Artifact 14: John interrogates Rusty

John can't believe Rusty when he describes the bodies at the crash site.

Artifact 14: John interrogates Rusty

 

John Thompson stood on one end of the porch wondering what had gotten into his usually brash and oft-time over-confident foreman, Rusty Young.

             “Aren’t you going to say anything about what happened out there?” John asked as he walked across the porch. He leaned up against the roof support post facing Rusty. “Obviously, the way you’re acting, something very unusual, unnerving occurred out there�"am I right?”  

            “You are right, John, but I don’t know what ‘ta say ‘bout it.”   

             “Well hell Rusty, start by telling me if you found the thingy-a-bob aircraft that wet-behind-the-ears lieutenant was talkin’ about.”

            “Oh yeah, we found it alright, but I don’t know what it was�"I didn’t see much of the crash�"can’t explain much.”

Rusty stared out across the yard a few seconds before pulling his hand out of his pocket, opened his hand, and held out the binocular caps. 

             “What are those?” John asked.

            “The caps off the lieutenant’s range lenses.”

             “Why’d you want to take those?” John asked with an incredulous edge. “Rusty, that’s just plain dumb-founded, foolish of you takin’ Army stuff�"looker caps? What in fool’s name were you thinking?” John spat on the dusty ground and gazed down at Rusty. “So what’s really the matter with you, Russell? I haven’t seen you look like this since that green mustang bronc gave you both hooves in the gut.”

             “I feel like got kicked in the gut after what I saw out there.”

            “Huh? So, what did you see?  I thought it was just a crash with no people on it.” 

             “S’posed ta be, but someone was there.”

             “You saw dead people?” 

  Meanwhile, Tab and Amos walked across the yard to hear the story of Rusty’s trip with the Army people. Rusty ignored them and instead looked up to give John ‘the eye’ and ‘the nod.’ “John, we’d better go inside�"to your office.”

            “Whatever you want, Rusty,” John said. “Tab. Amos. Why don’t you fellas go take it easy for a while?”

             The two hands looked a bit confused and gave little shrugs. Tab elbowed Amos and nodded toward the bunkhouse. Rusty stood up and slowly walked up the porch steps without a word to the other two men who just stood in the driveway watching, wondering. He shoved the binocular caps back into his pocket before going in the house carrying his hat. Mrs. Thompson was tidying up in the dining room. It was well after lunchtime, Rusty realized he had lost track of time. Melba Thompson looked up from her work and stopped. 

            “Well now Rusty!  That headache must have absolutely put you under the weather because you look terrible. You should have listened to me and taken some of my remedy.”

            “Melba! Leave the man alone, he doesn’t need to hear your harpin’ on him.”  John scolded while opening the door to his office.

            “Bless us all, what has gotten into you two men now?”

            The men didn’t say anything more to Mrs. Thompson as they went inside the office and closed the door behind them.

            “Sit in the comfortable high back Rusty, I believe you need it.”

            John pulled the other chair around to face Rusty. He pulled a cigar and matches out of his shirt pocket, put the cigar in his mouth, struck the match on his boot, and lit the cigar. In the near silence, the mantle clock ticked by a dozen seconds as the cigar smoke enveloped the room. 

            “Sorry Rusty, would you like one?” John said, holding the smoking cigar out. “I’m not the host like Melba, you know.” Rusty didn’t look up nor say anything. He only flicked his fingers downward over and over. John got the message. “Well, after whatever you’ve been through you must be parched. I have some whisky and water here.” He pointed to the liquor cabinet that Rusty had never seen the interior of.

              Rusty sat deep in the overstuffed chair with his head in his hands. His hat lay on the carpeted floor by his feet. He lifted his chin high enough to look at John.

            “Both John�"water first then a whisky straight up,” 

             John sloshed some water from a pitcher into a crystal tumbler, spilling some water on his desktop. He didn’t bother wiping it up.

            “Here you go.” He offered the glass, and Rusty drank it down in one tip.  John drew open the bottom drawer of the liquor cabinet, pulled out a half full bottle of whisky and carefully pouring this time, he filled a short tumbler to the brim. He stopped a second, then went to the cabinet to retrieve another tumbler and poured himself a whisky as well. Taking the couple steps to Rusty’s chair he offered the sitting man the whisky which Rusty accepted but didn’t drink it down. John sipped off a bit of his.

             “So what’s the matter Rusty? You ‘ve never acted like this afore�"” John let it hang there in silence. Rusty took it as a cue to open up.

              “You just can’t imagine what I saw out there.  I’ve never seen anything like that before,” Rusty said, with a wave of his hand. John saw Rusty’s emotion build in the younger man’s face. “And I pray to the good lord I never see anything like that again!”

             “Well, it musta’ been something�"awful. Take it easy and tell me all of it.”  

            Rusty tipped back his whisky and drank half of it down, but it got caught in his throat. He started coughing several times before he gained control. He rested his glass hand on his knee, wiped his lips with his sleeve, and shook his head.   

            “I don’t know if I can believe what my eyes saw.”

            “Just explain what you saw out there, Rusty. It shouldn’t be too difficult to recount the experience.”

            “I can’t explain it, it’s just too unbelievable! I can’t tell you in words that you’d believe,” Rusty said to the floor.

             “Talk sense man! Say something of substance,” John said with irritation. “If you tell me nothing, I can’t help you understand.”

