Behind the Stars (2 page)

The person in front of me led the way in controlled silence through the exit. Outside, I looked up at the trees and around the nondescript, south-Mississippi woods. I tried to see a location marker, anything I recognized, but it was just like any other mess of pines mixed with oaks and the occasional magnolia. My last memory was walking the dirt road to Doc Green’s. Was
he
here?

Wood-framed doors with mesh metal screens opened to a cafeteria-style building where long metal tables were arranged in six rows. Our lines were stopped and broken at the benches in front of each. Then we were led down the rows and instructed to sit.

Two guards with rifles walked to the centers and ends of each table. All the guards were the same height, almost six foot, and they either had light-blond hair and fair skin or copperish hair and skin. They also had those identical black eyes. Muscadine eyes, the old-timers would say, except theirs were too much black, not enough brown.

What looked like the leader stepped to the middle of the room. She wore coveralls like the rest of us, except hers were dark blue, and her white-blonde hair was tied back in a tight ponytail. Her pale blue eyes set her apart from the rest.

“Please give me your attention.” Her clear voice was strong, and she had that same clipped accent. “Despite how this appears, we mean you no harm. You will only be held here temporarily.”

More soldiers quickly moved through the room setting plates in front of us. We were all given generous portions of steak and eggs with biscuits on the side. I was scared to touch it.

“The farm will supply your food, but you must work.” The woman continued. “Your assignments will not be difficult, and each afternoon when it is most hot, you will be allowed to rest.”

I chewed the inside of my cheek. A war must’ve started when I was walking to Doc’s. The Russians had invaded or something. They probably joined forces with the Chinese like my daddy always said they would, and I didn’t know it because I didn’t have a car or a radio or anything.

Still, I hadn’t heard any bombs or explosions. I hadn’t seen any smoke on the horizon. Then I remembered the man in the ditch, the body.

It had to be a surprise attack. Like in that old movie where the soldiers quietly parachuted onto the roof of that high school and started shooting everybody and taking prisoners right in the middle of history class.

But why take Dabb Creek? We didn’t have any resources.

Again, I struggled against whatever was keeping me calm, but it was useless. I couldn’t make my body act right. The only thing I felt was hunger. My stomach pinched and growled as the aroma of the meat grew stronger. I didn’t remember how long it’d been since I’d eaten.

“If you do not resist, you will be well cared-for.” The woman was still talking. “Do not make this hard. Rebels will be dealt with swiftly and finally.”

Without a word, the kids on both sides of me picked up their forks, but I didn’t move. I’d only seen steak like this one other time. A big football recruiter had taken Jackson and me to a fancy restaurant in Hattiesburg. He was trying to get Jackson to accept a football scholarship to State. It was a nice dinner, but I knew we’d never leave Dabb Creek. That wasn’t our plan.

“Work assignments will begin tomorrow,” the woman said. “When you’re finished, you may rest in the yard. Enjoy your meal.”

I looked for him again. If anybody could figure this out, it was Jackson. He was always coming up with crazy ideas that worked. I was usually the one complaining, but I was always right there with him. Right there with him and our plan. If Jackson wasn’t here, where did that leave me?

The sound of utensils clinking against metal plates was the only noise in the room. I lifted my chin to get a better look, but I caught the black eyes of a guard and quickly ducked back to the plate in front of me. I picked up my fork, but I couldn’t eat. My throat was too tight and my chest hurt. The only people I’d seen that I knew were Yolanda, Braxton, and D’Lo. Jackson wasn’t here.

A breath caught in my chest, but I fought despair. Jackson knew these woods better than anybody, and if something went down, if somebody invaded the United States, he’d survive. He’d run. He’d hide out in the woods and trap and fish, and wherever he was, he’d wait for me.

Maybe I wasn’t the planner, but I’d get with Braxton and D’Lo—and Yolanda if she’d help me—and we’d all work together from the inside. We’d form one of those secret alliances and bust out of here.

Or maybe the Army would’ve found us by then. Dabb Creek was pretty remote, and I guess we didn’t really contribute much to the world at large, but we were still Americans. Surely they were coming for us. If they could...

