Bent Creek (30 page)

“I got somethin’ tah tell you, Ma.  I’m leavin’ in the mor
nin’. I’m goin’ tah Florida. I done picked out a place thar.  It’s called Destin.” Rachael unfolded the map she had for over a year on the kitchen table. The creases of the paper were beginning to rip from being folded and unfolded many times.  She pointed to a small red circle.  “That’s Destin.  That’s whar I’m goin’ and both of you are comin’ with me.”

“Rachael girl, I don’t know much and I ain’t smart like you, but I always know’d that you were too good for this place. I always know’d that someday you would leave here and I would never see you agin.”

“That’s not true, cause like I said, Momma, you and daddy are coming with me.”

“You go on. I ain’t a goin’ with you.  I jest can’t fergit that you got that money by doin’ wrong.  You didn’t earn it.”

“What do you mean I didn’t earn it, Momma?  Me and Jesse had tah live with that mean old Nevers. I got captured by them bootleggers and got shot at twice, I worked my tail off, took chances that I never thought I’d do and lost the man I love. Now don’t you tell me I didn’t earn it. I never harmed a soul, and now I’m done, Momma. I got enuf money fer us tah live really nice. Please Momma. I want you and daddy tah come with me.” She took her mother’s hand. “Come on, Momma, come with me. You and daddy deserve something better than livin’ in this run down shack.”

The door to the bedroom opened and Roy Reilly stepped out clad only in his red, long johns.  “I want tah go tah Floridy,” he declared. “I want tah go somewheres warm and pick oranges off the tree in my yard. Kin you make that happen, Rachael?”

“I’ll surely try, Daddy.”

“Yer plumb loco, Roy Riley.  You ain’t goin’ any
wheres,” Ida Mae said.

“You jest watch me, Ida Mae. If’n you don’t want tah go, you kin stay here and go live with Ben and Lily. I ain’t spendin’ one more winter in this place.  Hell, it’ll likely fall down on our heads a fore the snow comes.”

“I’ll make you a deal, Momma.  You come with me tah the beach and if’n after a month you jest plumb hate it thar, I’ll buy you a bus ticket and send you home directly.”

Ida Mae folded her hands across her chest.  “Well, I reckon I could try it fer at least a month.”

Rachael threw her arms around her mother’s neck.  “I love you, Momma. We’re gonna have so much fun.”

Jesse pulled the truck up to the bus station and everyone piled out. Ida Mae wore her Sunday church dress and Roy had on the only pair of good pants and shirt he owned.  Rachael took their box, which was tied with a string, along with her bag out of the truck and set them on the platform.

“I still can’t figure how you talked them into goin’ with you, but I sure do hope it all works out.  If not you kin send them on back tah us,” Ben said.

The Greyhound bus pulled in and a few passengers got off. After a few minutes the driver announced that it was time to board. Rachael hugged Jesse and Ben.  She took Violet from Lily’s arms and after kissing both her cheeks she handed her to her mother. Ida Mae cuddled the baby close to her.  “I know’d I ain’t been a reel good granny tah you baby, but I want ya tah know that I love you.” She turned to Lily.  “I’m sorry I ain’t been sociable tah you, but I didn’t know the whole story fer a long time. I think ya’ll be a reel good wife tah Ben.”

“I can’t tell you how much I’m gonna miss you,” Lily said. “You be sure and write us as soon as you get settled.  Ben says if things go okay we should have a telephone in a couply months and then you kin call us.  I’m gonna hug you real quick cause I’m gettin’ ready to bawl.”

The driver announced again that it was time to go.  With the last flurry of hugs and kisses, Rachael and her parents got on the bus. They were actually leaving Kentucky.

“Lordy, I think I’m gonna fall right apart,” Ida Mae said, holding tight onto Roy’s hand.

“You jest hold on tah me and everythin’ will be jest fine,” he said, although his hand was shaking.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Dear Family,

I’m hopin’ ya’ll are fine.  We miss you. It was a real long ride to Florida. I thought we would never git here. Momma complained the whole way. When we got off the bus I couldn’t believe how warm it was. It is jest as nice as I thought it would be. We stayed in a motel fer a couply days and then I found us a real nice little house on the beach. Well, it ain’t really much cause it needs some fixins’ but we got inside plumbin’ and even a porcelain bathtub. We bought some furniture from a couply sales in people’s yards and some from the Goodwill store.  The house is startin’ to look right nice.  I got me two orange trees growin’ in tubs on the porch and I pick up shells off the beach everyday. I got me a whole pile of them by my front door.  See I told you. Ha ha.

At first Momma hated it here.  She was reel homesick.  She hated the ocean and the sand. She won’t even go near the water and she kept thinkin’ them waves were gonna come right over the house. She cried a lot and I was jest about ready to send her back to ya’ll when she found a church in town that had bingo three nights a week. She’s even got her own covers.  She said she wasn’t gamblin’ cause it’s in a church and when she won she always gave the church part of the money.  She also joined a quiltin’ club at the church and thar are some women thar from Tennessee.  Fer a while I hardly saw her, but I was glad she wuz happy. Me and momma went shoppin’ and got some new clothes. I swear it makes me all choked up tah see how young momma looks in new clothes.  She ain’t an old lady at all. I took her to a picture show and she jest sat there with her mouth open.  She talked about it fer three days til daddy said he heard enuf bout them movie stars.

Daddy, well…he’s a different story. Soon as we got to the house he tuk off his shoes and marched right into the water.  He jest stood thar with his hands on his hips starin’ at the ocean. He said it was the damdest thang he ever seen. He found a fishin’ pier about half mile from our house and started goin’ down thar everyday after breakfast. He spent so much time sittin’ thar talkin’ to all the old codgers that fish off the pier that the owner offered him a job.  Daddy keeps fishin’ line and bait on all the poles and untangles nets.  Sometimes he sweeps up the place.  He’s makin’ a dollar a day and he was in hog heaven fer a while.  He walked round the house with money in his pocket and every now and then he’d pull out the bills and jest looks at them.  I was reel glad they both are adjusten to things here.

