Before
leaving for their appointment with McCleary, Luke draws a map so the
women know where they will be.
His
lips silenced her before someone overheard them. "I promise.
I'll come back hale and hardy. You stay safe."
They
exchanged a furtive kiss.
Dinner
was pleasant, though somewhat subdued. Rachel knew something was in
the wind and didn't protest when her sons said they were going out.
"You
mind yourselves up there," she said calmly. "And you take
this poke with you." She pulled a burlap bag from a cupboard. It
was bulky and heavy. She handed it to Will. "You find them sheep
and come on home." Her eyes held more than she could say aloud.
If
the men had any doubt about their mother's understanding of the
situation, that one look cleared it. Rachel Henry knew much more than
she'd said. With the children around, she wasn't in a position to say
much, but Dollie vowed she'd find out what she could when the
young'uns went to bed.
The
Belloit women saw Will and Luke off, kissing them as passionately as
they dared.
"You
be safe," they said, over and over.
"We
will," the brothers assured them.
"Go
on inside, before Mama gets riled," Lucius cautioned.
The
girls waited on the porch, waiting until the truck was out of sight.
Inside, a cheerful fire and soft light from a lamp, greeted them. The
children said their goodnights and went to their rooms. Wilt said he
had some things to tend to, but Dolly suspected he was going out to
check with the other menfolk, who were positioned around the
property.
Once
everything was quiet, Rachel patted the couch beside her. "You
girls come sit down a spell. I reckon you know all that my boys do."
"Yes,
ma'am," the chorused.
"Precious
little, mind you. Earl was real tight lipped, but I think I got a
thing or two I can tell you."
"Who
is McCleary?" Dollie asked, apologizing for her outburst.
"He's
an old Army buddy of Earl's. He's a geologist now, works for the
state. He's a good man. This all started when they dug out the new
pool—right before you got here."
"What
new pool?" Dollie asked.
"Exactly,"
Rachel said. "They was building it on the other side, not far
from Doc's place. They found something that caught their interest."
"Coal,"
Patty whispered.
"Coal."
Rachel nodded. "They contacted McCleary's office asking for a
survey. He didn't come out hisself, but he contacted Earl and told
him what was happening. Well, you can imagine Earl...."
"Mad
as a wet hen," Dollie said, nodding.
"Madder.
Specially when the folks from down to the school come up and asked if
he'd consider selling the land to a mining company."
"Someone
was dumb enough to suggest that to Earl?" Dollie was appalled.
"This
land has been in the Henry family over a hundred years. The school
sits on land that his great-grandfather tilled. His grandfather
loaned the land to the school."
"They
don't own it?" Patty was surprised.
"They
pay us rent every year," Rachel said. "It ain't much, but
it tides us over. They come to Earl with a real fine offer from the
mining company."
"But
he said no," Dollie concluded.
"Damn
right he did. This is our home. And you seen what a mining company
would do. Come in here, dig up this good bottom land, tear down the
trees, make this place not fit for man or beast. He told 'em he'd
rather die than see them rape his land. They said they were patient.
If he wouldn't sell, maybe his boys would. Every man's got a
price, one of 'em said. Earl told 'em Reckon you don't know my
boys. They can't be bought."
"And
you think this is what got Earl killed?"
"I
know it. When they couldn't convince him to sell, they kilt him. Now,
they want to kill my boys. They're gonna have to work extra hard if
they want to stop Luke and Will. Their daddy might not have been good
for much, but he taught 'em to shoot and he made them tough. My boys
are survivors."
The
sun was getting low when Luke and Will pulled up to the narrow gap
that led to their father's thinking spot. There were no other cars in
sight, but that meant nothing. There could be another way in they
didn't know, or McCleary could have arrived on foot.
"What's
in the poke?" Will asked Luke before they got out of the truck.
Luke
smiled when he opened the bag. "Remember Grandaddy Nation's
pearl handled Colts?"
"The
matching set Granny gave him for a wedding gift?"
"Yup!"
He lifted the guns from the tote bag along with a box of shells.
They
checked the guns, finding them loaded and in perfect working order.
Granny Nation was ninety, she'd married at sixteen. At seventy-four
years old, these guns were like new. Chuckling, they each took a gun,
sliding it in their belts. They divided the shells and headed into
the narrow way leading to the secret holler where their father's
still was located. They took a few steps when they heard the
distinctive sound of a gun being cocked. Three more joined the first.
©
2019 Dellani Oakes
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