The Lie Behind the Postcard - We was brothers
Charles Humphrey was born in Texas in 1935 and was married in 1960 with Eve Leibowitz, they had six kids: Ellen, Charles Jr., Mary, Anna, Eva and Luis each of them were completely different from their parents. Charles and Eve Humphrey bought a ranch nearby Riverton on 1980 and started a cow and calf operation. Everything worked as they wanted, the money they got was enough to pay their kids college until their last son went to college in 1989.
It was a horrible time fort them, he spent almost twenty thousand dollars that year; their parents were forced to fired some of their employees. Ennis was one of their employee and Mr. Humphrey saw that he was a great worker not only in strength he was also wise. He found in him a friend and sometimes he asked him for some advises, but Charles saw Ennis loyalty when his wife Eve died of breast Cancer.
“Ennis I just don’t know, I can’t stand being without Eve I can’t” cried Mr. Humphrey to Ennis after a week of her death.
“Mr. Humphrey, I know what is to loose someone it hurts lots but you must remember how much she love ya’ and that she won’t like you bein’ like this” he told to him while Mr. Humphrey was looking the resting cows that he have.
“Ennis is just it is so damn hard!” Mr. Humphrey cried.
“It is going to sound hard what I’ll say jus’ now but when ya’ can’t fix it, ya’ got a stand it” he told to him putting his hand on Mr. Humphrey back.
Since that day Mr. Humphrey stood the situation he always remembered Eve but he decided to not cry. But the death of his wife affected his son Luis who spent lot’s of money in gambling and parties. He forced his father to sell the ranch when he put his neck in a $100,000.00 debt.
“Ennis, I don’t get what happened to Luis but I just sold this ranch which for 10 years was my home. Anna, Eva and Luis were born here and we need leave now!” he told him while drank a bottle of whiskey.
“Things will get better for ya’, trust me! Where ya’ will go?” Ennis asked.
“To Texas, I have an old folk there Randall Malone, haven’t seeing him in ages but I would buy some lands there and if I need something or a new foreman or I heard someone needing one, I’ll call ya’ “Mr. Humphrey told to him.
“Thanks, but I’m not the travelin’ kind, I’ll like to stay here I don’t like Texas, bad memories come to my mind” he told his Ex boss.
“Well, you can always change your mind, here is my new number. Drop me a call in about a month!” Mr. Humphrey told him and went to his house. Two weeks later he and his kids move out to Texas.
Ennis heard that Mr. Humphrey and his kids move out to Childress and started again the cow and calf operation but this time he make Luis to help the workers to teach him a lesson.
Two weeks had passed since that day when his daughter call him a monster and a sick man, he hadn’t return to Riverton city, he was feeling ashamed because everyone at he hospital listened that fight.
“Jack, I just wish to die soon and be with ya’” he said while he was drinking whiskey on a chair outside his trailer he was looking the sky. He was thinking that would be hard now to find a new job. Alma and Kurt offered him to move out with them, Ennis Jr. and Francine, his grandkids, begged him to live with them. But since they lived in the city he felt that he was unable to face them. He was afraid of the tire irons.
Ennis was looking the road when a 1987 Chevrolet truck appeared in the road he knew this car, he smiled it was K.E. his older brother that was coming to see him. He hasn’t seeing his brother for almost eight years when for some reason K.E. and his sister stop coming to visit him. The car parked in front of his trailer. Ennis smiled when he saw K.E. coming out of the truck, Ennis was like a mirror image of his older brother, except that Ennis was blonde and K.E. had brown hair, he was wearing a gray hat and a blue squares shirt and black pants.
Ennis ran to hug his brother but K.E. stood there looking at him, Ennis was not able to see that K.E. was squeezing his fists and his eyes were filled of anger and hate.
“Jesus H! K.E. long time! What’ya doin’ here!” smiled Ennis, but K.E. didn’t answer just stood there without saying a word.
“Ya’ know bro’ I missed you lots” Ennis told his brother with some tears on his eyes.
K.E. spitted his tobacco to the floor and he hugged Ennis and when he was doing that he pulled back his right hand and he hit in the stomach Ennis taking the air of him.
“Fucking Queer! Don’t ya’ dare to call me Brother!” K.E. yelled kicking Ennis on the face.
Ennis fell in the floor without air trying to move toward his trailer, but K.E. kick him in the stomach.
“Ya’ thought that I didn’t know it! Ya’ are a shame for us, mom and dad should be now burning in him ‘cause of ya’” yelled K.E. taking Ennis through his shirt and hitting him on the face again.
“What’ya talkin’ about?” cried Ennis trying to stand up but K.E. kick him again.
“What I mean? Ya’re queer I knew that years ago! Aguirre told me what ya’ did on Brokeback! And Alma told me ‘bout those fishing trip” he yelled with the rage in his eyes.
“K.E. please stop this! Listen ya’re my brotha’” Ennis told him he was forcing himself to not to fight with his brother.
“Ya’ no brother of mine! I have no brother! I have no queer in my family!” he yelled. And kicked Ennis face causing his nose to bleed.
Ennis saw the blood on his face and his rage increased, he got a flash back about the way he thought Jack was killed.
“Ya’ are going to cry for your life? Like yer queer lover?” K.E. asked
“What’ya said?” yelled Ennis, how K.E. knew that Jack cried before getting killed?
“Ya’ just heard me, are ya’ goin’ to cry like that queer ya’ used to fuck with..or maybe he fucked you I don’t care! I still remember his face when he realized what was goin’ to happen but I was not goin’ to let him to soil my dad last name!” K.E. yelled, but he was not prepared for what came next, Ennis went for him and with a 1, 2, 3 K.E.’s jaw was covered by his own blood and his ribs were broken. Ennis was kicking out his brother’s ass.
“How can ya’ do that to him! Ya’ don’t know how important he was for me!” Ennis cried while he was hitting his brother face to the floor. K.E. kicked Ennis down there and he fell down to the floor with then he kicked his face! And Ennis was now in the floor. He was trying to stand up he need to take his revenge for Jack.
“Ya’ don’t know what ya’ saying! I did a favor for ya’! Ya’ should thank me! I save ya’ ass! That Twist was doing badly to you and I need o get rid of his influence!” K.E. yelled at him and he went quickly before Ennis stand up and enter to his car and power it on and yelled “But if ya’ want to be dead, I’ll warn ya’ that I’ll would prefer you to be death before having a queer in my family” and he went back at the road leaving Ennis crying in the floor his brother his own brother was the one that used the tired iron against Jack. His own blood was the one that stop his only happy moments of his life, and he told him that he would kill him also. Ennis felt that he was not going to live any longer.