And me, wel
l, I got me a job and a car.  It ain’t much of a car, jest an old rust bucket but it runs real good.  I went tah work cause a person kin only spend so much time workin’ around the house and goin’ tah the beach.  Besides I wanted tah make sure I don’t spend all my money. I still got a sock full in my dresser drawer. I’m workin’ at a restaurant jest a few blocks down the road.  They serve country cookin’ and lots of grits. I jest can’t believe that people eat grits when they don’t have to. They like the way I talk but if you ask me, I think it’s the people here who talk funny.  I’m thinkin’ that sometime in the future I’d like to buy me a little restaurant.  You know, fix some of the thangs me and momma used to cook back home. I surely hope things are goin’ good at home fer all of ya’ll.  I love ya’ll a bunch and miss you reel badly.  Write to me if’n you git time. Oh, by the way, have you heard anything from Sam?

Love Rachael

A few days after sending off the letter, Rachael was sur
prised when her father made the announcement that Ida Mae wanted to go home. She said the month was up and it was time to leave and he was thinking he would like to go, too.  He missed the tall pines of the mountains and the quiet of the hollow. Roy said that Ida Mae was tired of playing bingo and she really didn’t like the church that much. She missed her old church in Bent Creek.

Rachael was stunned by his announcement. “But, Daddy, how kin you say goin’ home would make you happy. Thar’s nothin’ thar fer you. You’ll jest be miserable agin as soon as you git back.”

“Naw, don’t reckon I’ll be miserable.  I reckon it won’t be too long a fore the mine opens.”

Rachael threw her hands in the air.  “I jest can’t believe you two, but if’n that’s what you want, I’ll write tah Ben and try tah make some arrangements.”

“I sure do hope you ain’t mad at us, Rachael,” her momma added. “It ain’t that we ain’t grateful fer all you did fer us, but I need tah go back tah Bent Creek.  Floridy jest don’t feel right tah me. I jest can’t believe thar ain’t no winter here.  We may be miserable back home, but we’re miserable here so it don’t make a whole lot of difference, ceptin’ I’ll have my grandbabies and my church. I’m right weary of playin’ bingo and I know fer sure yer pap is ready tah leave this place.

Rachael wrote another letter to Ben,

Dear Ben,

After tellin’ you in my last letter bout all the good stuff happenin’ here, thangs have changed agin. Momma reminded me that the month was up and she and daddy are ready tah come home. They don’t like the idée that thar are no woods or fishin’ holes round heer.  Momma says it’s way too hot and she’s a missin’ ya’ll and daddy has jest started sittin’ round in the evenin’ and listens to the old hillbilly programs on the radio. I reckon I shoulda know’d it wouldn’t last too long, thar jest too old to change thar ways. Bent Creek is all they ever know’d. I’m reel glad I got tah spend this time with them, but I don’t want them to be unhappy.  Thang is, I don’t know whar they will go to live and I sure can’t send them home to nothing. That is lessen ya’ll are still willin’ tah take them in.  I’m sure by now thar old house has fallen down. If’n you got any idées let me know.  I still miss ya’ll and wonder if’n ya heard anythin’ from Sam. Give Violet a kiss fer me. I will write soon.

Rachael

Ben’s reply came four days later.  He said they had plenty of room. He and Jesse had their business up and running and it would be nice for Lily to have someone home with her during the day since she was expecting a baby. Jesse had decided to move out and he was living in the three rooms above the garage. They would meet Ida Mae and Roy in Lynch on Saturday.

With everything they owned packed in two proper suit
cases, Ida Mae and Roy stood outside the bus station with Rachael just as the sun was coming up.  Ida Mae swished a paper fan back and forth across her face, while Roy fidgeted with the tickets. “Gonna be another scorcher here, Rachael,” Ida Mae said. “Are you still mad at us?”

“I ain’t mad at you,” Rachael said, putting her arm around her mother. “I want you tah be happy and if goin’ back tah Bent Creek is gonna do it, then I’m glad fer you.  You take care of yerselves and give everyone a kiss fer me.  I’m gonna git. Here’s some travelin’ money.” She tucked a twenty-dollar bill into her mother’s pocket and kissed her on the cheek. She hugged her fathe
r and whispered into his ear, “You take care of momma and don’t you dare go back tah that mine, even if it opens and they beg you tah come back.” Rachael turned and left the depot without turning around.  She didn’t want them to know how really disappointed she was.

It was Friday. A week had gone by since her parents had left. Rachael swept the floor and washed up the few dishes in the sink. She made her bed and shook out all the throw rugs. Pulling her hair back in to a ponytail, she slipped off her shoes and headed for the beach. Walking through the foamy waves that washed up on the sand she was in deep thought. She had to make some decisions about her life.  It was really hard to admit to herself that Florida wasn’t the answer for her.  Her life had improved tremendously, but she still wasn’t happy.  Things were a little better when her parents were with her.  At least she felt like she was needed and had someone to talk to.  Now, it was just her, all alone in a house bigger than she shared with seven people when she was a child.  There was plenty of food, new clothes, electricity, inside plumbing, a radio, money stashed away in a drawer and her job.  None of it seemed to matter right now. She had never been alone in her life and she was finding out that it really wasn’t much of a life.  She needed someone to talk to, to be with and to care for. What would it be like when Thanksgiving came and oh my gosh, Christmas. There would be no snow, no family, just her, all alone with a lot of sand and water.