"I'm comin' out now." "I'm tired, I want something different." "I just want to have a conversation." "I just want to talk about it." "Shit." "What the shit, man?" "Suck it!" "Drive." "How old is she?" "A junior." "She's got nice titties." "You talk to her?" "No." "You're gonna have to talk to her." "I know." "Remind me when we get back to my house." "I think Galen's got a book on that." "Shit." "Your dad would kill us if he knew we went out there." "I'm not worried about my dad killing' us." "We need to move if we're gonna make it back." "Set your watch, we need a good 15 minutes." "There it is!" "Galen says it's been here awhile." "He thinks the last flood did it." "Oh, hold it." "Look." "Little shits." "There it is." "Yeah." "There it is." "Came down from up there." "Motor's gone." "Who else knows about this?" "Just me and Galen." "What's he think?" "He don't care about it." "Good." "Because this boat's ours." "This is perfect." "Holy shit." "Dude." "Son of a bitch!" "Those are awesome." "Man." "Neck." "Dude, look at that beave, you gotta see this." " Neck." " What?" "Someone's here." "What?" "Someone's living here." "Shit." "We gotta go." "Can't be late." " What are you doing?" " I saw that same boot print up in the tree." "It's got a cross in the heel." "Somebody's been in our boat." "Shit." "Let's go!" "We gotta go if you wanna make it back." "Takes twice as long goin' upriver." "Hold on." "Up there, they stop." "Where the hell'd he go?" "I don't know." "Shit, you know that guy?" "I've never seen him before." "Shit." "What'd you say, boy?" "It's a hell of a thing, ain't it?" "What's that?" "Boat in a tree." "Hell of a thing." "You talkin' about our boat?" "Talkin' about my boat." "We found it." "Yeah, you found it with me livin' in it." "Possession is nine-tenths of the law." "You got crosses in your heels." "Nails." "Shaped like crosses." "What for?" "Ward off evil spirits." "Bought 'em from a man I called an Indian, but he was a Mexican," "said they were seven-league boots worn by the seventh son of the seventh son." "Told me they'd turn me into a werewolf, that's a lie." "I don't know nothin' about that." "They just good luck boots." "As you can see, they ain't working too well so far." "What's your name?" "I'm Neckbone, he's Ellis." "And, mister, I know you're not the owner of that boat, not for nine-tenths of nothin'." "Neckbone..." "That's a heck of a good handle, son." "Where y'all from?" "What do you care where we're from?" "DeWitt." "Arkansas boys." "Y'all had me worried for a second." "We supposed to know you?" "I doubt it." "I grew up around here, but I've been gone awhile." "Where at around here?" "Different places." "Spent a lot of time back up near the White." "You know Shelly's Oxbow?" "Ellis." "Yeah, I know it." "An old man named Tom Blankenship used to live up in there." "He still does." "His boat's across from mine." "Well, ain't that somethin'?" "Now, I like you two boys." "You remind me of me." "Seein' as how you two is from Arkansas, and we know some of the same people and we grew up in some of the same places," "I reckon we can make a deal for somethin'." "A deal for what?" "Food." "Food for a boat." "He's a bum, Ellis." "Come on." "Why don't you go get your own food?" "Well, I would if I could." "See, I told somebody I'd meet 'em here." "So..." "I'm stuck for now and what I've got is runnin' low." "He's a bum, Ellis, come on." "I ain't no bum." "I got money, boy." "You can call me a hobo, 'cause a hobo will work for his living, and you can call me homeless 'cause..." "Well, that's true for now, but you call me a bum again," "I'm gonna teach you somethin' about respect your daddy never did." "When they show up, you'll leave?" "Yup." "And when you leave, that boat's ours?" "That's right." "I'm just in a tight spot." "Could use a little help." "We gotta go." "You get his name?" "No." "Sorry." "Where ya been?" "Me and Neck got caught up helping' Galen." "You're supposed to be helpin' me." "I had to load this myself." "I know." "I'm sorry." "Get on in the back, can't be later than we are." "Supposed to be 10." "It's 10, you do your share." "I loaded this morning, makes it five." "Can you drop me at Neck's?" "Hadn't you seen enough of him today?" "Said he had somethin' for me." "You see any more of them Ding Dongs over there?" "What did Mama want to talk to you about?" "What?" "This morning?" "What did she want to talk to you about?" "You spy on me in my own house?" "I wasn't spying', I just heard y'all." "That's your mother's business." "I came for that book." "Oh, yeah." "Gotta give it a minute." "Hear that music?" "Yeah?" "That means he's doin' it." "That's his doin' it song." "You know who it is?" "Whoever's drivin' that Pontiac." "You tell Galen about this morning?" "Nah." "You tell anybody?" "That guy's crazy." "I don't know." "I think he just needed a little help." "He can swim his ass off that island and get some." "I think I'm gonna go