never fails.”
Chantry wasn’t so sure he believed that, but obviously Dempsey did, so he just nodded. It seemed to him that God always took too much time to make folks pay for the wrong they did. Maybe he’d give God a little help one of these days.
CHAPTER 4
It was still hot in the middle of October. There was only one pup left: Shadow. Chantry stayed pretty much on edge wondering what Rainey would do. He hadn’t said much while the other pups were there, but when Shadow got looked over every time and it came down to the last one, Rainey said it looked like they might end up stuck feeding the damned dog.
“Better off to use it as bait.”
Chantry was ready. He’d lain awake at night trying to think of arguments if it came down to this.
“I can train him,” he said quickly. They sat at the kitchen table. Mama had made chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, butter beans, and buttermilk biscuits for dinner. It was Rainey’s favorite meal.
Rainey blew out a snort. “Train him? You? Train him for what, to fetch my slippers?”
“No. I’ve been reading up on it. I talked to Doc Malone. I can train him to herd cattle, maybe enter him in the trials when he’s good enough. A prize dog like that would take top dollar. A lot more than you got for Belle even.”
Rainey had sold Belle the week before, trading her for an old Dodge truck and taking a loss on her but saying it was too much trouble to raise dogs. Like he’d had to do anything but find buyers. Now he looked at Chantry with narrowed eyes like he was thinking about it. Chantry sucked in a deep breath.
“Dale Ledbetter gave two thousand dollars for a good stock dog.”
That slowly filtered into Rainey’s brain. Chantry saw it take root, saw greed leap in his eyes. He sat back in his chair until it creaked, eying Chantry for a long minute.
“Two thousand dollars, huh. So you think you could make anything outa that scrap of a mutt?”
“He’s small but he’s smart. Quick. That’s what counts in a cattle dog.” He felt Mama’s eyes on him but she didn’t say anything. It wasn’t a lie; it just stretched the truth a little. If Rainey didn’t know anything about the kind of dog he’d bought, that wasn’t Chantry’s fault. Besides, he knew he could train Shadow. He was smart and quick. He was nearly four months old and already knew how to sit when told, heel on command, and could stay. Maybe his attention span wasn’t that long, but it’d only improve with age.
“And if I don’t,” Chantry said when Rainey still hadn’t said anything, “you haven’t lost any money. You could still sell him.”
“Or use him as bait.”
Chantry didn’t answer that. He waited, and in a minute Rainey nodded. “Okay. But you’ll have to feed him. I ain’t spendin’ no more of my money feedin’ a dog that might not sell.”
“If Chantry buys the food and invests time and money into the dog,” Mama spoke up, “he should get part of the proceeds from the sale.”
Chantry shot her a quick, frantic look. No . He didn’t want to risk Rainey changing his mind and doing something terrible with Shadow. He knew what he meant by using him as bait. Dog fighting was supposed to be illegal in most places, but it still went on. Bait dogs died horribly.
A wave of sickness washed over him when Rainey’s eyes went thin again and his look at Mama was mean. Chantry clenched his fists in his lap and spoke up.
“It’s all right,” he said quickly. “I don’t need any of the money. I just want to do it. To see if I can. That’s all. Rainey can have all the money.”
“It’s a lot of money, Chantry. Let Rainey think about it.”
“I don’t have to think about it, by God.” Rainey’s fist slammed down on the table. “As long as I get two thousand dollars, he can have anything over that.”
Chantry shot Mama a quick look again. He’d never get close to that for Shadow. She had to know it. Didn’t she? But Mama was nodding.
“After
Chantry wasn’t so sure he believed that, but obviously Dempsey did, so he just nodded. It seemed to him that God always took too much time to make folks pay for the wrong they did. Maybe he’d give God a little help one of these days.
CHAPTER 4
It was still hot in the middle of October. There was only one pup left: Shadow. Chantry stayed pretty much on edge wondering what Rainey would do. He hadn’t said much while the other pups were there, but when Shadow got looked over every time and it came down to the last one, Rainey said it looked like they might end up stuck feeding the damned dog.
“Better off to use it as bait.”
Chantry was ready. He’d lain awake at night trying to think of arguments if it came down to this.
“I can train him,” he said quickly. They sat at the kitchen table. Mama had made chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, butter beans, and buttermilk biscuits for dinner. It was Rainey’s favorite meal.
Rainey blew out a snort. “Train him? You? Train him for what, to fetch my slippers?”
“No. I’ve been reading up on it. I talked to Doc Malone. I can train him to herd cattle, maybe enter him in the trials when he’s good enough. A prize dog like that would take top dollar. A lot more than you got for Belle even.”
Rainey had sold Belle the week before, trading her for an old Dodge truck and taking a loss on her but saying it was too much trouble to raise dogs. Like he’d had to do anything but find buyers. Now he looked at Chantry with narrowed eyes like he was thinking about it. Chantry sucked in a deep breath.
“Dale Ledbetter gave two thousand dollars for a good stock dog.”
That slowly filtered into Rainey’s brain. Chantry saw it take root, saw greed leap in his eyes. He sat back in his chair until it creaked, eying Chantry for a long minute.
“Two thousand dollars, huh. So you think you could make anything outa that scrap of a mutt?”
“He’s small but he’s smart. Quick. That’s what counts in a cattle dog.” He felt Mama’s eyes on him but she didn’t say anything. It wasn’t a lie; it just stretched the truth a little. If Rainey didn’t know anything about the kind of dog he’d bought, that wasn’t Chantry’s fault. Besides, he knew he could train Shadow. He was smart and quick. He was nearly four months old and already knew how to sit when told, heel on command, and could stay. Maybe his attention span wasn’t that long, but it’d only improve with age.
“And if I don’t,” Chantry said when Rainey still hadn’t said anything, “you haven’t lost any money. You could still sell him.”
“Or use him as bait.”
Chantry didn’t answer that. He waited, and in a minute Rainey nodded. “Okay. But you’ll have to feed him. I ain’t spendin’ no more of my money feedin’ a dog that might not sell.”
“If Chantry buys the food and invests time and money into the dog,” Mama spoke up, “he should get part of the proceeds from the sale.”
Chantry shot her a quick, frantic look. No . He didn’t want to risk Rainey changing his mind and doing something terrible with Shadow. He knew what he meant by using him as bait. Dog fighting was supposed to be illegal in most places, but it still went on. Bait dogs died horribly.
A wave of sickness washed over him when Rainey’s eyes went thin again and his look at Mama was mean. Chantry clenched his fists in his lap and spoke up.
“It’s all right,” he said quickly. “I don’t need any of the money. I just want to do it. To see if I can. That’s all. Rainey can have all the money.”
“It’s a lot of money, Chantry. Let Rainey think about it.”
“I don’t have to think about it, by God.” Rainey’s fist slammed down on the table. “As long as I get two thousand dollars, he can have anything over that.”
Chantry shot Mama a quick look again. He’d never get close to that for Shadow. She had to know it. Didn’t she? But Mama was nodding.
“After
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