The Little Stories of the Evening

Vision, Coyote and Top

The wind swept the plain that night. The air was heavy, the heat of the desert hovered at ground level, resistant to gusts. The woman was watching the last rays of the sun disappear behind the Rockies. His bucket rattled against his legs.

"Hey! Betty! Don't spend the night outside ! Customers are waiting! "

The voice pulled her abruptly from her stillness. The young woman turned to look at the man who hailed her from the coaching. She shook her head and went down without a word from the hillock where she was standing to advance to the well. She hung the bucket on the hook and untied the rope. As the container slowly disappeared into the darkness, she glanced westward but the sun had disappeared entirely. A roar sounded in the distance. She shivered. Surely coyotes. These howls were getting closer from night to night. These pesky creatures would soon reach them. With the drought of the end of the summer, they were close to the only water point available at the round : the well. For Bernadette, they could devour her that she would not draw water for them and watch them burst with thirst and laugh. But soon they would be there and the surroundings of the inn would turn into a bloody war for survival. Men against animals. A splash snatched her from her vision and she began to pull up the full bucket. Returning to the inn, she heard the voices of the customers go up. She sneaked to the counter and began to fill the pot, watching out for the two men who had stood up and bothered each other.
"Ah ! Here you are, Betty, I was wondering if the coyotes had not eaten you ! said the man leaning on the counter. Comme on, don't do that face, I'll kill them before they go after you, he said with a smile."He paused the time to avoid a chopper that crashed against the wall with a crash.

" Well ! They went back tonight these two! Let's hope they do not do anything stupid, I paid for the night ... "

As he spoke, he pulled out a knife and a piece of wood and began methodically attacking it. Betty watched him, motionless. The tone seemed to rise between the two agitators. The man at the counter made a grimace:"A girl of your age should not have to listen to such horrors. Come see here! "At the same time, he blew on the piece of wood to remove the last traces of sawdust, revealing a top. He put it arbitrarily in the young woman's hand. She remained silent, her eyes fixed on the object. A deafening noise rang out. The stupor appeared on Betty's face. Time paused and she slowly slid down. The top went off to roll further."Fuck John! You bumped off the waitress! one of the two men shouted. "The named John, with the gun in his hand still smoking, looked at the unconscious body of Betty. The man at the counter stood up and leaned over it quietly."Well, as active alive as dead that one ..."The laughter of the men was lost in the night accompanied by the screams of the coyotes.