"Mr Friend, welcome to Roggen!"

"Thank you, good to be back."

"You've been away?"

"Spent some time in Saudi Arabia." Russell/Friend explained. "But I missed my winters."

"What are you looking for?"

"Oh, a medium-sized ranch, place where I might raise some beef."

"House, barns?"

"Yeah, a good-sized house. Not that big, don't need it - there's just me, you see - say about three thousand square feet. I can go smaller for good land."

"You originally from around here?"

"The Dakotas, actually, but I need to be close to Denver for the transportation - air travel, I mean. I do a lot of that. My old homestead is too far from things."

"Will you want help to run your ranch?"

"Yeah, I'll need that, say a place enough for two hands - maybe a couple. I really should have a place closer to town, but, damn it, I just want a place where I can eat my own beef."

"I know what you mean," the realtor agreed. "I have a couple of places you might like."

"Then let's go see them." Russell smiled at the lady.

The second one was perfect. Just off Exit 50, five hundred acres, a nice old farm house with a new kitchen, a two-car garage, and three sturdy outbuildings. There was clear land in all directions, a pond with some trees half a mile from the house, and plenty of room for the cattle that Russell would never see.

"This one's been on the market for five months. The owner's estate is asking four hundred," the realtor said, "but we can probably get them to go for three-fifty."

"Okay," Russell said, checking access to Interstate 76. Tell them if they sign the contract this week, I'll make a fifty-thousand cash deposit, settlement in, oh, say four or five weeks. No problem on financing. I'll pay cash for the whole thing when I get the rest of my funds transferred. But - I want to start moving in immediately. God, I hate living in hotels, done way too much of that. You think we get all that done?"

The realtor beamed at him. "I think I can guarantee it."

"Great. So, how did the Broncos do this year?"

"Eight and eight. They're rebuilding. My husband and I have season tickets. You going to try and get tickets for the Superbowl?"

"I'd sure like to."

"Going to be pretty hard," the realtor warned him.

"I'll find a way." An hour and one telephone call later, the realtor took a cashier's check for fifty thousand dollars from her banker husband. Russell had directions to the local furniture and appliance store. After an hour there, Marvin purchased a white Ford van from the local dealership and drove it to the ranch. He parked it in one of the barns. He'd be keeping the rental for a while. He would spend one more night in the motel, then settle into his new house. He did not feel any sense of accomplishment. There was much left to do.