The Captive (v1.0) by Unknown Author

Author:Unknown Author
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-03-14T00:00:00+00:00

“I wanna ride in the rumble seat.” Mina began climbing up onto the little iron step on the Ford’s back fender to get into the seat. Barry automatically picked her up and plumped her down on the brown cushions.

“You keep your head down now, sweetie,” he said.

“It’s dangerous for her to ride alone back there,” Renee said. But she got in, slamming the door of the Model-A hard to make it catch.

They rattled down the dirt street to Duranes Road which was going to be paved one of these days, Montoya had promised, and on to Rio Grande Boulevarde which was paved after a fashion, and turned south. The day was brilliant blue with no clouds yet in the forenoon, the sun stinging hot where it hit the skin, but in the shade it was still a cool New Mexico morning in June. Renee sat half turned in the seat, her eye on Mina every minute. Barry glanced at his wife covertly, seeing as if for the first time the delicate whiteness of her skin which she kept from the sun with her wide brimmed hats because she burned so easily, the delicate line of jaw and cheek bone that gave her a Eurasian look, the black hair against the white skin. She might even have Indian blood, he thought, some northern Indian, Iroquois, Algonquin, if not for the pale Nordic whiteness of her complexion.

They ran on through Old Town down Central into the newer downtown area, past the stepped back pueblo architecture of the El Fidel Hotel, the Coney Island place, the Kiva Theater, the new Bank Building.

“You could pick up the silver dollars in front of Maisel’s if you need some money,’’ Mina said as they walked along the shady side of the street toward the bank.

“I’ll bet you couldn’t get them up if you tried,” Barry said, grinning at Renee.

“I bet I know somebody who could,” Mina said, and she looked sideways up at Barry.

Before he thought, he had said, “Who would be that strong?”

“Oh, you know,” Mina said, and she glanced up at her mother, who was only faintly interested in the conversation.

“Those dollars wouldn’t be enough to buy new tires for the car and pay the rent this month. I’m afraid,” Barry said, looking away to end the conversation. He recalled some of the events of the pre-dawn activity with Mina, but it was dream-like, and of the night ride he could recall nothing but a feeling of exultation that almost made him angry.

“You going to go on down to Sears?” he said to Renee, his tone softened, conciliatory.

“Barry, how can you get a loan with things as bad as they are? Mrs. Gonzalez said just last week that they couldn’t get a loan to put in a second alfalfa crop, and they’ve got twenty acres or more in the Valley.”

She was genuinely concerned, but not as yet suspicious, Barry thought, looking across at her.

More lies, but they had to be told. No other way

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