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Authors: With Hope

Dorothy Garlock - [Dolan Brothers] (38 page)

BOOK: Dorothy Garlock - [Dolan Brothers]
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“Look at Jay.” A slow smile started in Henry Ann’s eyes. “He’s got ice cream all down the front of his clean coveralls. Isn’t Johnny sweet? Would you ever have believed—” She stopped speaking when she realized that Karen’s attention was focused on Grant, who had swung the mallet. The ring went up to within a foot of the top.
“I don’t hear any bells ringing,” Karen called out just as Grant swung the mallet again.
BING!
“What was that you were saying?” Grant turned, his sun-browned face wreathed in smiles.
“What do you get for a prize, Mr. Muscle-man?”
“Do you want it?” Grant asked, and walked over to choose the
prize
from a selection offered by the operator.
“Sure.”
“Do you promise to keep it forever and ever?” Grant turned with his hand behind his back.
“Not if it’s edible.”
“This would be a little hard to digest.” Over her head he looped a silver cord with a little glass heart attached. “That’s a special prize. I had to ring the bell four times to get it. I could have had four cigars.”
“Oh, my. What a sacrifice.” Karen’s voice had a nervous quiver.
The loud bang of fireworks exploding announced the start of the ceremony preceding the marathon. Henry Ann wiped Jay’s face and hands with her handkerchief and let him walk ahead of her and Johnny as they followed the crowd along the street toward the striped tent. Grant and Karen walked behind them.
They stopped at the edge of the crowd, a distance from the platform, and listened to the booming voice of the announcer crackling from a loudspeaker.
“La . . . dies and gent . . . le . . . men! The first annual Red Rock marathon is about to begin!” A cheer went up from the crowd.
“The twenty-five couples who registered to enter the marathon will now come to the floor. The last couple to leave the floor will take with them FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS! Today everyone is welcome. Starting tomorrow, a canvas wall will surround the platform. It will cost you fifteen cents to watch, but, folks, you can come in and stay all day or all night. Now to introduce the contestants.”
“Pete’s supporters are here,” Johnny murmured. “The Perrys are proud of their boy.”
“I see his daddy and his young brother. I don’t know many of the other Perrys.”
“Each of the couples will have an attendant to bring them water or food,” the announcer said. “They’ll have ten minutes out of every hour to rest or—”
“—or use the outhouse,” Johnny murmured. “I see they’ve set one up.”
“How do you know so much about this?”
“Pete’s been goin’ on about it for months.”
“I wonder who’ll help them.”
“It’ll be one of the Perrys. I see Sandy over there. He’s a distant cousin. All of Mud Creek is here. You don’t see Hardy in town often. Even Fat Perry is here.”
“There they are. Oh, goodness. Isabel looks happy as a lark. She doesn’t know what she’s let herself in for.”
Henry Ann realized suddenly that the crowd had closed in behind them when she heard a woman’s voice.
“Well, I never! How can she show her face to decent folk? It’s a shame is what it is. She’s taken over that poor woman’s baby and is carryin’ on with her husband.”
Henry Ann turned and came face to face with Mrs. Austin. Their eyes met in a silent battle. Mr. Austin, standing behind his wife, turned his face away.
“Hello, Mrs. Austin.”
“Don’t you dare speak to me after what you’ve done, not only to poor Mrs. Dolan, but for pushing that whore and her bastard off on my son and turning him against me and his daddy! Every decent woman in this town knows that you’re a . . . a . . . disgrace!” She raised her hand as if to slap Henry Ann. Mr. Austin grabbed her wrist. She jerked it from his grasp and forced her way back through the crowd.
Henry Ann wished the ground would open up and swallow her. She desperately wanted to cry. Pride helped her to control her emotions. She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. She dared not look to see if the people around them had been paying sufficient attention to hear what Mrs. Austin had said.
“Do you want to go, Sis?”
“I’d really like to. But I don’t want her to think that she ran me off.”
“Let the old hag think what she wants. Go on with Jay. I’ll tell Grant and Karen to meet us at the car.”
