish friends from across the globe. So the two men dressed in full western gear didn’t even afford a second glance and were just accepted. Everyone knew that artists and writers were a bit strange, so it stood to reason they’d have some pretty exotic friends and acquaintances.
But never...no never had the little Public House experienced such an evening as they enjoyed with Slim and Jess that night.
The drinks ran freely and the boys really let rip... Tequila slammers were slammed....Beer was quaffed down with relish and the whiskey was declared to be like mountain dew... Had Jess been wearing his iron he would doubtless have fired a few shots into the ceiling to show his appreciation...But as it was he just showed his expertise with his hunting knife by throwing it at the darts board and scoring a bulls eye every time...
It was in the wee small hours of the morning that the three made their way home through the quiet lanes of the sleeping village...the only sounds the distant hooting of an owl...and the jingle of the cowboy’s spurs.
They arrived safely home and at the bottom of the stairs Slim hugged the woman, gave her a peck on the cheek and said," Thanks for a great evening, goodnight...."
Then Jess pulled her close and kissed her very tenderly before running a finger gently down her cheek and looking deeply into her eyes,” Goodnight sweetheart and thank you...for everything... I’ve had a swell day,” he said softly, before following Slim upstairs... She had made up the beds in her son’s old room and hoping they would be comfortable...she made her way to bed.
The following morning she was up early and once the coffee was brewed she called up the stairs that breakfast would be ready soon... When there was no reply she made her way up to their room and after knocking, pushed the door open....to reveal...a totally empty room...they had gone. The only evidence they had ever been there, slight indentations in their pillows...and a tiny tear in one of the duvets, possibly made by a wayward spur... It looked like Jess had been sleeping with his boots on again....
She wandered downstairs and spent a quiet day with her thoughts and her paint brushes...
Her husband returned home that evening and she was delighted to see him...
That night when they turned in and he asked if anything exciting had happened she merely shook her head...After all it had just been a dream hadn’t it? But just before she turned the bedside light off she glanced at the picture on the little table and could have sworn Jess winked at her...
The End
Thank you for reading.... a ‘just for fun’ story!
New full length story out very soon