by Caryl McAdoo
“Are you accustomed to drinking a lot?”
He smiled at her. That was two questions. “No, ma’am. Never liked beer; haven’t had a drop of hard liquor since. I was sick for a week.” He held a hand up. “Back to the layabout thing. Wasn’t too long after, maybe January or February of ’twenty-nine, anyway three of Mother’s lady friends came to visit.
“I’d been out hunting most of the night. You should have seen the disapproving looks when I came out of my room midafternoon rubbing sleep from my eyes. Mother wasn’t the type to make excuses; she hated gossips anyway. I figured between that and the time at Jonesboro—throw in not going to church with Mother—must have kept tongues wagging to this very day.”
Sue nodded. “You’re probably right. I heard how sorry you were more than once. Can I ask why you didn’t attend services with your mother?”
“What’s this, a three-for-one deal?” He laughed. “I’d like to delve in and find out exactly what you heard sometime, but right now, I’ve got another question of my own to get us back to even.” Besides, he deemed his a more important topic. “Our third night out, you cried yourself to sleep. What was that about?”
“Oh, a combination of things. Recounting Andy’s accident earlier—that’s a recurring nightmare—made me miss Andy and my daddy.” She shook her head. “The wagon getting stuck, not trusting God. Doubtin’ I’d get to Jefferson.” She glanced toward where the church family sat, then turned back. “Plus, I thought I’d missed a chance and let the Lord down. Just one of those nights, I guess. You’d be safe in saying I was feeling all sorry for myself, doing a little wallowing in self-pity.”
Something pulled his attention away from Sue; she followed his gaze. Levi squared off with one of the boys, and a man hurried toward them.
Henry nodded. “Come on, looks like Levi might need some help.”
Her nephew held out his open hand, palm up, obviously arguing, but she couldn’t hear exactly what was being said. The other boy glanced at the man hurrying over. “Pa! This son of Satan’s bilking me.”
Henry broke into a lope. For a few strides, Sue matched him, then pulled ahead.
The father stopped next to his son. “Wait just one minute here.” He stared sternly at Levi.
For a few beats of her pounding heart, Levi stared back, then looked away just as Henry reached the fast-growing circle of onlookers. He turned back. “I’m no cheater; beat him fair and square. Your boy owes me two bits copper.”
The man looked at his son. “That true? Were you gambling?”
“He made me, Pa. Said I couldn’t play with them if I didn’t.”
The real bilker’s pa turned back. “That right?”
Levi shrugged. “Yes, sir. All of us were matching for money when he first came up, but we didn’t make him play. He watched awhile then wanted in the game.”
The man drew his boy behind him and stepped toward Levi. “Are you a child of God, boy; saved and properly baptized?”
“Well, no, sir. I—”
“Then you are a son of Satan, like my boy said. You need to repent and be baptized, or you’re going straight to Hell, condemned for eternity! Sure as me and mine will go to Heaven.”
Sue stepped into the circle. “You, sir, need to shut. Your. Mouth.”
“I’ll tell you one thing.” Levi joined her. “I may be Hell bound, but your son’s a cheatin’ liar. Last I heard, God doesn’t cotton to either. A bet’s a bet, sir, and I expect him to pay up. You want to go to your pocket, that’s fine with me.”
“Why, you little devil.” The man lunged toward Levi. Sue moved to step in from of him, but a blur suddenly appeared from her left.
Henry stood between her and the man. “Levi is not a devil. Your boy played, he needs to pay.”
The man looked around the circle of young men, who chimed right in.
“Levi’s the one telling the truth.”
“Yeah, your son made the bet.”
“And he lost, too.”
“Yeah, fair and square!”
Others gathered on its perimeter, the circle now two, even three deep in places. The man leaned back a bit, then stuck out his jaw. “Our money is for the Lord’s work.”
Levi stepped up next to his protector. Sue loved having Henry on her side. The boy touched Henry’s arm. “It’s fine, sir. If he allows his boy to be a cheater, so be it. It’s only two bits.”
