“So buddy, you getting any of that?” asked one grinning fool, clearly deep in his cups. The other men laughed as Wil turned his eyes on them. “She sure is a looker and those older ones really know what they’re doing. We hear you might be doing some hiring out your way. That include any benefits?” The crowd thought the comment hilarious as they broke up laughing, holding their sides, trying unsuccessfully not to spill their precious spirits.
Wil balled his fists, ready for a fight, when he heard a scream down the path to the outhouse. Running as fast as he could, he saw Netty on the ground with some drunk assaulting her. He also noticed, unbelievably, that Baby had followed them to the dance, as he could clearly see his tail in the melee. Yanking the drunk off Netty, he punched him in the face, knocking him out cold. Wil scooped a sobbing Netty into his arms, looking around wildly for Baby. He needed to get Netty to the wagon. He didn’t want any of the other drunks coming to investigate. He would then come back for Baby. He knew the urgency of secrecy. No one could discover their little creature. God knew what hell could break out.
Wil hurriedly deposited Netty in the wagon. Her face streaked with tears, she cried hysterically.
“Shush, Netty, I am here. Nobody will hurt you now.” Wil held her in his arms, kissing and stroking her beautiful hair. As he slowly rocked her, she calmed down, her sobbing abating. “Netty, I have to go back to find Baby. He is out back. He must have followed us from the farm.” Grabbing a blanket from the back of the wagon, he climbed down to search for Baby. Netty started screaming, “No, Wil, you cannot leave me!”
Gosh, she is terrified, Wil thought. “Netty, Baby is back there unprotected. I have to find him.” Suddenly, he felt pressure in his head accompanied by flashes of a golden aura.
The whisper came softly, “Brother, you can go. I am fine. Come home with Sister.”
Overcome by the shock of Baby talking to him, he quickly got back into the wagon and hurried home. He kept his eye on Netty, who huddled on the floor of the wagon, hiccupping quietly between her sobs. Pulling up to the barn, he hurriedly removed the harness from the horse and bedded her down. He hoped that would give Netty some extra time to compose herself, for she still seemed agitated. Returning to the wagon, he called to Netty.
When she didn’t answer, he scooped her up and carried her to the stoop, expecting to find the door unlocked. But he could not get in. Rattling the door, he could feel the latch was still in place.
“How the devil are we going to get in now?” he muttered. “Baby must have climbed out of a window to follow us. Well, I guess I can just as easily go through a window to get in.”
Leaning Netty against the wall, he turned to step off the stoop. He heard the rattle of the latch. Turning back to the door, he saw it open. And there stood Baby in all his golden glory.
Wil stood dumfounded. How could Baby have gotten back before we did? He’d have had to walk. And his goofy little wobble would take him days. Wait a minute! He could never have followed them to the church without help to begin with. He wouldn’t have made it there on time.
Wil led Netty into the cabin, placing her on his bed near the fireplace. He quickly put on the tea kettle, taking comfort in its whistle as it came to a boil. Setting out two cups, he carried them over to Netty to cool. He saw Baby sitting next to her, softly stroking her tearstained face with his long fingers. Netty held tightly to Baby and buried her face in his fur.
“Netty, are we going to talk about this?”
“What is there to say, Wil?” Her voice sounded shaky. “You rescued me from a drunk and now we are home safe.”
“No, Netty, you know that is not what I mean. I am sorry about the drunk. I guess we have been a little insulated here on the farm and forgot how judgmental other people can be about propriety.”
“Wil, I am sorry if my unusual marital status caused you some embarrassment.”
Glancing at Netty, he felt the stiffness in her tone. “Netty, you know that is not what I mean! How could I see Baby with you at the church and yet he arrived back here before we did?”
Netty sat silently looking down at her lap. Wil suddenly sat on the bed grabbing her shoulders. “Look at me, Netty. Look me in the eye. Now answer me. Can Baby fly?” He watched as she raised her head and looked into his eyes. Silent tears traveled slowly down her face.
“I love you, Wil, do you know that?” She said it so slowly, so sadly, that it gave Wil a chilling premonition. A now familiar pressure and golden aura whispered to him.