With Jay’s hand clasped in hers, her head high, Henry Ann walked through the crowd. She looked directly at each person she met, and nodded to those she knew. Several men tipped their hats, but most of the women failed to acknowledge her. Johnny caught up as she reached the almost empty street; and as they walked past the silent merry-go-round, Henry Ann stopped.
“Let’s give Jay a ride on the carousel. You’ll have to ride with him and hold him on.”
“I’ve ridden only a time or two. One time one of Mama’s suitors, wanting to impress her, gave me a nickel to ride. Sucker.” Johnny grinned. “Mama didn’t even notice.”
“I’ll pay. Go on and get on. Johnny’ll ride with you, Jay. Won’t that be fun?”
Johnny set Jay astride the gaily painted wooden horse and stood beside him. The Wurlitzer organ began to play, and the horse moved up and down. Henry Ann waved each time they came around. Seeing the broad smile on the child’s face made her forget for a few minutes her heartbreak at the treatment given her by folks she had considered her friends and her despair of ever being with the man she loved.
“Did you like that, punkin’?” Henry Ann took Jay’s hand when the ride was over. “Thank the man for the nice long ride.”
“I wasn’t scared,” Jay shouted. “Johnny hold me.”
“You’re getting to be such a big boy.”
“I a big boy,” Jay agreed.
“Jay and I will go back to the car, Johnny. Go enjoy yourself. You don’t have to go with us.”
“Is that right?” Johnny dug in his pocket and came up with a nickel to buy Jay a huge red balloon.
“If you’re not careful, I’m going to love you very much.”
“Really? No one’s every loved me before. How’s it supposed to feel?”
The tears that flooded Henry Ann’s eyes threatened to spill over and run down her cheeks. Her emotions were already raw, and Johnny’s words pushed her over the edge. Embarrassed, she blinked and sniffed.
“Hey, now. Come on. I’m getting a kick out of seeing the little fellow happy.”
“Did anyone ever buy you a balloon?”
“Ah . . . once in a while.”
“I’ll buy you a hot tamale.” She smiled through the tears. “We’ll take them back to the car.”
They passed Mr. Phillips’s office. There was still a big CLOSED sign on the corner door. Henry Ann had not heard from the lawyer since their talk about what to do about Isabel’s demands. He had said that he would take care of it, and she would just have to trust him to do it.
Later, when Henry Ann and Johnny sat on the running board of the car watching Jay play with the balloon on the long string, Henry Ann saw Karen and Grant walking slowly toward the car.
“Karen is smitten by him,” Henry Ann said.
“He likes her, too.”
“If he decides to settle here, what’ll he do? We’ll not need him after the cotton is picked.”
“I hope he stays around. I get the feeling that he’s not worried about money or what he’ll do to make a living. He’s a square shooter, Sis. I’d bet my life on it.”
“Don’t do that, Johnny.” Henry Ann gripped his arm. “Don’t joke about your life. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Karen was bubbling, and Grant’s blue eyes danced when he looked at her. It was crystal clear to Henry Ann that they were in love. She tried to be happy for her friend and not be envious of her freedom to be with her man.
“Guess who we saw,” Karen said as they approached. “Chris, with a huge smile on his face, watching Opal and Rosemary going around and around on the merry-go-round.”
“I’m proud of Chris,” Henry Ann said. “It’s hard for him to go against his folks. I hope he and Opal don’t run into Mrs. Austin. She’ll be sure to ruin the day for them.”
“Have you seen her?”
“Oh, yes,” Johnny answered. “If she’d been a man, I’d’ve punched her in the nose.”
“It’s not important,” Henry Ann said, hoping to close the subject.
“They’ve started the dance,” Karen announced after a short silence. “Pete and Isabel are couple number six. Pete is showing off. He’s really good-looking. It’s a pity he has no brains to go with his looks. If he’d not been raised on Mud Creek, he might have amounted to something.”
“Good-looking?” Grant snorted. “I wish I’d known you thought that. I’d have rearranged his features when I had the chance.”
