Buddies (5 page)

“She shore is, an’ this here surrey is a beauty too, rides a heap better’n that ole wagon of ours back home. A fella could ride in this here thang all day long an’ never git tired. I ain’t never rode in nothin’ this smooth before.”

Banker Tolbert took a pistol from under his coat and pointed it at the boys without their noticing. He said, “The surrey does ride smoothly, young man, and it will ride even smoother turned around going the other way.”

“On out yonder’s a good wide place, Banker Tolbert, do you want me to turn around there?” Joey Frank asked.

Ernie glanced back at the banker for his answer and saw the gun. He looked over at Joey Frank and said, “Yeah, I thank he wants you to turn around out yonder, Joey Frank.”

“Ernie, you oughta not butt in an’ answer for grown folks. Ain’t no cat got Banker Tolbert’s tongue. He can answer for hisself.”

“Young man, listen to your friend, and turn the surrey around,” Banker Tolbert ordered in a harsh voice, pressing the gun barrel against the back of Joey Frank’s neck.

“Yes sir, Banker Tolbert, there ain’t no need of you to git all mad. I done got the hang of this here surrey, an’ I can turn it around. You don’t hafta to poke your cold finger in my neck to git me to do sech.”

“That ain’t his cold finger that yore a-feelin’ on yore neck, Joey Frank, it’s a gun! Now git this here surrey on out yonder to that wide place, an’ turn it around like he said.”

Joey Frank pulled the reins for Dolly Belle to slow down and turn. When they were back in the road, going the other way, he managed to fearfully ramble, “Banker Tolbert, you don’t hafta have that gun to git yore money back. ‘Cause if you want it back, then you can have it back, even if we don’t wanna give it back; but we’ll give it back, an’ we won’t want it back when you git it back, if you don’t wanna give it back. Ernie’s done went an’ spent part of his’n, but he’ll take the brogans an’ stuff back that he bought an’ git yore money won’t you, Ernie?”

“Yeah! We’ll go right now, an’ I’ll swap the stuff back for yore money. Mr. McGraw’ll do it, he’s done it a heap of times for my folks.”

“This has nothing to do with the money, boys,” Banker Tolbert said as he continued to hold the gun barrel against Joey

Frank’s neck. “You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. You should have stayed in school.”

“There ain’t no school today, Banker Tolbert. We don’t go to school on Saturday.”

“He ain’t a-talkin’ about today, Joey Frank’ he’s a-talkin’ about the day we seen him an’ Miss Rene bury that baby in them woods.”

Joey Frank became more frightened than ever. He finally realized that the banker wasn’t interested in getting the money back, but intended to kill Ernie and himself to make sure they could never tell anyone about the baby. When he spoke, his voice quivered as he said, “Banker Tolbert, where are we a-goin? I need to git home before chore time. My Mama’ll be mad if I ain’t.”

“Stop asking questions, young man, and just drive until I say otherwise.” Banker Tolbert took the pistol away from Joey Frank’s head and leaned back in the seat. He kept the gun pointed toward the scared boys with a dangerous ominous look in his large eyes as he mumbled something that neither of them could understand. They were too frightened to ask him to repeat his statement.

Ernie wanted to jump from the surrey, but he couldn’t leave Joe Frank behind. Should they jump, they must go together. He wanted to tell Joey Frank what he was thinking, but he couldn’t, knowing the banker would hear every word. He felt sure they would be killed on the spot.

A short time later, the banker told Joey Frank to turn onto the road ahead. From the corner of his eye, Ernie saw him slightly wave the pistol at them, knowing that he meant business and would carry out his plan to kill them. The plan he’d made as soon as the buddies had left the bank after receiving the money.

The scratching sounds underneath the surrey as it rolled over the bushes caused Dolly Belle to be somewhat nervous, indicating that she wasn’t accustomed to being out in the grownup areas of northern Georgia. When she fretted and hesitated, not wanting to go on, Banker Tolbert leaned forward from his rear seat. The gun he held was still aimed at the boys, as he spoke to the horse gently over their shoulders “Dolly Belle, now you go on, nothing is going to bother you.” Hearing the banker’s voice, she obeyed as if she understood the words he said.

