by Ellie Moses
My favorite movie made me laugh in all the right places, sing in all the right places, and swoon over George Clooney while snuggling with my ghostly beau, but Sissy Prather’s threat still slithered through my brain making it hard to enjoy my date night with the dead.
6
The next morning, I flipped the OPEN sign on Value Vintage’s door and hugged Genie. “You sure you want to work today? You’re welcome to come down to the creek with me and Granny, you know.”
Genie tapped the backpack she’d hoisted on the counter after I let her in. “I’ve got to study for finals and write a paper to submit by tomorrow evening. Mama has her book club over and they make so much noise. It’s quieter here.”
I lamented that fact. “It is too quiet here lately. Maybe I should run a sale on some of these dresses while there’s new folks in town. I’ll set up the front window after I catch a few fish.”
“Or you could hunt up some more arrowheads for that Texas man while you’re out fishing.” Genie stared pointedly at the empty glass case that made up the base of my counter.
“Will do, buckaroo!” I said and made her laugh. I loved that girl like she was my sister. She would have been if Ray hadn’t crashed chasing Billy Jack.
Leaving before I became maudlin, I told Genie if she got hungry, there was plenty of vittles in the fridge upstairs. I reminded her about my familiar too. “Delilah’s going with me so you won’t have to bother with her.”
Outside, I hopped in my Jeep with Ray and Delilah in tow. This was a bona fide family outing complete with fishing tackle and them little short-legged lounge chairs. Granny Mack was bringing the vittles.
“Ray, I have to stop by the bait shop. Don’t go messing with Delilah and get her riled up. I’d hate to try to explain a full-grown mountain lion in my back seat.”
He whistled along with the song on the radio and smiled at me. I think that meant he would behave himself.
When I pulled up in front of Bodean’s Beer, Bait & Tackle, Luke Woolum was sitting in the truck next to us with his radio blaring some hillbilly anthem.
I side-eyed his truck as I walked past to see if Sissy was with him. I was pretty sure I would have felt her presence intuitively since she had invaded my skull the day before.
Seeing as how he was alone, I breathed a little easier and swished my way on inside the tackle shop. The cool air kissed my perspiring skin with the fervor of an old lover and I sighed contentedly. Walker Bodean called out as I meandered to the cooler and pulled out an icy 6-pack of Nehi grape for me and Granny Mack.
“Hey there, Jolene! How’s your granny and ‘em doin’?”
I turned and smiled at Walker and placed my Nehi on the counter. “We’re good as can be considering, how ‘bout you and Nadine?”
His wife, Nadine Bodean, and I had been best friends since we were little girls, but her with six kids and another on the way, we didn’t see each other very much anymore.
I mixed up concoctions for the kids from time to time when she came in asking about a runny nose here and a teething baby there, but we surely needed to spend more time together.
“We’ve been worried about Billy Jack to be honest, Jolene,” his voice lowered as he glanced around the tackle shop. Old Mr. Mason was the only other customer besides me. His wife was the biggest gossip in Devil’s Elbow.
I asked Walker real loud for some bait and then lowered my own voice. “Cross my heart,” I whispered as he placed the styrofoam container of worms on the counter next to my Nehi, “I am too Walker. I’ve got some leads I’m looking into that might help him out, but honestly I just don’t know what Aunt Dixie’ll do if he goes to the federal pen.”
He rang up my items and then looked at me with a frown. “I’m sorry to hear it, Jolene. Real sorry. Billy Jack wouldn’t kill anybody. The whole town knows it. Up and down these hills and hollers, he helps everybody who needs it just like you and Granny Mack always have.”
I gave Walker a genuine smile. It did my heart good to hear someone else believed in my cousin. “If you hear anything, you know where to reach me.”
He bagged up my items and nodded. Mr. Mason was coming up the aisle behind me as I turned to leave.
I hurried to the front door of the tackle shop to avoid him and waved at Walker with my free hand. “Ya’ll bring them kids out to Granny Mack’s this Saturday night and we’ll have us a cookout, ya hear? Tell Nadine I said she ain’t got to even bring a dish, it’s on me and Granny. Around six p.m.”
