The Saints of Swallow Hill(54)

Peewee put his hands on his hips and stared at the ground.

He said, “We done lost two hands as it is.” He looked around. “Won’t Crow here a second ago?”

Del said, “He was. He’s got a visitor.”

Peewee wrinkled his nose. “Woman?”

“Yeah.”

“Damn. Whenever she shows up, he gets even meaner, if you can believe it. It’s getting to be some tough times. Lost a couple hands, one’s sick, the other ’cause of that damn fool Crow. Now Ballard’s gone and Birdie’s been snake bit.”

Del hated to have to share more troubles, but it was only right to let Peewee in on Cobb.

He said, “I reckon now’s as good a time as any to tell you, but we got one more gone.”

Peewee’s shoulders drooped. “Who else?”

“Cobb. I’m thinking he’s done run off. Course, Crow went on and on about him not making his numbers. He might of got scared after Ballard died, thinking there’d be some changes with boss men. Who knows? Either way, he didn’t meet the work wagon this morning. I sent Georgie to his place once I got my men going to see if he was sick. Then I checked myself at dinner time. He won’t there, but he didn’t take none of his things. I don’t reckon he came with much, ’cept that truck of his and there it sits. Seems odd he didn’t take it.”

“Maybe not. He said it had radiator problems. Plus, if he took off in the middle of the night, he wouldn’t want to make a bunch a noise starting it up.”

Del said, “True. Still, I can’t hardly believe he’d leave it behind.”

“Well, if he owes Swallow Hill, I’m gonna have to have him hauled back here by the sheriff. I’ll have to put the word out so deputies can keep a lookout on the main roads.”

“What’ll happen if he’s caught?”

Peewee rubbed his head. “Anyone leaves owing money generally gets a few lashes.”

“You’d have him whipped?”

Peewee raised his shoulders. “Can’t be helped. He done wrong by leaving, he has to answer for it.”

“Couldn’t you take the truck as payment?”

“Company ain’t gonna like it.”

“What if he don’t owe?”

“That would make a difference. He’s a free man to come and go, then.”

Del said, “Let’s check the commissary.”

They headed over to the building. Del had always known this to be standard practice at most camps. Runaways got treated as criminals, and he hoped for Cobb’s sake his debt was free and clear. Cornelia was behind the counter, and so was Otis.

Peewee said, “Hey, you up to date in your ledger, Otis?”

“Always.”

“Great. What’s on Cobb’s account? What’s he owe?”

Otis said, “I ain’t even got to look. He don’t owe nothing. He don’t buy much, and when he does, he pays cash. Been paying that a way since he got here.”

Del relaxed, but this only puzzled him more. What would make the kid come to a camp and do this sort of work if he had money?

Otis, always nosy, said, “Why?”

Peewee said, “He took off. Must’ve decided life at Swallow Hill won’t to his liking.”

Cornelia looked troubled, and Del thought he saw a hint of sad too.

He said, “By the way, how about the others who work for me?”

Otis flipped the pages with irritation, like it irked him to have to provide Del the information, but he read through the list one by one, and all of them owed at least five dollars or more. By the time they got their pay for a week and bought what they needed for the next week, it might fluctuate a few cents here and there, but they’d always owe. It was a vicious cycle, one his pap had worked hard to avoid, but still had, at one point or another, been indebted to some camp.

Del said, “Thanks,” and he and Peewee made their way back outside. The sun was down, and Del was drained. It had been a hard first day.

Peewee said, “Mrs. Ballard and them kids left this morning. She’s going to her sister’s. The place is yours if you want it. Can’t say it’s completely varmint free, but it’s definitely a step up from what you’re in now.” Peewee clapped him on the shoulder. “Glad you decided on being one of the boss men. We need more like Ballard. He knew how to get along and didn’t get worked up over things. I asked Ballard once how he got his men to do as good as them what got beat regular-like. He said, ‘They’re willing to work. They have to eat and provide for their families, no different than any other man. They’s God’s creatures too.’ I ain’t ever forgot that.”

Del was encouraged and began to believe he could possibly count on Peewee as an ally.

Peewee went on. “It don’t surprise me, not with Ballard, not considering his background ’fore he come here.”

“What was that?”

Peewee said, “He was a preacher who liked his liquor a bit too much, ’til one of his young’uns drowned in a river. Lost a bit of his religion afterward. He come here needing work, another chance. I said fine, gave him that chance.”

Del wished Ballard had lived and that he’d got to know him better. He might’ve told him about what he’d experienced in the grain bin. Maybe he could’ve made some sense out of it.