Henry looked from the man to Sue, then exhaled. “All right then, it’s your call, son. You ready? Best we be leaving.”
“Yes, sir. I am.”
The man’s voice boomed from behind him. “You still need to repent, boy! Hell’s fire awaits you. Tomorrow is never promised.”
Henry spun around. “If you don’t shut your loud mouth, I will shut it for you.”
“You cannot silence God’s message or his messenger.”
Henry balled his fist and moved closer. Levi grabbed his arm. “Leave him be, Mister Henry, please. Ain’t worth it.”
Sue pulled on his other arm. “Henry, don’t let that chowderhead get your goat. Let’s leave.” For a heartbeat, she thought he wasn’t going to come and tugged harder. He glared at the rude preacher but finally came with her. Levi followed. She slipped her hand into Henry’s.
Levi cupped his fingers beside his mouth. “Hey, Bitty Beck! Time to go. Come on.”
Her daughter put her hands on her hips. “But I’m having so much fun! Can’t we just stay a little longer? I have a new friend.” She turned and went back to her game.
Sue could hardly believe it. “Rebecca Ruth! Now! I know you hear me.” She turned toward the children. “You do as Levi told you, young lady, and get over here! We’re leaving.”
Becky stomped her foot but obeyed. She marched up the hill staring at the ground the whole way. On arriving, she pinched up her face at her cousin. “I don’t know why we have to go so soon.”
The troublemaker called again. “Repent, stop your sinning, and be baptized, boy, before it’s too late.”
Sue spun. “Oooo!” She faced her nephew. “Get her into the wagon, Levi.”
He grabbed his cousin’s hand and kept walking.
Becky wiggled. “Stop! You’re hurting me.” She stuck her tongue out.
“Come on, and then I won’t!” He stuck his out right back. “You’re so spoiled, you stink!”
“Levi! How old are you?” Sue turned from her nephew to the girl. “Rebecca Ruth, behave!” She stormed down the hill. “Now, you listen to me, Mister Preacher Man. You’d best not say another word to my boy. Do you understand me?” She shook her finger in his face. “Love is patient and kind, and you’re being nothing but ugly and rude, sir. We are to lift up the name of Christ, and then He—not you or any other man—will draw men to Himself. Or haven’t you read the Good Book? ‘There is therefore now no condemnation’!”
“To those who are in Christ, sister. Your son admitted by his own word that he isn’t walking after God, but the devil. Why, he led my son straight into sin, and then tried to bilk him.”
That scripture had backfired on her. Flustered, she tried to think of another about not condemning. “I have no doubt in my heart that Levi will one day come into God’s Kingdom, sir, but not from being ridden with guilt and shame by the likes of you! He’ll accept Christ because of love, not the hate you peddle or your so-called Christian son’s bad example.”
The man waved her off. Pieces of scripture raced past her mind’s eye, but she couldn’t grab ahold of any. Oh, she wanted something to hurl at this self-righteous oaf. “You low-down—”
“Sue, come on, let it go.” Henry gently took both her elbows from behind and spoke close to her ear. “There’s another thing about love to remember; it hardly even notices a wrong done. Let’s get on back on the trace.”
She let him turn her around. “Jesus told that woman caught in adultery that He didn’t condemn her, didn’t He?”
“He did.”
She glanced over her shoulder at the offensive croa
ker, then back to Henry again. “I wish I knew the scriptures better! And could quote them when I needed to.”
He didn’t answer.
She did know the Bible, but it all got mixed up sometimes. Be angry and sin not. How could she do that? Henry did. How could he remain so calm and composed in light of such injustice? Like, like—just like Christ. She shook her head and stared at the ground. Her actions certainly hadn’t glorified the Lord. Yet she was the one claimed to belong to Him.
Walking beside Henry, she became aware he held her hand again and remembered taking his earlier. It felt so good and seemed so natural. His being right about leaving earned her appreciation for getting her out of there, and also for standing up for Levi. Having a wonderful man on her side, especially a strong, wise, and gentle man like Henry Buckmeyer, made such a difference.