Walker nodded and said he and Nadine would be there with bells on. I turned to leave for good and ran smack into Luke. His leering gaze made me feel like I needed a shower. I guess when Sissy wasn’t at his side, he thought he might like to get mixed up with a hippy witch like me.
I pushed past him and kept walking even though he wolf whistled low and long behind me. Ray popped out of the passenger side ready to deliver some ghost punches to Luke’s jaw.
“Back in the car, baby,” I cooed pretending I was talking to Delilah who hopped in the driver's seat when I opened the door.
Ray smacked the hood of the Jeep as Luke disappeared inside of the tackle shop. “He wouldn’t act like that if I was livin’.”
I scooted into the driver’s seat crowding Delilah out, much to her chagrin. She turned and hoisted her fluffy white tail as she retreated to the back seat. I placed my bag of Nehi’s and bait in Ray’s seat and he scowled as he got back inside.
“I can’t even keep my own seat,” he grumbled.
I leaned over and puckered my lips and closed my eyes waiting for him to kiss me. He couldn’t kiss me and stay mad.
A loud knock on the passenger window startled me and my eyes flew open to find Mr. Mason standing there eyeballing me. I pushed down on the lever that would lower the window and grabbed my lip balm. I puckered up my lips pretending that was my intent the whole time.
He stared but I could see he thought I was as crazy as an outhouse bird.
“What can I do you for, Mr. Mason?” I said in my sweetest voice.
He stared at me for a good minute before speaking his piece. “You heard whether Sheriff Quinn brought in that couple from Texas for questioning?”
I didn’t think it would be good for me to talk to Mr. Mason, but I went with it anyway as I needed another suspect or two.
I tried to think who he might be talking about and remembered Genie had sold arrowheads to a man who said he was from Texas. Dang, I hadn’t gone looking for any more arrowheads since then. I made a mental note to look for some today while fishing with Granny.
“I surely ain’t heard a thing about that Mr. Mason. What makes you think he ought to speak to them and how do you know these visitors from Texas?”
Ray looked at me like I was crazy to be gossiping about murder out here in the parking lot of Bodean’s, but I ignored him.
“Well, my Shirley says she overheard them talking about the murder while she was waiting on me to come pick her up from bingo t’other evening. She says the man was upset and said they had to get out of town before anyone figured out where they had been the night of the murder,” he said as though murder was the most mundane topic in the world.
“Why hasn’t Mrs. Mason told this to Sheriff Quinn already?” I asked. I couldn’t believe the town’s biggest gossip would forego a visit with the sheriff.
“Miss Jolene,” he said, his voice almost a whisper. I had to lean across Ray to hear him.
“She’s afraid of telling tales, but since this is Billy Jack we’re talking about, well, I told her I would speak with you.” He made a motion with his hand like he was tipping a mason jar to his lips and I gasped. I couldn’t help myself.
I knew my cousin sold shine to most of the county, but I had not known Mr. Mason was one of his customers. “I know he’d be grateful if you happen to have any clue as to who may have done the murder, Mr. Mason. Very grateful.” I said the last two words slowly and winked one eye at the man.
He took my hint.
“Y
ou just get Sheriff Quinn to talk to that couple and I bet you Billy Jack is out quicker than you can say jimmy crack corn. Shirley overheard the woman saying they needed to get out of town on account of the murder, but the man said he needed some more of them arrowheads he got from your store.” Mr. Mason nodded at me and left real quick when Luke Woolum came outside again.
This day was shaping up to be one of the stranger ones I’d ever seen and that was saying a lot after all my kinfolk had been through lately.
I put the Jeep in reverse before Luke could get any closer and peeled out of the parking lot, dust billowing behind me. Eat my dust! I yelled as I did a donut for the heck of it.
Ray grabbed the Come to Jesus handle above his head and yelled my name. Sometimes I got the itch to speed and today I was scratching that itch. Delilah let out an irritated growl and I decided not to push my luck.
I didn’t need her changing into her big kitty britches just yet. Once we got to the fishing hole, I’d let her loose to roam the woods until we were ready to go home again.
