“Now it’s my turn,” Zeke said, watching his feet as we walked down the muddy path to the barn. I glanced at him, frowning, and he kicked a pebble into the grass, following it with his gaze. “To thank you,” he elaborated. “For helping me with Joe, and for killing that pig…basically for saving our lives. I don’t think… I mean, if you hadn’t been there…”
I shrugged. “Don’t worry about it,” I said, embarrassed. “You would’ve done the same and so would Darren, and I think we both got really lucky that night. No one got hurt, so it’s over.”
“It almost got me,” Zeke muttered, almost to himself. “I felt its teeth catch my leg as it went by. Thank God it didn’t break the skin. If Jeb were to find out…” He trailed off.
“What?” I prodded.
He shook himself. “Nothing. Never mind. I would just…he would lecture my ear off, that’s all.” I watched him intently, but he wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks.” He shrugged. “And you’re welcome to tag along with me and Darren whenever you want.”
“Tag along?”
“You know what I mean.”
We had reached the barn, a faded gray building that smelled of straw and goat poop. A warm yellow glow came from inside, along with the murmurs of people and the bleating of livestock. Slipping through the large double doors, we found Jeb near the front, talking to Patricia, while the rest of the group had sprawled around them, sitting on bales or leaning against fence railings. Matthew sat in the corner, holding a bottle for the baby goat in his lap, while Caleb and Bethany looked on in delight.
“Thank you for your hospitality,” Jeb was saying as Zeke and I eased inside. “We appreciate you offering your home to us, but we don’t want to be a bother.”
“Oh, Jebbadiah, stop it,” Patricia said, overruling him. “It’s no bother at all. Y’all are welcome here, for as long as you need. We have enough food, and if you don’t mind sleeping in the barn, there’s more than enough space to go around. I must say, it’s a mite strange that y’all sleep during the day, but I’m not here to judge, no I’m not.” She cast her gaze over the rest of the group, smiling at Matthew, Caleb and the baby goat. “I know it’s too soon to decide,” she continued in an almost wistful voice, “but if ya’ll decide to stay on a more permanent basis, we can always extend the house. We done it before, we can do it again.”
“We cannot stay long,” Jeb said firmly. “And I do ask that our sleep cycles not be interrupted, but perhaps we can find other ways to repay your hospitality.”
“Just you prayin’ over our man Joe, that’s enough, preacher,” Patricia said, her face turning somber and grim. “And maybe, if you really wanted to help, you could spare a couple of your men to help us watch the wall at night, keep the fires going and keep an eye on the critters. Since ya’ll are night folk, anyway.”
“Yes.” Jebbadiah nodded and suddenly caught sight of Zeke and me, standing by the front doors, watching. “Yes, we can do that,” he continued and beckoned to Zeke, clapping him on the shoulder as he came up. “You’ve met my son,” he said with a trace of pride. “Ezekiel will be in charge of the night watches and anything else you need done.”
“It’ll be nice to have more people on the watch,” Patricia mused and gave Jeb a tight smile. “Very well, preacher, we accept your offer. I’ll have David and Larry show your boys the way we do things here at night.”
They nodded at each other, two rigid, no-nonsense leaders finding something they appreciated in each other. For a second, I had the absurd thought that they would make a pretty good, although terrifying, couple, and snickered out loud at the image.
Three pairs of eyes turned to me. “And this is Allison,” Jeb said blankly, with none of the pride he showed for Zeke. “She is the newest member of our little family, though Ezekiel tells me she’s quite dangerous with that sword. Apparently she took down the rampaging wild boar very nearly by herself.” The words were hollow, stiff. He might not be condemning me, but he sure wasn’t praising me, either.
So much for our little heart-to-heart by the river. I guess he still has to keep the cranky-bastard appearance going for the rest of the group.
“We’ve met,” Patricia said with a small approving smile. “Joe said he watched you two from the tree. Said you moved faster than anyone he’s ever seen.”
I shrugged, uneasy, but thankfully Zeke stepped in. “How is he?” he asked, a note of genuine concern in his voice. It still surprised me how worried he could be for a complete stranger.
Patricia’s face fell, growing dark. “Alive,” she murmured, and her voice dropped to nearly a whisper. “He’s in the Lord’s hands now.”