back out there, give him some food." "Why?" "You're Neckbone, right?" "Yeah." "Word of advice." "Don't grow up to be like your shit heel uncle." "Hey." "You hear me?" "You treat a woman like a princess, got it?" "Yeah." "Come on, baby!" "I'm a goddamn princess!" "That's uncalled for." "Hey, a lot of people are comfortable with that kind of thing in the bedroom." "Some people aren't." "We know that about you now, okay?" "What do you think I am?" "Pearls." "Galen finds 'em in the mussel shells." "Come on, let's get that book." " You weren't having' any fun?" " No!" " No fun at all?" " No!" "Please don't go." "I don't want you goin' back out there by yourself." "That river's scary enough with two people." "I don't trust that guy." "Here it is." "Galen said that really turned things around for him." "Thanks." "Watch out for that dog." "You really goin' back out there?" "Yeah." "I think it's the right thing to do." "All right." "I'll be over in the mornin' then." "Hey, that's a good book." "Be sure you do the worksheets in back." "Let's get some dinner, Neck." "Hey, I'll call before I come." "All right." "You okay, Mama?" "Yes." "Are you hungry?" "You want me to fix you something?" "I'm all right." "Well, then, I'm going to turn in." "Hey, Dad." "What do you know about Tom Blankenship?" "What?" "Mr. Blankenship, what do you know about him?" "Why?" "I don't know." "He just looks lonely over there all by himself." "Some people move to this river to work on it, and some people move here to be left alone." "I want us to try and sit down for dinner tonight, okay?" "Ellis?" "Be home by 7:00." "Yes, ma'am." "Where do you think he's at?" "Let's try the boat." "Looks like he made camp." "You think he's up there?" "What are you doin'?" "I try to never sleep in the same spot twice." " What you got there?" " Brought you some food." "Here, take it." "I owe you boys." "I was gonna try and run a trotline this afternoon." "See where that got me." "Green beans never tasted so good." "Why you have that pistol?" "Protection." "Y'all needn't be afraid of me." "I've got two ways to protect myself out here, this shirt and this pistol." "There are fierce powers at work in the world, boys." "Good, evil, poor luck, best luck." "As men, we've got to take advantage where we can." "Y'all comin'?" "So who's this guy you're waiting on?" "I'm not waitin' on no guy." "I'm waitin' on my girlfriend." " Juniper." " Is she hot?" "She's beautiful." "Bullshit!" "Prettiest girl I've ever seen, hands down." "Blonde hair, long legs." "I tell you, she's like a dream you don't want to wake up from." "She's got these birds tattooed on her hands here." "Nightingales." "Good luck birds." "That a good luck snake?" "No, it is not." "I hate snakes." "That's because God put 'em here for us to fear." "We knew to be afraid of snakes long before we ever even got into this world." "The Cherokee would wrap their pregnant women's bellies in snake skin." "Induce labor, scare the child out." "Put that around your bed at night." "Snake won't cross a braided rope." "Thanks." "So what's that tattoo for then?" "A reminder." "Don't get bit." "I was 10, swimming' about a mile up from here, me and Juniper." "Son of a bitch swam up on me, bit me right here up under the armpit." "Juniper got me off to the clinic." "Doctor said I should have been dead in 20 minutes." "Took us over an hour just to get to town." "So what'd they do for it?" "Gave me the anti-venom." "Cottonmouth." "See here?" "Thing with anti-venom is, they can only give it to you once." "Made of horse blood." "Body would reject it a second time." "So the cure becomes more dangerous than the poison." "What happens if you get bit again?" "I die or just sweat it out." "We gotta go help Neck's uncle." "All right." "You never said your name." "Mud." "You can call me Mud." "Here, Mud." "I think you need this worse than I do." "I'll be all right." "You start dating', I bet her dad'll give you a free pickup." "I don't care about that." "What the hell are you doing?" "Where you goin'?" "Stop it!" "Stop it!" "God!" "Hey." "Holy shit, Pryor, get off your ass!" "You only got what you deserve!" "That's right, go home, Pryor!" "Do I know you?" "I'm Ellis, that's Neck." "We went to junior high with you before you went to high school." "How old are you?" "Fourteen." "You know you just punched a senior." "So?" "I'm May Pearl." "I know." "What else do you know?" "Nothing." "Son of a bitch." "Ellis." "Ellis!" "Look." "You ever seen that girl before?" "No." "Did you see her hands?" "Hey, girl!" "Hey!" "Hey, girl, where you goin'?" "That ain't even cool." "Hello?" "Oh, sorry." "We think we know a guy that might know that girl over there." "May Pearl, let's go!" "Okay." "Okay, I guess I'll see you." "If you can find my number, you should give me a call." "I can find it." "Where'd she go?" "Into the Piggly Wiggly." "She came from the motel." "Home for dinner?" "What you hidin' for?" "I ain't