“Brother, I cannot fly. Sister cannot fly.”
“I know Netty cannot fly, Baby, why would you mention that?” Wil asked the question, confused and distracted. No one spoke.
“God damn it, Netty, I need some answers here. What is going on? Are you hiding something from me? Why? You know I love you. Do you not trust me? I am going out of my mind trying to figure you out, but I do not think I can take much more.” Wil dropped his hands and paced the floor. Baby had moved to the bedroom when Wil had started to get heated.
Slowly, Netty rose from Wil’s bed. Her eyes were closed.
“Wil, could you come here, please? I would like one kiss right now, please.” Wil stepped hesitantly over to Netty. He held her close and kissed her slowly. Netty felt all of his love and strength in that kiss. Her quiet bittersweet tears continued to fall.
“Netty, baby, please tell me what is happening.”
Netty stepped back. She looked silently at Wil’s beautiful, clear, dear face, trying to memorize every feature, dreading the outcome of the next critical moments. She closed her own eyes again and slowly unbuttoned her top. Slipping off her skirt, she took a painful breath. With a sob of anguish, she slipped off her petticoat. Standing in front of Wil with her head bowed in shame, her tail moved, circling around her waist protectively, reflecting its brilliance off the flame of the fire.
“What the heck? Netty, no.” He backed up slowly, not taking his eyes off the shocking appendage. Netty sank to the bed, covering her nakedness with Wil’s blanket. So much became clear to Wil.
“It was never about me was it, Netty?”
Netty shook her head, her voice a barely discernible croak. “No, Wil, I have always loved you.”
“Netty, are you human?” Wil asked, knowing the pain that pierced Netty’s heart with the question.
“I do not know what is happening to me, Wil. The changes started after I found Baby. I am scared. I do not know what it means,” she admitted.
“What are we going to do?” Wil asked, sinking into a chair and dropping his face to his hands. He looked down at Netty. He could see the pain in her eyes as she turned her back, unable to face him any longer. Silence filled the room. Quietly, Wil confronted her.
“I still love you, Netty. And I love Baby. I just do not know if I can handle this. I need time to think. I am exhausted. I will sleep in the barn tonight.” Grabbing his winter overcoat from a hook and an extra blanket kept at the foot of the bed, he walked out.
*
Netty knew crying herself to sleep would be fruitless. In the early hours of the morning she felt Baby, who had crept to her bed in the night, open the cabin door and slip out.
She woke late in the morning, the chill of the cabin a telltale sign that the fire had faded sometime in the night, just like her high hopes for herself and Wil. She felt empty, swollen and numb as she went to her bedroom to change into work skirt and apron. Baby was still missing. He probably went with Wil to turn out the Jerseys. She wondered where they were now. Had they gone to collect fieldstone as originally planned? Might Wil be planning to leave? She didn’t think she could survive that. He was her love, her companion, her best friend. Could she go on living without him? Would she want to?
She nervously considered what she should do. She really wanted to climb back to bed, but the farm couldn’t wait. Going out to the barn, she saw the wagon was missing. It appeared they’d turned out the Jerseys, then continued on with their chores. Lunchtime came and left. Why were they not
back? Maybe Wil still wanted to be alone to think. Netty realized he must be starved. The night before, he’d hardly touched his dinner. She decided she should bring him some lunch and some cold well water, even though she hesitated to face him.
Walking slowly down the road to the field, she speculated on whether or not Wil could accept her after her revelation. Before Wil, her changes had turned her life into a nightmare, but she’d learned to live with them. Physically, it wasn’t such a big deal. If the situation had happened in reverse, she could accept it. Couldn’t she?
Netty looked up at the vibrant sun, noticing the unusual warmth for a late spring day. As she approached the field, she spotted the wagon with Maggie grazing nearby; Wil and Baby were nowhere in sight. She walked along the rock pile and spotted them both, further down the line. Wil was resting on the ground. It looked like he’d fallen asleep. Baby also appeared asleep, curled up next to him. As she moved closer, she noticed Baby seemed to be stroking Wil’s hand. What? Breaking into a run, she screamed his name.
“Willll!”
