Bent Creek (24 page)

Lily pulled Violet closer to her.  “Do you think it wuz the gypsies? Do you think they come back fer my baby?”

Rachael shook her head. “No, I’d think it must be some kin or friend of that fella that Nevers killed.”

“I know’d who that fella wuz!” Jesse said.  “That thar is the same fella I give a ride tah a couply weeks ago.  Wonder what thar still doin’ round here. They told me they wuz jest passin’ through. We got some trouble on our hands. I bet they know’d that Nevers had sumthin’ tah do with his brother disappearin’.”

“I reckon we better take turns stayin’ up at night and makin’ sure they don’t come sneakin’ round while we’re all asleep. I’m not reel tired, I’ll stay up tonight.  Jesse, you load me up another one of those shotguns.”

“You wake me in a couply hours, Rachael
, and I’ll come out and spell you,” Jesse said, his voice a little shaky.

“Come on,
gal, I’ll sit up with ya fer a spell,” Joe said as he and Rachael headed for the barn. “Ya like a swig of moon or a chaw?”

“No, thanks, Joe. If’n I did that I’d probably fall right tah sleep,” Rachael replied.  “Let’s jest sit and talk.  Tell me bout yerself, Joe.  You ever been married?”

“Oh yeah, couple, three times. First time I wuz jest a youngin. Hell, her and me didn’t even know what we wuz doin’. Then one day she jest said she wuz a goin’ home.  Second time I married a gal from town.  She wuz sumthin’, but when she got riled she liked tah throw things and hit me in the head. Lawdy, she bout knocked the brains outta me. I wuz afeared tah go tah sleep at night with her lyin’ next to me. One day I jest took off. I hid out in the mountains.  I herd she wuz comin’ through Bent Creek with a big ole stick a lookin’ fer me, but I wuz too smart fer her.” He slapped his knee and cackled. “Don’t rightly know if I divorced either them women.  Then thar wuz Silvy. Her grandpappy wuz a Seminole Chief.  She had real dark eyes and long hair.  Had some long Indian name, but I jest called her Silvy. She could cook up a mess of corn biscuits and deer stew that would git yer mouth tah waterin’.”

“I thought you wuz the one with Seminole blood in ya, Joe
.”

“Naw, ain’t got nary a drop a injun blood in me.  Ain’t even been in a teepee.” He let out another loud laugh.  “It wuz jest a good story tah tell.”

“You ever had any kids?” Rachael asked.

“Oh, yeah, I had a mess of youngins.  Nine or ten I reckon. Some died young, whoop
in’ cough and sech, some jest left home and a few wuz kilt in the mines.”

“That’s real sad. What happened tah Silvy?” Rachael asked.

“When I went off tah prison, she jest left.  Don’t rightly know what happened tah her or my kids.”

“Didn’t you ever try tah find any of them?”

“Nope. No sense havin’ an old codger like me hangin’ round them. Thar pert near better off, I reckon.”  He stretched his hands over his head. “And now my time is a nearin’ tah meet mah maker, so’s I better go do some prayin’. Thar are things that are meant tah be. Ya can’t change them.  Thar jest meant to be. I jest hope I don’t run into all three of them women at the same time.” He let out a loud laugh.

Rachael stood up and picked up the rifle. “You git some rest, Joe. I reckon I better git ready fer a long night.” She climbed up into the loft and took her position near the overhead door. She had a clear view of the yard and the path leading to the house. Ben had strung a rope across the boards of the gate. Even the slightest movement would set the bell in motion. If she saw or heard anything, she was to wake up everyone. Old Joe sat down on his cot below the loft and hollered up to her. “Mah bones is tired and I’m gonna rest, Rachael, but if’n you need me you jest let out a yell.”

The house was completely dark when Lily crept silently across the kitchen with her sleeping baby in her arms. Lily pushed open the door of the bedroom and stepped inside. “Jesse,” she whispered. “Jesse, get up.  Go sleep in Rachael’s room.”

Groggy and half asleep, Jesse, clad only in his long johns, mumbled something and left the room.  Crawling under the covers, Lily positioned Violet between herself and Ben.  Ben moved slightly and then turned over.  “What’s goin’ on?”

