Ribbon in the Sky

by Dorothy Garlock

  “Hello, Mr. Dolan,” Sharon called, pulling her reluctant escort along.

  “Evening.” Mike tipped his hat.

  “Did you come in to hear Sister Cora?”

  “Hardly,” Mike grunted. “I’m looking for Weaver.”

  “He took off for Claypool. He sure cooked his goose in this town. Folks are up in arms over what he did to Letty. If me and Oscar hadn’t come along, no tellin’ what he’d a done.”

  Mike’s dark eyes beamed down on Oscar. “I owe you one, Phillips.” He held out his hand. “I appreciate what you did for my wife.”

  Oscar shook his hand, his mouth hanging open.

  “You and Letty . . . are married?” Sharon asked.

  “Letty and I said our vows more than six years ago. We had a misunderstanding and she came here to her grandpa. Later, I was told that she was dead. I went to war not knowing that I had a son.”

  “My . . . goodness gracious me!” Sharon exclaimed. “How exciting. I knew there was something going on between the two of you the night you came to the Pierces’ to take her home. I just knew it. Well . . . can you beat that?”

  Oscar found his tongue. “—But her name’s Graham.”

  “Family name. She didn’t want me to find her.”

  “Well it ain’t no wonder she gave all the fellows a cold eye round here,” Sharon exclaimed, her own eyes warm on Mike’s face. “Reckon if you’ve had the cream you don’t want the whey.”

  Mike grinned down at her. “I’ll take that as a compliment, Mrs. Tarr.”

  “Aren’t you going to hear Sister Cora?” Sharon was holding onto Oscar’s arm with both hands. “It’s about time for her to appear.”

  “No. If I want to see a circus, I go to a circus not to a church. If Weaver’s not in town I’ll be heading on home. I’ll run into him sooner or later and settle my score.” He tipped his hat and turned away.

  “Tell Letty I’ll be over one day soon,” Sharon called.

  “I’ll do that. Come any time. You too, Phillips.”

  Sharon and Oscar stood on the board porch and watched Mike walk away. Not many men on the street were as tall; none walked with more assurance.

  “Gawd. I’d hate to be in Cecil’s shoes when that bird gets a hold of him,” Oscar said.

  “Cecil Weaver is as sorry as they come,” Sharon said angrily. “I hope Mike stomps his guts out. He made life hell on earth for his wife and his kids. Everyone knows he beat them with his fists and a strop.”

  Oscar cursed under his breath, remembering the lustful look on Cecil’s face when he talked about his ten-year-old daughter.

  “How’d you know who Dolan was?” They were walking slowly down the street.

  “You’ve got to admit that once you’ve seen him you won’t forget him.” Sharon laughed and hugged Oscar’s arm. “Are you jealous? I danced with him when he came to the Pierces’ to get Letty. Even then I knew he had eyes only for her.”

  “It’s strange that Letty let everybody think she was a widow woman.” They came to the corner and Oscar pulled her into the shadows.

  “Folks would’ve looked down their noses at her if they knew she was married and separated from her man. You know how folks are. They’d a been sure it was her fault.”

  “Yeah, I know how folks are. Sharon, I’ve got myself in a hell of a to-do. I need to talk to you about it.”

  “Well, talk away.”

  “Not here. Do you really want to hear that woman tell us the world is coming to an end?”

  “Not really, but let’s wait and see what she looks like.”

  The singing was over. A dark-haired man in a white linen suit stood on the hotel balcony with both arms raised. The crowd quieted except for the muffled sound of a baby crying.

  “Brothers and sisters in the Lord,” he shouted in a booming voice. “This is a joyous occasion. I must confess that when Sister Cora informed me that the Lord had told her to stop in this small hamlet and hold a service, I urged her to continue on to Boley where a pavilion is being prepared to hold the huge crowds that gather when she speaks. Tired as she was from months of carrying the message across this great land, she insisted on stopping here because she wants you to know Him.

  “This work cannot be carried on without the help of each and every one of you. Dig deep in your pockets, my friends, when the collection plate is passed. You and Sister Cora will save countless souls from the fires of hell before it’s too late. If there be any sick among you, come forward after the service. Sister Cora will pray for you.”

