6 Chapter 05

Chelseaville February 1975

Hope narrowed her eyes at the ranch outstretched in front of her and fixed them on Harrison as she tried to catch his attention.

Harrison never saw anyone by the ranch, specially girls, except on January twentieth, when the town belles paraded in front of the fence with low gazes and giggles, a homemade ritual by the belles for the eve of St. Agnes, which Harrison thought was a relief for the workers until they attempted to do more than just observe, and create chaos. Hence he gladly avoided such occasions of heavy crowds which was a bit much for his tastes. So, when he noticed a dark copper haired girl leaning against the fence, all by herself, he knew something was going to make his day better.

With a low smile on his face, he got up from his porch steps and headed towards the white wooden fence, but as he got closer did he begin to outline the features of Hope Mayfield, and his smile dropped flatly. Harrison had begun to believe if a Mayfield was lurking anywhere close to a Crawford it was bad luck. Unable to turn away now that she had spotted him and was evidently determined to seek his assistance, he cursed lightly under his breath and reached the fence.

"What can I help you with Hope Mayfield?" he asked flatly, standing a few inches away from the fence on his side.

"Harrison," she nodded her head with a brief smile. She never understood the feud between her folks and the Crawfords, and she was certain that she was not going to instigate any of her own. "I know this is an abrupt request, but I'm in desperate need for a bale of hay, you see my grandpa Joe—

"Your old grandpa Joe is headlining the festival, Hope. He doesn't need my help." Harrison interjected ruthlessly.

"I-I know, but he really is in need of one bale and he's very stubborn too, but he'll never have to find out I asked help from the Crawford ranch. I'll return the favour!" Hope said casually, but he heard the desperate urgency in her voice. He stepped closer to the fence and bent lower to her ear, while Hope remained still, unnervingly.

"You do know that's treacherous right?" He asked, his eyes looking over her tiny stature.

"Is it, Harrison?" She looked right up at him, which he did not expect, making him step back.

"Well I don't believe in this feud, because it's stupid, so I say no, I don't think it's treacherous." She continued and shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and as she did, Harrison noticed her oversized lemony sweater slip down one of her shoulders, but she was not aware of it. His eyes reverted to her denim skirt that ended near her knees, which had a mimosa leaf tangled at the skirt's hem and her usual worn out muddy boots covering her feet. Harrison had heard from the townsfolk about Hope's wild journeys in the river and forest and god knew where - she was the sweet wild child the town could never get enough of and he was simply tired of hearing about the "spirit of the town".

He shook his head and looked back at her, who was waiting patiently with a hopeful beam on her face that made her grey violet eyes sparkle. Harrison wavered for a second at the glimmer in her eyes, he knew the one thing he could not deny about Hope was her exceptional beauty, specially her eyes that rippled like pools of elixir. He knew half the town could not resist Hope, and he didn't even blame them.

"I can't help you Hope," he said with a straight face and Hope's face drained instantly to one of loss, which almost made him bend.

"Wh-what do you mean you can't?" She asked.

"I don't have to negotiate with the Mayfields- I don't allow myself to," he said sternly and turned to walk away.

"You know Harrison Crawford, for a grown rancher, you have quite the reigns holding you back." She said with a surprising smirk on her face and Smitty, a ranch helper, who was just then taking a horse out to the paddocks muffled a laugh at Hope's words.

Harrison stopped in his tracks. The last thing he wanted was to be trashed by a Mayfield girl in front of his own workers. He turned and walked back up to the fence, and when he bent down towards her she saw the fire in his eyes, but she didn't stir, because she was aware of Harrison's infamous temper that had apparently saved the town on many occasions.

"I'm guessin' that sunshine of a smile was just to make my knees weak huh?" He asked clenching his jaw.

"So, it's true what they say," she laughed, a soft musical one that was infectious, "with your temper- you are fit to be tied!"

He withdrew feeling stupid that he had walked into her trap and donned on a calming exterior realising the girl was incorrigible.

"You best leave Hope, we're done."

"Oh, come on Harrison! It's just a bale of hay, why are you being so arrogant?"

"Don't start on me Mayfield," he warned her calmly and began to walk away without a glance, but Hope didn't back away, instead she stepped onto a ledge of the fence and reached his height while gripping onto the topmost ledge with her hands.

"Or what Harrison? Are you going to start a ranch warfare with my daddy?!" Her voice rose and when he turned back frustrated, her tone lowered as if to a comforting tone, "You know the feud, if there is even one, is madness as much as I do."

"I don't think I do."

"Yes, you do," she said pitifully

"Right," he scoffed and looked at her with mock interest, "what makes you think so Hope?"

Hope was still standing on the ledge.

"I see it in your eyes Harrison," she said slowly, her voice lowered to a silvery whisper, it almost felt like a breeze against his ears, " you don't have to do this, I refuse to believe there's a war between our families. It will be there as long as we fuel it and give it life."

Harrison did know why he decided to listen to her, but it could not be avoided. He felt a light tug in his chest after she had uttered the words, but what nerved him was Hope's resistance—the fact that she was willing to see through this feud that had been boiling for months on end, without a rational base, touched a corner of his rugged heart. But as he had trained himself to stop giving into sentimental drivel, that feeling seeped back away to wherever it came from.

"You are way over your head, Hope, maybe steer clear off the wild until you get a tinge of reality hm?" He said and walked away. He did not realise how much it hurt Hope to hear him say something cruel. She leapt off the fence and walked after him. When he heard hurried steps after him he swivelled around in surprise to find Hope, without a fence separating them and before he could even let out his remark of awe Hope intervened.

"You'll do anything to keep yourself in wouldn't you? Even say the most horrible things." She said her voice slightly shaky, but pitiful.

Harrison's eyes focused on hers as the words struck like icicles into his chest.

"Alright Hope, I'm sorry," he said as if for her benefit, "I truly am. Now, leave would you?"

She stood there looking at him sadly, and it bothered Harrison much more than he thought. The more her grey violet eyes looked at his, glinting in the afternoon sun, the more he felt her seeing something in him he was trying to hide. A vague feeling of vulnerability and exposure crawled up him and instead of turning him white with fury as it usually would, his anger dissipated or was lost to a new found feeling of fear while his feet remained stuck to the ground unable to move. And as he stood there, to his amazement the fear was overlapped by a sweet second of relief that washed over him as her eyes continued to lock his. Hope walked up closer to him and he stood still frozen, feeling stupid and lost at the same time.

"I know you didn't mean what you said, but it's not so bad to say things you really mean too." She said in her calming voice and smiled at him. But he did not return it, because as confusing as it all was, it bothered him that she thought she could read him as if she knew anything.

"I don't need your pity Hope." He said with great effort and looked at the ground the moment he said it as if snapping out of a trance.

"I'll have Smitty send a bale over to Joe's." he said not looking at her and walked away fast only to spin around, a sudden guilt creeping up his face. "I—I really am sorry for what I said before."

She smiled reassuringly.

"I know."

Harrison nodded his head and headed towards the cottage. The instant he reached inside and close the cottage door behind him, it dawned upon him that his mind had been a constant loop of Hope all the way from the fence to the cottage. He thought he was the only one that day to feel utterly defeated, but he was wrong, because while he walked around in his cottage, feeling as if he had had been spun within a tornado, Hope gazed across the lush green field of the ranch that was now tinted with the afternoon sun, a similar feeling of awe fluttering against her chest. As they floated in their corroborative emotions, neither was aware of the limitless dive they were about to take in a future that was not so far away.