She looked at him; he headed straight toward the wagon. She loved that face. The realization shocked her. When had her heart let him in and come to love him so deeply? Indeed, she loved him. She squeezed his hand, and he glanced over and smiled. She loved Patrick Henry Buckmeyer. Unsure exactly how, she determined to spend the rest of her life with him.
Just then, at the height of her sweet revelation, the promise she’d made to God reared its head. The vow had served her well, weeded out those who professed love, but would it hurt her now? Every suitor had quit coming around once she told him. What if Henry did likewise? Or if her father refused again to give his blessing?
Could she marry him without it? Or without him being a believer?
And if she did, would he die, just as Andy had?
She shook her head. Faithfulness to God trumped everything else. No way would she go back on her promise. No compromise either. Henry had to agree to go and get her stubborn daddy’s blessing. Then her father had to give Henry her hand; he simply must, and she refused to think on any other outcome.
Sue looked toward the sky and silently prayed, “And God, it is Your business to get him saved before we get to Daddy’s. You know he’ll never give his blessing if Henry isn’t a believer.”
CHAPTER
TWENTY-FOUR
HENRY HELD SUE’S HAND until he reached what had become her wagon, then still didn’t let go. He bent and braced his knee, lifting her hand, and she used him to climb aboard. She finally pulled away and seated herself. Levi heaved his cousin up on the other side, and Blue jumped up at the girl’s feet.
“Mama, Levi said I had to ride with you! It’s not fair!” Becky sat forward on the bench with her arms crossed over her chest. “He got to ride all the way here with Mister Henry, so it should be my turn. Tell him! Tell him that it’s my turn, and he has to ride with you!”
“Well, my, my, my. What a sad thing to have to spend a little time with your mother, Rebecca Ruth. How would it make you feel if I didn’t want to ride with you?”
Becky dropped her hands to her lap and hung her head. “I’m sorry, it’s just that—”
Levi spit, then threw his hands in the air. “You can ride with him tomorrow, stinky.” He glanced up at his aunt, shaking his head. “You’ve spoiled her so bad!”
Sue looked to each of the children and then at Henry. “So, I guess everyone would rather ride with you.” She smiled. “But what can I say? I certainly understand. I’d rather ride with you, too.”
He shook his head and smiled back. “We best get going.”
Once aboard, Henry unlocked the brake and waved the reins over the team. “Hey, now.” The animals tossed their heads and threw themselves into moving the load. They were a good team; he should be able to make a profit on them. Circling back around toward the trace, he recognized a granger waiting in line at the springs on the Jefferson side.
He handed the reins to the boy. “Keep ’em at a good clip, I need to talk to that man. I’ll catch up.” He jumped off the wagon and waited for Sue to come beside him, then nodded toward the springs. “I’m going to see if there’s any news. I’ll be back directly.”
She nodded and slapped her team’s backs with the reins. “Come on now.”
After a quick handshake and hello, Henry quizzed the man. While the granger talked of the trace and cotton prices, Henry kept an eye on the wagons. Once the man went to talking about the weather, Henry excused himself and ran off after Sue’s wagon. Didn’t take him long to catch up.
She glanced down when he came alongside. “What’d you find out?”
“Good news is, the buyers are still there and paying six cents a pound for high-quality lint like yours.”
“Oh, Henry! Six cents?” Her face shone. “That’s a wonderful report!”
“Bad news is that their steamer is getting full fast, and he said there was a long line when he left.”
The glow faded. “Oh, no! Do you think we’ll make it in time?”
“We’re going to give it our best. He said there’s two steep pulls between here and Jefferson, and that the trace is in fair to good shape. Bad ruts in a few places, but with four mules to a wagon, shouldn’t be much of a problem. Only those two hills might slow us down some.”
“How far is the first one? Will we get to it today?”
“Not sure, he didn’t say.”
Becky stretched out and grinned a big ol’ grin. “Me and Trudy, that’s what I named my doll. Anyway, we get to ride with you tomorrow because it’s my turn. How close will we be from Jefferson then?”
