Where the Great Hawk Flies by Liza Ketchum

Author:Liza Ketchum [Ketchum, Liza]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Part III

Whistling in the East

21. Hiram

I should a known Ma would find out about the doctress. First she sniffed at the cider on Pa's breath. "Where you been?" she asked. "Night's coming on, and not a stick of wood in the house. I can't hardly bend over and I've got the sick headache. I had to send Abner out, lame as he is—and you're off drinking with the neighbors?"

"I'll fetch some wood," I said. I tried to slip past her big belly, but she grabbed my sleeve and pulled me close. "What's that on your face?" she asked. "Tell me." Her fingernails dug into my skin through my shirt.

"It's a poultice," I said.

She gave Pa such a cold stare, I thought he might ice over right on the spot. "You took him to that witch. Didn't you?"

"She fixed it so it don't hurt no more," I said.

Ma hauled off to slap me. I dodged outta the way just in time and bumped into Uncle Abner. He was coming in the door with his arms full a wood. The logs clattered to the floor; one landed on my foot, and I yelped.

"Hey!" Uncle Abner said. "Watch out." He kicked the log away. He was wearing Pa's old boots. "Come on," he told me. "Help me pick these up."

"Just wait," Ma said. "All a you." She was breathing funny.

Pa held up his hand. "Now, Hannah—don't cause trouble."

When Ma's face gets splotchy and red like her hair, there's no use saying a word. Don't Pa know that? I sure do. I grabbed the spilt logs and stacked them by the hearth, keeping as far away as I could.

Pa put his arm acrost her shoulders, trying to calm her down, but Ma shoved him right off. "You don't want Abner to know, do you?"

"Know what?" my uncle said.

"That we live next door to savages, that's what," she said.

"Hannah!" Pa shouted. I covered my ears. Pa's voice is usually quiet, compared to Ma's.

Uncle Abner's face twisted up. "So my nephew told the truth," he said. "Ain't that a pretty picture. Injuns torch my house, kill our cattle, kidnap me, and take me to Canada. I spend two years in a British prison, nearly die tunneling outta that jail, almost starve to death getting back over the border, and you tell me there's Injuns next door?" He coughed so hard he slumped against the doorpost while Pa slapped his back.

Uncle Abner clutched my sleeve. "Come on," he said. "Show me the way."

Ma begun to holler. I didn't know what she was saying. Pa was shouting even louder. "Abner, calm down. These folks had nothing to do with that raid. The husband is an Englishman—"

"English! Damnation on those Redcoats!" Abner roared at Pa. "They's even worse than the Indians. They treated their swine better than us." Uncle Abner shook me. "And you said there's a chief over there. What's he got planned for us?"

I couldn't answer him. I kept my hands over my ears. All three of them commenced to shout and yell at each other and at me.

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