Chapter 22
The bed was moving under me. I was being jostled, bumped. I heard moans, whimpers, soft cries. The disturbance wakened me from my relaxing doze, made me open my eyes.
Lisa-Marie lay almost at my side, her hands fondling her own breasts, her breath coming in panting gasps, short gusts. She moaned softly.
Lazily, I lifted me head, turned to gaze at her face, her expression was alive with wonder and soft satisfaction. She looked at me, the look became a smile, then it registered surprise. Another instant, a sudden grimace flashed over her face for a second as a gentle tremor shook her. Then soft fulfilment and joy lit her eyes as she smiled again.
"Andy is playing." She sighed, her eyes directing my gaze downward, below her waist. "She said she liked the taste."
Andy lifted her head and I saw that her cheeks looked shiny and wet.
"Get it right." She giggled. "I said I liked the blend. I also said that this furburger was double filled with two flavours of tasty cream."
I looked at her and simply had to laugh. Lisa-Marie chortled, then squealed as Andy's head dropped again and I could see it bob and weave slightly. I sat up slowly. I was suddenly fully erect as I shifted to see the whole tableau.
Andy was standing, bent at the waist, head between Lisa-Marie's thighs which were spread wide, knees lifted, butt on the edge of the bed. Andy was holding both of Lisa-Marie's ankles and pressing them on the edge of the bed as she supported her upper body weight with her hands. Her head was moving lightly side to side, as well as up and down. Lisa-Marie was caressing her own breasts with her hands, tweaking and pinching her nipples, her head swinging and rolling, expressions racing over her face and soft moans and grunts of pleasure slipping from her open mouth.
I wanted to see more. I rolled to the edge of the bed, sat up, then stood up.
Now I could see Andy's breasts swinging under her chest with each movement she made. I moved to see the round cheeks of her buttocks as they clenched and released when she shifted her weight. The motions of her tongue and lips were hidden, but now Lisa-Marie was growing louder, more frantic.
Lisa-Marie's eyes were clenched tightly closed; her tongue flicked over her teeth as she panted softly. Now her hands were manipulating her breasts a lot harder; she was almost mauling them. She grasped both nipples, pinched them between fingers and thumbs, pulled them, twisted them. Suddenly she jerked into another orgasm, this one lasting for several long seconds. She moaned loudly. Her hands cast about wildly as if she didn't know what to do with them. Her whole body slowly fell back and relaxed. She seemed to stretch, like a spring when it relaxed. I realised that her body had been drawn up and bunched tightly, exactly like a spring would have been. Now she'd lost her tension.
She flopped a hand over to where I had been laying, then her eyes flashed open, rolled to discover where I'd moved. She saw me standing there, just watching, and her face twisted into a grin.
"He's watching us and drooling, Andy." Lisa-Marie moaned.
"His mouth is open, but his cock is hard. What do you think?" Her grin widened and she winked at me. "Should I invite him to join in? Hmm? Would you like him to step behind you? Would you like him to have fun with you while you play? Would you like his hard-on sliding inside you?"
"Umm hmm." Andy moaned loudly, wriggling her bottom and spreading her feet wider apart.
"I thought you said that you were tender." I winked at Lisa-Marie, grinning myself. "I'm just hard because you look so sexy bent over like that and Lisa-Marie looks just as sexy on her back with your head between her legs. I don't really have to have relief."
"Mmmm, please." Andy lifted her head for a second, then made Lisa-Marie gasp as she dropped it back down.
"Are you sure, Sweety? He's right, you did say you were tender and he's so big right now. You could move and he could slide back inside me, if you want that instead."
"Ummph, mmmm." Andy's head moved side to side slightly, making Lisa-Marie groan and jerk her legs, then arch her back.
"Are you sure, Honey?" Lisa-Marie muttered. "He came once. He's gonna last a long time!"
"Umm hmm!" Andy moaned as I rested a hand lightly on her rounded flank.
"He's behind you." Lisa-Marie gasped. "Last chance."
"Quit teasing." Andy lifted her head, then looked over her shoulder at me.
"You too. Screw me!" She ordered.
Lisa-Marie laughed aloud, then gasped as Andy's head dropped and shifted slightly. "Oh! No teeth, not there."
"Then, don't tease." Andy's head lifted and dropped.
"You heard her!" Lisa-Marie growled. "Fuck her! The bitch bit my clit."
I couldn't help laughing as I moved behind Andy and when I ran my hands up her sides, I could feel her giggling even while she was licking and teasing.
