Snakes and Stones by Lisa Fowler

Author:Lisa Fowler
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Published: 2016-10-14T04:00:00+00:00

20

WAYWARD BOYS

Daddy, please,” I say, as the last of the crowd’s walking away. “Please, let’s leave town tonight. I can’t stay here one more minute. I’m scared. I’ve got a bad feeling about this town. I’m just sure something’s about to happen.”

Daddy looks me up and down like he thinks I’ve lost every last bit of my mind.

“Chestnut, Abraham and I are tired. We need to get a few hours sleep before we hit the road again, and I’ve got an errand to run in town before we leave.”

“Daddy, please. You know I’ve never asked anything like this before. But we’ve just got to get out of town tonight. Something bad is going to happen, I just know it.”

Daddy looks at Abraham. He rolls his eyes and shakes his head.

Abraham shrugs. “Sometimes de children got smarts older folks don’t, Slim,” he says, pulling the flap down over the elixir and bolting it into place. “Sometime dey’s right. Sometime dey’s not. Jes’ don’t neber know ’bout dese things, but best to listen, I say.”

The sun’s low, and an eerie sort of quiet’s fallen over the camp.

Daddy looks at Abraham, and then back at me. He gazes up and down the town’s streets, where there’s more than a few folks still stirring, then he lifts his tall black hat, scratches his head, and nods.

“All right,” he says. “As long as it’s all right with Abraham, I suppose it’s all right with me. I’ve still got that errand to run, but get on up in the wagon and soon as we get things squared away, we’ll hightail it out of town. Next town we come to though, I’m taking you to a doctor, girl. There’s something wrong with you. I declare, Chestnut, you’re acting plum peculiar, even for a nut.”

“Oh, thank you, Daddy. Thank you. Now, please, hurry!”

There’s still packing to do, but I run up the steps and into the wagon faster than a snake in the sunshine slithers under a rock for shade. I bolt the door, jump past the triplets, and flop back on my cot, feeling mighty fine about Daddy agreeing to something I want for a change.

“What’s wrong?” Filbert asks.

“Nothing, we’re just getting out of town tonight.”

“Why? Daddy said he was tired.”

“Don’t you worry about it. We just are, that’s all. Now lie down and go to sleep.”

Daddy and Abraham are working around outside when suddenly, I remember my flyers. No way I can forget to put those up, especially since Hazel done what she did. Then again, how can I nail them up with the sheriff on the lookout for me?

Daddy said he had to go back into town. What if he sees me nailing up the flyers? What will he say then? Or worse, what if he reads the flyers? I mean, I want Mama to be able to find me, but I got the fear of being caught for thieving running around in my mind plus the fear of Daddy finding out what I’m doing.

I lie on my cot just a minute or two more before making my decision.

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