Night Crawlers

by Ron L. Carter

Sherman Bailey was born and raised in a small town of Hickory in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee. The people were very suspicious and distrustful of any outsiders and didn’t allow many of them into their little circle of friends and family. Because of their guarded attitude toward strangers, it wasn’t uncommon for the locals to marry second and third cousins. Since it had become an acceptable practice, Sherman always had his eye on Lynn, his Uncle’s daughter and his first cousin. That was a little closer in relationship than what was customary, even for that neck of the woods. For that reason Sherman’s mother and father didn’t like or encourage his interest in Lynn. Sherman was the oldest of four boys and no girls. Lynn came from a larger family of two older brothers and four sisters. She was the second to the oldest girl.

  Sherman believed he could’ve lived a nice peaceful life there in the hills of Tennessee if it hadn’t been for his father driving him away. Because he was the oldest, he always got the worst of his father’s anger and frustrations when anything went wrong. Sherman’s father wasn’t a big man, but he ruled his family with fear and intimidation by using belts, switches and straps when he was angry. Sherman couldn’t understand why his father was always so angry. As the boys got older it was his father’s fists that ruled the house and Sherman believed his father just got a lot of pleasure and enjoyment out of hurting someone. It would always embarrass Sherman when his father took a strap or switch to him in front of his friends from school. To avoid his shame, he just never invited his friends to his house.

  For generations, Sherman’s family had made their living on making and selling illegal moonshine. Some of his family members used to bootleg the whiskey to different states during the years of prohibition. Sherman was around the moonshine all the time working with it and sampling it at a very early age. He gradually got addicted to alcohol when he was around ten years old. By the time he was in his mid-teens, he would sneak into the moonshine and help himself to as much as he wanted. It helped him deal with the pain and embarrassment of the daily abuse from his father. He always consumed far more than he should. This would infuriate his father. Once again, he would take out his anger on Sherman with the switch or the strap. It always left huge welts all over Sherman’s body and often in the places where he was hit would draw blood that would take several days to heal.

  By the time Sherman was sixteen years old and a junior in high school he was still only about five feet eight inches tall and stick skinny. He only weighed about one hundred and thirty pounds soaking wet. It’s the year he started sneaking moonshine from his father’s brew and sharing it with his friends at school. As Sherman’s luck would have it, his father found out about him getting drunk with his friends from school. When Sherman got home, his father grabbed him by the collar of the shirt and drug his drunk body into the kitchen. He pounded on Sherman with his bare knuckled fists, as his limp body absorbed the punishment. His mother and brothers just stood there and watched. As Sherman was being thrashed, he thought, they remind me of helpless little lambs, just watching, as their brother got slaughtered by the big bad wolf. “Once I’m out of here, they’ll be next.” He felt like they thought he somehow deserved what he was getting. Sherman would later tell his brothers that he was angry with them for not stepping in or trying to stop his father.

  When his friends asked him about how he got the bruises and black eyes, he masked his hurt and anger with a chuckle as he said, “I’m not sure if my old man tried to kill me for sneaking out the moonshine without permission, or for being drunk. I guess it doesn’t really matter, the outcome would’ve still been the same. Any excuse to beat the hell out of me.”

  On this occasion it took Sherman several weeks to recover from the bruised ribs, black eyes and busted lips he received. He missed several days of school because he was too embarrassed to go. He never recovered emotionally, from that beating. He swore that he hated his father and someday he would kill him if he didn’t get out of there.

  After he recovered, he went to Lynn and told her, “I can’t understand why my father hates me so much. Lynn shrugged her shoulders and said, “I don’t understand it either, Sherman. It doesn’t make any sense to me.” Sherman said, “I feel like I might have deserved something if my mother or father had ever caught me and you making out.” Lynn laughed and said, “I’m glad they didn’t, I probably would’ve gotten in trouble too, and never been able to see you again.” After that beating, Sherman made a promise to himself and to Lynn that he would never let his father touch him with a strap or his fists, ever again. He told himself, I WILL defend myself the next time my father tries to raise an angry hand to me. I might even kill him if he tries it again. He told his mother and brothers he wasn’t going to just stand there and take it the next time it happened. He told them he was going to protect himself, regardless of whether they tried to help. He also told them, “When it happened again, and it will happen again, I’m leaving Tennessee and never coming back.