Either way, Jackson and I had always taken care of each other. I had to believe he was okay. He was my best friend, my future.

A few deep breaths, and the hot mist receded from my eyes. Hunger twisted my stomach again, and I glanced around. Nobody was passing out or throwing up, and if they needed us to work their farm, it didn’t make sense for these Communists or whoever they were to kill us.

I slowly cut a slice of meat, and juice seeped out. It was pink in the center and melted in my mouth, rich and salty. I waited a few minutes, but I didn’t feel sick. I wanted more. The eggs were light and fluffy, buttery with a touch of salt. They seemed safe to eat as well. I watched as the others tore off pieces of their biscuits, and I decided to finish my plate.

Back in the yard, I’d get with Braxton and D’Lo, and we’d get the lay of the land. I was good at sneaking out, and I was little enough that I could probably escape without being missed. Then I’d find Jackson, and we’d decide what to do next.

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T
he images were so vivid, it was like I was home again, lying in my bed upstairs, listening to Daddy and Braxton fight.

My brother quoted the Bible like always. “Wine is a mocker. Strong drink is raging, and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.”

“Doesn’t that Bible say something about honoring your parents?” Daddy’s voice slurred. It made my stomach clench up.

After Mamma died, Daddy started drinking every night until he’d finally pass out on the couch or go to his own room to sleep it off. That was bad enough until Braxton found Jesus and became a traveling evangelist. Now my brother hounded him until Daddy either staggered off to his bedroom early or punched him in the face, depending on what kind of a day it’d been. Braxton, of course, would always turn the other cheek. The whole thing made me sick.

“I know you’re hurtin, but Jesus can take that pain away,” my brother said.

I couldn’t figure out why he was so bound and determined to badger our father to death.

“Shut up, Braxton.” Daddy’s voice tightened, and from the sound of it, this was going to be a punch in the face kind of night.

I crept to my door and turned the lock even though I knew they wouldn’t come up here. Still it made me feel less likely to get caught as I slipped back to my window and raised it. I tiptoed across the roof to the sweet gum tree that grew at the corner of the house.

“I love you, Daddy...” I heard Braxton say as my bare feet touched the damp earth. I took off running before the first punch was thrown.

Running helped ease the pressure in my chest, and by the time I was at Jackson’s house, I was calm. I pulled myself up through the oak tree until I was at his window. It slid out of my hands when I leaned forward to lift it, and Jackson’s face smiled at me through the dark opening.

“At it again?” His soft tenor erased all the pain.

I nodded, letting him help me into his room. We went over and curled up together in his twin bed, his arm encircling my waist.

“Your brother is some kind of persistent.” Jackson’s voice was at my ear, warming me and sending little tingles under my skin.

“He just worries about Daddy.”

“My daddy ever waled on me like that, I’d be out of here.”

Jackson rolled onto his back, and I rolled toward him, laying my head on his chest and listening to his heartbeat. I’d been running to Jackson’s house to spend the night since seventh grade. That was when things really started getting bad at home.

“When we build our own place, I want to have windows on the ceiling,” Jackson said, gesturing with one arm as the fingers of his other hand combed through my stringy hair. “It’ll be like we’re sleeping under the stars.”

“Daddy said I got to get a job. Start pulling my own weight.”

“Your daddy don’t remember half the shit he says.” He rubbed my back. “’sides. You’re only fifteen.”

“Still, if we’re going to have some fancy house with windows on the ceiling, I probably ought to know how to do something.” I propped up on my elbow so I could see his face. “I thought maybe I’d be a doctor. I like giving shots.”

“Doctors don’t give shots. Nurses do that.”

“Nurses change bedpans.”

He grinned and leaned forward, kissing my lips lightly. I dropped down onto my side and turned my back to him. Lately, my body had started responding differently when Jackson kissed me—a new warmth, low in my stomach, made my heart beat a little faster. Also, lately Jackson had become more interested in pursuing that reaction, sliding his hands places I knew Braxton and Pastor LeRoy would have a big problem with. I lay on my side and squeezed my thighs together, but that only made it worse.

“Why you want to be a doctor anyway?” He moved around behind me, circling my waist with his arm again. His breath tickled my neck when he spoke. “I thought you were going to stay with me.”