I settled down and eased my lead foot off the gas pedal as we passed Deputy Carter. He gave me a thumbs up and I waved. I watched in my rear view as his police cruiser disappeared into the distance.
“Jolene, you’ve got more ants in your pants than a dang anthill. Sissy Prather’s really pulling your chain and she wasn’t even with Luke just now.” Ray moved the radio dial with his ghostly powers as he stared at me.
It was true, the girl gave me the jeebies. But I didn’t care for Ray pointing it out. “She’s got a criminal element to her Ray. I’m surprised you didn’t pick up on that.”
I needled him on account of his accurate estimation of my irritation with the strange girlfriend of Luke Woolum. What I needed was a sit down with my best friends, but who knew what Bonita and PJ were up to today.
Ray took my silence to mean I was ticked off and tried to soothe my nerves. “Look, honey. I ain’t trying to cause you a moment’s trouble, but I don’t like seeing you like this either. This mess with Billy Jack has you up all night and worrying all day. Let’s just relax at the fishing hole with Granny Mack today and forget about Sissy for a little bit.”
“Billy Jack is locked up all day and night too, Ray. You think he can rest easy? And Aunt Dixie will have my hide if I can’t figure something out to help spring him from jail. I’m battin’ a thousand when it comes to getting him out of trouble. I don’t want that streak ending on account of a murder charge.”
The jeep filled with an awkward silence as we left the dirt road and bumped over the rocks and grass of an old cow pasture to the unofficial parking lot of Cross Creek.
Ray turned off the radio as we parked and faced me before I could hop out and start unloading our gear. “I know Billy Jack’s imprisonment is weighing on you. Whatever you wanna do today, we’ll do. If Granny Mack can help you, well, you just tell her all your troubles.”
I wanted to kiss Ray and tackle him to the ground the way I used to before the accident on Thunder Road and that need made me hang my head even lower. “I’m sorry Ray. I really am. I can’t just live my life like nothing’s wrong while he’s locked up. Sure, he does stupid stuff and provokes Sheriff Quinn, but he’s no killer.”
My ethereal boyfriend moved closer until he passed through me and used all his effort to cheer me up. The warmth of Ray Dang Davis flooded my body and I closed my eyes, my lips puckered for his kiss. This display would deplete his ghostly energy for at least an hour but he didn’t mind.
I could swear I felt the tingle of his lips and a lone tear from plain old longing for him slipped down my cheek.
“Don’t cry, beautiful girl. I wanted to make you happy.” Ray’s voice was lower than a whisper and I knew he was fading. I pushed all the love in my heart to him and he shimmered in front of me for a moment before drifting like smoke towards Granny Mack’s old pickup.
There wasn’t a day that passed that Ray hadn’t made me happy before he died on Thunder Road. I wondered if he thought I cared too much for my cousin. But then I knew Ray wasn’t like that. He had been doing his job when the accident happened and it could have been any other moonshiner that he was chasing that day. But the fact that it was my cousin sometimes complicated things between us.
Granny Mack stood talking to Ray for a minute and Delilah hopped out of the car and mewled at me. I put down a can of Fussy Feast and some water in her portable dishes and started unloading the jeep.
Luke Woolum came tearing through the cow pasture with his music blaring. Delilah looked up and growled. “Go on into the woods, dear heart. Granny’s here and Ray is nearby. We ain’t hardly worried about Luke.”
Delilah swished her tail menacingly before mewing stridently. It was her warning for me to be careful. I blew her a kiss as I picked up her dishes and rinsed them off with my bottle of water. She sprinted into the bushes and I saw her fluffy white tail turn to its long, thick mountain lion tail.
Luke parked right next to me but Granny Mack hustled over and took my arm. “Come on, Jo. Them Bailey boys are carrying my stuff down to our fishing spot.”
“Why Granny,” I teased as I ignored Luke and pulled our lounge chairs out, “you are the sweet-talkingest woman to ever live. What did you promise them for their help?”
Granny winked at me. “I baked a rhubarb pie for them cause I knew they’d be down here today. They et’ it all up lickety-split and I showed them the other one I’d brought. It was easy as pie, you might say, to set them to working.”
