He Who Lets The Cows Escape
By Joshua Packard

 

Mr. Hinnep looked doubtful at the kid leaning against the stable, who proclaimed to have finished his work early.

 

“And ya got the pens washed too, have ya?” He asked.

 

“Yes, Mr. Hinnep.” The boy said.

 

“And the sheep shaved? How ‘bout the corner fence all up ‘n ready?”

 

“Yes sir, it’s all taken care of.” Ralph, the boy, said smiling, knowing the farmer would be satisfied with his work.

 

“Alright kid, that’s a good job then. And you’re here the rest of the night while the boys and I go out, correct?”

 

Ralph nodded, not particularly pleased with that aspect of his work, but knew it would be simple and quiet work, which he enjoyed. He was tired from the long, hot day of working in the stables, and (if he had to work) somewhat looked forward to the cool, breezy night ahead of him. The farmer was to be away, and his job would be to tend the livestock and supervise them until the morning. A simple enough job--provided the lay person not know Mr. Hinnep well at all. He was a strict, elderly man, who preoccupied himself with tedious tasks and an unwavering work ethic which he passed down onto his employees–Ralph especially. No one ever dared to question him, nor did they ever complain. After all, they were getting paid to do their jobs, and most assumed it was all he had to ruminate over with no wife or kids.

 

When the man left, Ralph did as he was told: tending the livestock, and monitoring for stray coyotes who desired to ambush them. The majority--350 to be exact--of the lot were cows owned by the city. At one point in time, the city was low on money at the time, and the decision to transfer all cows into one section of land and sell the remaining farmlands seemed appropriate. This of course, provided the city’s boys excellent opportunities for farmhand jobs.

 

He fixed himself a plate of food left out for him by Hinnep, and sat on the porch to watch the sunset descend over the nearby hills, recalling how the farmer once kept him for three consecutive days, recleaning and re-bleaching a horse stall that did not fit his strict standards. He’d done hard work for the man, but it had made him a hard kid in return, and for that he was grateful. He watched and contemplated for a few hours, until eventually accidently falling asleep. When he awoke, dawn had not quite yet risen. Neglecting his duties, he quickly transferred the cows, fed them, and went off to his house to get ready for school. To his mistake, however, and unbeknownst to him, was the small yet important failure of locking the gate behind him

.

When the farmer returned, he noticed immediately that the cows were missing. Upon looking for Ralph, and to no avail, he then went out in search of them himself. Of the few he found, all were dead. Most likely caused by snakes or wolves, but remains a mystery even to this day. The rest, he figured, had succumbed to the same fate or were horribly lost. Shortly afterwards, and with great reluctance explaining the situation to the various owners of the cows, the man quickly fell into eventual bankruptcy. Outraged by this, Mr. Hinnep ran to his city hall, barged the doors open, and demanded to speak with the mayor.

 

Now it was, incidentally, that precise moment when the mayor was in a meeting with another rancher. This one however, was a very wealthy farmer from Nevada, who was on the brink of signing a crucial deal with the city. A deal, which would also include donating a great deal of cattle, thereby producing a generous amount of income for the town. The rancher wished to hold his cattle there during the winter months. Yet, when overhearing that the city’s only farmer had lost all of its cows, the rancher suddenly rejected the offer and left annoyed.

 

At that point, both Hinnep and the mayor were, needless to say, beyond panicking: the farmer, being upset at his bankruptcy, and the mayor as having already completed numerous extravagant city projects with money that was to be repaid on the failed deal. Knowing the city essentially no longer had any money via the selling of the cows and their meat, and having nowhere else to turn to, the two drove to Ralph’s house, where they promptly questioned him about the cattle.

 

He was confused, as he thought surely, he must’ve locked the gate. This did not settle well with the farmer, however, who lashed out at the boy, cursing at him, and even trying to hit him. Seeing this, the mayor began berating the kid, as well. His parents, seeing this, quickly shut the door on them. They themselves, although angry, did not scorn the boy nearly as much and sent him off to school as usual.

 

When he got to school, he had forgotten about the morning’s matter. He sat at a table with his friend Isabelle, getting lunch, and discussing the strangeness of meeting the mayor so informally and unexpectedly. The lunch itself was even odd, as well. The food being only half the portion sizes as normally served.

 

“Mr. Hinnep and the mayor came to my house this morning.” Ralph told her, knowing it’d spark her interest.

 

“Oh yeah? Why was that?”