“I need tah sleep with you
, Ben. I’m scart. I need tah keep Violet safe. Is that okay?”

“I reckon, since yer already here.  Sides, yer my wife.” He pulled his blanket closer to him, trying to conceal the stumps of his legs. Someday he would show her them, but not now.  It was too soon. He lay in the darkness, his thoughts no longer on sleep.

Rachael too was staring into the darkness.
What was she doing? Sitting in a hayloft with a gun on her lap waiting for who knows what? She was just Rachael Riley, a poor girl from the holler. She had to talk to Ben in the morning about speeding things up. Maybe they could find someone else that would buy the shine from them. Two customers would make the money come in a lot faster.  She yawned. Wake up, Rachael, you got to make it through this night. What was that!  Crap, scared the heck out of me. It’s just a raccoon rummaging for food.  Hope he stays away from the chicken house.  She yawned again.  Her eyes fluttered and then closed. She leaned back against a hay bale. Just a few minutes rest and I’ll be fine.

Rachael was jolted awake by a rooster sitting just a few feet away announcing that it was morning.  Sitting up she looked around for a moment forgetting where she was.  Rachael stood up and brushed the hay off her pants.  Moving down the ladder, she saw Joe still under the covers in his bunk.  It seemed unusual. He was always up before the sun. She walked pas
t him and into the house.

“You sleep good?” Jesse asked, stuffing a biscuit into his mouth. He brushed the crumbs off the table with the
back of his hand.

“I stayed awake as long as I could. How’d you know I fell asleep?”

“Cause I come out there and checked on you.  You wuz plumb out of it. I coulda hit you in the head and you’d been dead. You didn’t even hear me. I sit up in that loft all night and you never stirred. Some lookout you are.”

“Okay, okay, so I’m not a good guard.  Leastwise nothin’ happened.”

Jesse threw his leg over the bench.  “Not any thanks tah you.” He stomped out the door.

Rachael was in no mood to be challenged. She threw open the screen door and yelled after him. “You come back and clean up the mess you made in here.  I’m not yer maid.” She slammed the door. In a few seconds it flew open again.

“You lissen tah me Rachael Riley, I ain’t about tah die cause of this damn still. I’ll be leavin’ here soon and you can count on that.” This time Jesse slammed the door.

A few minutes later he was back again.  Not to clean up the mess, but to give her some bad news.  “Old Joe is dead! When he twernt in the smoke house, I went a lookin’ fer him. He wuz still in the bed.  He’s as cold as a cucumber, he musta died sometime durin’ the night.”

“Oh, Lordy, I walked right pas
t him, I thought he wuz jest sleepin’. Poor, old Joe. Me and him had a long talk last night. He’s been tellin’ me that his time wuz nearin’, but I didn’t pay him no mind,” Rachael said.

Jesse ran his hand across his forehead. “I reckon we bet
ter bury him. We kin dig up that empty box we buried.  If’n I go and buy one, Mabry will want tah know who died.  We can’t have them comin’ out here snoopin’ around. I’ll get started.”

By afternoon, the rough-hewn box was unearthed.  Jesse wrapped Joe’s frail body in his plaid blanket and placed him in the coffin.

“I reckon we should all say a few words tah send him off,” Lily said as they all stood around the grave. “I’ll go first.  I want tah thank you
, Joe, for all yer halp. Violet really liked you and she’ll miss you. You were a nice man and I hope you go tah heaven. That’s all, Amen.”

Ben was next. “We got along reel good, you and me, Joe. I liked talkin’ tah you while we wuz in the smoke house. Good-bye old friend. And I want tah thank you fer givin’ us yer recipes.” Ben put a handful of dirt on the coffin.

“You go next, Jesse,” Rachael said.

“I ain’t sayin nothin’. Jest leave me alone.” He turned and ran down the hill.

Rachael stepped forward. “I remember the first time you and I met, Joe, and I thought we would never be as close as we were. You were a might strange, but you had a hard life and I’m glad these last few months were better for you.”  Rachael bowed her head, “Now let’s all pray.”

