out of his mouth and pointed it at Jeff,
punctuating each low-spoken word with it. “Every time I see you on
the street in town, I’ll be keeping an eye you. I won’t let you
sleep it off in my barn anymore. And Caroline put her foot down a
long time ago about bringing you into the house. If you pass out in
someone’s hay rick, or in a doorway in town, I’ll arrest you for
vagrancy.” Will’s expression was dead serious, and Jeff knew the
threat was, too.
“ Getting drunk isn’t a crime in Decker
Prairie,” Jeff mumbled.
“ In your case, I’ll make it my business
to turn it into one.”
Jeff snorted. “You can’t rewrite the law to
suit yourself, Will!”
“ Watch me.”
Jeff couldn’t quite believe this was
happening. “You’d actually jail a man for an entire month for
taking one lousy egg?” Where’s the justice in that? Or don’t you
believe in justice?”
Will’s mouth turned down at the corners.
“I’ll tell you what I believe in—that’s the responsibility I have
to folks in this town who need a helping hand. You, my friend, are
one of them.”
“ Me?” Jeff asked incredulously. “I
don’t want or need a helping hand from you or anyone
else.”
“ Have you had a good look at yourself
lately? Your hands shake like an old man’s and your eyes remind me
of my red flannel long johns. Christ, you look ten years older than
your age. I’m doing you a favor here, if you’d just realize
it.”
Jeff couldn’t believe his ears. He was also
very aware of Althea Ford standing there in her yard while Will
gave him this dressing down. Oh, it must have made Will Mason feel
high and mighty to stand there in his clean, starched shirt and
stoop to save unworthy, unwashed Jefferson Hicks. Mr. High and
Mighty, who had a wife to go home to every night, a wife who waited
with a hot meal, and offered the comfort of her arms and the solace
of her bed. “Favor? You’d be doing me a big favor if you’d let me
go my way. It’s getting harder and harder for me to remember that
we were ever friends.”
Fleeting images sliced through Jeff’s mind:
the summer afternoons they fished at the stream, the Saturday night
dinners he and Sally spent with Will and his wife, Caroline, the
laughter and fun—it had all been part of that other life Jeff had
known. And it was as dead as autumn leaves. He regretted that, as
much as his sense of insulated detachment would allow, anyway.
Will sighed and pushed his hat off his
forehead. “Damn, Jeff, you sure haven’t made it easy. I’ve wanted
to turn my back on you lots of times over the past couple of
years.”
“ Then why the hell didn’t
you?”
Will propped his foot on the wagon wheel hub.
“Because true friends don’t do that. I owe it to the man I used to
know and respect—I owe it to him to help you now.”
Jeff scuffed at the dirt with his boot but
had the grace to keep his mouth shut.
“ Well, Jeff, what do you
say?”
He jammed his hands in his pockets but
wouldn’t look Will in the face. What could he say? A twinge of
sentiment stirred somewhere inside him. “Yeah, I guess I’ll stay
here,” he muttered.
Will lifted his head and called to Althea,
“Ma’am, how about it? Can you use the help?”
Jeff chanced a look at her. The sunset gave
her heavy auburn hair highlights of fire. She turned and glanced
over her shoulder at the house, as if seeking permission. “Yes, I
suppose—I suppose it will be all right.”
“ Good. I’ll let you two work out the
details.” Will hopped up to the wagon seat and took the reins.
“I’ll drop by sometime next week, just to see how things are
going.”
Jeff couldn’t keep the scowl off his face as
he watched Will drive away. After the wagon was out of sight, he
looked around him again, remembering what he’d thought just this
morning when he first saw this place—there was enough work here to
keep a man busy for months. At that moment, he hadn’t realized he’d
be stranded out here and
punctuating each low-spoken word with it. “Every time I see you on
the street in town, I’ll be keeping an eye you. I won’t let you
sleep it off in my barn anymore. And Caroline put her foot down a
long time ago about bringing you into the house. If you pass out in
someone’s hay rick, or in a doorway in town, I’ll arrest you for
vagrancy.” Will’s expression was dead serious, and Jeff knew the
threat was, too.
“ Getting drunk isn’t a crime in Decker
Prairie,” Jeff mumbled.
“ In your case, I’ll make it my business
to turn it into one.”
Jeff snorted. “You can’t rewrite the law to
suit yourself, Will!”
“ Watch me.”
Jeff couldn’t quite believe this was
happening. “You’d actually jail a man for an entire month for
taking one lousy egg?” Where’s the justice in that? Or don’t you
believe in justice?”
Will’s mouth turned down at the corners.
“I’ll tell you what I believe in—that’s the responsibility I have
to folks in this town who need a helping hand. You, my friend, are
one of them.”
“ Me?” Jeff asked incredulously. “I
don’t want or need a helping hand from you or anyone
else.”
“ Have you had a good look at yourself
lately? Your hands shake like an old man’s and your eyes remind me
of my red flannel long johns. Christ, you look ten years older than
your age. I’m doing you a favor here, if you’d just realize
it.”
Jeff couldn’t believe his ears. He was also
very aware of Althea Ford standing there in her yard while Will
gave him this dressing down. Oh, it must have made Will Mason feel
high and mighty to stand there in his clean, starched shirt and
stoop to save unworthy, unwashed Jefferson Hicks. Mr. High and
Mighty, who had a wife to go home to every night, a wife who waited
with a hot meal, and offered the comfort of her arms and the solace
of her bed. “Favor? You’d be doing me a big favor if you’d let me
go my way. It’s getting harder and harder for me to remember that
we were ever friends.”
Fleeting images sliced through Jeff’s mind:
the summer afternoons they fished at the stream, the Saturday night
dinners he and Sally spent with Will and his wife, Caroline, the
laughter and fun—it had all been part of that other life Jeff had
known. And it was as dead as autumn leaves. He regretted that, as
much as his sense of insulated detachment would allow, anyway.
Will sighed and pushed his hat off his
forehead. “Damn, Jeff, you sure haven’t made it easy. I’ve wanted
to turn my back on you lots of times over the past couple of
years.”
“ Then why the hell didn’t
you?”
Will propped his foot on the wagon wheel hub.
“Because true friends don’t do that. I owe it to the man I used to
know and respect—I owe it to him to help you now.”
Jeff scuffed at the dirt with his boot but
had the grace to keep his mouth shut.
“ Well, Jeff, what do you
say?”
He jammed his hands in his pockets but
wouldn’t look Will in the face. What could he say? A twinge of
sentiment stirred somewhere inside him. “Yeah, I guess I’ll stay
here,” he muttered.
Will lifted his head and called to Althea,
“Ma’am, how about it? Can you use the help?”
Jeff chanced a look at her. The sunset gave
her heavy auburn hair highlights of fire. She turned and glanced
over her shoulder at the house, as if seeking permission. “Yes, I
suppose—I suppose it will be all right.”
“ Good. I’ll let you two work out the
details.” Will hopped up to the wagon seat and took the reins.
“I’ll drop by sometime next week, just to see how things are
going.”
Jeff couldn’t keep the scowl off his face as
he watched Will drive away. After the wagon was out of sight, he
looked around him again, remembering what he’d thought just this
morning when he first saw this place—there was enough work here to
keep a man busy for months. At that moment, he hadn’t realized he’d
be stranded out here and
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