The frightened boys had no idea where the road might lead. There were no houses or barns that could be seen anywhere. The only sign of life Ernie could see was a buzzard standing on an abandoned rabbit box with a triggered door. Tall broom straw covered the fields all around, and farther on, there was a patch of dark woods, oak and pine trees. This spot was an ideal place for someone to blow another’s brains out and never be seen or heard from again. Ernie was thinking that it was also an ideal place to get away from a crazy man like Banker Tolbert if a fellow could safely jump from the surrey, he might be spared.

He had to think quickly, time was running out. He could see death staring him and his buddy in the face. Banker Tolbert could tell Joey Frank to stop the surrey at any time, order them out and shoot them down like animals. He could bury them in the woods like he did the baby.

Ernie put his brain to work that he had always told Joey Frank he had saved back for emergencies. He thought harder than he ever had in his life. He and Joey Frank must get away from this insane man; and they had to do it quickly.

Some time later he thought of something he could do that might work and not arouse suspicion in Banker Tolbert. As he clamped down his teeth hard on the wad of chewing tobacco to make the juice dark, he thought of how lucky he was to have taken up the habit of chewing since the early age of five. When his mouth was full of the dark juice, he began putting the tip of his index finger in and out of his mouth, writing in tobacco juiceon the shoebox in his lap. He did this until he had smeared down the words, “WHEN I SPIT, JUMP!”

Ernie lowered his hand down onto the surrey seat, so Banker Tolbert couldn’t see, eased it over to Joey Frank and gave him a little punch. With his other hand he tapped the shoebox lightly with his fingers, hoping that he would look over and notice what he had written. Joey Frank continued to sit straight and stiff as a board. He did cut his eyes down to the sound and read the brown-smeared words on the box. Ernie was glad when he slightly nodded his head, indicating that he understood. There was no time to lose. Ernie got a grip on the shoebox and his lunch pail; then he turned his head, spit and leaped out, at the same moment Joey Frank let go of the reins, grabbed his lunch pail and bailed out on his side. The frightened boys were so quick that Banker Tolbert didn’t have time to realize what was happening until it was all over. As they lay sprawled by the roadside, Ernie feared that bullets might start flying their way at any minute. He yelled over to Joey Frank, “Stay down an’ crawl over to my side of the road. There’s a steep bank over here.” When Joey Frank reached Ernie, they rolled themselves down through the thick straw until they hit level ground. “Lay still Joey Frank an’ be quiet for a minute” Ernie said. As they lay there catching their breath, they could hear Banker Tolbert’s voice trailing away, hollering at Dolly Belle to stop. After getting to his feet Ernie said, “I reckin we can git up now, ‘cause he’s still a-goin’ yonder way. Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m alright, except I went an’ lost one of my shoes back yonder when I jumped.”

“I dropped my lunch pail too, but we ain’t gonna go back an’ look for’m. ‘Cause that crazy old fool may done stopped that surrey an’ a-headin’ back this a-way to kill us.”

Ernie opened the shoebox that he had managed to hold onto. He said, “Which one of yore shoes did you lose, Joey Frank, the right or the left.”

“The left.”

“Here, I thank this is the left one. It’s hard to tell on a new pair a-shoes. Put it on an’ hurry.”

Joey Frank sat down on the ground and put the shoe on. He was going to lace it, but Ernie said, “You can lace the dang thang later. Git up an’ come on, let’s git outta here.”

“Where we gonna go?”

“Through them woods down yonder an’ on home just as fast as we can git there, that’s where.”

The boys went running down through the straw field. They glanced over their shoulders from time to time, apprehensively for fear that Banker Tolbert might be following them. When they reached the woods, Ernie Said, “Joey Frank, let’s walk awhile, I’m outta breath.”

“Yeah, me too, Ernie.”

They walked on and on through the woods. When Ernie noticed Joey Frank was limping, he asked, “What’s wrong with yore leg, Joey Frank?”

“Ain’t nothin’ wrong with it. Why?”

“’Cause you shore are a-walkin’ funny, that’s why.”

Joey Frank stopped and pointed at his feet saying, “Well, no wonder I’m a-walkin’ funny. Take a look at how much higher this heel is on yore shoe than the one on mine.”

“Yeah, I see what you mean, Joey Frank. That’s bound to make you walk funny for shore.”

Joey Frank felt like crying at the thought of losing his shoe. He said, “I shore do hate I went an’ lost my ole shoe. I ain’t got another pair to my name except my Pa’s, an’ I wantedto save’m to remember him by. I don’t guess I’ll git to do sech now though.”