"It's not fucking funny, dammit. It hurt!" Lisa-Marie snapped, giggling herself.
"Well, you shouldn't tease when you're vulnerable." I snorted, leaning forward and cupping Andy's breasts lightly as they hung down.
"Mmm mmmm." She moaned softly, wriggling her bottom, almost dancing as she searched for the feel of my hardness.
"Patience, Baby." I whispered. "These two beauties need to have some attention first."
"Eww. Is he playing with your titties? He's good with titties." Lisa Marie sighed. "Don't stop what you're doing, Tom. I can feel that she likes it a lot."
"Ummph!" Andy grunted, stretching back, still moving her bottom vainly hunting the touch of my cock.
I arched my back and pressed forward, too low. I grazed her thigh. She moaned and shifted. She must have bent her knees as I pulled back, because as I lifted and pressed forward I was suddenly much too high. I slide up the crack of her butt.
"Hold still, dammit." I growled, making Lisa-Marie giggle.
"Oh, oh. Sounds like someone almost got a goose as an early St. Patty's Day gift." Lisa-Marie chuckled.
Andy giggled, but she reached back between her legs with one hand as I pulled back. When she guided me so that my glans touched her pussy, I could feel she was dripping wet and ready. I slowly pressed forward, sliding inward. She felt wonderful to me and seemed to approve of how my dick felt too. She groaned and her hips rolled to a position that made my passage easier.
"Eww, I can tell she likes that." Lisa-Marie sighed. "He's going for a double header. Here comes the first pitch, and it's a slow corkscrew curve, right over the plate too."
Andy giggled again, but now the pulses of her giggles made my slow thrust against her tightness move in little jerks. It felt great. Her giggle changed, became a soft moan.
"Oh, she really likes that." Lisa-Marie grinned and winked at me. "But, you know what? I don't know my sports very well. Perhaps he's a golfer and he's going for a hole-in-one. If he is, it's sure a long drive."
"Ohhhhh." I groaned, pausing for a second and frustrating Andy slightly. "If you're going to comment, stick to one sport."
"Oh, oh" Her voice chuckled. "The commentator disturbed him and he's dropped into a sand trap. Now, let's see if he uses a wedgie or a woody on his next stroke."
Andy jerked slightly and Lisa-Marie gasped, then grinned at us.
"Oh, there it was a short one, hard and fast. But, I didn't get a look at the club he's using folks. There was a broad's big backside blocking my view. It doesn't matter, he's almost there I think. Just a short putt or two, and there it is. He's birdied that hole or . . . did he hole that birdie? If he did, it's buried in her bush."
Andy gave up trying to munch and lifted her head, giggling openly, meanwhile I was trying to chuckle and thrust at the same time. Both of us were out of time with each other and laughing too much to concentrate on sex.
"That's it! He's got the bird in his hand and his hand in the bush. He's just plain greedy. He wants it all, but then, she wants to have her cock and eat it too, so they're a perfect match." Lisa-Marie was laughing and squirming. "Oh fuck! She's playing yellow pages now. Her fingers are doing the walking, but really, they're not walking, they're galloping . . . Ohmigod . . . Ohmigod . . . Ohmigod . . . Ohhhhh!"
I could see Lisa-Marie arch upward, then gasp and shudder in another small climax.
"There." Andy giggled. "That ought to shut her up for a minute. At least until you get all the way inside."
"Yes, Boss!" I snorted, getting my chuckles under control.
I stood up more, lifting against Andy's hips to get her into a more comfortable position. She braced herself, thrusting back against me to meet each motion, but I was pumping so hard that I was driving her forward, onto the bed and over the top of Lisa-Marie's body. Lisa-Marie tried to squirm away, but Andy grabbed her somehow. Then she was shifting too and I had to follow. Now they were lying belly to belly, breast to breast. I could feel my balls swing forward and smack against something on each stroke.
"Damn, he's hitting . . . my clit . . . with his balls." Lisa-Marie grunted.
"I know." Andy gasped back. "You're lifting up . . . against mine . . . when he bottoms . . . out, Bitch. Serves you right . . . for making us . . . laugh so much."
"Shut up and kiss me."
"Arrgh" Andy squawked just then, arching up and grinding back against my thrust, literally vibrating as she came for the first time.
"Oh shit! I felt that one." Lisa-Marie wrapped her arms around Andy and hugged her as Andy slowly eased down against her. "Wow, does my face . . . look like that . . . when I come? Damn! That is so sexy."