  Lynn had seen the abuse Sherman received from the time she was young. They had grown up together and their families were closely connected. After the last encounter, Sherman told Lynn he was tired of it and wasn’t going to let it happen again. That’s when they made a pact, they were going to run away together the next time it happened. Lynn was fifteen years old, but to him she looked and acted like a woman. She was five feet four inches tall and thin. She had dark blond hair that hung down to her shoulders and Sherman loved her hazel eyes that were hidden by her bangs and long eyelashes. She and Sherman had been in love since they were kids and she was willing to go wherever he wanted her to go. They weren’t sure where they were going to go when they left, but they knew they had to get away from Sherman’s father and what they called the “Hell Hole.” Sherman knew the beatings would never end, it was when and not “If.” He had become his father’s whipping post and as long as Sherman was around, the abuse would continue.

  Sherman soon came up with a plan. He was going to save all the money he could get his hands on, even if he had to steal to get it. He soon started sneaking some of the moonshine to sell to his friends at school. He kept all the money hidden away until it was time for him and Lynn to leave. He started to sneak out at night after everyone else was asleep, taking the stolen moonshine to neighboring town to sell. He would also break into houses and steal things he knew he could sell, without getting caught. As time went by, he just kept building his nest egg. He kept all his money hidden in a shoe box in a secret cubby hole of his bedroom. No one knew where it was hidden, not even his brothers. He never told any of them that he had been saving it to one day leave and never come back. He believed his brothers would tell his mother or father where it was hidden if they knew and his father would try to force him to give it up.

  Sherman had been saving his money for almost a year and had just turned eighteen years old when his father decided to try beating him up again. His father found out from one of Sherman’s brothers that he’d been taking the moonshine and selling it to his friends at school and keeping the money for himself. His brother told his father, Sherman wasn’t giving any of it back to the family like he was supposed to.

  It was late in the afternoon when Sherman got home from school and his father called him into the kitchen and sat him down. Sherman instantly knew he was in trouble from the look on his father’s face. His lips were tight and his eyebrows were frowning angrily as he pulled his chair right up next to Sherman and leaned into his face. He then asked Sherman what he’d been doing with the moonshine. His father could hardly contain his anger as he said in a shaky voice, “I heard you been stealing some of our moonshine and selling it to your friends at school.” Sherman immediately became defensive and said, “Who did you hear that from?” Sherman figured that one of his brothers had probably told his father that he was stealing it and selling it at school but he didn’t know which one. Since he didn’t know which brother it was, Sherman was angry with all of them. His fa
ther scoffed back as he said, “It doesn’t matter who told me, that’s just what I heard. Are you going to sit there and deny it?” Sherman knew there was no point in trying to lie about it because he knew someone had squealed on him and it was true. He slowly and reluctantly admitted as he said, “Yea, I’ve been taking some of the moonshine. I’ve been selling it to some of my friends at school. And yea, I’ve been keeping the money for myself.” He didn’t tell his father that he had several thousand dollars stashed away from both the moonshine sells and selling things he stole from the neighboring town.

  When he admitted to stealing the moonshine Sherman’s father looked at him and said, “You’re nothing but a thief, if you’ve got any of the money left that you made off our moonshine then you go get it and give it to me, right now! That’s money you stole from this family and it doesn’t belong to you.” Sherman sat back in his chair with his arms crossed and stared back at his father as he said, “That’s my money and I aint given it to nobody.” His father immediately jumped up and pushed himself away from the table as he said, “If you don’t turn over that money I’m going to beat you to a pulp.” Sherman was ready for his father this time as he quickly stood up, clenched his fists and took a fighting stance. Sherman looked his father in the eyes and replied, “Then you’re going to have to try and take it from me, cause I aint giving it to you.” That’s when his father came at him with both fists raised and swinging wildly. Sherman’s body had filled out a little and he was bigger and stronger now than he was the last time his father beat him up so badly. He and his father were about the same size now and this time he wasn’t drunk. They had broken several items as they knocked each other against the table, walls and appliances. Sherman had a bloody lip and a red eye and his father was bleeding from his mouth and nose as they continued pounding on each other. Blood was spattered all over the kitchen walls as they knocked each other around. Finally, Sherman’s mother and three brothers realized they had to do something before someone got killed. Two of Sherman’s brothers grabbed his father and one of this brothers and his mother grabbed him as they broke up the fight. When they pulled the two of them apart Sherman said, “I’m done with you beating on me, old man. I was done with it last year and I’m sure as hell done with it now. I knew you’d try it again, it was just a matter of time. That’s why I saved the money. I’m getting the hell away from you! I’m leaving this “Hell Hole” and never coming back. You’ll never touch me again and none of you’ll ever see me around here anymore. I can promise you that!”

  Sherman’s mother started crying when he said he was leaving, but his father was still pumped up angry and just scoffed back as Sherman stormed toward his bedroom. “Good riddance! No one wants your sorry ass around here anymore anyway. You’re nothing but a worthless thief. You’re no good and will never amount to anything. Get the hell out of here and don’t come back.” Sherman had to get the last word in because his father’s words cut through him like a dagger to his heart. He angrily yelled from his bedroom, “Don’t worry, old man, I’m getting my stuff and getting out of here as fast as I can. You won’t have to worry about me anymore. You can find someone else to pick on!”

