Winter In The Blood

Teresa and Lame Bull return after three days. They are “sweaty and hung over” and wearing nice, new clothing (10). They announce that they got married in Malta and the family celebrates by getting drunk in the kitchen together.

The narrator reflects on the economic gains Lame Bull made by marrying Teresa:

Lame Bull had married 360 acres of hay land, all irrigated, leveled, some of the best land in the valley, as well as a 2000-acre grazing lease. And he had married a T-Y brand stamped high on the left ribs of every beef on the place. And, of course, he had married Teresa, my mother. At forty-seven, he was eight years younger than she, and a success. A prosperous cattleman. (10)

The morning after the couple returns, Lame Bull and the narrator get up early. They drive the tractor and wagon upriver to Lame Bull’s cabin, where they retrieve his possessions and lock up the house. On the way back they see the cow and her calf, separated by the fence; the cow is licking the calf’s head. In the distance, the narrator sees Old Bird, one of the family’s older horses.