“Don’t worry,” Karen said soothingly, and placed her hand on his arm. “I’ll arrange for you to have another chance.”
“Don’t bother.” Grant’s hand covered Karen’s.
The music that blared loudly on this first day of the marathon was suddenly quiet. A minute passed before anyone noticed. Then the booming voice of the announcer was heard.
“Keep dancing! Keep dancing, or you’ll be disqualified. We have a problem here. The sheriff says that one of the contestants is under age and lied on the entry form. Couple number six has been disqualified.” Angry shouts of disapproval followed the announcement.
“That’s Pete and Isabel,” Karen exclaimed.
“Well, for goodness sake! It serves her right. She thinks she’s so darned smart!” Henry Ann instantly regretted her petty remark.
“Pete will be madder than a stepped-on copperhead.” This from Johnny. “He’s been counting on this to raise his stock in town. He thought people would look up to him if he won.”
“Seems to me that honest work and being decent to folks would have done more toward earning respect than winning a dance marathon,” Karen said.
A while later a car with a gold star on the side came down main street, weaving between the stands. It turned and stopped alongside the Henry car. Isabel sat between the sheriff and Mr. Phillips. The lawyer got out.
“Ladies,” he said, and tipped his ancient Stetson. “Talk to you for a minute, Henry Ann?”
“You can talk in front of my brother and my friends, Mr. Phillips. They know about my problems with Isabel.”
“I’ve arranged for the girl to be a ward of the state. The sheriff will take her back to Oklahoma City where they’ll keep her until she comes of age unless you, as her closest known relative, will take her in and be responsible for her.”
“I can’t do that, Mr. Phillips.” Henry Ann shook her head. “I tried being kind to her, and I tried being firm. She’ll not put forth any effort to get along and says that she’ll not go to school.”
“Then she’ll go into a home for wayward girls until she’s eighteen. After that, she’s on her own.”
“Will she have to go to school?”
“Yes, and she’ll have to work.”
“Johnny, what do you think?”
“I think that if you don’t let her go, you’ll be sorry within a week. She’s trouble.”
“Johnny! Johnny!” Isabel called from the car. “Please don’t let ’em take me. Johnny, come here. Please, tell them that I’ll do what
she
says if they let me stay.”
Johnny walked over to the car and leaned down to speak to her.
“You say that now, but you’d do just as you damned please. Just like you did before. You’d head right back to the Perrys. I told you when you came here that you had a good chance to go to school and make something of yourself. You threw it away.”
“I’ll do what
you
say. Please, Johnny. You’re my brother.”
“Your half brother. Thank God your pa wasn’t mine.”
“And I’m glad, you damned red-assed Indian!” Isabel’s demeanor changed in an instant and anger made her face ugly. “Why’er ya sidin’ with her? I’m as much your sister as she is.”
“But you’re nothing like her and never will be.” Johnny backed away from the car and joined Henry Ann.
“Sit still.” The sheriff grabbed Isabel’s arm when she would have jumped out to follow Johnny.
“I’ve calculated that Ed had about six hundred dollars in assets when he died.” Mr. Phillips spoke to Henry Ann. “That would be in the livestock. The cotton crop was just breaking the ground, so I didn’t figure much of that in. The land and the house being yours, I’d suggest to the probate court that the rest of the assets be divided by three, and get the court to give the girl and the boy here two hundred dollars each. I’ll request that I be given the right to hold the girl’s money in trust until she’s released at age eighteen. Any questions?”
“I’m not taking anything of Ed’s,” Johnny said quickly. “He wasn’t my pa.”
“In the eyes of the law, he was. The law says you’re entitled to a third of what he had when he died.”
“I’m not taking anything,” Johnny repeated stubbornly.
“You and Henry Ann can hash that out. When the cotton and the cattle are sold, bring in the two hundred dollars for the girl, Henry Ann. I’ll hold it for her until she’s legal age, and I’ll see that she signs a release. You’ll be rid of her.”
BOOK: Dorothy Garlock - [Dolan Brothers]
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