            Rusty looked up and downed the rest of his whisky in a gulp; he doesn’t cough. He held his glass up to John, “You’d better drink yours down and fill them again, we’ll need it if I’m gonna’ tell you all about what I saw.” John finished his and refilled the tumblers, handing the one back to Rusty.

            “You know, John, I’ve had a tough life and always thought that anything life threw at me I could handle, but this, this proved me wrong.” He pointed outside. “What those Army soldiers carried out in that truck is unlike anything you or I have ever seen before, or even imagined.”

             “All right then, tell me,” John said impatiently. “Take your time, Rusty. Explain any way you see fit.”

            “There were bodies out there amongst the metal pieces of the crashed airplane or whatever it was I’m not sure, but there were bodies for sure. And those soldiers, the army soldiers’ reactions to what they saw were something else�"unnerving! They were shocked by what they saw, and they showed it on their faces and how they acted.”

            “Ah ha.”  John nodded his head as he sipped. “So you got to see these bodies close up when they carried them out?  Were they dead soldiers?”

            “No, no not dead soldiers. Something�"else. The Army guys wouldn’t let me get out of the jeep, and they parked in a way so I couldn’t see the crash.”

            “So, you didn’t really see them? Rusty, did you sneak some locoweed this morning? How could you see them, if they didn’t let you see them? You ain’t making much sense here, man.”

             “Oh damn it, John, listen here. They, the Army guys yelled or cried or something at first sight�"of the bodies. I didn’t know what they had seen at the time, but their voices set me to wonderin’ and needing to see what was out there. Understand?” John nodded. “I tried to see, but the windows were all dusty. Those guys kept lookin’ at the ground, but I couldn’t see anything. Then, they ran back to the truck and carried things back out to the crash.”

             “What sort of things?”

            “Like medical things, bags, stretchers, ya’ know that sort of equipment.”

            “And you heard them say there were bodies, right?”

            “Ah, no they were really hush, hush…you know talking in whispers.”

            “So you didn’t see them, ah the bodies, and you didn’t hear the army guys say there were bodies.”

            “Yes, I did see them!” Rusty said loudly and adamantly. “The first one I saw in the rear view mirror; just a glance, but the body looked strange�"really strange!” Rusty paused to look at his whiskey. “I then happened on the idea of looking at the mirror with that youngster lieutenant’s binoculars.”

             “Hmmm, that’s smart. But did it work?”

             “Yeah, it worked all right.” Rusty tipped up his whisky to in front of his lips. “Just a second or so, I saw a body on the stretcher.”

             “And so you saw�"?” 

             “What I saw I’ll never forget! Like nothing you or I ever saw! I saw something no one should ever see!  It, it is so because those, those things were no folks like us.” He held up his glass. “Just plain awful, John! They were gray and skinny, all over boney!” Rusty tossed back the whiskey with a grimace.

            John pondered this a moment and then pointed to Rusty. “Maybe they were pilots or something and got stuck way up in outer space in that airplane thing and died and froze or something.” John said, trying to reason it out.

            “No way, John!” Rusty pounded his knee. “This man�"thing�"its head was big and round, no hair at all, and had creepy eyes; big, black, oval eyes. I never saw no kind of people like that!”

             “Maybe they were china men or somebody foreign like that.”

            “NO!” Rusty yelled, slamming his glass down on the desk. He slowly stood up and looked around rather embarrassed of his outburst.

            “Sit down, sit down old friend.” John offered to help Rusty down with a hand on the shoulder. Rusty stared at the carpet and took a breath. A couple times John thought Rusty would start up again, but he didn’t�"not right away. John patiently waited.

“What else do you remember Rusty?” John asked quietly and calmly.

Rusty looked at John with an expression he had never seen in his hired man. Rusty began again. “And, and they had no ears just holes where ears ought to be.”

            “Their faces, then were like no other foreign sort of people?”

            “No, I said!”

            “Maybe some kind of part animal or maybe like an elf or fairy or…”

            “John, stop it,” Rusty sharply said. “Something horrible happened out there with those strange, men�"beings, and the Army knows it, but they don’t want anyone else knowing it. That lieutenant said that! They don’t want anybody to find out about what’s out there. They told me to stay away and tell the army if anyone comes ‘round snoopin’. YOU HEARD HIM�"prison!” He calmed. “He warned me�"us�"and that’s the US Army talkin’!”

            The clock ticking was the only noise for a few minutes as John seemed to finally comprehend what Rusty had told him. He took a deep breath and looked at Rusty.          “How ‘bout we go back out there and take a look?” John calmly suggested. “It IS on MY property after all.”

            “But what about the lieutenant’s threats?” Rusty said, sitting up straight. “And besides, John, the bodies are gone, they took the bodies with ‘em.”

             “Maybe something else is there that’ll tell the tale,” John said as he looked at the clock that showed quarter past three in the afternoon. “How far out is it?”

            “Just beyond well number thirteen.” 

            “Far enough. How ‘bout we take the truck?”

             “I don’t know; I might be more comfortable on my horse.”

             “I understand, but what if we find something?”

             “But the army soldiers, they’ll know.”

            “Maybe later, but I doubt they’ll find us out there if we go soon.” With an extended thought, John said, “Rusty, we need to figure this out because this is something big and people SHOULD KNOW!” John firmly said. He stood. “Rusty, we’ll take the truck and take a real good look.”   

             “Sure thing boss. Maybe we can find some evidence to prove the Army is doing something they’re not supposed to be doing.” Relieved to share the burden of unbelievable and prohibited knowledge, Rusty leaned back in the leather chair with it crinkling with his weighty thoughts.