Gunnysack Hell by Nancy Brashear

Author:Nancy Brashear [Brashear, Nancy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: psychological thriller; mystery; historical fiction; Cold War historical fiction; 1960s; Cuban Missile Crisis; homesteading; off-the-grid living; Moja
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Published: 2020-12-20T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 38

Claire - Traps and Clues

I do everything possible not to fidget or pace. I must exude confidence and a peaceful spirit for Nonni. And for Tessa, too, who’s going with us in case they follow through with their request to question her.

This time I’ll be there with them. I pray to God that Randall’s boss lets him off to be with us.

“I need you here!” I told him last time I saw him. “I can’t do this alone!”

Our parting was contentious. I hate it when we part on disgruntled terms, but I’m tired of fighting everything alone.

I’m so exhausted I could crumple and fall dead unconscious before hitting the newly poured concrete.

For one thing, Nonni didn’t sleep much last night—or any other night this week. Her bed creaked, and then I caught her trying to sleepwalk out of the cabin.

The chair I’d placed in front of the closed door to keep my nightmares out kept her in and gave me time to get her into bed before she woke anyone up.

That was followed by Tessa’s nightmare and her mumbling, “Red! Red!”

Thank God, the babies and Mother Grace slept through it. Or at least I think they did. Mother Grace is pretty quiet this morning with dark circles under her eyes, so it’s hard to tell. That woman may criticize me, but she doesn’t complain. And that’s an unexpected blessing, for sure.

Through the soughing and whooping of the wind, I heard sagebrush crashing against our cabin, coyotes howling, and Taffy barking. The door to the outhouse banged open and shut all night.

“Girls.” I shake them awake.

It’s unusual for them to sleep once the twins are up, but they must be as tired as the rest of us.

“Rise and shine! Grab a granola bar that your grandmother made yesterday and come on out.”

Tessa opens an eye, bats her eyelashes at me, closes her eye, reopens it, and flings herself off of her mattress. It’s like watching a butterfly come to life.

On the bunk above, Nonni rolls over to face the wall and covers her head with her pillow.

I pull her sheet back and touch her shoulder. “We leave in an hour, honey.”

The girls stumble around inside the cabin, getting ready for the day. I stroll outside to check on the wind damage, and everything appears calm.

I see the cloudless, blue sky and smell a slight eucalyptus scent.

The early morning temperature is mild. Chickens cackle in the distance, and Taffy snoozes on the porch.

I continue around the perimeter of the cabin until I’m near the outhouse. The latch is broken, maybe from the wind. I thought I’d secured it before cozying us up in the cabin for the night, but that’s the cause of the repetitive banging sounds.

Rand’ll fix it. Or, better yet, I’ll ask Mother Grace. She’s handy with tools.

After I check our last withered squash plant, I gaze in at the hens and rooster pecking corn from the dirt in their coop. I walk around the house and check my sneaky trap.

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