Georgie nodded.
Del said, “This here is what number forty-four looks like. Here. Take this paper with you. Go back into camp and go by the cooper’s shed. You know where that is?” Georgie took the piece of paper, nodded again, and Del continued. “Stay straight and keep going to the back end of camp. Know where I mean?”
Georgie said, “Yessuh.”
“The second well you come to, start looking for this number over the doors. Got it?”
“Yessuh.”
“Be quick as you can.”
Georgie took off, scarred legs pumping. Del watched until he disappeared around the curve in the path, small dust clouds puffing up under the pink soles of his churning feet. After Georgie was gone, Del realized he hadn’t thought to check if Cobb’s truck was still by the shed, although somebody was bound to have heard him start it up and seen him drive off with all the main buildings right there together. He’d see about that later. He got back up on Ruby and began his first day as a woods rider.
Del was busy making marks by call names when he felt a tap on his boot and looked down to see Georgie.
He smiled at him and said, “What’d you find out for me, Georgie?”
“Won’t nobody there, Mr. Boss Man.”
“You sure?”
“Yessuh. I banged on the door like you said. The missus who works in the store? She come by too.”
“What’d she say?”
“She say, ‘What you think you doing, boy!’”
“I said I’se looking Mr. Cobb. So she banged on the door herself, then she opened it. Said ain’t nobody there. Said he working. I didn’t say nothing else, only, yessum, and I run back quick, like you said.”
It was puzzling, but right now, he had to keep up with his men, and on his first day, he couldn’t afford to miss counts and make it look bad on himself, or all of them.
He said, “Thank you, Georgie. Here you go.”
Del reached into his pocket and gave him a piece of peppermint. Georgie’s eyes lit up as he took it. Del had the idea he’d never had a peppermint candy before.
Del said, “These men need a drink. Will you get them some water?”
“Yessuh!”
After Georgie started water rounds, Del got busier, as the calls came in fast and furious. It was going good by his calculations, and if it hadn’t been for Cobb’s disappearance nagging at him, he’d have felt like he was having one of his best days since coming here. Part of it had to do with the fact he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Crow. He’d been sure the man would come and run his mouth about something asinine, as usual. Dinner break came and Del’s workers, despite doing well all morning, were subdued. There was none of the usual carrying on and storytelling.
Del ate amongst them, and when he was done, he said, “Rest another thirty. We start again at one o’clock sharp.”
They stretched out on the ground or sat on old stumps, heads hanging, scratching at bites, swatting at insects, still quiet. He mounted Ruby and cantered toward Cobb’s shanty. It took him only minutes, and once he was there, he dismounted and went up onto the porch. It was possible Cobb had been in the privy out back when Cornelia and Georgie came by, so he banged on the door again and waited. All he heard was the shouting of children in another section of the camp. Del shoved the door open and stood on the threshold. A small green lizard sitting on the windowsill, its throat billowing into a quick red bubble before collapsing, pegged him with tiny golden eyes, then disappeared into a crevice.
Inside, the first thing he noticed was a clean shirt hanging on the nail near the bed. His gaze fell to the mattress and he gaped for a split second. He went closer and squatted down. Why, look at them fancy sheets. Cobb’s mother must have sewn them decorations. They had a woman’s touch, edged in yellow and blue, like his own mother used to stitch. Damn. Sheets like this were much too nice for the likes of this place. Cobb sure did have him some finer things in life. Del stood and glanced around the room. Maybe he had left, and only taken what mattered. What money he still had, his pistol, the truck. Didn’t need much else. Either way, Del needed to get back to his work hands. He felt somewhat annoyed by the kid leaving without a word, while also realizing he was pretty young, still wet behind the ears. He’d done good to stay long as he had, he reckoned. Maybe Ballard’s death scared him off. Del went out and shut the door tight. By the time he made it back to the men, they were stirring around, ready to begin. Everyone made their numbers that morning, some even going over a bit. This was good, considering it was going to be a blistering afternoon.
“All right, we got us a long, hot afternoon. Sooner we make the numbers, the sooner we quit.”
Preacher said, “We always work ’til dark, no matter if counts is done early.”
Del said, “It ain’t like that now. You do what you s’posed to, and we quit.”
The men glanced at one another before spreading out to begin again, and the afternoon was quickly underway. Still, they didn’t sing, and when he rode among them, they didn’t stop, they only worked harder as if avoiding conversation, other than hopeful talk of rain or catching a little breeze. It grew as hot as it had ever been, not a breath of air to be spared. He had Georgie bringing water often, and gave the boy a peppermint each time he did. The day wore on, and the air grew thicker, not only from smoke from the fires, but humidity. The sun baked them from overhead, and he felt as if they all might suffocate. He gave poor Ruby a break when he saw her coat lathered white with salt. He took his shotgun and left her to idle under the shade of the trees, grazing on small patches of grass. He had Georgie fill one of the water pails full and give it to her. She was still slurping as he walked away, following his workers. Of all the days he’d been here, this one beat all, an out-and-out scorcher.
It was midafternoon when someone went to yelling, a fearsome howling and hollering like nothing he’d heard before. It grew louder, words coming out like gibberish, before it stopped as abrupt as it had begun.
Del called out, “Who’s in trouble? What’s going on?”
Preacher was nearby, and said, “Could a been Birdie. I ain’t sure, though.”
Del said, “Let’s go see.”
They went deeper into the woods, and after going a hundred yards or so, sure enough there the worker stood, his back to them. He gave them a quick glance over his shoulder and then immediately faced forward again, to whatever had drawn his attention.
Del said, “Hey, man. What is it?”
Birdie didn’t answer, didn’t move again, except to shake his head.
Preacher said, “Boss man here, he talking to you.”
Birdie’s shoulders rose, and they heard him mumbling, “Can’t move. It gone get me. Red’n yeller, hurt a feller.”
Preacher said, “Got to be a coral snake.”
He and Del walked over to Birdie, but Birdie yelled at them, “It right there!”
Preacher shouted, “Whoa, lookout now! Damn! Damn!”
The snake, its telltale bright bands of color gleaming in the wiregrass inches from Birdie’s bare foot, felt threatened with three men surrounding it. Without warning, it struck and attached its mouth to the top of Birdie’s foot. Birdie screamed, all movement now, shaking his leg and swiping uselessly at the snake stuck to him like a burr.
Birdie cried out, “Help me, Jesus . . . !”
Del slung his shotgun off his shoulder.
Preacher said, “He still on’em! How you gonna shoot?”
Del said, “I got to do something!”