After the coffin was covered, Lily and Rachael struggled to get Ben’s chair down the hill.  Once in the yard, Rachael headed to the barn. She waited a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dim light in Joe’s room.  She sat down on his cot and folded her hands. God, please take care of Joe.  He really didn’t mean to do anythin’ wrong. It was me who talked him into it. Look at this place, God? Did you ever see a man leavin’ this earth havin’ so little? He had one change of underwear, a tin of tobacco and half a jug of liquor.  I promise if I get enough money and get away from here I’ll find a church and donate some money in Joe’s name. That’s all I have to say for right now, but I sure hope you understand. Amen.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

“Somebodies a comin’!” Jesse yelled from the porch. “Bell is a clangin’ on the fence. Stay whar you are till I find out who it is.”

The bell clanged again as the gate was closed and a man in jeans and a white shirt strode up the path.  Jesse recognized him as he came closer.  Standing next to the open window, Jesse said, “It’s Sam
Montgomery.  I reckon he’s here tah see Rachael.”

“Oh, good Lord,” Rachael said running toward the bath
room. “I look a mess.  Give me a minute tah get presentable.” She pulled her tee shirt over her head and grabbed a blue blouse out of the closet. Tucking the blouse into her pants, she ran a brush through her hair and pulled it back into a ponytail. That was the best she could do. Trying to remain calm she walked outside and greeted Sam. “Well, hi there. What brings you out tah these parts?”

Sam grinned. “I came to see you and make sure every
thing was okay. I just stopped by and saw your parents.”

Rachael was annoyed. “Why did you stop there? I told you I wuz livin’ here.”

“I had a letter for them. I stopped in Mabry’s store and he said he had mail for your parents and they hadn’t been into the store in over a week. I told him I would take it to them.  I hope that was all right.”

“Oh, sure that’s fine. I wonder who it wuz from?” Rachael said, her voice softening.

“It was from the Department of Defense.  They sent your parents a check for twenty dollars that was left over from an account Ben had started when he joined up.  Your mom had me read it to them. Needless to say, they were pretty happy about it. You may want to make sure they get to the bank and get it cashed.”

Rachael nodded. “I surely will.  Thank you.  Would you like tah stay fer dinner? I got green beans and ham on the stove. It’s already made.”

“Sounds good to me. That’s my favorite meal.”

The conversation flowed during dinner with Sam doing most of the talking. Jesse and Ben both seemed relaxed around him after a few minutes and had lots of questions.  Lily just smiled, knowing that he had come to see Rachael.  That made her happy to think that someone was interested in Rachael.

After dinner, Sam went outside and sat down on the porch swing.  Rachael was glad he had decided to stay. While she filled the glasses with lemonade, Lily stood on her tiptoes looking out the kitchen window.

“He sure is cute, Rachael.”

“Shush, Lily, he might hear you.  He is cute, isn’t he?” She could feel her face getting red.

Before long, everyone, including Violet
, was occupying the porch. The last warm evenings of Indian summer were coming to an end. There was a lot of discussion and laughter about when they were all children, and then a serious moment when Ben told Sam about losing his legs.

“Well, don’t you worry, Ben, with all these pretty women around to take care of you, I don’t think you’ll ever go hungry.” Rachael blushed and Lily giggled. Trying not to be too obvious, Jesse and Ben had to leave to tend to the still and Lily said it was Violet’s bedtime.

“I like your family, Rachael.  I guess it’s good to be a part of something. That’s one thing I miss being away from home.”

They walked along the path leading to the creek. “I’m sorry you missed our picture show date.  I waited for you, but then I heard about Nevers. The next day I had to go back to Ohio for a few days. Did Clyde give you my message?”

“Kind of. He didn’t tell me that you had gone off.  Is that what it wuz…a date. I mean, why would you want tah date me?”

“Well, let’s see.  You’re easy to talk to, we have a lot in common and besides that you’re kind of cute,” he said grinning.

Rachael knew she was blushing again. “You go on, I’m not at all cute, not one bit.” A brilliant, orange butterfly skimmed close to Rachael’s face and circled around her head. “Watch this, Sam, my daddy taught me this.”  Licking the back of her hand, she extended her arm out and stood quietly while the butterfly glided closer to her and landed on her hand.  “It’s a Monarch,” Rachael whispered. She’s after the salt in my saliva. That’s called a butterfly kiss.”  A few seconds later the butterfly took flight.