Her hands lifted up and pressed on either side of Andy's face, drawing her into a long kiss. I was able to carry on thrusting, grinding myself as deep as I could, slamming my pelvis against Andy's tightly clenched butt. I could feel my climax building, ready to erupt. I tried to hold off, but Andy started to moan again and as she clenched tightly around me in orgasm, it triggered my come. I spewed, deep inside her, heaving hard against her writhing, squirming body.
I pulled out, flopped to the bed, even more exhausted and even sleepier than before.
As I lay there in a lazy stupor, I realised that after a moment they were moving around, both of them were rousing and shifting as they whispered quietly. To my astonishment, they reversed themselves, then noisily began to pleasure each other in a sixty-nine while I watched. I thought it was extremely sexy, but there was no way I had the energy to join them. I satisfied myself by stroking my hand along their sides, trying to touch both of them equally.
That seemed to be a bonus for them. Lisa-Marie almost purred and Andy moaned softly each time I'd gently caress my fingertips along the side of her breast. It wasn't long before my eyes fell closed. I suppose my hand stopped moving when I fell asleep. I don't think I slept for long, but when I awakened, the two girls were wrapped around each other tightly and I was able to slip out of bed without wakening them.
I grabbed a change of clothes, slipped into the bathroom and had a quick shower. Then I went downstairs and looked out the window of the kitchen to check the weather. It looked beautiful outside and I could feel the difference in temperature even through the window.
Since I still felt a bit logy and short of rest, I wanted a caffeine boost and started a small pot of coffee, then went to the door and stepped outside. Even without winter clothes, the air felt quite warm. Two or three deep breaths later however and although it smelled and felt great, I felt a distinct chill that meant I'd better not push my luck. The new automatic coffee pot was finishing off its thing as I rounded up the bucket and some warm water to be able to do the milking.
When I had that ready, I poured a coffee, but as I opened the fridge to get cream for my coffee, my nose almost curled. The fridge smelled musty and stale, something in there was going off and I couldn't believe that Andy wouldn't have noticed it.
It smelled like rotting hay. Then a light dawned. For days I'd been wondering about what I'd forgotten to do and suddenly I realised what it was. I pulled out the vegetable crisper drawers at the bottom of the fridge and scooped out the two plastic wrapped packets of herbs that I'd hidden in there to have tested when I went back to school. They were actually green with mould. Tossing them into the garbage can, I grabbed a clean rag and went back to the fridge to wipe up the area where they'd been resting, then tossed the rag as well.
Chiding myself for my own suspicious nature at keeping the herbs to have them tested in the first place, I finished making my cup of coffee. With that in hand, I sat down at the kitchen table to glance through the various letters, notices, and bills that Lisa-Marie had picked up from the post office. Then I glanced through the small local newspaper to catch up on local news.
That woke me up. My name was mentioned twice in the local news columns. Once, for rushing Andy to the hospital when she'd had her miscarriage and a second time, for my part in the mishap that the two old ladies had suffered.
Then something in the same suspicious nature I'd just been cursing made me look through the local gossip column. I found that Lisa-Marie, Andy and I were alluded to about five separate times. We were never named, but there was never any doubt about who the writer of the column meant. We were not depicted in a flattering manner, in fact we were being tarred with a rather unpleasant brush. I found a pencil and circled each mention that alluded to any of us. Then I sat there thinking for a moment or two as I finished my cup of coffee.
Picking up a sheet of paper, I began a letter to the editor.
To whom it may concern:
My name is Thomas Silas Williams and I am new to this community. I hope to farm here and to make many friendships amongst my neighbours in the future.
I inherited the farm where I live from my deceased uncle, Silas Franklin Williams. However, although I share part of my name with that same deceased uncle, I am not him and I do not react in exactly the same manner that he did.
I plan on being a good neighbour and an ethical person while I live in this community and I believe in the golden rule. However, I also believe in truth and justice.
I believe in freedom of speech and in the free dissemination of fact. However, I am not a fan of gossip and innuendo, since I have seen the damage that small lies and minor prevarications can cause.
I believe in the law and the court system of the land. Thus, I do not intend to stand by and have either the names of those that I care for, or my own name, sullied by malicious and unfounded rumour.
I believe in giving fair warning prior to acting against such things as trespass or defamation of character. However, I also believe in the right to privacy and to respect where it is due.
I have hopes that my fiancée, my friends, and I will be treated in a fair and dignified manner and that we will be judged by the facts that our actions will prove to earn, not by the fancies of unfounded lies and innuendoes.