hiding'." "Come over here." "You know I love you?" "Yes, sir." "I know." "I work you hard, 'cause life is work." "You know that?" "Yes, sir." "Your mom is talkin' about movin' into town." "What's that mean?" "She seems set on it, wants to separate." "May even ask for a divorce." "What's that mean for me?" "It means enjoy this river, son." "Enjoy it while you live on it." "'Cause this way of life isn't long for this world." "River Authority's about made certain of that." "But you and me, we can still live out here, right?" "R.A. can't take your boat." "Not while you're still livin' in it." "This houseboat's in your mother's name." "Her daddy gave it to her, not to me." "She wants to leave it." "River Authority's got every right to come in here and tear this place apart board by board." "That ain't right." "You work outta here." "We got the ice machine." "The traps." "What are we supposed to do?" "Like I said, that's your mother's business." "I ain't no townie." "I ain't livin' like that." "I've let you down, son." "Man is supposed to be in charge of his own affairs, but I haven't worked it like that." "But y'all are married." "Y'all are supposed to love each other." "I don't know about that anymore." "Hey, Ellis." "You're late." "Ellis?" "Damn, boy, what you doin' out here?" "I got you some Beanie Weenie." "I appreciate that." "But I didn't expect you out here at night." "Look at that." "Boy, you really know how to do somebody right." "I wasn't gonna say nothin', but it's pretty tough to make a meal out of pumpkin pie filling'." "That's all my mom had." "I ain't complaining'." "Can I get one of those?" "They're yours to begin with." "That's good, right?" "You been out here too long." "The girl you're waitin' on, she's your girlfriend?" "Juniper." "Yeah." "How'd you meet her?" "We grew up together." "You love her?" "I do." "First time I saw her was on this river, just up from here." "She saved my life." "From the snake bite." "I was younger than you are right now." "When I came to in the hospital and she was there, it was like the whole world just split wide open and come back together new." "I knew from then on I'd do anything for her." "Why aren't y'all married then?" "I've asked." "Several times." "Marriage just don't work for some people." "My dad says my parents might be getting a divorce." "I'm sorry to hear that." "They say if it happens, and my mom moves us off the river, the government can come take our boat." "Who says that?" "Everybody." "They passed a law." "I saw Juniper today." "What?" "She had the birds tattooed on her hands." "Just like you said." "You're right." "She's pretty." "Where'd you see her?" "At the Piggly Wiggly." "I think she's staying at a motel nearby there." "That's good news." "That's real good news." "She know you're out here?" "No." "No, we..." "We said we'd meet somewhere else, a couple days from now." "You wanna go tonight?" "I can take you up river." "Tomorrow." "I'll go tomorrow." "You want me to come and get you?" "No, I can manage." "Hell, I made it out here, didn't I?" "It's a hell of a thing, ain't it?" "It's a hell of a thing." "Time to get up." "It's too early." "I'm going to Wal-Mart and I need you to come with me." "Mom." "Come on." "Ellis, I know what your father told you last night." "That's..." "That's not what I wanted." "I wanted to sit you down and talk about it." "What do you want to talk about?" "You want to leave and that means they can tear up our house." "Well, I spent my whole life on that boat." "I don't think it's too much to ask..." "Oh, no." "I hope no one's hurt." "I'm just sayin' there are two sides to this." "You know, I haven't made up my mind yet, because I wanted you to be involved with my decision." "But I need a change, Ellis." "I deserve one." "I think they're searching people." "How you doin' today, ma'am?" "I'm all right, how are you?" "I'm doin' just fine." "Have you seen or picked up any hitchhikers today?" "No, sir." "Okay, could you open the back for me, please?" " It's open." " Okay." "Ma'am, have you seen this man?" "No, sir." "Son, have you?" "No." "Okay, well, there's been reports that he's in the area." "So if you see him, just call 9-1-1 for us, okay?" " Okay." " What'd he do?" "What'd he do?" "Move along, please." "Neck, Neck, pick up!" "I knew it!" "I told you that crazy son of a bitch was trouble." "Did you tell him where he is?" "No, that's why I called you." "He needs to know people are looking for him." "You think he doesn't know that already?" "Jesus, Ellis." "Why do you even think he's on that island?" "Ellis, I'm serious." "We don't know who this guy is." "He loves her, Neck." "He told me." "I don't give a shit who he loves." "He's not dangerous." "It sounds like a shitload of state troopers thinks different." "No tellin' where the hell he's been sleepin'." "He might be gone already." "Shit." "Sorry, boys, but I'm going to have to go back on our deal for the boat." "I don't feel good