Matt Jensen, The Last Mountain Man by William W. Johnstone

Author:William W. Johnstone
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corp.
Published: 2013-03-21T04:00:00+00:00

Matt waited until they were back at Smoke’s cabin in the Gore Range before he spoke to Smoke.

“Smoke, I’ve been thinking,” Matt said. “I’m eighteen now and . . .”

“You want to go off on your own,” Smoke said, finishing Matt’s sentence for him.

Matt nodded. “Yeah,” he replied. “Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t that I don’t like it here. You saved my life. More than that, you gave me a life. I’ve lived here nearly as long as I’ve ever lived anywhere, and, I reckon, for the rest of my life when I think of home, why, this is the place I’ll be thinking of. But—it’s just that . . .”

Smoke smiled. “You don’t have to explain anything to me, Matt. It wasn’t all that long ago that I was eighteen. And I was hell-bent to go out on my own as well. Truth is, if you weren’t anxious to go—well, I might just be thinkin’ I’d done something wrong in your upbringing.”

“I’m glad you understand,” Matt said.

“When are you leaving?”

“I thought I’d get started this morning.”

Smoke nodded. “Seems about as good a time as any,” he said. “Looks like you’ll have good traveling weather for the next several days. You’ll keep in touch, won’t you?”

“I’ll have to,” he said. “You’re all the family I’ve got.”

Smoke nodded, but said nothing.

“Smoke, there’s one more thing I want from you,” Matt said.

“You can have it.”

“You haven’t asked what it is.”

“It doesn’t matter what it is,” Smoke said. “If I have it, and you want it, then you can damn sure have it.”

“When I first came here, you asked me what my last name was.”

“Yeah, I recall.”

“I didn’t tell you.”

“Yeah, I recall that as well.”

“The thing is, you never asked me again.”

“I figured your last name was your business,” Smoke said.

“Only, now it’s your business as well.”

“What do you mean?”

“That’s what I want from you, Smoke. If you don’t mind, I’d like to take your name and use it as my own. I’d like the right to call myself Matt Jensen from here on out.”

Smoke blinked a few times in surprise, then got up and walked over to look out through the window at the meadow by the cabin, the meadow where he had taught Matt to shoot, and ride, and use a rope and a knife.

“Smoke?” Matt said, addressing Smoke’s back. “Smoke, if you don’t want me to take your name, well, I’ll surely understand. It’s just that . . .”

“Matt, I would be honored for you to take my last name,” Smoke said.

“You sure you don’t mind?”

“Mind? I told you, I’d be honored. In fact, I can’t think of anything that would honor me any more than to think of you using my last name.”

“Thanks, Smoke. I appreciate that. I really do.”

“You’re welcome,” Smoke replied as he continued to stare through the window. He didn’t turn around, because he didn’t think it would be good for the kid to see tears in his eyes.

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