  While Sherman was in his bedroom, he quickly threw some of his clothes in an old beat up suit case and grabbed his money. The entire time he was getting things together, he could hear his mother in the other room begging and pleading with his father to try and stop him. He heard his father tell her, “To hell with him. I’m not going to try and stop him from leaving. I never want to see his thieving ass around me again.” Sherman said to himself, I’m glad he feels that way. He’ll never have to worry about seeing me here again, I hate his miserable guts. I never want to see him again, either.

  Sherman was still hurt and angry as he left the house and took off on foot with suitcase in hand. He headed immediately to Lynn’s house to let her know what happened. He didn’t want her parents knowing what their plans were and wanted some time to collect his thoughts so he took some time, cleaned his wounds and waited for it to get dark before he tapped on her bedroom window. When she opened the window, he told her, “It happened again. If you want to go with me, pack some of your things because I’m leaving right now!” She hesitated for just a moment and looked at Sherman’s busted lip and face and said, “Wow, I can’t believe he did it again.” Sherman was a little embarrassed about the fight with his father as he said, “Yes, I knew it would. I’ll tell you all about it once we’re out of this sorry place.” She rapidly threw several things in a suitcase and tossed it out the window, as she climbed out after it. Once on the ground, she leaned back into the bedroom window and said to one of her sisters, “Tell mom and dad that I love them, but I love Sherman too, and I’m leaving with him. Tell them not to worry about me, I’ll be okay.” Her sister was crying as she said, “Lynn, are you sure you really want to do this?” Lynn cocked her head to one side and said, “We’ve already talked about this before and you know Sherman and I don’t really have a choice. His father isn’t going to stop beating him. Please do as I asked, but wait for a while before you tell them I’m gone.”

  They were now on their own, as they clutched each other’ hand, and headed down the dirty, winding mountain road, toward the main town. They had walked about five miles when Sherman’s best friend, Marshall, came driving up in his old beat up Ford pick-up truck. The engine was running rough as he looked over at Sherman, grinned and said, “Hey buddy, need a ride. Your brothers told me you got into a fight with your old man again. When I heard about it, I figured you were headed out of town and I wanted to come and give you a lift. You told me you were leaving if he ever tried it again and I don’t blame you, I’d do the same thing! Where can I take you guys?” Sherman thanked him as he and Lynn jumped in the cab and threw their suitcases in the back of the truck. “Can you just drop us off in the middle of town and we’ll take it from there.” Marshall laughed and said, “It’s no problem Sherman, I’ll take wherever you want to go. Hell, I’ll even take you to California, if you want me to.” Sherman and Lynn both laughed when he said that because they knew he probably would do it if Sherman would’ve said okay. Sherman thanked him for sympathizing with him and said, “I really appreciate your attitude Marshall. I also appreciate that you’re not trying to talk us into staying here.” Marshall laughed and said, “I don’t blame you. I’d leave this place too, if I could.”

  Once they were in the middle of town, Sherman told Marshall, “You can drop us off anywhere along here will be fine.” Marshall quickly pulled the truck over and Sherman and Lynn jumped out, grabbing their suitcase from the back. Before she got out, Lynn leaned over and kissed Marshall on the cheek and thanked him for the ride and for being such a good friend. Sherman went around to the driver’s side and shook Marshall’s hand and also thanked him for being his best friend while they were growing up. Marshall put the truck in park and jumped out and gave Sherman a big bear hug. He then jumped back in and said, “Good luck old buddy, wherever you end up.” Sherman had a few tears in his eyes as he told Marshall, “You’ll always be my best friend and I love you brother. Don’t tell anyone that you picked us up and dropped us off in town or they’ll come looking for Lynn.” Marshall chuckled and replied, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone I even saw you.” They said their goodbyes and Marshall headed back up the little dirt road. As he was driving away, Sherman could see him wipe away a few tears with the sleeve of his shirt. They had been friends with each other since they were young and it hurt them both to say good-bye to each other.

  Sherman rented a cheap room for the night at one of the local hotels and just waited for daylight to come. He was so wound up about the fight with his father, plus the anticipation of not knowing exactly where they were going, that he and Lynn lay by each other’s side and talked most of the night. The next day they walked to a nearby car dealership and Sherman took some of the money he saved and purchased an inexpensive
pick-up truck. Soon they were headed west.

  Once they left Hickory, Sherman kept the promise that he had made to his family and never contacted them again. Lynn often thought about her family but that was all. She also never contacted them again.

  * * *

  Chapter 3 – The Boys are born