about it, but I don't see any other way out of what I'm into." "So you know about the state troopers?" "What state troopers?" "The ones spreadin' your picture all over the place." "Stoppin' cars on the 165, searching for your ass." "No, I don't know about that." "But it don't surprise me, I got a lot of folks lookin' for me." "Why?" "I shot a man." "Killed him." "I'm sorry I didn't tell you boys sooner, but I was hopin' to be long gone before anything came of it." "Didn't want y'all involved." "Look, y'all been real good to me." "You're the only friends I got out here." "If troopers got 165 blocked, that means they got other roads blocked, too." "So I ain't goin' to get nowhere in a car." "I want to try getting this boat down." "See if we can get it in the water." "See, with a boat like this, I can make it to the Gulf in two days." "Heck, from there, I can get anywhere." "But I need a boat at least this big to make it on the open water." "It's got no title, no owner, nobody lookin' for it." "It's my best shot." "Who'd you kill?" "Just a bad piece of business." "Y'all don't need to hear about it." "I need to hear about it." "Juniper, she..." "She made a mistake." "Hooked up with this guy." "He was no good." "His name was..." "Hutchins." "His family owns a chain of restaurants down in Texas." "Where were you?" "I was around, but me and Juniper was on the outs." "She met him, he sold her on a pack of lies, he got her pregnant." "That's when he started showin' who he really was." "He dropped her down a flight of stairs after whooping' her half to death." "She lost the baby, he made it so..." "Doctors say she can't even have children no more." "There are things you can get away with in this world and there are things you can't." "I tracked him down, found him in a little motel outside of San Antonio, he was there" "with another woman." "That's..." "That's where it happened." "So I understand if you boys don't want to help me no more." "But I need this boat." "And I need to get it into the water, fast." "I made a list of things we're going to need." "What you think?" "You did it for her?" "To protect her?" "Yeah." "What you think?" "I think you want us to run around, sticking' our necks out, getting everything you need just so you can take our boat." "That's about it." "What do we get out of it?" "What you want?" "What about that pistol?" "Only two things I got out here worth anything." "This shirt." "And this pistol." "And I can't give you this shirt, 'cause I need it for protection." "But if you help me get this boat in the water, the pistol, it's yours." "What kind is it?" "Got to get this boat floating' first." "All right." "All right, y'all scrounge what you can off this list, but if we're gonna do this right, we're gonna need more help." "Can you fetch Tom for me?" "Tom Blankenship?" "Yeah, I was hopin' to let that old assassin sit this one out." "We're gonna need him to get things that y'all can't." "Can you find him?" "I know where he lives, but I've never talked to him." "Just tell him my name, he'll know." "Hey, boys." "Thanks." "Don't lose my pistol." "You coming?" "Nah, I'll watch the boat." "Why are you hunting' me?" "Are you deaf, boy?" "I said why are you hunting' me?" "I ain't hunting' you." "What's your business here?" "I come to find you." "I got a message for you." "You Senior's boy?" "Yes, sir." "What you got to say to me that he can't tell me himself?" "It ain't from him." "Mud sent me." "Mud?" "Yes, sir." "What you know about him?" "He told me to come find you." "Your daddy know about this?" "No, sir." "Mud needs your help." "Where is he?" "There he is." "You think that's his daddy?" "I don't know." "Sir." "Where is she?" "In town." "Got here yesterday." "What are you doing out here like this, Mud?" "I killed that last man she was with, Tom." "He had it comin', too." "You have been doggin' this girl your whole life." "She's run you halfway across the country and back." "And for what?" "For this!" "Be stuck out here on this island like this!" "Beggin'!" "A murderer now!" "A thief!" " I ain't no thief, Tom..." " No?" "What would you call it then?" "Not to mention dragging' these boys into this..." "Man, he's really giving it to him." "You got any idea what you're doin'?" "I'm right ashamed of you, Mud." "Don't expect any help from me, 'cause there's none to be given." "All right, I'm ready." "Where you goin'?" "Hey!" "God damn it." "You all right?" "Looks like we're on our own, Ellis." "I didn't want to have to ask you to be the one to do this, but I need to get this letter to Juniper." "Can you take it to her for me?" "Yeah." "All right, now listen up." "You got to be careful, all right?" "You can't just walk up and knock on her door." "You hear me?" "You gotta watch yourself." "I can handle it." "Get that to her." "All right." "All right." "Watch yourself, Ellis." "You Mud's daddy?" "Mud don't have no daddy." "No mama either, as far as I could tell." "He