I groaned at her pun. “Well, I’m happy they like rhubarb pie cause they sure can have all of mine,” I said and barked a short laugh.
Granny gave me a mean side-eye.
“Now, I ain’t running down your cooking Granny. You know I never did like a rhubarb, pie or no.”
“I know child! I brought you some of them little huckleberry hand pies you like. Now skedaddle on down to the creek bank. The sooner you catch me some fish, the sooner you get to eat ‘em.”
For the first time since Billy Jack had been arrested, I smiled a genuine smile. Granny’s pies were the best you could taste and I drooled over the thought of those little pastries waiting for me.
Luke Woolum started to say something as we walked away, but Granny turned and fixed him with her hundred-yard stare. His face turned beet red and he jerked his fishing pole from the bed of his pickup as we walked away.
“Thank you, Granny. We saw him at Bodean’s earlier. I get the feeling he’s tailing us to see what we’re up to. He needs to go on home to that hinky girlfriend of his and leave me alone.” I didn’t glance behind us, but I could feel his presence like a weight around my neck.
“Honey, he ain’t goin’ to mess with us today. Luke Woolum might be a bad seed, but he knows I can plant him in the ground if it comes to it. Now, what’s this about his girlfriend?” Granny’s question floated back to me as she picked her way down the hill to the creek.
I thought of the feeling Sissy Prather had given me and the intrusion into my brain. “I went over to Luke’s place yesterday after leaving the jail…”
Granny turned and shook her head at me as she unfolded one of the chairs I’d brought in the back of my jeep. “You ain’t got no business out there, Jolene. I bet you didn’t even take Ray did you?”
Hanging my head, I mumbled. “No, but he found me in time.”
“What do you mean in time?” Granny asked as she unfolded the second lounge chair and patted it for me to come sit.
“Luke was being his usual pervy self but his girlfriend, Sissy Prather, was downright weird. I think she’s magick like us, but not a witch. I couldn’t get a handle on her. Probably because she got in my brain somehow.” I was lathering on some coconut tanning lotion and nearly dropped the bottle when Granny hopped up from her seat and went to pacing.
“In your brain? She got in your brain? What does that mean, Jolene? Nobody should be able to do that but someone like me, or you, when you get your powers figured out.” Granny was s
haking a finger at me and the scowl on her face made me feel like I was all of ten years old again.
I shrugged. “I don’t know, it was just the strangest thing. She was talking to me, but her lips weren’t moving. I heard every word, though. And her eyes, they changed from green to blue and back again.”
Granny sat back down and I reached out to steady her. “It’s okay. I can handle her.”
“Jolene, you have no idea what she is. We may have ourselves a water spirit of some kind on our hands and they can be pretty powerful.”
I picked up her fishing pole and put some bait on the hook. “Here Granny, take this. We came here to fish. I don’t think you’re wrong about her being a water spirit, but why would she be way up here in the hills? Don’t they prefer big bodies of water like Norris Lake over in La Follette?”
Granny took her pole and cast into the deepest part of the creek. It was wide, not a little ole creek you could just jump across, and the satisfying kerplunk of her sinker as it hit the water eased my mind. It’s hard to explain how one singular sound can bring memories of all the other times you’ve heard that sound into focus. Before I could get too philosophical about fishing, Granny opined on Sissy Prather and her presence in these hills.
“I suppose if she was raised up here, near Devil’s Elbow, then she might crave the crystal clear lakes, rivers, streams, and creeks we have. There’s no other place like it, Jolene. You feel the magick of it because it hums in your veins. Well, it does the same for other magick folks and even plain old mortals too. We are one with the land, all of us.”
I gulped to clear the lump in my throat. Talk about philosophical. I loved my mountain home and its magick did sustain me. I hadn’t thought about how it touched all of us hillbillies, magick and mortal alike.
“Well, be that as it may, she can keep herself outta my head. I need to know how to make my defenses stronger, Granny. I know you can help.” I cast my line in and looked at the face I’d loved as long as I could recall. The lines and wrinkles said she ought to have one foot in the grave and I saw my own reflection beneath those weathered looks. I almost reached over to hug her.
