Stars Go Blue by Laura Pritchett

throws the dead frozen chicken in the trash, considers it, and then pulls it out and sets it on the kitchen counter. He knows she’s fighting tears and also wondering whether it’s worth cooking; not really, since the work involved is far more than driving to the store and paying a few dollars for one already set to go.
    Ben watches all the men, arms folded and legs spread, rocking back on their heels, as they watch Renny eye the chicken. He watches her too. Watches her scowl at it as she says, “There’s some cinnamon rolls in that tinfoil. What’s Jess up to?”
    â€œFull,” says one, and “Thanks, but no,” says the other, and then adds, “Sorry about the chicken. It’s always something. Jess is riding her horse. From our house here, actually.”
    â€œIsn’t she supposed to be doing her homeschool work? Does she actually ever do anything? Shouldn’t she be doing something useful?”
    Del smiles at Renny, calm as ever. “She is. She’s riding her horse.”
    Ben sits down in the kitchen chair. Renny faces him. “Well, we might as well tell him.” Renny nods from Del to Ben. “Ben, I know this is complicated, and it’s hard to understand. But you might remember us talking about it. Del and Carolyn are too cash-poor to buy this ranch, and besides, if they bought it outright, we’d have to pay capital gains taxes and that could kill us. Del and Anton have a new plan. They’ll put a conservationeasement on the place, which means Del and Carolyn can buy the land for its agricultural value. Not its commercial value. But one strip of land, over by the county road, we’ll sell to Anton, who will buy that for development. He’ll buy it from Carolyn and Del, which gives them the money to pay us. And lord knows we’ll need the money for these years ahead. Okay?”
    Ben feels hot and he looks around for the source. He will not let this ranch be sold to pay for his care. He will not gut this ranch like a fish.
    Anton raises his coffee cup halfway to his mouth. “I think that plan honors your work here, Ben. A few houses on the south side, but the rest conserved. Everyone wants to do right by you. And of course, you two keep living here as long as you want to.”
    Renny walks up to Ben and so he is forced to stare at her. “If we die, Ben—if we suddenly die—Carolyn and Del will lose this place. Estate taxes. We need to sign the papers now, even if we plan on staying.”
    It is too hard, this crush-crush that goes on in his heart. Surely he knew he would not live here one day. Surely he had prepared himself for that? Surely he had known that the orange willow branches and the bald eagle, that all of it would pass to someone else? He doesn’t remember. He doesn’t remember considering it. There’s no remembering in his brain. “Not those branches,” he says.
    The three of them regard him silently.
    So he tries again. “Not the orange branches.”
    Again, they are silent, until Renny says, “Oh, the willows ?”
    â€œWillows,” he says.
    Del and Anton regard each other until Del says, “You’re wanting us to leave the willows? They’re farther north than Anthon wants to build anyway.”
    â€œI’ll leave the willows,” Anton says. “Sure. I’m thinking of putting five houses along the county road. Sell the lots to rich people who want to live out here in the country. But not big ugly houses—nice regular-people ones. That’s not even near the willows, is it?”
    Ben clears his throat. “I told Renny already, I’d like to be . . . that thing, when you are put into the ground—buried— here. She’ll make arrangements with the county. Right Renny? Won’t you?”
    â€œThat’s a long way off, no need to be thinking of that—”
    â€œNo, he’s right to talk about it.” Renny gazes