was livin' in the woods when I first met him." "Younger than you are now." "You boys need to watch yourselves now." "What Mud's into is somethin' you don't want to be involved in." "You best forget about him, you hear?" "Which one?" "Let's start at the top." "Work our way down." "All right." "What you want?" "We're sellin' fish." "Would you like to buy some?" "Fish?" "I don't want to buy no damn fish." "Keep lying' and I'll crack your nose open!" "Keep lying'!" "You hear me, trash?" "Where is that guy?" "Who are you?" "Who the hell are you?" "He send you?" "You know this man?" "Look at it!" "Do you know this man?" "Fish!" "Fish!" "We're just selling' fish!" "Fish..." "I know you know where he is." "And I swear to God," "I'll cut a hole through every one of you to find him." "We know you came here for him, and we know he's too stupid to leave here without you." "So whenever he sticks his head up out of whatever shithole he's hidin' in," "I'm gonna be there." "You tell him that." "You need to mind your business, boy." "You okay?" "Yeah." "Man, he popped your eye." "Let me see your face." "Oh, God, I'm so sorry." "Here, hold this on there." "Thank you." "I'll buy your fish, okay?" "How much do you want for the whole cooler?" "Mud sent us to give you this." "You know Mud?" "Yeah, we know him." "Says, "Hold tight."" "We know, we read it." "Well, do you know how long hold tight is?" "I think it's just a couple days." "He wants to get a boat for y'all." "God..." "Tell him I'll wait." "But I don't want y'all gettin' involved." "So you tell him what I said and let that be it." "I don't want you gettin' in any trouble." "We'll be all right." "Just keep your door locked." "We'll be in touch." "Wait." "What's your name?" "I'm Ellis, he's Neckbone." "Thank you, Ellis." "We gotta go." "Let's go, hard on." "Hello?" "Is May Pearl there?" "Hey, it's Ellis." "In the phone book." "Tomorrow?" "Yeah, I can meet you." "Okay." "Bye." "We got more, but no motor." "This will work for now." "Ellis, you get her my note?" "Yeah." "Where'd you get that shiner from?" "When we came up on Juniper's room, there was this guy in there, he was beatin' up on her." "Ellis rushed him." "Got smacked for it." "What'd he look like?" "I don't know, he was tall." "Looked like a cowboy." "Light hair slicked back?" "Yeah." "Thank you for looking after her." "His name's Carver, he's the brother of the man I killed." "If he's here, there's plenty more comin'." "More what?" "Bounty hunters." "Carver's rotten, but his old man, that's the one to be scared of." "He'll spend every dime he's got to make sure I'm dead." "If it was up to me," "I'd lay the whole family down, same as the other." "Ain't a decent man between them." "Now, look here." "Listen to me, if you see that old man, don't you go near him." "He's the triple six real deal scratch." "What's a scratch?" "It's the devil himself." "Let's unload the rest of this, get it up top." "Now, what are you waitin' for?" "Shut up." "All right, Ellis." "Can you climb that trunk," " choke this off that limb?" " Yeah." "Tie it in a bowline knot, you know it?" "I'm not stupid." "Neck, I need you to start cuttin' line in 15 two-foot pieces." "Count two foot as long as your arm." "Be careful." "What's so special about that shirt you'd lose your pistol for it?" "It's got a wolf's eye sewn into the sleeve." "More protection than a bullet ever gave." "Tom swears by it." "Tom said he wasn't your daddy." "He's the closest thing to a father I've ever had." "I never met my parents." "It's hard, not knowin' those you came from." "My Uncle Galen tells me things about 'em." "He's the one that takes care of me." "Yeah." "Tom did that for me." "What'd you mean when you called Tom an assassin?" "Tom's had lives you'd never even know about." "Grew up, up North." "Went to Yale." "For a long time, he was a paid assassin for the CIA." "Lived in Cuba in '63." "Shoot, he's killed more people than you all probably ever met." "Neck, how's that line comin'?" "If you're gonna do it, do it!" "This shit's crazy." "One down." "Come on." "Wanna sit down?" "Hey, you must really like to fight." "Not really." "You got a lot of friends." "They're all right." "I don't know all of them." "I bet you're pretty popular." "Why do you say that?" "Because you're nice to people." "How do you know that?" "You're nice to me." "But I like you." "I got you something." "A bracelet?" "Yeah." "Neckbone's uncle finds them in the river and collects the pearls, and I thought with your name and everything..." "Thank you." "You wanna be my girlfriend?" "You've been seeing Mud?" "No." "You don't have to lie to me, boy." "I've seen you running around, taking things." "He all right?" "He's okay." "He called you an assassin." "How long have you known Mud?" "A few days." "That's long enough to know he's full of shit." "So, it's not true?" "I was a sharpshooter for awhile in the Marines." "In Mud's world, that's an assassin." "But