Thursday, January 12, 2017

Post 22-23 Dead Eye Sam

Author's note: Going out of the country for 10 days. I'll pick up here when I get back. Thanks for reading!    Pat



     Tenny didn’t want to be Mrs. Dolly’s little girl. She wanted to go home with her papa. She pushed his hand aside, slid off the horse, and landed running. She looked back to see if he was gonna catch her, and she saw Mr. Bob’s head disappear in a sudden red cloud. Then she heard a shot from a long, long way off. She ran and ran. Pretty soon she fell, and she was crying so hard, she couldn’t get up. She cried. Partially because she was so scared, but also because she had ran from Mr. Bob after promising she would not.  Pretty soon, Papa was holding her. He was crying too. Before long, they were both crying and laughing. At the same time.
     LaFayette was in a big hurry. “Quick – get her on a horse! If the Clan heard that shot, they’ll investigate. We gotta go now!”
     LaFayette’s wife took good care of Tenny when they got back to Taladega. She gave her a bath, the first in many days, and cared for her bruises and rope burns.
     “Other than that, she seems to be fine. But you need to let her rest up several days before heading back to Tennessee, James.” She looked at James quietly for a moment. “No, James. She has not been attacked.” James almost cried again.
    While Tenny slept, her first real sleep for many days, the men smoked a cigar.
     James Spoke. “Thank you, LaFayette. I think we’re even now. We helped you, and you saved our Tenny. After Tenny rests up a few days, we’ll take the train most of the way home. But this time, Tenny travels first class.”
     “Yeah, James, I guess we are even. And by the way, I think I mentioned we might go to Arkansas. Well, we’re leaving this spring. I got kin at Atkins, in th’ Arkansas River Valley. They have never had a constable in Atkins, but they have offered me th’ job, if we will come. There’s a lot of homestead land fer th’ takin’ there, an I hear Arkansas is not as torn up by th’ war as Alabama. Why don’t you meet us where the Arkansas and th’ mighty Mississip’ join? There’s a town there, on the Arkansas side, called Napoleon. We could go on up by river boat. Lots of good land fer th’ takin’. An that girl Tenny, she sure has a lot of that red-haired spunk. Never had any red hair in my family. Like to have some. My oldest boy, John Wesley, is about her age, ye know! But that leaves out my youngest daughter, ‘fraid Josh is a little too old fer her. If, that is, the new baby turns out to be a girl!”
       They both laughed. But nobody, in their wildest imaginings, could have guessed what strange matrimonial twists lay in store for those two families.
    “You know, LaFayette, I’ve been thinkin’ about Arkansas, an all that homestead land. Haven’t even talked to Sara yet. But she’ll come around. I’ve got kin in Dover, which is also in that river valley. Let me know when to meet you. We’ll see you this spring where the two mighty rivers join. Count on it.”
    “It will be sometime around the first of April, James. I’ll telegraph you. Th’ lines should be back up by then.”
      A few days later, LaFayette saw James and Tenny off as they boarded the train. The last thing LaFayette said as they stepped onto the train was, “Don’t fergit! Atkins is waitin’ fer us, an Dover is waitin’ fer ya’ll! See ya this spring where the mighty rivers join!”
     Tenny stepped into the long aisle. She was surprised at the big, comfortable seats on that train, and all the people.
     But Tenny is smart, and she was still thinking about what LaFayette said. “Are we movin’ to Dover, up in Arkansas, Papa?”
     James laughed. “You’re too smart for your own good, Tenny. That was just talk. But don’t you mention that to your mama. I haven’t even talked to her about that yet!”
                                              *

Part 23
     Once Sam was arrested, it didn’t take long for Slim to figure out what Doodlebug and Darryl had tried to do. He didn’t blame Sam for that, because he knew she was just following along with them. “But I will deal with those two, if they ever show back up here.”
     Once Darryl and Doodlebug came slipping back to the Clan, and found out what had happened to Sam, they packed up, sneaked out, and got gone in a hurry, before Slim could find them. They knew what Slim would do. They would not be back.
     Slim had laid out his thinking for Sam.  “Sam, you need to be away from here fer a spell. The townsfolk are so riled up over your deal, they may cause trouble for the Clan. I’m gonna give you money enuf to ride that train until you’re far away from here. Wear this brown wig until you get there.  Get you a room and even a job, if you want it, and stay gone six months. That will give time for all this trouble to settle down. Won’t take too long, once th’ townsfolk know yer gone. Then, you can come back. Six months. Not a day more. Now go pack up.”
     Mama Dolly was distraught. She had lost one of her girls, now Sam was about to leave. But there was one thing that was making her happy, at the same time. “Slim got a telegram yesterday. He said Bob is bringing a little orphan girl to live with us. She’s jest a child, and her name is Tenny. And guess what – She has pretty red hair, just like you, Sam! She will be your little sister! When you get back, you can be her best friend, just like you and Millie. Won’t that be grand!

                                             *
     Wearing her brown wig, nobody recognized Sam when she boarded the train the next morning. She had two bags and a nice long case containing her buffalo gun. She was not about to leave the one thing that would keep her from ever having to shoot anybody. As she walked down the aisle of the fancy coach, she looked at all the people. She was excited. She had no plans to ever come back to the Clan. This would give her a chance to start a new life, and Slim’s money was making that all possible. She felt bad about taking Slim’s money. But he had taken her away from her life. It was only fair that his money should help her start a new one.
     Halfway down the long aisle, Sam saw a little red-haired girl sitting beside a big man. But the sight of that little girl sent Sam into shock. She had to quickly find a seat and sit down. She couldn’t stop staring at her – her heart was racing wildly. Sam’s mind was a blur, bombarded by flashbacks from the last time she had seen this little girl – her real sister!
     It took a few minutes for Sam to pull herself together, realizing, finally, it’s not her. Her real sister would be a grown woman now. This little girl was exactly the size Samantha faintly remembered her older sister being – before Samantha’s memories went blank, and her life turned so bad.
      Mama Dolly had mentioned that a little red-haired girl was coming to be her sister. Could this be her? No, that can’t be, this train was going away from Taladega. Or could it be? Or did something go wrong? If so, why did they turn around?  The man beside her was obviously not Bad Bob. He was big, but not that big. She had to think this out, then find a way to talk to this little girl.

     A seat was open opposite the man and little girl. Sam had to think out her plan, then move up there, and strike up a  conversation.

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