“Just the same. Don’t leave without telling someone where you are going and taking some protection with you.”
Oh God! My face is on fire.
Ethan pulls a handgun out of his coat pocket and drops it on the table. “I know better than to walk around without a gun.”
Guns. She was talking about a gun…not theotherkind of protection. I hope it isn’t obvious my mind went straight to the gutter. It didn’t occur to me to take a gun. Ethan is definitely more prepared for this than I am. And now that I think about it, even when the men chop wood, they’re armed. And I’ve noticed that Dad and Mr. Landry took turns staying up last night. When Teeny started screaming in her sleep, Dad was in our room, armed and dressed, before I was fully awake. It’s so quiet here, it’s hard to remember that we may be in danger.
Mrs. Landry gives Ethan some chores and scoots him out of the kitchen. I turn to the sink and realize all the dishes are clean and drying on the rack. Guilt swallows me up instantly.
“It’s okay. I knocked them out.”
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Landry. We didn’t want anyone to worry.”
She puts an arm around me and pulls me in close. “I’d be worried about you even if you were sitting right in front of me and I had a shotgun pointed at the door. I just hate that this is happening to you. And Ethan.” She moves a stray piece of hair out of my face. “I understand the need to spend some time alone. Just be smart about it, okay?”
I duck my head so she won’t see the tears forming in my eyes. It’s been so long since a mother figure has worried about me. Or hugged me so tight. Pearl’s done a good job filling in the holes, but she likes to come off gruff. I miss my mother.
By morning of day three, Agent Williams calls the satellite phone with some great news. They’ve found Daniel Sanders and he’s in custody. He warns us that we’ll be here a little longer since they are hoping to catch Thomas before we come home.
We’re so relieved by this news that another few days seems like no big deal.
Well, to everyone except Emma.
Mr. Landry and Dad both use the phone to check in back home. Dad asks for a little more time off of work and Mr. Landry talks to Will’s dad, who is his partner in the farm. Luckily for him, this is the slow time of year; crops won’t be planted for a few weeks so it’s not a bad time for him to be gone. Ethan, Emma, Teeny, and I will have a ridiculous amount of schoolwork to make up, but if it means we get to stay in Natchitoches, it will be worth it.
Ethan is wrestling with the clothes in the laundry room when I poke my head back in.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“Mom assigned me dirty clothes duty today.” He holds up one of Emma’s bras. “Sister or not, this is uncomfortable.”
I can’t help but laugh. “You want to do laundry or hang out with me?”
“Hmm…let me think….” He’s pulling me out of the laundry room before he even finishes. “You. Definitely want to be with you.” He leans in close and whispers, “I’ve got an idea that can get us out of our chores.”
We pass Mrs. Landry in the kitchen. Ethan says, “We’re going for a walk. I’ve got a gun and we won’t be long. I’m giving Anna another shooting lesson. Warn Dad and Mr. Boyd in case they hear us.”
She nods, and replies, “Don’t be too long. It’ll be dark soon.”
It’s close to dusk when we plunge through the thick brush into the woods. It’s hard to navigate with all the down trees and stumps, but each step we take away from the camp, the better I feel.
We get far enough from the camp to feel alone but not so far that I can’t find my way back. It’s quiet except for the few birds we spook as we crunch along the ground. Ethan finally stops, so I find a tree stump and sit down, pulling my knees up.
When Ethan drops down in front of me, he’s holding the same small gun I fired at the farm in one hand and several bullets in the other.
“Do you remember how to load this?”
I’m nervous and excited looking down at it. A group of birds takes off from the ground a few feet behind me, startling me, and I almost fall off the stump.
“Maybe you’re not ready for this again. I should have asked you first. We can go back to the camp.”
He gets up and I pull him back down. “Wait. I want to try it again. Just give me a minute.”
Ethan places the gun in my outstretched hand. I feel sweaty even though it’s cold outside. The gun is heavy and all I can think about is how loud and scary it is when fired.
We sit in silence for a few minutes. All of those awful images of Brandon and his dad threaten to return, but I control my breathing and force them away.
“Just sit there a minute. I’m going to find a stick or something we can use as a target.” He stands, and searches the ground.