  The string of lights across the stage went out. A murmur of disappointment rose from the crowd that hushed when the lights came on again. Against the blue backdrop a woman in a long white robe stood with her face lifted to the sky, arms extended toward the crowd. Below, on the porch of the hotel, voices began to chant, “Sister Cora, Sister Cora, Sister Cora—” As if mesmerized, the people in the street took up the chant and it went on and on. The woman on the balcony brought her palms together, lowered her head until her chin rested on her fingertips, and waited for the crowd to stop chanting. After a full moment of tense silence, she walked to the pulpit.

  Oscar nudged Sharon. “Let’s go.”

  “Just a minute, I want to hear what she’s got to say.”

  “He will come! He will come!” Cora’s musical voice rang out over the crowd. “We know not the day or the hour. Could you, my dear friends, rise to meet Him in the sky?”

  “What the hell is she talkin’ about?” Oscar asked.

  “Shhh . . .”

  “Jesus loves you. He weeps that some of you will burn in everlasting hell. He cares that your heart aches. He cares that you are sick in body and in mind. He grieves when you’re fallen. He waits to forgive you of your sins. You are not lost from His sight. When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound and time shall be no more, will you be ready? Will you meet your loved ones on the bright and blissful shore, or will you be cast into the fiery furnace?”

  “Let’s go, Sharon. She gives me the jitters.”

  “She knows how to work up the crowd. They’re swallowing every word she says, hook, line, and sinker.”

  “And will shell out when the hat is passed. Let’s walk down to the creamery. Nobody’ll be around this time of night.”

  In a high, clear voice Sister Cora was singing, “Will you meet me over yonder? I’ll be there—” Her voice faded as they walked down the dark street toward the creamery.

  Oscar lifted Sharon up to sit on the end of an old milk wagon and told her of his involvement with Elmer Russell and the bootlegging operation.

  “I started out just bootleggin’ a little whiskey now and then to make some extra money. Now I’m in a trap and can’t get out. Elmer’s bringin’ in a half a boxcar load at a time and supplyin’ three counties.”

  “Golly, Oscar. I didn’t know you were mixed up in anything like that. Where’s Elmer getting the whiskey?”

  “Out of Chicago. He thinks Dolan is here to cut into his territory.”

  “What gave him that idea?”

  “He can’t believe he’s a dirt farmer. He’s just sure Dolan’s from the mob back East.”

  “That’s crazy.”

  “I’m ’fraid to tell Elmer I want out. He’s meaner than a hornet when he’s crossed.”

  “Golly-darn, Oscar. There’s nothin’ more dangerous than a crooked lawman. I never did like that pig-eyed polecat.”

  “What’ll I do, Sharon? I’ve got my kids to think of. Elmer’d put all this on me in a minute if he thought he’d be caught. He could arrest me, and it would be my word against his.”

  “What’s Cecil Weaver got to do with this?”

  “He delivers for him the same as me, Arlo Thompson, and Doug Hardesty. We have to be at the siding tomorrow night to load two wagons. One’ll be covered with hay, the other with chicken coops. Arlo will take one, Cecil the other, if he’s sober. Next week it’ll be my turn.”

  “Don’t do it, Oscar. It’s too dangerous. What wo
uld happen to your kids if you got shot or sent to jail? Their granny couldn’t keep them. They’d go to the orphans’ home.”

  “I think about that. I’ve been a no-good son-of-a-bitch at times and done plenty that I ort not done, but I’ve took care of my kids. I wasn’t but sixteen when I got Clara pregnant and married her. Our first two younguns died, then we had three more. It put Clara in a early grave her bein’ so young and all.”

  “Don’t take all the blame,” Sharon said soothingly. “Clara had a part in it too.”

  “Guess it’s taken me all this time to grow up. Now that I’ve met you, Sharon, I just want to get myself a good steady job and make a home for you and the kids if you’ll have me.”

  “I’ll have to be sure it’s me you want and not just someone to look after your kids.”

  “It’s you, Sharon. You make me feel like I’m worth something.” He put his arms around her. She tilted her head to look up at him.

