Harvest of Thorns

by Paul E. Wootten

  “Congratulations Harry. It’ll be nice having you around full-time.” Harvester meant it. Harry had adapted well to country life. He would be a good neighbor.

  “Yep,” Cora said. “We’re hoping Judge Airey’ll decide our case this week and let me get that divorce from Levi. Once that’s done, Harry’s gonna be a landowner.”

  “You feeling pretty good about that court business, Cora?” Charlene asked.

  “Mister Potter thinks our chances are real good. Earl told the judge about some of the stuff Levi used to do. I could see it bothered him.”

  A few more minutes of pleasantries and Harvester and Charlene were on the road.

  “This is going to be a much different place a year from now,” Charlene said.

  If only she could have known.

  THIRTY

  “Is this Earl?” The voice on the other end of the line was instantly recognizable.

  “Yessir, Mr. Potter.”

  “Why aren’t you in school, boy?”

  “Already home for the day, sir. It’s almost five.”

  “Well goodness gracious. I hadn’t noticed. Your mama there?”

  “She’s feeding the cows. She’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  “Well son, just tell her I called. I heard from Judge Airey today. He wants us in court tomorrow morning at eight-thirty, before the regular docket gets started.” Potter paused for a minute. “Might be good for you to be there too, Earl. Just in case the judge has more questions.”

  “Okay sir, I’ll tell Mama. Do you think the news will be good?”

  “I expect so. We had a very compelling argument, made even stronger by you.”

  ###

  Grover Petty reclined against the rail of the Grebey Island bridge, relaxing in the morning sun as he waited. Since his run-in with that Davis coon, he’d had a couple other scrapes in Adair, garnering just enough attention for him to decide to keep a low profile.

  That was before the men showed up at his house. It hadn’t taken long to come to an agreement; Grover would have taken a lot less. He was looking forward to this.

  He had almost dozed off when he heard her. A pretty voice, singing a church song. Grover glanced at the island side of the bridge where she was making her way down to the creek bank. She was about his age. Typical coon, no regard for a white man trying to catch a few winks.

  “Hey woman, stop that singing. Can’t you tell I’m trying to relax here?” She looked his way. Her eyes were the first thing he noticed. They didn’t seem to fully register what was happening. Most Nigras, they see a white man, they put their heads down. Not this one. She gazed right back at him, a huge smile on her face.

  “Hi. I’m going fishing.”

  “Well I can see that. I ain’t stupid. Go fish someplace else.”

  “But this is where the fish is.”

  It took a minute for him to figure it out. She wasn’t right. The man hadn’t mentioned that. Maybe she wasn’t the one.

  “What’s your name, girl?”

  “Thomasena. What’s yours?”

  She was the one.

  “Sam Hill.”

  “Hi Sam. You like fish?”

  Grover sauntered to the end of the bridge, twenty feet from her.

  “I love fish, but this ain’t where the big fish is.” He watched as she considered this.

  “I like catfish. This is where I always catch ‘em.”

  “If you like catfish, then you need to go to the secret spot.”

  She appeared to give this a lot of thought.

  “Where?”

  “Want me to take you there?” Grover thought he’d blown it, as she looked concerned for a moment. Then, she pointed past him.

  “Will you take me in that car? It’s blue. Pretty.”

  He smiled. “C’mon.”

  ###

  From his perch, Judge Airey noted that everyone was present. The official docket didn’t take up for another half-hour, so the Mannings, Leroy Potter, and Norris Alcorn were the only people there. Even the court bailiff hadn’t shown up.

  The judge wasted no time getting down to business. “Miz Manning, my apologies for the excessive amount of time I’ve taken to deliberate upon your requests. Court gets quite busy you know.”

  “Yes sir, I understand.” Cora was gracious, even though Potter had told her that the delay was probably more a result of a lazy judge than anything else.

  “Anyway, I’ve given this issue a lot of thought, and even talked to some of my colleagues in other jurisdictions. The fact is, Mr. Manning treated you and your son in a reprehensible manner that makes marriage not only impossible, but unsafe.”