Dropping to her knees, she held his face. Wil writhed in extreme pain, his breath labored and consciousness fading in and out. Looking up at the piles of fieldstone, she easily identified the deadly problem.
Quickly grabbing his arm, she dragged him away from the rock pile. Looking back, Netty spied a huge timber rattlesnake. Clambering over the rocks, she spotted numerous juvenile snakes. It looked like Wil had inadvertently discovered a nest of newborns. Their bites could be just as deadly as the adults’. They hadn’t yet learned to conserve their venom for prey instead of a big dumb human looking for rocks.
“Baby, Wil is hurt. Why did you not call me?”
The pressure and rainbows whispered calmly, “Brother is dying.”
“Dying? What do you mean, Baby? Wil cannot die, we need him.” Netty screamed, raising her head to the sky, “Lord, my Father, please help us.” Looking down, she pleaded, “Make him better, Baby.”
“It would be wrong. It is forbidden.”
“Baby, you fixed me. Just do it again for Wil. Do you not love him?” Netty ran over to Baby in time to see him rise as a snake struck out and bit him. He slapped out at the snake, getting bitten again.
“Baby, get away from there!” Netty ran toward Baby, then turned back as she heard Wil moan.
“Oh my God, someone, please help me,” she screamed helplessly. Baby wobbled over to her, his arms outstretched, fingers working spastically. She snatched him up, looking for signs of the snake bites. Inexplicably, she found no signs of any wounds. She held him close, trying to calm him.
Setting him down again, she turned to Wil, wringing her hands. He could hardly breathe and ugly purple swellings were appearing all over his body. The venom was attacking his tissue. He would probably die.
Without thinking, Netty lifted her skirt, sat down and cradled his head. From somewhere far away came the feeling of pressure with the smell of sulfur. Netty looked up and saw her own tail in the air with a mature membrane receding inside. She felt light, fulfilled, complete. Silently, she raised her fearful eyes to Baby. How did I do that? Baby’s slight head nodded. Netty understood. She looked at Wil and saw color returning to his face, his breathing normal again. Little by little, he began to focus.
“Netty, what are you doing here? Snakes, watch out!” Wil jumped up, looking for Baby. Snatching him up, he searched his tiny body for bites. “I saw you get bit, Baby, we need to get you to the doctor.”
“No, Wil. Please sit down. You have been badly bitten.”
“Netty, I am fine.” Realizing the truth of what he’d just said, he sat down, bewildered. “Yes, I am fine.” His voice faltered with astonishment. He looked at Baby. “Baby is fine, too. How can that be?”
“Wil, I do not know how to tell you this.” Netty felt calm; the acceptance of her power inevitable. Wil stared.
“Did Baby do something or did you, Netty?” He gaped at her exposed tail.
“Wil, you were dying. Baby stayed by your side, but for some reason I do not understand, he is unable to heal you. Not just you but people in general.”
“It was you, Netty? You healed me?” Wil’s countenance reflected a broad canvas of conflicting emotions. “What does this mean?” Wil again looked at her tail. As he approached, he squatted down, haltingly touching the tail. It was warm and firm to the touch. If you set aside who the tail belonged to, it didn’t look remarkable except for the bulbous tip and the amazing golden shine of the fine fur. Yes, fur on her tail. Fur. Just like Baby’s. His brain refused to accept the impossible. His mind reeling, he flopped down in the dirt next to Netty. Holding her hands, he looked into her eyes. Her changes were impossible to ignore. The glow in her eyes pulsed deeper with a new intensity.
Pressure and brain auras flashing, the assailing whisper returned.
“Brother, you will be Elder. Together, we will be Elders. It is forbidden, but done is done. I shall ask the Womb to forgive. Sister didn’t know, her control eluded her. We will wait for you to join us. Do not leave. I am pleased, Brother.”
Baby shuffled over to Wil, bobbing all the way. He climbed up on to Wil’s lap, stroking his face, his tapered leather fingers feathers of affection. Wil nuzzled Baby, wrapping his arms around him.
“It is all right, buddy, I am not going anywhere.” Wil turned, assessing Netty’s calm demeanor. “Can you please tell me what all this means before I go officially nuts?”