  “You are worth something. I often wondered why you wanted folks to think you a skirt chaser.”

  “I won’t lie to you. I’ve been to the speak-easies and whored around, especially since Clara died.”

  “I’ll not hold that against you. You got tied down so young you didn’t have time to sow your wild oats.” She slipped her arms about his waist and pressed herself against him.

  “Oh, Jesus! Oh, God,” Oscar breathed in her hair. “Why didn’t I meet you sooner?”

  Sharon pulled away. “We’ve got to get you out of this mess before we can make any plans.”

  “Elmer’ll kill me if I spill anything to Sheriff Ledbetter.”

  “We’ve got a week to think about what to do.”

  Oscar wrapped his arms about her. They sat for a long while in comfortable silence watching the fireflies.

  CHAPTER

  19

  “He went to town.”

  Jacob, in his big chair, lifted one foot up and rested it on his knee so that he could untie his shoe.

  “You knew he was going,” Letty said accusingly. She pulled a chair back from the table and sank down.

  “ ’Course, I did. Any man with a backbone wouldn’t rest till he settled the score with the man who mistreated his woman.”

  “He didn’t say anything. He just got up from the table and left. I thought he’d gone to the creek to take a bath.”

  “He’ll be back.” Jacob’s boot dropped to the floor with a thump.

  “If he’s able,” Letty replied worriedly. “Cecil could be waiting for him with a bunch of thugs to beat him up.”

  “Mike can take care a hisself,” Jacob said confidently, stretched and groaned. “I’m gettin’ so gol-durn old I ain’t fit fer nothin’ but to eat and sleep.”

  “—And wake up Patrick by throwing your shoes on the floor,” she replied irritably.

  “My, ain’t you cross. Ya remind me of a cow with her teat caught in a fence.”

  “I’m worried, that’s what!”

  “Ain’t no reason to be. Tanglin’ with Mike’d be like tanglin’ with a buzz saw.” He stretched again. “Lordy mercy, my old bones are creakin’ tonight.”

  “You’re not walking that plowed ground anymore,” Letty said firmly, noticing how slowly he moved and the fatigue lines in his face. “Mike says you’re not going to the field during harvest either.”

  “You two got yore heads together and decided to put me on the shelf, did ya?”

  “We decided that since you didn’t have enough sense to take care of yourself we’d do it for you. You may be able to bully me, but you won’t bully Mike.”

  “Hogwash,” he snorted. “I ain’t never been able to bully ya into anythin’. It’d be easier to swing a mule by the tail than to budge you when you get yore mind set. It’s good thin’ yore man come back to whip ya in line.”

  Letty looked into his twinkling eyes and burst into soft laughter.

  “Grandpa, you’re enough to make a preacher cuss.”

  “That ain’t nothin’. Plenty of ’em do it on the sly.”

  After a long pause, Letty said, “I hope Cora doesn’t come here.”

  “Why would she? Ain’t nothin’ for her here. Stop yore worryin’. She can’t hurt ya none.”

  “Oh, yes, she can. If she spreads it around that I had a child out of wedlock, they’ll never let me keep Helen.”

  “Yore borrowin’ trouble.” Jacob got up yawning. “I’m goin’ to bed.” He passed behind her chair, turned, and sniffed. “You plannin’ on doin’ some sparkin’ when Mike gets back? Smells like that there Christmas perfume me ‘n’ Patrick got fer ya from Sears Roebuck.” He chuckled when he saw her bristle.

  “You got it for me to use, didn’t you?”

  “Now that ya mention it, reckon we did.”

  “Then why are you complaining?” The foot of her crossed leg began to move back and forth in a rhythmic movement that reflected her restlessness.

  Jacob chuckled again. “Mike’d better get back here pretty soon or he’ll think he’s got hold of a sour pickle ’stead of a sweet, pretty woman.”

  “Night, Grandpa.”

  “Night, Letty girl.” Jacob’s gnarled hand came out and swept the hair back from her cheek.

  Letty was surprised and touched by the gentle gesture. Tears sprang in her eyes. She knew that his affection for her ran deep but that he was unable to voice it. She took his hand in hers and held it to her cheek.

