Jesse has inherited his Grandfather's ranch. Now he must fight his father to keep it while he must honor his Grandfather's last wish of seeking Coyote.

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Chapter 17 Going to Helena.

The trio pulled out of the driveway and started toward town. Jesse asked Tom, “What do we need to do to get identification for Merry? We will need a birth certificate and a Social Security Number.”

“The Doctor and I can work out something. I don't advise falsifying records, but there is away to register a birth if it was done at home with a mid-wife or if the birth records were lost. Working for the Governor, I can speed things along. The toughest part is the parentage. You say Merry's parents are wolves. Did they have names?”

“Her Mother is known as Black Feet and her father is Silver Ears. The Pack was formally known as Strong Heart's Pack, but he just stepped down from the leadership council. The pack is now lead by Night Runner. When Merry was named before the council she was given the name of Merry Heart. That is because she makes her mother's heart merry and she is named after her grandsire.

“That is going to be tough to work with,” said Tom. “Maybe we can translate these names into a different language and see if they sound better. In French it would be pieds noir with pieds being feet and noir being black. We can change this to Noiry Pieds Heart for her mother. Her father would be oreilles argent with oreilles being ears and argent being silver. What if we change that to Sargent O'reilles Heart. Only someone with a smattering of french would notice and we are close enough to Canada that no one would pay that much attention.”

“That would leave Merry with the last name of Heart. If she is to be my sister, she would have to be a Hartman.”

Tom asked, “What if she became your adopted daughter or your own daughter? Single motherhood doesn't carry the stigma that it once did. You would have to be careful though, as some folks seem to think that single mothers are irresponsible.”

“ I like the idea of adopted daughter, but how do we explain how she came up for adoption. It would be almost as difficult to explain that my father and mother had a child three years ago, and there is no birth record in the state where we lived.”

“ I think we should settle having Merry become your own daughter. There will be fewer questions, but finding a birth father might be difficult.”

“We will need to study on that one. Doctor, will Merry not having a birth certificate cause her problems with getting her treatment?”

“I wouldn't withhold treatment from one of my patients, and the doctor I am referring her to is a good man. I doubt he would withhold treatment. We may have to explain from where Merry came, but he has dealt with enough parents that are... How does one say this?... a bit strong in their beliefs that it sometimes takes some coaxing to let him treat their children. I had better give him a call so that we can meet with him.”

When they came within range of the cell towers around the town, the doctor called his friend in Helena. “Hello, this is Doctor Robert Henley. Is Daniel available?” There was a pause as the doctor waited. “Daniel, it’s so good to here your voice again.... Virginia? She is fine... So is Helen. How is Becky?... Good. One of these days we are going to have to get together for a social call, but right now I have a case I need your help with. Are you going to be in your office say about noon?... Good. How about I pick you up for lunch?... I'm on my way down there now.... I'm going east to testify in a court case for an old friend.... No. No one you know unless you know Bill Hartman... We'll discuss it over lunch. I'll let you get back to your patients...Yeah. Good to hear from you too. We will see you at lunch.”

Doc Henley turned back to Jesse, “That is one appointment set. It is a good thing that the plane is chartered and we're not pushing time.” He turned back to the front and called the DNA lab. “Hello, this is Doc Henley. Is Wanda there?...Hello, Wanda?... This Doc Henley. I am on my way with a patient that I need a DNA test for... Yeah I need the results pretty quick. We are flying out this evening to Burlington... I need you to PDF the results to my phone, just as soon as you get them. We are due in court tomorrow at 2:00.... I know we're cutting it close, but it couldn't be helped. She was in the backwoods when she found out and it has taken that long to get to her and get her to town... Okay Wanda, see you in about three hours or sooner.”

I like having someone else drive. I get much more done and I don't run over the neighbor's cow trying to dial my phone.” laughed the doctor.

“You didn't run over a cow, did you?” asked an incredulous Jesse.

“No, but did you see the movie Doc Hollywood?”

“Yes.”

“I came close to doing the same thing when Michael J missed the cow and ran over the fence. I just barely missed the fence. My wife wouldn't let me drive for a week after that. Maybe when we get back, I'll find me a High School student who is thinking about going to med school and have him drive me around. I am just to dangerous.”

They laughed at the doctor's driving and his solution. Tom handed Jesse an envelope and told her to look inside. “Those are the papers you need to sign for me to get your ID changed and have your gender legally changed.”

“If Merry is to become my daughter by birth, are these the right forms?” asked Jesse.

“The forms would be the same. The reasoning behind the forms would be different. I was going to fill out the forms saying that there was a typographical error that never was corrected until now. I will continue with that thought, but having to get an ID for Merry will reinforce the typo story. This may be a bit tricky to get done, but I don't think anything will come of it.”

“George told me that you might run for Governor someday. If we do this, will it hurt your chances in getting elected.”

“Can anyone prove you were once a male if you had a medical examination today?”

“No, I have all the parts of a female and there is no scarring as if I had surgery.”

“You said that the Great Spirit made you a female?”

“Yes.”

“Then someone would have to bring proof that you were ever a male. A gynecological exam would prove that you are a fully functioning female. Any eggs taken from you you have your DNA as further proof. Doctors and anyone else saying that you were male would be hard put to provide proof. And then we could provide doctors with some explanation of birth defects or being a hermaphrodite. I don't think getting you and Merry corrected birth certificates would jeopardize any chances I have for public office. I'll say it is an act of kindness to help a single mother get things straight with the bureaucrats.”