“I could stay with you and still be a doctor.”

“Nah, you’d be rich, and then you’d get out of here.”

The way he spoke, it sounded like he’d decided to make my dream his. But that didn’t make sense. Jackson loved the farm.

“I’ll never leave you. I love it here, and I love our farm.”

“It’s not ours yet.” He leaned back again. “But you’re just a little country girl. Emphasis on the
little
. Who’s gonna go to a midget doctor?”

The familiar tease was in his voice, and I jerked my arm back into his stomach, causing him to grunt a laugh.

“A redneck midget,” he said, and I did it again. He laughed more. “And a girl on top of it.”

“I can do whatever I want to do.”

“I know.” He whispered against my neck before he kissed it.

I felt his hand slide to the edge of my shirt, but I slid mine over his and laced our fingers, pulling his arm around my waist.

“I just want to sleep now.”

He exhaled and squeezed me against him. I squeezed back.

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T
ears were in my eyes, but I blinked them away. I could still feel his rough, callused hands gripping my small ones as I sat stupidly, trying not to cry, my back against a pine tree. I didn’t know how long I’d been sitting in this one spot.

We’d been released into the yard after breakfast, but moving felt like too much effort now. Maybe it was the heat or the stress, but my entire body was so heavy, I could only sit and stare at nothing but memories.

I tried to shake myself out of it. If we were going to escape from here, I had to get up and stop wasting time. I had to stake out the perimeter, scan the area before they started us all working tomorrow. Now could be my only chance.

I looked up and saw D’Lo across the yard. His massive frame leaned against one of the buildings in the shade, and he seemed to be sleeping. My eyes cut quickly left to right, but the armed guards didn’t seem to be watching us too closely. I guess they didn’t need to if they had guns. I got up and tried to walk casually to where Dee sat, but even walking was hard, like wading through thigh-deep water.

I was lucky D’Lo was here. He’d be a huge help, both with escape and with finding his best friend. Dee’s family had been with Jackson’s for years, sharecropping and working on Mr. Terry’s farm. Everybody in Dabb Creek was dirt poor, but Jackson’s daddy had built up the largest farm in our area, a good hundred acres. Jackson was set to take over it all once Mr. Terry retired. I didn’t know what would happen now, if things like that still mattered once everything was gone.

When I finally reached him, I pulled his arm, and he slowly turned his head. His eyes moved around my face, but he acted like he didn’t know me. My throat tightened and panic started to rise again. D’Lo didn’t seem numb so much as vacant, missing, and he looked at me like I was some mysterious elf trying to get his attention.

“Did they hurt you?” I whispered, but he didn’t answer.

His gaze slid back to the yard, and I wondered if they did something different to big guys like him, something more physical to keep them under control. It wouldn’t take much for D’Lo to overpower at least one of our captors, possibly two, and I remembered how Dr. Green handled aggressive bulls.

No. I couldn’t believe that. The guards could easily stop him with a bullet—there was no need to castrate him. I shuddered at the thought.

“D’Lo, it’s me!” My voice inched louder. “Prentiss.”

He’d turned back to stare out at nothing, so I jerked his arm again. It didn’t do any good.

“Prentiss?” I repeated.

Nothing.

“Midget? Pip? Spitfire? Pain in the—” I was running out of names. And still there was no flicker of recognition. I dropped my hand and exhaled. “What have they done to you?”

Then I slid down to sitting with my knees bent and my forehead resting on my arms. Once more, tears threatened, but I wouldn’t let myself cry. I was strong. If I had to, I supposed I could do this alone, but it sure would help to have some muscle on my side.

“Prentiss,” he said in a weird, dreamy voice.

I jumped up beside him, my heart beating faster. “Yeah?”

“Pretty little Prentiss... Jackson’s pretty little thing.”

My face grew hot at those words.

“Sweet little—”

“D’Lo!” I cut him off. “What in the world? You’ve lost your mind!”

He shook his head and smiled. Now he recognized me too much. Or more like he didn’t remember how we knew each other. Dee and I’d never been close that way.

“It’s me.
Jackson’s
girlfriend.” I added that last bit to remind him of the facts.