it's not exactly true, right?" "Yeah, I guess." "Assassin." "You think he's a badass, don't you?" "I don't know." "You know why he's stuck off on that island?" "Yeah." "He shot somebody." "You know why he shot that man?" "'Cause he hurt Juniper?" "Right." "The real reason Mud's in all the trouble he's got is because of her." "He's been in love with that girl since he was your age." "Trouble is she don't care about nobody but herself." "I've told him as much." "She'd bed down with the meanest snake she could find, and then when things got bad, she'd go runnin' back to Mud." "He'd take her back." "Then he'd go find whatever unlucky son of a bitch laid a hand on her and beat him so bad he'd know never to touch her again." "Only this time, I guess he figured beating' wasn't good enough, he had to go shoot that feller." "I'm not for sure, but I'd put money on it that she knew he'd do it." "She might even put him up to it." "Either way, those two are set for failure." "The only chance he's got is to cut her loose." "That'll never happen." "But I tell you what, Mud's no badass." "He's runnin' scared right now..." "I've got to go." "You're wrong about Juniper." "They love each other and they're going to make it." "If you weren't such a worn out old man, you'd know it was true." "What do you say, Ellis?" "I got more stuff." "Yeah?" "Did you find a motor?" "Not yet." "What's that?" "Bonfire's my all-purpose cure all for bad luck." "I don't know where this boat's been or what kind of person the owner was before me." "For all I know, there could be some serious bad business left on it." "We got too much riding' on this thing to leave to chance." "Tom called me over to his place this morning." "What did he say?" "He was runnin' down Juniper." "Told him he was a worn out old man." "And he couldn't know how much you love her." "You don't know his story." "I don't care." "You should." "Tom loved a woman more than most men can in two lifetimes." "They had a good life started together." "She was pregnant with a little boy, birth got the best of them." "Tom's been alone ever since." "Lone wolf." "Thanks for the tin." "This shit never gets easy." "That's a good haul." "I've had worse." "You doin' all right?" "Yeah." "Do you need to tell me anything?" "Tell you what?" "I know I'm just your uncle, not a parent." "But you can tell me things if you need to." "I can tell you this helmet smells like my duck butter." "Where'd you get that black eye?" "A kid in town." "He got his, too." "What was y'all fighting' for?" "About this girl." "What girl?" "My girlfriend." "You got a girlfriend?" "Yes, sir." "When did that happen?" "Other day." "What's her name?" "May Pearl." "May Pearl." "Two first names, just like your mother." "Have you seen your mother today?" "No." "You're not talkin' to me now?" "I'm talkin'." "I'm talkin' to both of you." "All y'all want to do is talk." "That's your mother now." "She'd rather tongue lash a problem than step up and handle it." "You'll see one day." "Women are tough, boy." "They set you up for things." "You can't trust love, Ellis." "If you're not careful, it'll up and run out on you." "Daddy, this is Miller." "He's one of ours." "Appreciate your help." "Yes, sir." "We'll be in, in a minute." "Catch me up." "We're working in shifts." "Got two outside her motel." "The others are either out searchin' or sleeping' here." "I met the county sheriff, but he wasn't much help." "Said they handle their own business." "But I got two of his people on payroll and a person inside at the state police." "Ellis, let's go, boy." "Come on." "Okay." "Let's meet the men." "Yes, sir." "Shit." "Get up." "Y'all pay attention." "This is my father, King." "He runs the show." "Men." "All right, everybody up." "Gather around." "Now form a circle." "Everybody, take a knee." "Want you to join hands." "We're gonna pray for the death of the man who killed my son." "Everybody, bow your heads." "You touch her titty?" "A little." "That's great, man." "Thanks." "We could take it apart, bring it out piece by piece." "It's welded, we'd just tear it up." "What if we float it out?" "With what?" "Come on." "Oh, Jesus!" "What do you think?" "That's great, Galen." "Come here, Ellis." "See that ceiling fan up there?" "I found it in the river." "Works great." "Best ceiling fan I've ever owned." "This river brings a lot of trash down it." "Some of that trash is worth a lot of money." "Some of it's not." "You got to know what's worth keepin' and what's worth letting' go." "You know the difference?" "I think so." "Neck looks up to you." "Don't get my nephew into anything you can't get him out of." "Okay?" "Help Me, Rhonda's just about a guy needin' to get a piece to get over a girl that put one over on him." "So, you get your heart broke?" "Don't walk around with a shit look on your face." "Get back in there, get your tip wet." "You hear me?" " You know what I'm sayin'." " Let's go." "Want to hang