Jesse signed the forms and placed them back into the envelope. After handing them to Tom, she settled back in to her seat to watch the scenery pass and contemplate the upcoming court date. She could hear Tom and the doctor making small talk in low tones in the front seat as her exhaustion from the last few days began to catch up with her. As she started to dream, she could feel her ears poking through her hair. The courtroom was in black and white as the judge brought the gavel down to call the court to order. She had met her lawyer early in the morning and had to explain the transformation before he would believe her, and then he said that he would not continue the case if the date wasn't set and the will had not referred to Jesse as a female. Her ear twisted toward where her father and his lawyer were speaking in whispers, but because she had the hearing of a wolf she could overhear them. “I told you this would be easy,” said her father. “Not only is he not my son, but he has dressed as a woman to throw off the judge as to the mental state of my father. We may not have had to pay off the DNA expert after all.” Jesse woke with a start growling.

Tom looked up into the rear view mirror, “Jesse your ears are showing, and it looks like you have a black smudge on your nose.” She reached up to find that indeed her wolf ears were showing through her hair and her nose was beginning to turn into a snout.

“Give me a few minutes to calm down and collect my thoughts” said Jesse. As she sat and concentrated on her ears, they slowly withdrew back to the sides of her head and her nose returned to “normal”.

“What was that all about?” asked Tom.

“I fell asleep and had a nightmare was all.”

“We're still an hour or so away from Helena. Do you want me to put some music on?”

“I'll be alright if I don't have another nightmare.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“It was nothing. I'm being silly”

The doctor turned in his seat. “You've experienced both sexes now. Can you tell a difference in you besides what your body does?”

“What do you mean Doc? I really haven't experienced sexual intercourse as a male as most girls seemed to treat me as one of them even though I never pretended to be a girl and asked many out for dates. I haven't been a girl long enough to experience a period or have intercourse as girl. Other than my balance being different, having to sit to pee, and other obvious differences, I don't feel that much different. I still think of myself as Jesse the boy. That is why claiming Merry as a daughter is a bit unnerving, and the thought of having children of my own coming out of my body, that scares me to no end. Don't get me wrong. While the thought of having children scares me, it also intrigues me. Then I have to figure out how to be a good mother. Which leads me to another thought that scares me, in order for me to be a mother, I will have to have sex with a boy. I have been kissed by another boy. I didn't want to. It just happened, but sex is a totally different matter.”

“You have been kissed by another boy?” asked the doctor.

“Didn't Grandpa tell you how Grandmother insisted that I date Gabriel from the ranch next door?”

“No, he told me you would come out and Agnes would dress you up as a girl and you would stay that way until you left, but he never told me of the adventures you had as a girl.”

“Some of my 'adventures' got a little embarrassing and Grandpa had a many a good laugh at my expense. The biggest was the first real date I had with Gabriel and how it ended.” Jesse retold the story of her date with Gabriel and when he had walked her to the door he kissed her, and her Grandmother brought her inside gushing over how grown up she was.

“I was so stunned and embarrassed that I had to be lead into the kitchen by the hand. You know Gabriel has not dated or married since I left for college. I talked to him just before I went on my spirit quest. He didn't say it, but I could hear the relief in his voice when he talked to me and the concern when I told him I was going alone on my spirit quest. I don't think he is going to take no for answer when I get back.”

“I know Gabriel Johnston,” said Doc Henley. “He has a good head on his shoulders and can be a bit stubborn. I know he can be loyal to a fault. His father had one of the ranch hands get into trouble with the law while you were gone. Gabriel listened to the boys story and then bailed him out. The Sheriff had the case closed, but Gabriel insisted that the Sheriff dig a little deeper. Turns out Gabriel was right and the ranch hand was set free.”

Jesse's cell phone began to ring. When she looked at the number she said, “Speaking of Gabriel.”

“Hi, Gabe.”

“No, I didn't forget to call. I was discussing that with Doc Henley just now.”

“Yeah, I'm alright. I just fell off my horse and broke my arm. Doc set it and then we had to make a house call together.”

“You remember Mrs. Yellow Dog. Well she was feeling poorly and her daughter couldn't get her to come in to the hospital. I went with the good doctor to see if I could help.”

“Why! You will have wait 'til we talk before I can answer that.”

“I am on my way back east to face my dad in court over the will. I should be back in a few days and we will talk then.”

“Thanks for offering to come with us, but I have this.”

“Yes, I promise I will call and let you know how things go.”

“We will go to dinner when I get back.”

“Promise. Bye Gabe. The Doc and I have something to discuss.”

Tom and the doctor could barely hear the other side of the conversation. They snickered when they heard Gabriel say that he loved Jesse. “Aren't you going to tell him that you love him?” teased Tom.

“I don't know what or whom I love at this moment.” answered Jesse. “Doc, if we do marry that would combine our ranches and make the biggest ranch in the valley. Do you think his parents are pushing this, or that he is aware of this?”

“I am not sure he is aware of this. I have known his parents just about as long as your Grandfather. They are good people and once Gabriel has his mind set on something he is going to do it unless it is illegal or just plain impossible. When he was younger he had an adventurous streak in him. I have treated many a broken bone with that boy where he had decided he was going to ‘Evil Knievel jump’ his trail bike or some other fool stunt. I almost believe if you look up redneck, good ole boy in the dictionary you would have found his picture.”

“Why do you say that?” asked Jesse.

“Do you know what the last words of a redneck are?”

“No?”

“‘HEY Bubba, Watch This!’ I am sure he has said this or something similar several times before he ended up at the ER.”

Jesse giggled while Tom snickered at the Doctor's joke.

“Gabriel has grown out of this phase in his life. He went to college and is now working on his MBA. He did say he was looking to represent the area to the state legislature some day.”