 

“I’m not sure exactly. They asked if I had forgotten to shut a gate behind me when I was working there last night. I don’t know what could be so important to have the mayor with them, though. At any rate, I was sure I did.”

 

“That is weird,” she replied, “maybe some cows escaped, and they were the mayor’s?”

 

“Perhaps, I suppose you’re probably right. I feel bad, if that is what it was.”

 

“You shouldn’t feel bad, it was just an accident.” She commented, trying to make him feel better.

“I suppose.” Ralph picked at his food, “Hey! Did you still want to go to the docks tomorrow?”

 

By now the bell had rung and the kids were instructed to return to their classrooms. This too, unusual, as it would generally ring later.

 

“That sounds like fun, let’s do it.” She said, as her last words before walking away.

 

In the classroom, a war began to break out. The teacher was absent, and without one to keep order, the students were free to do as they pleased. One suggested they simply leave; another speculated as to what could’ve happened to her; and others who told the class to behave as though they were the teachers themselves. Even Ralph--being the kid he was--chose shenanigans, until one student looking out the window decried what would be in hindsight a fearful message to the class.

 

“Look! The teachers, they’re walking out!”

 

When Ralph looked, the words were indeed true. The majority of the staff was angrily marching out of the school--appearing as if they were striking, due to their no longer getting paid. Soon, a principal’s announcement echoed through the intercom. He told the students to remain calm, and wait patiently for their teachers. Doing as they were told, they waited until the end of the school day, where they likewise left. All were either forced to walk or drive personally, as the buses mysteriously failed to show. Ralph walked along the street towards his home, where he was confronted with the sight of frantic people crowding the city hall.

 

Some were calm; but most had the looks of savages on their faces. Those with government-paid jobs scorned the mayor for the city’s inability to pay them. Consequently, store and local business owners ridiculed them for no longer purchasing their products. Only a percentage of the city’s people gathered, but all could be seen peering out of their windows. Many joining without hesitation.

 

This sight scared the boy (knowing he was the cause), and he swiftly rushed the rest of the way. Yet his house was to be no less spiteful. When he entered, he saw his parents in the kitchen--viciously screaming at one another over the loss of their jobs. When Ralph’s mother noticed him, her scowl instantly turned in his direction. She began insulting him, and describing how the chaos was his fault for not shutting the gate. This brought him to tears, and he indeed felt entirely helpless about the situation. Around her, he could then see his father angrily break a wooden broom in half in the distance. Ralph quickly ran out the door, fearful of what his father would do next.

 

It was now in the evening, and the street was wrought with shadows and utter chaos. All of the city’s people had now come from their houses and rioted, to say the least. The city hall was in flames, and cars were being smashed, beaten, and flipped over, due to the people having no more money or the ability to buy and sell. Having nowhere to turn to, Ralph ran to Isabelle’s house in hopes of not being caught. He knew she would not be mad, but the same could not be said with the rioters. On his way, Mr. Hinnep--who now looked to be a terribly torn, animalistic, and desperate man--spotted him, and screamed to the hungry crowd that Ralph was the boy who let the cows escape. Like packs of wolves and snakes, they began to chase after him.

 

Even so, he managed to make it to her home, and frantically rushed through the door. When he entered, he saw Isabelle with her grandfather. They hugged each other, and she went on to explain that her parents, too, had joined the frenzy; but her grandfather had not, and felt sympathy for Ralph’s mistake. For the fact she had not turned against him, he was happy, but rushed her that they must leave. At the same moment, the mob broke into the house and, like the beasts of the field they were, tore the boy from them, including any valuables on his person. As they stormed out with him, she stood at the doorway crying, while her grandfather simply sat and stoked a fire, apparently without fear of the savages. They threw the boy onto a large platform in the dark street and wrapped a noose around his neck.

 

“Grandpa! Please do something! You can stand up for him against the crowd and say otherwise!” She yelled.

 

“Listen Isabelle,” he explained calmly, “if I did, they would certainly kill me. Changing nothing.”

 

“That’s why nothing changes!” She screamed. “Everyone, like you, has that same mindset. You’re afraid to confront them.”

 

“Would you go do it then?” He asked.

 

She looked down at the ground in tears and silence, softly shutting the door to the scene of Ralph being hanged outside.

 

Joshua Packard from U.S. is a college undergraduate at Western Washington University majoring in English Professionalism and Creative Writing and Journalism. He has three stories, four novellas, and one novel published.