out?" "Allen's comin' over, we're going to pump it up." "No." "We got stuff to do." "Whatever." "What were y'all talking about?" "I don't know." "King!" "That's what they call him." "Y'all didn't go near him, did ya?" "No." "Good." "How we lookin' on that motor?" "There's one in the scrap yard that might work." "We're gonna need one that runs." " I can get it runnin'." "Tell him, Ellis." " Let's pull this." "It's true, he built his own dirt bike." "Little more." "Neck, take a shot at it." "I don't know, that motor's worth somethin'." "It's not like all the rest of that junk." "It's been there for months." "Nobody will even know it's gone." "Ellis." "We need a motor." "Winds out of the west at 22 miles per hour..." "Hello?" "Juniper?" "Ellis." "Hey, it's me." "Thank God." "I'm goin' crazy in this room." "Is Mud okay?" "Yeah, it's time to take you out to him." "Now?" "Tomorrow." "Tomorrow, we'll come get you." "He's got a plan for y'all to get away." "Be ready tomorrow at 5:00." "Neckbone'll be waitin' at the side of the motel with a dirt bike." "Wait, just..." "Just wait a minute." "I don't know about all that." "Where does he think we're gonna go?" "What are we even gonna do?" "This is Mud, this is exactly what he does." "It's okay." "It's a good plan." "Just be ready." "Why are you doing this?" "What do you mean?" "Why are you helping us?" "Because y'all love each other." "I'll see you tomorrow." "Wait." " How'd it go?" " We're good." "Give me a quarter." "May Pearl!" "May Pearl!" "It's all right, man, she's with her family." "Come on, I want to get that motor before dark." "Hey." "Y'all remember me, don't ya?" "Sorry about that." "You caught me at a real bad time." "Hold on a second." "Just a sec." "I don't want you to get the wrong idea." "Y'all were just doin' a job and I got in the way." "What do you say I buy a whole batch of fish y'all were sellin'?" "Forty cover it?" "That'll about do it." "We don't want your money." "Hold on." "Hold on." "Y'all get around, don't you?" "Bet ya know every hole and ditch in this town." "You haven't come across that man whose picture I showed you?" "Have you?" "Sure about that?" "Take a look with your good eye." "I'm sure." "What about that girl from the motel?" "The pretty one." "Talk to her some more?" "There's a number on there." "Let me know if you do." "This is it." "This is it." "All right, it's loose." "Shit's heavy." "Shit!" "Was she there?" "No." "Come on." "Excuse me, sir." "What?" "We're lookin' for the girl in room 210." "You seen her?" "Yeah, I've seen her." "You seen her today?" "Yeah, she came down here lookin' for a bar nearby." "Sent her up to that place off 61." "Just leave it there, Mud's going to have to help us with it." "What are you going to tell him?" "I'll just tell him the truth." "Hey, what you say there, Ellis?" "Tom left this for you." "Where's Juniper?" "Ellis, what happened?" "Is she okay?" "Was it Carver?" "It wasn't Carver." "What's goin' on, Ellis?" "She was supposed to meet us on the side of the motel." "She never showed up." "We went around looking for her." "Motel clerk said she went out to a bar on 61." "We tracked her down." "She was there with another guy." "They were together." "She must've thought Carver was onto her." "She knew the plan, Mud." "She just didn't show up." "What was she doin' with that guy?" "What was she doin' with that guy, Ellis?" "They were playing pool." "And they were drinkin'." "And laughing'." "He was close up on her." "He kissed her neck." "So that's how it is?" "We got that motor." "What do you want us to do?" "Just go home, Ellis." "Hello?" "Is May Pearl there?" "This is Ellis." "I called yesterday, you didn't give her my messages?" "I said it's Ellis." "I'm her boyfriend." " Oh, she's asleep..." " Mary Lee!" "Mary Lee!" "What the hell have you been doin'?" "What have you been doin'?" " Senior, damn it!" "Damn it!" "Stop it!" " You tell her what you've been doin'." " I don't know what you're sayin'." " Take your hands off him, Senior!" "J.J. Crawford said a boat motor went missing' from his stockyard!" "He said his daughter saw this one and his friend hauling' it off!" "Now, you tell me, right now, did you steal that motor?" "We didn't steal it." "You lie to me again." "We thought it was junk." "We didn't think it was worth anything." "Ellis?" "You tellin' me I raised a thief?" "I'm not a thief." "You take property that's not yours, property that belongs to another man." "That junk was his livelihood." " I'm ashamed of you!" " Senior..." "Shut your mouth." "You think you can take things and not have him see it?" "Neither one of you's got any respect for a man's livelihood!" "A life that puts clothes on your back and food in your stomach!" "Don't you blame this on me." "One doesn't have a thing to do with the other and you know it." "You don't tell me what I know." "If you can steal a man's life out from under him and think he won't take a lesson from that, then you're