With due respect,
Tom Williams.
Setting the newspaper and the note aside, I sipped the last of my now cold coffee, refreshed the water in the bucket for washing the cow's udder and picked up the bucket of skim milk from the mornings milking. At the door I slipped on much less restrictive clothing than the heavier parka and coveralls I'd been forced to wear during the blizzard and stepped outside to head for the barn and the afternoon's chores.
The warm breeze from the chinook felt wonderful and feeling the snow squish underfoot instead of squeaking in protest was almost as welcome. I could smell things again too and realised that a lot of the odours that we took for granted were subdued in cold weather. As well, without the howl of the wind, you heard things, animals moving around in the barn and the corrals, the hum of the power transformer on the main power pole, the singing of the wind through the telephone and electrical wires, even the whining of a motor of some sort off in the distance. The walk to the barn was short, but actually enjoyable today.
Opening the barn door, I got greeted by the nicker of the old mare and the barking grunt of the old sow as she scrambled to her feet, knowing she'd be fed soon. Inside the barn, I hung up the bucket of warm water out of harm's way, then fed the sow her milk and ground grain to quiet her. After that I checked and saw that the cow and her new calf were doing fine. Once those immediate concerns were cared for, I proceeded to clean up the gutter and the worst mess in any of the stalls, then wheeled manure outside and into the steaming manure pile.
I'd washed the cow's udder and was well on my way to having her milked when I heard Lisa-Marie and Andy come in the door. I glanced up at them with a grin.
"Hey, you woke up." I greeted them. "Welcome back to the world of the living."
"Huh, listen who's talking." Lisa-Marie snapped back. "The last I remember of you before dozing off was a huge snore."
"Yeah, you must have sawn four or five logs before I dozed off too." Andy chuckled. "How's the new calf doing and the new Mama doing?"
"Look for yourself. As far as I can see they're fine." I nodded my head that direction. "I've decided to leave them together for tonight, perhaps even another day. We can't use the milk yet anyway."
"Is the calf feeding well?"
"She appears to be doing fine. I'm not sure if she's emptying the cow though. That remains to be seen."
"So, what's left for chores?" Lisa-Marie came back from looking at the cow and calf.
"Feeding hay to the other cow and the weaned calves, ground grain for them, as well as for the fresh cow and the chickens, oats and hay for the horses, gathering the eggs, then bedding for everything. After that, I'll run a check on the outside cattle."
"Okay, we'll do the rest of the chores in the barn while you finish the milking, then come with you when you go out to the corrals. I haven't been out there in days."
After Andy had gotten out the grain for the chickens, she paused as she was passing and grinned at me. "We noticed your penciled passages in the paper and found your letter. Are you sending that in to the editor?"
"Nope. I've decided that I'm going to consult our lawyer first about the wording of it, then I'm going to pay to have it published in slightly larger print than the print in the gossip column, but right beside it."
"Oh wonderful!" Lisa Marie crowed and broke into laughter.
Andy chuckled, then paused. "I know the gossip columnist. You could be starting a war of words."
"I'd thought of that. In that case I was thinking of starting an 'anti-gossip column' and fill it full of facts that shoot down any of the gossip that appears in the gossip column. I was thinking that I could probably find a business man or two who had been targeted by her tar brush and who would sponsor the cost of something like that. I'd write about the unfair gossip about anyone, not just about us. I was thinking of calling it 'Just the facts, Ma'am'."
"Eww, I love it!" Andy roared with laughter. "We can have Triple Dub, his Mom, and a couple of my other friends listen for all the latest gossip and you could shoot down the rumours before they get too big."
"What a marvellous idea." Lisa-Marie howled. "I'll bet the paper would print it for nothing."
"I don't want that." I smiled. "I want the freedom to be able to add reasonable opinions in the articles to back up the facts. Using loaded words in my opinions can do more than just the facts alone would."
"But how would you do that?" Andy asked.
"Okay, I'll give you an example and I'll emphasise the loaded words. I'll take us as the subjects of our 'dear friend,' the gossip columnist, and the following three statements as my coverage in my article. Rumour: It has been said that a certain farmer has begun a harem on his farm and already has two young women under his lascivious influence. Fact: Tom Williams does have two young women residing in his four bedroom home while he spends his weeks attending college. The first young woman is Lisa-Marie Carruthers, his fiancée and soon-to-be wife. The second young woman is Andrea Martin, a local girl whom Lisa-Marie befriended. She is recovering from a miscarriage similar to that suffered by Lisa-Marie's mother, who was nursed back to health by Lisa-Marie. Opinion: The Prime Minister of Canada has said that 'The government has no business in the bedrooms of Canadians.' It is our opinion that gossip columnists should have less business in any three bedrooms than the government does."