  Earl felt his heart beat faster. Could it finally be over?

  Turning his attention to Earl, the judge continued. “Young man, your testimony carried a lot of sway with me. You spoke the truth in this courtroom, in an environment that made doing that very hard. I was impressed.”

  Earl remained seated, unsure if he should say anything or not. Fortunately, he didn’t have to wait long before Judge Airey turned back to Mama.

  “Miz Manning, I’ve chosen to grant your motion for divorce, effective immediately. Ma’am I wish you well.”

  “Thank you, Your Honor.” Cora’s eyes showed relief. She squeezed Earl’s hand.

  Her relief wouldn’t last long.

  Judge Airey took a deep breath and continued, “On the issue of ownership of the Grebey Island homestead, I have concluded that, since the land has been in the Manning family for generations, Mr. Manning will retain ownership.”

  “But Your Honor,” Potter shot to his feet. “You’re essentially putting Mrs. Manning and her son out on the street. She’s worked hard to operate that farm since Levi was jailed.”

  “I understand and respect what you are saying, Mr. Potter, but taking away Mr. Manning’s family homestead would amount to making him pay twice for his mistakes. He—”

  “Mistakes?” Potter was incredulous. “Judge, Levi Manning attempted to burn down a family’s home while they slept. If it hadn’t been for the Highway Patrol, he’d be in jail for murder. How can you—”

  “Mr. Potter, that’ll be enough!” The kindly jurist who had entered the courtroom grew furious. Potter’s emotions were rising too.

  “So, just like that, you’re kicking this woman out of her home so a convicted felon – a man who intended to commit murder – can hold on to—”

  “Mr. Potter, enough!” Judge Airey’s thundering voice brought the bailiff through a side entrance. He hurriedly took up a position between Potter and the bench. “Bailiff, if he says anything more, take him to a cell.”

  Potter’s face was red with anger. He started to speak, but thought better.

  “Do we have to get out of the house now?” Cora’s voice was surprisingly calm amidst the tension. Judge Airey appeared flustered by the question.

  “Well, uh, I suppose you can stay until Mr. Manning gets out of jail. Perhaps reconciliation will be possible—”

  “No Judge. There won’t be no reconciliation. I’ve come a long way the past few years. There’ll be no more beatings.”

  “I understand, ma’am.”

  “And another thing, Your Honor, I don’t know why you did what you did,” Cora’s voice remained level, almost quiet. “But I forgive you. My son and I will be just fine.”

  The judge sat speechless as Cora gathered up her things.

  “C’mon sweetie. Let’s go home.”

  ###

  Grover pulled up to the Adair Hotel, killed the engine, and waited. The warm sun was having the same sleepy effect on him as three hours ago on the bridge.

  “You’re back earlier than I expected.” The man startled him awake as he opened the passenger door and slid in. “Don’t tell me you messed up.”

  Grover smiled. “I got it done. Just like we agreed.”

  “No hitches?”

  “Nah. I did have a little bit of fun before I did it, though.”

  “Whatever,”
the man reached into the jacket of his sport coat and pulled out an envelope. Grover grabbed it and started to tear it open.

  “It’s there. We deal straight.”

  Grover folded the envelope and laid it on the car seat. “Pleasure doing business with you. Any chance there’ll be more?”

  The man shrugged. “Maybe. Depends on how things proceed.”

  Eyeing him skeptically, Grover said, “Now that you know you can trust me, tell me who you are?”

  “Don’t confuse hiring you with trusting you, Petty. We had something we needed done, you were the best person to do it. It’s nothing more than that.” With that the man exited the car and headed inside the hotel.

  ###

  “There’s one person we won’t miss,” Cora said, pointing to Grover Petty pulling away from the Adair Hotel in his old blue Ford.