  “You’re the most irritating, yet the sweetest grandpa in the whole wide world!”

  “Horsefeathers!” he snorted, pulled his hand free, and headed for the bedroom.

  Letty sat with her elbows on the table. As the clock began to strike the hour, she counted the strokes although she had just checked and knew that it was nine o’clock. There was still some light in the room. This was one of the longest days in the year. Soon the days would begin to shorten and by fall it would be dark by five o’clock. She remembered the long winter nights when she lay in her lonely bed and wondered why fate had been so unkind to her.

  She reached into the neck of her dress and pulled out the scrap of blue ribbon she had taken from the lilac bush. It was warm and scented from being next to her skin. Mike had kept it with him all the time they had been apart! While she was alone and hurting, he had been alone and hurting, too.

  Sliding the ribbon between her thumb and forefinger, she went out onto the porch. The night was warm and quiet except for a few martins that sat squawking on the windmill blades while others, looking for a nightly feast, soared with open mouths through a swarm of flying insects. Woodrow came from his nest of grass beside the barn and stood looking at her.

  “Are you waiting for him too?” Letty asked softly as she tucked the ribbon back into the neck of her dress.

  The bushy tail made a half-swing, then the dog turned and walked slowly back to his nesting place.

  Letty leaned against a porch post and stared off down the road. Come back, Mike. Please come back soon. Presently she realized that she was pacing back and forth across the porch. She stopped and a shiver racked her slender frame. What if he didn’t come back? No! God wouldn’t be so cruel to her again!

  When she heard the sound of a gate slam shut and Woodrow’s whine of welcome, relief made her weak. She hugged the porch post and strained her eyes for a sight of Mike. He came from around the barn, bareheaded and shirtless.

  “Mike! Mike!” She jumped off the porch, ran to him, and threw herself into his arms. He lifted her off her feet and swung her around.

  “Sweetheart . . .”

  “I found the ribbon tied to the lilac bush,” she said breathlessly. “Oh, Mike, you kept it all this time.”

  “It’s what kept me going, kept me sane,” he murmured against her cheek. “In the dark of the night, I would hold the ribbon and see your hair blowing in the wind, see your laughing eyes, smiling lips, and feel what it was like to lose myself inside you. Dear God, I missed you!”

  “I missed you too. You were my life, my heartbeat.”<
br />
  “I dreamed of kissing you with your arms about my neck, of feeling your breasts against me, and holding your hips in my hands.”

  “So did I. We don’t have to dream of it anymore, my love.”

  His lips moved hotly in search of hers, found them, and molded them to his in a devastating kiss. Letty’s senses responded with a deep, churning hunger for his touch. She clung to him and parted her lips to glide the tip of her tongue over the edge of his teeth. Caught in a spinning whirlwind of desire, Letty was still aware that his pulse was racing as wildly as hers. As he pressed his body against hers she could feel that he was as ready for passion as she was.

  Her breath came in small gasps when the kiss broke. She lifted her hands and framed his face with her palms before her fingers forked into his hair. “It’s wet.”

  “I bathed in the creek before I came to you.”

  “I was so worried. Are you all right?” Her hands moved down over his shoulders and arms.

  “Weaver left town, but I’ll find him.”

  “Oh, Mike, no. Let it go.”

  “Never. Let’s don’t talk about it now. Hummm . . . you smell good. Good enough to eat.” His tongue lapped at the skin beneath her ear. It felt so good she pressed against it. “Did I hurt your lip when I kissed you?”

  “I was enjoying it too much to notice. Maybe you’d better kiss me again.”

  Their mouths met. They kissed deeply, hungrily. His hand found her breast, cupped and lifted it. The evidence of his need was captured between them. Letty gave herself up to the abandonment of moving against it. He moved his lips a fraction. Their breaths mingled.

  “Sweetheart,” he whispered with a catch in his voice. “Stay with me tonight.”

  “Is your bunk big enough for both of us?”

  “God, yes! I could sleep with you on top of a rail fence.” His broad hand moved down her spine, found her taut buttocks, and pressed her hard against him. “I want you so much . . . I’m about to burst.”