"Oh Tom, that is wonderful." Andy laughed again. "I love it."
"Hmm. Tom, I have another idea. Why don't you do things slightly differently? Why not send your letter in as a letter to the editor and wait for the gossip columnists response. Meanwhile Andy and I can perhaps hunt for a businessman that she has treated unfairly in her column and approach him about sponsoring an anti-gossip column. By next week, the gossip will be redolent with our names and we'll help you dig out the truth so you can chop off the rumours at ankles."
"Huh, we'll pull the rug right out from under the old bitch." Andy snorted. "I know just the man to approach as a sponsor. You know Charlie Wright, don't you? He owns the Feed and Seed company."
"Yeah, he's a nice guy. He sure treated me well. Are you telling me that he and the gossip columnist don't see eye to eye?"
"Oh, that's putting it mildly." Andy snorted. "Charlie was married to Phillipa Manicotti, the gossip columnist's niece and namesake. The younger Phillipa earned the nickname of Flopping Phillipa because after she was married she developed round heels. While Charlie was working his butt into the ground to get the feed and seed business into the black, she was entertaining every damn salesman who entered the feed store by flopping onto her back on Charlie's desktop to let them have a sample of her wares. When Charlie caught her at it, he kicked her out and demanded a divorce. Her aunt, the gossip columnist, did her best to ruin Charlie, but he fought her to a standstill and won the divorce case as well."
She paused for a second because we'd all been working as we talked. She was making sure that the door to the chicken's pen was shut solidly so we wouldn't have the chickens getting out and making a mess, like we'd had a few days before. Lisa-Marie and I simply waited, expecting more of an explanation.
"However, I don't think he's ever forgiven the old woman for being a malicious bitch. I think he'd run an anti-gossip column under his business name as an advertisement just to piss off the old witch." Andy chortled as she continued talking. " You know it fits too; 'Sponsored by Wright's Feed and Seed - we do things the wright way.' On top of that, since the old witch seems to love to pick on farmers and their families, I'm sure he'd just fall in love with the idea. I think he'd gain customers by sponsoring that column."
"You're probably right. It sounds to me as if he'd have lots of motivation to act as a sponsor for a column filled with truth and reasonable opinions."
"Well, if you're going to be adding opinions, you can't use 'Just the facts, Ma'am' as a byline. But, 'Just the facts and reasonable opinions' sounds a bit silly." Lisa-Marie said as we finished the chores in the barn and walked out the back door into the bright sunlight.
"I guess that's true." I admitted. "It was just a catch phrase anyway."
"Why not 'The Truth Dragnet, ferreting out 'Just the facts, Ma'am' so you can form a reasoned opinion' or something along those lines?" Andy offered.
"I like that." Lisa Marie grinned.
"Why not trim even that? It could be 'The Truth Dragnet, finding the facts, so you can form a reasoned opinion' or even 'The Truth Magnet, collecting the facts so you can make an informed opinion' which would get rid of reference to the old TV show altogether." I suggested.
"That's even better." Lisa-Marie grinned, as we leaned over the corral and watched the feeding frenzy in the corral. "By the way, those cows look like you've been starving them, Tom."
"They're making up for being lazy S.O.B.'s in the cold weather." I snorted. "I couldn't even chase them out of their shelter during the blizzard."
There was lots of feed in both the grain and hay feeders, but there wouldn't be much hay there tomorrow at the rate they were eating it, so we topped off the feeder with a few more bales of fresh hay, then we went back to the barn. I paused at the old team and patted the old mare on the rump.
"Once the weather steadies down, you two can go back outside." I spoke quietly.
She shivered a bit under my hand and blew out a snort of breath, making me laugh softly.
"What, you don't want to go back outside?" I asked the mare as Andy chuckled.
"She doesn't sound like it, Tom. I think she feels that you're treating her roughly by putting her outside."
"Well, Andy, unfortunately horse don't do well if they don't get out and walk around." I sighed.
The old mare moved over slowly in the stall, then her head swung to look at me as if she was asking me if I was nuts. Even Lisa-Marie laughed.
"I think she's about to argue with you, Tom."