“I do not actually know that much, Wil. I know my appearance turns me into a freak, but I do not feel that way. I guess Baby means you will change now, just the way I have. I am pretty sure you will also develop a tail and have the same ability to heal. I am confused about why I should not have healed you. Baby tells me very little.” Netty wrapped her arms around Wil. “Please, Wil, can we go back to the cabin and sort this out there?”
The three of them clung together, unaware of the large timber rattlesnake mother quietly slithering closer, her aggressive stance meant to protect her live newborn young.
As they rose awkwardly, Netty inadvertently stepped close to the aggressively coiled rattlesnake.
Startled out of her deeply emotional discourse by the sound of a warning rattle, Netty stumbled and fell, coming face to face with the snake. The protective mother instantly struck her in the face and again on her arm as her hands tried to fend it off. Wil picked up his nearby rifle and with a wicked thrust, brought the rifle down on the snake’s head. The snake slithered quickly back toward the rocks, her head partially smashed and one eye crushed.
Immediately, they detected the heavy odor of sulfur as Baby and Netty both raised their tails, directing their life-saving power to the snake. Dumbfounded, they watched the snake freeze in place, shudder, then calmly continue to her nest in the rocks, a beautiful, vibrant, fully healed mature female.
Wil looked at Netty, now standing with her hands to her face. Slowly she lowered them, running her hands along her arm where she was bitten. Not a mark on her. Just like Baby.
Wil scooped up Baby without a word, Baby’s head swiveling all the way around to watch the snakes. Wil took Netty by the hand and led them to Maggie and the wagon to take them back to the cabin.
They rode home in silence; the only sounds the clopping of Maggie’s hooves and the reassuring rumble of the wagon’s wheels on the rutted road. After stowing away Maggie and the wagon, they quietly returned to the cabin, tension now reigning. Baby curled up on Wil’s bed by the fire, looking up at them alertly.
“Someone better start doing some explaining,” demanded Wil, his voice incredulous. “And Baby, why were you going to let me die? I saw you heal the snake.” Auras returned; the pressure lessening.
“Healing is an imperative. It is what Brothers and Sisters do. It is forbidden to create more Elders. I am forbidden to heal you.”
“Who forbids it, Baby?”
“The Womb and the Elders.”
“Where are the Elders, what the heck is a Womb and what are you ex
actly?”
“I am a proud minion of the Womb. The Elders expired eons ago, a devastating punishment for defying the Womb. No longer does the Womb grant immortality. Sister and I are now the only Elders. An honor and a privilege, although an error. You will soon join us. I am not unhappy about that. We will all be Elders together.”
“Elders, what the heck does that even mean?” Wil slapped his leg in frustration. “Netty, are you an Elder like Baby says? Baby, where are you actually from?” The only answer they received was silence. Baby didn’t speak again.
“I told you, Baby does not speak much. Wil, I know you are scared and upset, but this can all work out.” Netty’s pleading voice made his heart weep for her. “No one needs to know. This will be easier for you because you know what to expect. It took two years for my tail to grow. And I am fine. Apparently, better than fine.” She touched her skin where it should have been broken by the bites.
“I do not want a tail, Netty. I do not want this,” Wil continued to rail, all thoughts of tenderness toward Netty gone. “I do not want this to be my life, do you understand?” Wil felt himself working his way up to a meltdown.
“Wil, please let us try to deal with this. We cannot change what has happened.” Netty’s low, calm voice was like warm syrup on Wil’s frayed nerves. Slowly, he focused and calmed down. Standing to stretch, he paced the room, rubbing his palms together, relentlessly.
“Alright, Netty, alright.” Wil sighed, sitting down. The cabin filled with silence, the only sound the crackle of the fire. Flames cast shadows on their strained faces, each waiting for the other to banish the silence.
“I love you, Wil.”
He responded with unenthusiastic resignation. “I know you do, Netty, I love you, too.”
Netty made a decision, the solution abundantly clear. Kneeling in front of him, she grasped his hand in hers. She slowly placed it on her breast as she engaged his eyes with hers, emotion and passion filling the space between them. She languidly skimmed her full lips across his. Wil groaned and whispered her name.
“Are you sure? Is it okay?”