Nothing but Trouble_ A Kevin Kerney Novel - Michael Mcgarrity [35]
Glumly, Johnny nodded.
“That’s it,” Usher said. “Everybody back here at four a.m. for the tech scout. Charlie will give you your housing assignments, and our schedule for the next two days. For now, we’ll all be crashing in the apartment building.”
Usher left. Charlie, who turned out to be the man wearing the eyeglasses, read off the housing assignments, which had Kerney bunking with Johnny. Charlie told the group that meals would be served by the caterer in the mercantile building, and the tech scout locations would be passed out after dinner.
As the meeting broke up, Johnny introduced Kerney to the people in attendance. The group included the unit production manager, set decorator, transportation captain, construction coordinator, cinematographer, the assistant director, several other lighting specialists, and Charlie Zwick, the producer.
Zwick shook Kerney’s hand and thanked him for his good idea.
“Yeah, thanks a lot,” Johnny said sarcastically, after Zwick left the building.
“Come on, Johnny,” Kerney said. “It was apparent that the director had already made up his mind to change the ending before I spoke up.”
“You don’t get it,” Johnny snapped. “I’m trying to build public interest in rodeoing with this movie. Get people excited about the sport, make it a major ticket draw. Now that’s not going to happen. Instead, film-goers are just gonna see what they think are a bunch of neat horseback and cowboy stunts as part of a brawl.”
Kerney pushed open the door and stepped outside. “I wasn’t trying to thwart you.”
Johnny took the cell phone off his belt and flipped it open. “It sure felt that way. I’ve got some phone calls to make. I’ll see you later.” Johnny hurried across the parking lot with the cell phone planted in his ear.
Kerney decided to let Johnny chill out before going to the apartment. He didn’t want to face a contentious evening with Johnny ragging on him about not getting his way. It was a good two hours before dinner. He decided to drive to the smelter to take a look at the place that had inspired Malcolm Usher to change the script. Besides, he wanted to see the Star of the North that Officer Sapian had told him about.
The paved road from Playas to the copper smelter paralleled a railroad spur that connected with the main trunk line east of Lordsburg, a windblown desert town on Interstate 10 that served as the seat of government for Hidalgo County.
The valley widened a bit as Kerney headed south, deep into the Bootheel. To the west the Animas Mountains cut a broad, foreboding swath against the sky. To the east the Little Hatchet Mountains, drenched in afternoon sunlight, were buff gold at the peaks.
Farther southeast the Big Hatchet Mountains rose up, pointing the way to Mexico and the Alamo Hueco Mountains at the border, where, according to what Kerney had read, once a year in the spring buffalo came up from the Chihuahua Desert to forage. He thought it would be great to see that.
Under the greasewood and mesquite the tall valley grass was a thick pelt that signaled summer rains had arrived at exactly the right time. Otherwise the grass would be yellow and stunted, the sandy soil dried out and cracked.
The big sky, the mountains, the desert so deceptively serene, the scarcity of anything man-made in the valley, pleased Kerney and gave him hope that maybe ranching could hold on and survive for a few more generations.
Nine miles south of Playas all those thoughts passed from Kerney’s mind. The smelter sat on the east side of the valley between two dry lakebeds with the Little Hatchets looming over the complex, dwarfing the towering smokestack. The gate was open, and Kerney parked in front of the administration building, where a sign directed him to a side entrance.
Inside, he found fully equipped offices, conference rooms, and a reception area devoid of people except for a lanky, middle-aged man dressed in a Western shirt, jeans, and boots, who was filling out paperwork at a counter in front of an enlarged, framed photograph of the smelter.
“Can I help you?” the man said.