"Actually, she just wants a scratch with a curry comb." I grinned as I patted her rump. "Another day, old girl, I promise. One of us will curry you down and make you feel a lot better."
The only response I got was a quiver of her skin and then her head went back to check the bottom of her feed trough to see if she'd missed even one kernel of oats.
"There are times when I swear animals talk to him." Lisa-Marie said quietly.
"They do." Andy replied, just as quietly. "It's just that they talk with their actions and their movements, often ones he probably doesn't even know he's seeing."
She could have been right, I don't know, but there had always been times when I'd felt that Dad and I had known things about the animals around us that no one else noticed. I wondered about that as we walked back to the house. Did I read the body language of the animals I looked after? Or was it something else, something primeval. I didn't have an answer.
As we stepped up onto the porch, I looked to the west and noticed that the mountains were clearly outlined by the light of the recently set sun. The sky was clear and the chinook was still blowing softly, not as warm as during the day, but still warm enough to be enjoyable.
"What are you thinking about, Tom?" Lisa-Marie asked quietly.
"Oh, just allowing my head to meander over various thoughts, none of them important." I laughed. "For instance, just now I was noticing the difference between how far I could see now during a chinook and how far I could see the other night during a whiteout."
"Oh, deep philosophical thoughts, huh?" She chuckled and hugged my arm for a few seconds. "Well, let me take that bucket of milk and I'll go separate that while Andy makes us something to eat. You can think deep thoughts or study the words of our local gossip columnist or anything you else want to do for a while. Okay?"
"Mmm." I murmured. "I don't think I want to read the gossip column right now. I'm in the wrong mood for that. Right now, I'm fairly happy with the world."
I sighed and stretched. " I don't think I want go inside quite yet though. If you two don't mind, while I've got a bit of light, I'm going to walk up to the equipment shed and check on a thing or two. I'll be only a few minutes."
"Take your time." Andy smiled. "It will be at least a half hour before I've cooked anything."
"I'll be back before that." I said flatly.
I was in a strange mood and wondered why it had come on so suddenly. Was it the change in temperature or the barometric pressure? Was it something else? For some reason I suddenly wanted to go check the equipment shed and it didn't seem reasonable.
The snow had the crunchy feel as I walked on it that it always got when ice crystals formed inside the top layer of snow as the moisture that had melted during the day froze at night. I'd often noticed that before when a chinook was blowing. It was as if the warmth of the air and the cold that had built up in the ground over the winter were battling and at night the cold retook part of the battleground it had lost during the day.
Hmmph. I was being philosophical again. Now I was giving human qualities to the ground I walked on. Wasn't it enough that I was playing Dr. Doolittle to the animals? Did I have to add the elements of nature as well? Was I anthropomorphising everything this evening for a reason? Then I chuckled at myself.
"That's a damn long word for a simple farmer, Tom. You're going to have to learn to watch your language when you're around folks or they're going to wonder about you." I lectured myself quietly. "If you start writing that column, you don't really want people to think you're showing off, especially in new surroundings. Just try to limit yourself to two or three syllable words so folks with less education can understand every word you use."
When I opened the door of the equipment shed, I smelled stale gasoline. That wasn't good. Too many fumes and when the heater came on later at night, we could have a hell of an explosion. I rolled the big door wide open to let the fumes out, then went looking for the cause of the fumes. I didn't have to look far.
The wrecked snowmobile had been slid to the place where I'd suggested it could be stored temporarily, but somehow it had rolled onto its side. The little bit of gasoline in its fuel tank was dripping out the lid of the tank and was spreading freely on the concrete floor. I grabbed a rag from the clean rag bin and wiped up what I could, then I easily rolled the wreck upright and propped it there solidly. I took the rag outside to spread it on the snow so that the gas could evaporate safely. Then I went back inside and spread cat litter on the spill to absorb as much of what was left as I could and slow the evaporation of what I hadn't wiped up. Now it was safe.
I sighed, knowing I was going to have to talk to both Willy and Triple Dub about safety. I knew Willy well enough to know how to bring up the subject, but Triple Dub was a different matter. I'd better talk to Andy and Lisa-Marie about that. Perhaps I'd even need to speak to Willy and Jean. Dammit, at the moment I disliked being the new guy in town.
At least I'd caught the problem in time, then I wondered to myself where the hunch to walk up here had come from. There wasn't one reason in the world why I'd have had a hunch to come here and check things. Not one!
It was a very sober and very puzzled individual who closed the rolling door of the equipment shed quietly and slowly crunched his way through the snow to join his loved ones for the evening.