Special Edition: Twirl

Thank you for coming back after my long list of confessions yesterday. I'm surprised you're not saturated with pink glittery duckiness after all that.



Like this.

And before I forget, did everyone see the new date of the Fuzzy Duck and her lovely Rubber Chicken?



A little birdie told me they're going on another date this week...

Get it? A little birdie? Moving on...

Tomorrow it's award season here at the Pond! You might win something!

But since you're here now, why not check out the special edition of Twirl? Since my mother threatened my life if I didn't tell everyone what was in the envelope (I got a BIG lecture Wednesday night), I'm going to tell you.

Right now.

For the previous edition of Twirl, go here. For archives, go here and here.


And if you're desperate to know what Twirl's about or want your own rough (very rough) copy of the developing story so far, e-mail me.
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"The Dance Hall Dreamers?" Wade asked, scratching his chin. He smiled up at Hilda as she plopped down a heavy plate full of brisket, coleslaw, potato salad and beans in front of him.

"Is that a band?" Vivi asked. She thanked Hilda as the pigtailed 50-year old woman sat down the biggest sandwich she'd ever seen. She gulped as Hilda handed her a piece of pie the size of her head.

The sheriff refused to say a word until after Hilda had left. Leaning closer to the table, his eyes glittered with excitement.

"The Dance Hall Dreamers is an old legend," he whispered, his eyes daring back and forth as waitresses and diners swirled around them. "It's been almost forgotten over the years, except by old folks and historians."

He took a bite of brisket and chewed slowly. Vivi stared as he gummed the glob of meat.

"And?" she cried, shaking her hands with frustration. "What's the legend?"

The sheriff swallowed and gulped down some tea. Wiping his mouth on the back of his hand, he leaned back over their plates. It took all Vivi's willpower not to grab him by the collar and shake him.

"Back in the early 1900s, a few of the outlaws from the Old West were still hanging around," the sheriff drawled. "Of course, things were changing. Thieves couldn't just take over a town on horseback, and that's where Bullet Bill came into play."

"Bullet Bill!" Wade exclaimed, slapping the table. "I remember this story now! My grandpa told it to me."

"Keep your voice down," the sheriff hissed. "You don't want folks knowing we're talking about this!"

"Why?" Vivi asked.

The sheriff rolled his eyes and stabbed his brisket with a fork. "I'm trying to tell you!" he snarled.

"You're telling me about as fast as a turtle swimming in a river of molasses!" Vivi snapped. "Just tell us what it is!"

Smearing barbecue sauce across his reddened cheek, the sheriff shifted in his chair and resumed his tale. "Well, back then a huge wave of Czech and German immigrants flocked to Texas, particularly here in the Hill Country. Towns were booming, stores were opening and the pioneer days weren't over yet. Bullet Bill realized the smartest thing to do would be to pose as a German settler traveling with his brothers, rather than another gang of outlaws. He went from town to town. Families would welcome him in and he would earn their trust over a few weeks, gaining access to their businesses and homes. In the middle of the night, he'd strip them of all their cash and valuables and be gone by morning, leaving as many as fifty families devastated and destitute."

"Why did they call him Bullet Bill?" Vivi asked. "And what does this have to do with the Dance Hall dreamers?"

"I'm getting there," the sheriff snapped. "Damn Wade, is she always like this?"

"We're both eager to hear the rest of the tale, sheriff," Wade murmured, sopping up some barbecue sauce with a slice of white bread. "If you'd continue."

The sheriff took a bite of coleslaw and continued. "Well, one day Bullet Bill and his gang came up on a real itty bitty town. Even for Texas at the time, it was small, but full of German families. Only this time, the mayor had a gorgeous 17-year-old daughter named Adelaide. Everyone called her Addy. She had long blond wavy hair, big blue eyes and"-- The sheriff cleared his throat and his cheeks colored. He looked at Vivi and mummured, "--a good figure."

Vivi rolled her eyes.

"Anyway," the sheriff drawled, "Bullet Bill never knew what hit him. For the first time in his life, he wanted to go clean. He took one look at Addy and knew that he wanted to marry her. He waited until the night of the spring dance at the local dance hall to approach her. The legend says they danced all night until the early hours of the morning, just smiling and laughing. That same morning, he asked her father if he could marry her."

"What did he say?" Vivi asked, her eyes wide.

"He said no," the sheriff replied. His spoon scraped against his bowl of beans. "Still, Bullet Bill didn't give up. He took Addy dancing every weekend. During the week, he worked at a general store and made plans to build a house. His gang was convinced it was a massive scheme, and were furious when Bullet Bill told them it was over. He split the stolen goods evenly and basically told them to get out of dodge. He wanted a clean life with Addy. You can imagine how his gang felt."

"Well, after a few months, the mayor warmed up to Bullet Bill and gave his consent. A summer wedding was planned, and the whole town helped build their house. The barn was set to hold the greatest dance anyone had ever seen. It was all anyone could talk about."

"The night before the wedding, Bullet Bill's old gang went to the mayor and told them about Bullet Bill's past. They convinced him that Bullet Bill was going to marry Addy, strip her family and the town of its wealth and abandon her. The mayor was furious and ordered Bullet Bill arrested that night. When Addy heard of the plans, she hopped on horseback and rode to tell Bill about what was happening."

"Bullet Bill wanted to do the right thing and talk to the sheriff, but Addy refused. She knew of her father's powerful connections. So Bill ran into the night, taking all his wealth with him."

The sheriff paused to drink his tea.

"That's it?" Vivi exclaimed. "That's horrible! What a terrible story!"

"I'm not done yet," the sheriff snapped, setting his tea glass down with a clang. "Dang girl, hold your horses. I had to water my voice." Clearing his throat, he resumed the story. "Well, a few months passed and most people forgot about Bullet Bill. His gang moved on to other towns and everything returned to normal, except for Addy. Her heart was broken. Several men wanted to court her, but she wanted nothing to do with them. They say she spent all her nights in the dance hall, staring at the door waiting for Bullet Bill to return.

"One night, she went to the building that would have been their house. Tacked inside to a wall was a letter. You can imagine how surprised she was to see it was from Bullet Bill. In the letter, he told her he had made friends with a postman who would drop off letters for them at secret hiding spots. If she still loved him and wanted to marry him, they would find a way to be together. He told her the next letter was hidden in the old dance hall, and it would tell her how to find the money he'd left her so she could travel to him."

"Is that what's in the envelope?" Vivi exclaimed.

The sheriff slid the envelope out of his pocket. "It's a letter," he said, tapping the yellowed envelope. "But I don't know what it says."

"Why not?" Vivi burst out.

"It's in German," Wade guessed. "They probably wrote in German to keep other people from reading, right?"

The sheriff nodded. "And it's old style German, which makes it harder to translate. I'm going to see an old historian that thinks she can translate it for me. You're more than welcome to come."

Vivi nodded and Wade grinned. "So what's the big deal about a letter? Why are you so skittish?"

The sheriff gave him a stern look. "This just isn't any letter, son. This is the key to a string of letters. And those letters lead to a massive fortune."

"What fortune?" Vivi asked.

"Well you see, by the time Bullet Bill had stopped stealing, he was the equivalent of a millionaire several times over today," the sheriff said. "Somewhere, he had to store all that wealth."

He tapped the envelope. "And this will tell us where it is..."

To be continued....

Stay tuned tomorrow for a new Candy Animals and awards!