“We should get there tomorrow evening.”
“Oh, good, so I’ll get to ride with you for the whole day.” She opened her eyes wide. “ ’Cause I have some things I want to talk with you about, and we’ll probably need the whole day.” She nodded that fast little nod of hers where she kept on nodding.
Sue looked at him and shook her head. “What have you done to my children? What did you ever do to win such admiration from the little darlings? Tell me, please.” She laughed.
He shrugged. “I don’t know. Like a new toy, I guess. Best get on back to Levi. We need to pick the pace up a bit.”
He ran ahead and climbed into the wagon. The boy handed him the reins. Henry urged the team into a faster walk and, though he hated repeating himself, told the boy everything he’d just told his aunt. For a while, the ride was quiet, but the peace didn’t last long.
“So, Mister Henry, how fast do you think I had ’em going, and how fast would you say they’re going now?”
“You were at a mile or a little over; I’d say we’re closer to a mile and a half or two now, maybe even a bit faster.”
“How can you tell? Do you pick a tree up ahead and count or something?”
“No. You get a feel for it. Comes from experience. You’ll have to go through the mill, but you’ll get it by and by.”
The boy sat silent awhile and then nudged him in the rib with his elbow. “So when are you going to ask her?”
Henry started to play dumb, but he knew exactly what Levi was talking about. He didn’t have the answer though. “I don’t know. Think I ought to wait.”
“For what?”
“Maybe until we get to Jefferson and get her cotton sold.”
“But why wait? Even I can tell that you’re perfect for her. You’re exactly what Aunt Sue needs.”
He pondered on it before saying more, and then sighed. “Well, then there is the vow.”
The boy sat back and grinned. “Oh, so you’ve heard about that, have you?”
Henry looked over at him. “Who hasn’t?”
* * *
SUE RODE AWAY THINKING on what Henry had told her. She tried to figure out what she’d do if the buyers had all the cotton they wanted. She’d not considered that scenario at all, never even thought to. If there were no buyers, she didn’t know what she’d do except hope and pray that Henry would have a plan.
One thing she did know. She’d learned long ago that worrying about tomorrow never changed a thing, so she dismissed that elusive day and its troubles and focused on a completely different subject. That wasn’t a hard thing for her.
She’d been thinking a heap on him of late. Never would she have imagined how much she missed the simple act of strolling along on a man’s arm; the sense of belonging, of having someone. Admitting she loved him, even to herself, had not come easy, but now she knew how powerful much she wanted to spend the rest of her life beside him.
But what if he didn’t feel the same way? She certainly hadn’t been acting as though she had any interest in him past getting her cotton sold then safely back home. Maybe he couldn’t wait until he made it back to Sulphur Fork and was rid of her bossy, angry self. But then, his eyes . . .
Oh, Lord, let it be. Let him overlook my bad qualities, and let it be Your will. Surely it was; after all, God had arranged the whole journey. She had to trust Him to bring Henry to salvation, but trusting Him came easy. He’d proved Himself so many times, she couldn’t even count.
She glanced over at Becky. No doubt her daughter would be thrilled to call Henry daddy. Her little one sang a lively tune that she was obviously making up as she went along. Her doll danced in time on her lap.
“So, happy girl, what do you need to talk to Mister Henry about?”
“Oh, Mama, don’t you know that we talk almost the whole time when we’re riding together? We talk about Blue Dog. How much better he’s getting.” She looked at the sky as though thinking. “Um, we talk about singing some.” She turned, dipped her chin toward her chest, and looked up from under her eyebrows. “But you knew that, didn’t you?” She giggled. “He really sings more terribler than anyone I’ve ever heard, Mama. Wait till you hear him!”
“There is no such word as terribler, young lady. Seems to me that you’re avoiding my question. Did you think I’d forget it if you stalled long enough?”
The little girl held her mouth wide open like she was aghast. “I was answering the very question you asked, Mother.”
“Um-hmm.”
