She mumbled to herself, “Come on, remember what you been taught! Pay attention!”
The truck jolted forward and rolled along, cooperating under her clumsy adjustments, but a man with good legs could still outrun them. Rae Lynn didn’t know if Otis had good legs or not and when she dared to look again, he was closer, the angle of his head and his posture telling her he was trying to make them out. She saw the moment recognition struck, his mouth a gaping maw, before he started running for the vehicle. She managed to slip the gear from first into second and as they whizzed by, he grabbed at Cornelia. She squealed and leaned to the left against Rae Lynn, while Otis’s fingernails left long scratches along her forearm. He slapped his hand on the back end of the truck as they picked up speed.
He bellowed, “Cornelia! What the hell you doing!”
Rae Lynn dared to look over her shoulder, and he was still running. Meanwhile, Cornelia was bent forward, head down, hands braced on the dash.
She screamed, “Faster, faster, don’t let him catch us!”
Rae Lynn looked back again and saw not only Otis but another figure running right behind him. She thought it was Del Reese, but she wasn’t sure, and she had to drive. She adjusted the advance, increased her speed, while Cornelia, scared to death Otis had somehow hitched onto the back, couldn’t, wouldn’t dare look. The headlamps shone on the wiregrass, pines, and scrub brush as they sped away.
They rounded a bend, and she said, “Nellie. We’re going too fast for him. You can sit up. Can’t even see him no more.”
Cornelia lifted her head, appearing dazed as she stared out the windshield. Then, she turned in the seat and stared over her shoulder. When she faced forward, she smacked her hand on the dash.
She shouted, “We done it! We done it, Rae Lynn!”
Rae Lynn smiled at her. “We sure did.”
She pressed on the gas and they left Swallow Hill behind.
Chapter 29
Del
It dawned on him what Cornelia had signaled in that heartbeat-like double pulse of her four fingers as he was gathering his things to leave. He quickly threw some food together and left the woods rider’s house, not looking back. He was headed for the single men’s quarters when a faint voice came from out of nowhere, and he was forced to stop.
“Have you seen him?”
Crow’s wife. She stood in his way, holding a flickering lantern, waiting for him to speak. The light did nothing to soften her features.
He lied, of course. “Naw, I ain’t seen him.”
Impatient, he waited to see what else she’d say. She dropped the lantern so it lit their feet instead of their faces.
She said, “He does this. Disappears sometimes. He didn’t show up for supper.”
Del made helpful noises, for no other reason than to escape. “If I happen to see him, I’ll let him know you’re looking.”
“Ain’t hardly worth the trouble. If he ain’t here by morning, I’m leaving. I’m fed up.”
She appeared to be in despair, though he couldn’t really tell. She moved on, swinging the lantern left and right, searching, as if Crow might jump out of the weeds. Del went on his way, putting Crow and his wife out of his mind. He’d already concluded he had nothing to lose. He was going to tell Rae Lynn he was of a mind they had a future together, of some sort. If she rejected him, at least he’d tried. The rumble of an engine turning over caught his attention. Only one person in the camp had a truck. He reversed course and ran, and was just in time to see the truck take a sharp turn and Otis trying to grab—Cornelia? Rae Lynn looked over her shoulder right at him. Then they were gone, the truck fading around the bend. Del’s heart sank. Otis, fit to be tied, plowed a furious path, back and forth.
“Hey!” Otis yelled when he saw Del.
He stomped his way over to him and wildly waved his arms about as if Del couldn’t see him.
His voice carried across the night air. “See that? They done took off together! By God, I knew it! I knew she was bad news!”
Otis yelled at Del like it was his fault. He only wished he’d resolved Cornelia’s secret message sooner. He’d have stood a chance at catching the both of them. He played dumb with regard to Otis’s declarations.
“Who?”
Otis quivered in agitation and tossed his hands up.
“Who! Who you think? That damn Cobb woman and my wife, that’s who!”
“Are you sure?”
“Am I sure? What the hell! You damn dumb, blind, or both?”
Everything out of Otis’s mouth was a shout.
“My wife ain’t been right since she stepped foot in my house! She got to mouthing off with her around. The both of’em carrying on behind my back all the time! Acting like I was stupid!”
Del stood quiet while Otis panted, his distress so great he had to slow his tirade, or pass out.
He wagged his finger at Del and muttered, “I tell you what you ought to have done. You ought to have left her ass in that damn box. Should a let her rot right where she lay. She won’t worth saving. Damn dyke is what she is.”
Without really thinking about it, Del clenched his hand and popped Otis right in the mouth. Otis’s head snapped back, and his eyes flew open, stunned. The blow had been meaty, solid, and the movement so unlike Del, he’d stunned himself. Otis bent over, covering the lower half of his face with both hands.
He mumbled through his fingers, twisting his head so he could glare at Del. “Why’d you go and hit me!”
Del said, “’Cause you’re running your mouth about the woman who could be my future wife, that’s why.”
Otis eyes went a little buggy. “Your future wife! Good luck.”
Del had said it, and now he wanted it to be true. He pointed at Otis.
“Not another word about her.”
Otis spit, then said, “I only want my own wife back. What am I gonna do without her?”
His voice rose on the last word in a childlike wail.
Del said, “Maybe you should’ve thought of that while you were sticking cigarettes on her arm, shoving her around, yelling at her. Maybe she wouldn’t have left your sorry ass.”
Otis twisted his hands in distress.
“Who’s gonna cook for me? Wash my clothes? Keep my house?”
His lower lip had swelled and made him appear like he was pouting. It was fitting, considering. Del stared in the direction the truck had gone. She was gone. He had no idea where, no idea if he’d ever see her again. This hadn’t turned out like he wanted. Del gave Otis a disgusted look, grabbed his pack, and figured now was as good a time to leave as any. There was nothing left for him here. Otis was left standing outside, a solitary figure staring at his empty house like he had no idea what to do with it. Del didn’t speak to him again. He hurried along, passing the path to the box, and from a distance, he heard faint yelling, noticed a lantern bobbing, and stopped for a second. That had to be Crow hollering, and the glowing orb fluttering about like a firefly had to be his wife. How she’d found him, he didn’t know, didn’t care. Before too long, he was far enough he could no longer hear anything but his own footsteps.