Great Jehoshaphat and Gully Dirt! Part 24

"No, suh!" Shoogie told him. She started backing away.

"Gal, you a-feared o' automobiles?"

"Shoogie ain't scared! She just ain't seen none!"

"Well, Bandershanks, I know you ain't a-feared to ride, are you?"

Before I could say "Yes, sir" or "No, sir," he grabbed me by both arms and jumped back into the automobile with me!

"Turn me loose!"

"Shut up! Quit screamin' and kickin'!"

He clamped his hand over my mouth and plunked me down on the seat. With his feet he did something that made the automobile start rolling.

"Sit still, young'un! What's that little n.i.g.g.e.r's name?" Then he hollered back at Shoogie, "Black gal, you go tell Mister Jodie to get me that money!"

I twisted around quick to see what Shoogie would do. Shoogie was gone! All I saw was a streak of dust.

"Now, little wildcat, you'd just as well stop scratchin' and fightin'! We've got a long ways to go! Ah, this is the chance I been waitin' for! Your pa's gonna pay plenty to get you back, and I can buy me my own automobile! Man, that'll be the day! G.o.d d.a.m.n, young'un, you bite me one more time and I'll let you have it! Quit tryin' to jump out, you little devil! Don't you know if you jump, fast as we're goin', you'll break your fool neck?"

All at once Mister Ward quit talking mean to me. He didn't let go of my arm, but he told me he thought I was a sweet little gal-pretty, too-and that we were going where there was lots of candy.

"More candy than anybody's ever seen, Bandershanks!"

"I don't want no candy! I wanta go home!"

"Just as soon as we get all that candy, we'll go home."

"Where's the candy at?"

"It's not too far," he said. "Pretty soon after we cross Rocky Head Bridge we'll come to the road goin' to that candy store."

He reached down under the edge of the seat and got a bottle of something that didn't smell good and gulped down half of it.

"What's that?"

"Whiskey. Good G.o.d, ain't you never seen a bottle o' whiskey before?"

"No, sir."

"I wish to h.e.l.l my young'uns could say that." He laughed and muttered something else.

Then Mister Ward began singing, or half singing and half talking to himself. He sounded real happy, like he knew something n.o.body else had ever thought about. He had quit paying much attention to the road. Instead, he was just letting the automobile weave from side to side. I was wis.h.i.+ng we'd hurry and come to that candy road. But we didn't. We just kept going and going.

"When we gonna get there?"

"Just a little bit farther, gal."

The few houses we were pa.s.sing I'd never seen before. "I wanta go back home!"

"Naw, naw, don't start that tune again. We're gonna soon be comin' to a big steel bridge. You ain't never seen such a high bridge! Be watchin' out and tell me when you see it up ahead."

Mister Ward reached under the seat and got his bottle again.

"It's getting too dark to see bridges! I want my mama!"

"Dammit, it sh.o.r.e is gettin' dark. I hadn't figured on that.

Hicks, cuss him, didn't show me how to make the d.a.m.n lights work!"

Mister Ward stopped the automobile and got out. He staggered toward the front wheels. I slid off the seat, put both feet on the running board, and jumped! I fell when I hit the ground, but I scrambled up and ran-back toward home!

"You little devil! Come back!"

I didn't even look back.

"You hear me? Come back!"

I could tell Mister Ward was right behind me and getting closer! I darted off the road, down into a ditch full of tall gra.s.s, not half seeing where I was going. As soon as I could, I climbed out of the ditch and ran between a lot of bushes and big trees. But Mister Ward kept coming. I could hear him wheezing and panting.

"Young'un, if you go down in this d.a.m.n river bottom, you'll get lost!"

I scooted under a low-hanging limb and headed for a canebrake right ahead. While Mister Ward was going around the limb, I squeezed myself into the tall cane. It was so thick, the only way to get through was to go down on hands and knees and crawl between the stalks.

I managed to get out of sight of Mister Ward, but I could hear him stomping and floundering his way through the cane.

"h.e.l.l! She must've circled back toward the river.

Bandershanks! Where're you at, young'un? Bandershanks? That candy's just across the river!"

I wouldn't answer. I kept on crawling-into mud! But I didn't care. I sloshed on through till I was back on dry dirt and could get up and run again.

Suddenly I found myself right at the edge of the biggest creek I'd ever seen! It wasn't Rocky Head; I knew that. It was too deep and the banks were too steep to be Rocky Head. And the water was muddy red, even to the sc.u.m and bubbles swirling around at the edges.

I saw a foot log a few feet down the bank. Maybe I could try to cross over on it. No. I couldn't! I didn't like foot logs-especially not that one. It was sagging down in the middle, and it wasn't very wide. The log was plain rotten-looking in places where the bark was peeling off.

Before I could decide what to do, I heard Mister Ward again.

When I turned around, there he was, right behind me, grabbing at my cloak!

I jumped for the foot log and started crawling across, clinging on with hands and feet. At first it was all right. Then the log began to sway and swing. It was wet, slick. Halfway across, I got to a bowed-up place where I had to get down astraddle of the log and slide myself along. I almost slipped off!

I didn't dare look down at the gus.h.i.+ng water and rocks or behind me to see how close Mister Ward was. I knew he was already on the log, for I could feel it give with every step he took. I glanced back. He was inching his way along, walking sideways.

"You little idiot, stop! You're gonna fall and drown, sh.o.r.e as h.e.l.l!"

I couldn't stop! Not with him about to grab me! He was on his knees now, crawling, not three feet behind me!

"Young'un! For G.o.d's sake, come back! This d.a.m.n river's way over your head! Mine too!"

I was getting closer and closer to the other bank, almost close enough to jump. I felt the log beginning to sag! Crack!