“Heck yeah, you can save’m Joey Frank, ‘cause you can wear my ole pair ‘til you can git you some. Now, hush up sech, an’ come on.”

They continued to walk on, making their way toward home. When Ernie felt they were out of danger, he said, “Joey Frank, let’s sit down over here an’ rest-up a spell. Let’s eat that grub in yore lunch pail. I don’t much thank that Banker Tolbert’ll come this far down to try an’ find us. He’s probably done back in Ruby Creek by now anyway.”

“I shore hope he is, Ernie, but you cain’t never tell. You better face one way an’ I’ll face the other ‘cause we don’t want that crazy fool to sneak up on us for shore.”

The tired, bedraggled boys sat down on the ground with their backs to each other. Joey Frank opened his lunch pail and divided the food with Ernie. As they ate, they talked about the frightening ordeal they had just encountered. Ernie Said, “It wudn’t never do for my Ma and Pa to find out that Banker Tolbert tried to kill us. If they do, there will never be no more gittin’ together on Saturdays to go a-fishin’ or to go see Mr. Pearson at the blacksmith shop so I can learn them skills of blacksmithin’.”

Joey Frank replied, “If my Mama found out she wud do the same thang, so I ain’t gonna tell noboby.”

Gray shadows began to creep in and nestle low around the boys. Ernie jumped to his feet saying, “It won’t be long ‘til sundown. We gotta hurry to git home before dark; in time to do chores.” As they went on their way, they had little fear that Banker Tolbert might still be somewhere around to harm them.

When they arrived safely at their regular departing place, Joey Frank pulled Ernie’s new shoe off and gave it back to him. Ernie pulled his old pair off and gave them to Joey Frank to wear until he could buy a new pair. Joey Frank said, “I’m gonna keep the shoe I didn’t lose. Maybe we could go back over yonder someday an’ find the mate.” Before they said goodbye, Joey Frank smiled at Ernie and said, “Ernie, I’m shore glad about one thang.”

‘Yeah? What?”

“I’m glad I can see you, an’ you can see me; an’ we ain’tdead.”

“Heck, me too, Joey Frank.”

Joey Frank put his old shoe under his arm, as they went their separate ways, only a short distance home.

CHAPTER FIVE
 

Mama was speechless when Joey Frank gave her the fifty dollars telling her that he had found it. She told him that she would put the money away for one week, in the meantime, they should keep their ears open to hear if anyone reported it lost. If no one claimed it, then she would put the money to good use.

In exactly one week Mama did put the money to good use. She bought meats for Gloria, the main food that Doctor Black said that she needed to recuperate. She bought a calf to replace the one that drowned in the river when Pa died trying to rescue it. Mama planned to fatten the calf for slaughter and cure the meat to preserve it for Gloria in the future.

Mama also purchased more chickens from their long-timed widowed neighbor Nora Simson. Their flock had thinned out tremendously since the hungry fox came out of the hills and preyed on them at night.

The next Sunday when the family was on their way home from church, Mama noticed a sign on a farmer’s barn near the road, advertising cottonseed for sale. She told Joey Frank to stop the wagon at the house that was nearby, that she wanted to find out the price he was asking. She explained to her children that she wasn’t going to buy the seed today because it was the Sabbath and not just another ordinary day.

When Joey Frank pulled into the yard at the small farmhouse, the front door opened, some black children of all ages came out and stood on the porch. In a moment a black woman came out and extended warm, cheerful greetings. Mama and Joey Frank descended the wagon and walked up to the porch, where the woman was standing at the edge. Mama told her that she had seen the sign on the barn and wished to inquire what price they were asking for cottonseed. When the woman told Mama, she could hardly believe her ears. The woman explained the price wouldn’t normally be that cheap. She went on to say that her husband had deserted her and they were moving away to another state to be with family members. Mama asked the lady to save two of the one-hundred-pound bags of seeds, and she would come back the next day to pay for and pick them up. The lady responded by saying she couldn’t, because the seed would be sold on a first-come first-serve basis. Because of her religious convections, Mama didn’t want to make the purchase that day, however she couldn’t pass up the bargain.

Mama wanted to buy Joey Frank a new pair of shoes with some of the money that she had leftover, but he refused the offer, saying he wanted her to buy some material to make her and Gloria a new dress. He explained that he could wear Ernie’s shoes until the hen’s egg laying season. He could then sell enough eggs to the merchants in Ruby Creek to buy shoes.