  Earl glanced at him, but said nothing. He felt stupid for never considering that he might not live his entire life on Grebey Island. He’d grown to love the feelings of friendship and cooperation that saturated the place. He especially liked how much Mama had changed. She didn’t look tired all the time, like before. She smiled a lot and enjoyed visiting with the others. Earl suspected that this version of Mama had been there all the time, which could only mean Levi had been responsible for shrouding her with sadness and fear.

  “We aren’t leaving right away, you know.” Mama had read his mind. “He’s still got at least five more years until he gets released. We’ll figure out something before then.”

  The tightness in his gut lessened. Mama was right. They weren’t going anyplace immediately. Earl would be sixteen by the time Levi got out. He would work hard to build himself up, then take on Levi when he returned, beating him so bad that he’d run away for good.

  “Want to eat supper on the porch later?”

  Earl smiled. “Yes ma’am. Can we invite Mr. Davis?”

  “That’s a good idea,” Cora said. Then somberly, “I have to tell him that I can’t sell him that land.”

  They rode home in silence. At the house, Cora pulled the car under a shade tree.

  “Mr. Davis is working by the river. Will you go see if he needs any help, and ask him to dinner?”

  “Yes ma’am, but I need a drink of water first.” They headed into the house. Just inside the back door they were brought up short by the sight in front of them.

  Sitting at the kitchen table, smiling from ear to ear, was Levi Manning.

  THIRTY-ONE

  “I heard we is divorced.” The way he said it, dee-vorced, would have been comical if the situation weren’t so frightening.

  Cora stared at him, shocked. Earl almost hid behind her like he used to, before deciding against it. They would face him together.

  “You wondering how I got here, ain’t you?” Levi remained seated, clutching a sweaty bottle of beer. Three empties were on the table.

  “Well it was the darndest thing, Cora. The warden looked at my record and decided I had enough time built up for good behavior that I could get out early... real early.”

  Earl felt the hammering of his heart. It would be easy enough to run, but he wouldn’t do that to Mama.

  “I get back and find out I just got dee-vorced this morning, and that you was trying to take my farm.” Levi stood up awkwardly, tipping the beer in the process.

  “Well, that didn’t work so good for you, did it? Old Norris Alcorn made sure of that.” Levi stepped toward them. Mama didn’t back away.

  “Truth is, I’m better off without you. I already planned to come home and throw you out.” Levi’s hands were clenched into tight fists. “Looks like the judge already done that for me.”

  He moved closer. Mama held her ground.

  “Go ahead and throw a punch,” she said. There’s somebody around here who’ll make sure you never do it again.” Mama’s fearless warning brought Levi up short.

  “That would be your nigra boyfriend, I’m guessing. Well, don’t plan on much help from him, not that you’ll need it. You see, I ain’t gonna hit you, Cora. I’m gonna do something even better.” Levi moved to the far side of the room and leaned against the kitchen counter.

  “I want you and the boy out of here in fifteen minutes. Take the old pickup and your clothes. Nothing else. If you try to take more I’ll have you arrested for trespassing and stealing.”

  Gone was the emotion and rage that used to fill Levi Manning. Earl noticed how steely and evil his eyes were, like he imagined the eyes of the serpent in the Garden of Eden to be.

  “Well, get going. The clock done started.”

  ###

  Upstairs, Mama touched Earl’s arm. “Just take what you need. We’ll be okay.” Ten minutes later they were back downstairs, each with a pillowcase full of clothes. Nothing more. Levi was exactly where they left him.

  “Happiest day of my life,” he smiled. “Out of jail and rid of the both of you.”

  Mama faced him, her eyes intense.

  “Earl and I will be just fine, Levi. It’s too bad we can’t say the same for you.”

  They stood face to face for several moments, before Mama turned away.

  “Let’s go.”

  The old truck hadn’t been started in months. It took several attempts to get the engine to turn over.

  “Mama, why can’t we take your car?”

  “Like I said, we’ll be okay.” Mama put the truck into gear and made a wide turn around the house. When they reached the road, Levi was waiting for them, blocking their way.

  “Run him over,” Earl shouted. “Kill him dead!”

  Mama stopped.

  “Cora, don’t think about going by the Adair Bank and pulling out any money. I already talked to Finley Hatcher and he’s taken your name off the accounts.” Levi grinned. “Can’t have you running off with anything that belongs to me, now can we?”

  Wordlessly, she pulled onto the gravel road and headed toward to river.

  “Keep an eye out for Mr. Davis.”

  Earl didn’t spot Mr. Davis’s battered truck until they reached the Stanley farm. As they approached, Mr. Stanley and Mr. Davis came out of the barn.

  “Why are you driving old Lizzie?” Mr. Davis asked, his grin disappearing when Mama told them what had happened.

  “Worst of all, Harry, you won’t be getting the land I promised you. And now, you don’t even have a job.”

  “Now Cora, you don’t worry about me. I’ll find work someplace or other.”

  “You always got a job here, Harry,” Lincoln Stanley said. “Cora, we got room if you and Earl need a place to stay.”

  “Mr. Stanley, if I stay here, they’re certain to cause trouble for you.” Mama paused for a moment. “I guess we should get going.”

  Harry Davis offered his hand. Mama accepted. They stood for several moments, not taking their eyes off one another.

  “Take care of yourself, Harry. I’ll be in touch when we figure things out.”

  “How about if I—” Cora shook her head, cutting him off.

  “Not now. It’s not the time.”

  A few minutes later they were headed across the bridge. Earl looked around, trying to get a picture in his mind of the only home he’d known. On the mainland side of the bridge, he spotted something in the overgrown grass.

  “Why would Thomasena leave her fishing pole over there?”

  Mama slowed down.

  “You sure it’s hers?”

  “I’m sure, Mama. Mrs. Dobson painted it blue for her. It’s her favorite color.”

  “She ain’t gonna have it for long if she doesn’t take better care of it,” Mama said absently.

  The conversation was muted on the hour drive to Cape Girardeau. Despite having no idea where they were headed or even where they would be sleeping that night, Earl wasn’t worried. Mama’s peacefulness was carrying over to him.

  It was late afternoon when they pulled into a small bank in downtown Cape Girardeau.

  “I put some money away here,” she said, exiting the
car. When she returned, they headed to a used car lot near the river. An hour later, they were heading east in a three-year-old Chevy coupe.

  ###

  They didn’t bother to knock. After yelling Levi’s name, they let themselves in. It was dark. Levi suspected there would be visitors. He met them in the kitchen.

  “Mr. Alcorn.” He eyed the two men suspiciously. “Lowell, what are you doing here?” Lowell Surratt’s sudden interest in Grebey Island was a surprise, as was the boy tagging along behind, the spitting image of his daddy.

  “We won’t take long.” Alcorn said.

  “There’ll be some things happening out here on Grebey Island in the coming months. Actually they’ve already started. We’re just here to give you a little advice.”

  Levi stared at them. Alcorn continued.

  “There’s some men who very much want this county to be rid of the Negroes. They’re small in number, but they’re smarter than you and have more resources than you. Stay out of their way.”

  “You threatening me, Alcorn? I can get the Knights back together if I need to.”

  “We got something better, Manning,” Surratt said. “The Knights is dead, and we don’t need you trying to bring ‘em back to life.”

  “How about making me part of this new thing y’all got? Seems I got more to gain than anybody.”

  “No.” Alcorn’s tone was quiet, but invited no argument. “Stay out of the way and you’ll come out just fine. You might wind up owning this whole island before everything’s done.”

  Levi didn’t respond, but the thought of Grebey Island belonging to him exclusively was enticing.

  “What you do with it will be your problem,” Lowell Surratt said. “Based on the kind of farmer we know you to be, you’ll probably let it get overgrown in prairie grass until the next flood, but we don’t care, long as the nigras is gone.”

  “Well I ain’t turning my back on trouble. If it comes looking for me, I’ll be—”

  “Mr. Manning,” Alcorn interrupted. “The same strings that were pulled to get you out of jail can get you put you back in. Know what I mean?”