dumber than you look." " Stop it, Dad!" " And she's raisin' you a snake, just like herself." "And you can curl up beside her before I give a goddamn!" "But you just remember this, boy." "You just remember, when they come in here and they tear this place apart board by board!" "You hear me?" "You are a man who's never had the strength to support his own life." "Ellis." "You'll return that motor from where you found it, and you'll apologize in person to the man you took it from." "I won't hear about anything like this again." "I can't take that motor back." "But I can pay him for it." "I'll give him what he wants." "I don't care what you do, Ellis." "What the hell's all this?" "It's a bonfire." "I guess he didn't care about bein' seen." "He had something else on his mind." "What you all hiding' for?" "Found your shirt." "You can keep it." "I don't need it no more." "Saw what's left of your bonfire." "Somebody could have seen you." "I guess." "Do some drinkin' last night?" "I did a lot of drinkin' last night." "Neck, I'm gonna need you to stay here and get this motor runnin'." "Ellis, I need you to do somethin' else for me." "I need you to get that to Juniper." "Okay, Mud." "Neck, let's go." "You still takin' Juniper?" "Neck, fetch me that socket wrench." "You be all right?" "Yeah." "How about you?" "He'll be okay." "Can I borrow your bike?" "Yeah." "Don't tump it." "I was wonderin' when I'd see you." "Sorry about last night." "I'm supposed to give this to you." "What?" "Okay." "Did you read it?" "No." "I gotta go." "Ellis." "I said I was sorry." "All you had to do was be there." "I couldn't." "Then Why'd you even come here?" "I came here to leave with him." "I did." "You know you don't know him, right?" "I know he'd do anything for you." "Is that what you think?" "Mud's a born liar." "That's why people like him, he makes them feel good about themselves." "I do love him." "I just can't spend the rest of my life runnin' away with him." "Tell him I understand." "What's it say?" "Says, "It's over."" "Bye, Ellis." "Did you get my phone calls?" " What?" " I've been tryin' to call you." " Who's this guy?" " Get your head out of my car, kid." " Ellis!" " I called you twice!" "Stop it, Kyle!" "Stop it!" "Kyle!" "Stop it, Kyle!" "God!" "What the hell you doin' here, Ellis?" "What?" "You can't just run up and punch people I'm with." "I'm sorry, I just wanted to know why you hadn't called me back." "Why would I call you back, Ellis?" "Because you're my girlfriend." "I'm not your girlfriend." "We've been on one date." "One." "Yeah, but..." "But what?" "What'd you expect, Ellis?" "I love you." "You're 14." "I don't know." "He's just this kid." "Come on, let's..." "Try it now." "Nothin'." "Son of a bitch." "What she say?" "You're a liar!" "Makin' two kids run around, doin' all the work because you're too scared to do it yourself!" "Makin' me tell her it's over because you're too scared!" "You said you loved her and you lied!" "You gave up on her, and she gave up on you!" "Just like everybody else!" "I trusted you!" "Bonfires and crosses and wolf's eye..." "Bullshit!" "Now, come on, Ellis." "Every single thing you told me was a lie!" "You never cared about her, and you never cared about us!" "Not enough to matter!" "You used us." "You made me a thief!" "Let me talk to him." "Ellis!" "Ellis, come on!" "Ellis, wait a minute." "Ellis!" "Shit." "Mud!" "Ellis!" "He fell in the creek!" "He fell into the snakes!" "Mud, please!" "Get the motor started, Neck!" "Is he okay?" "Is he bit?" "Shit." "What time is it?" "What time is it?" "4:18!" "Yell it out every 10 minutes." "Okay." "Is he going to be okay?" "Got to get him to the clinic." "Are you bit?" "No." "My bike's up there!" "Need some help here!" "Snake bite!" " It's a snake bite!" " Stay calm." "Cottonmouth." "Just under an hour." "Okay, we'll take care of him." "Let's go!" "Let's go, people." "Sir." "We're going to need some information from you." "Sir." "Sir!" "Hello?" "It's okay." "Just sit back." "Where am I?" "You're home." "We brought you home." "Come on, sit up." "Come on." "You had us scared, son." "I'm so glad you're okay." "The doctors gave you some medicine." "You had a snake bite." "How did I get to the doctor?" "A man brought you in." "No one knew him." "Oh, no, no, it's all right." "You just rest now." "We'll talk about it later." "Do you need anything?" "Are you hungry?" "No." "Come on, let him get some rest." "I'll be back in to check on you." "Mom?" "Dad?" "I love you." "We love you, too, Ellis." "The sun does shine on a dog's ass some days?" "It ain't sunk yet." "Wish Ellis could see it." "I know." "Well..." "Looks like you get your end of the deal." "Where's the bullets?" "Deal was for the gun, not the bullets." "Shit." "Yeah." "Neck, I've got one more favor I want to ask of you." "Mud?" "Don't get up." "How'd you get here?" "Neck brought me." "We got the boat in the water." " You did?" " Yeah." "Smooth sailing from here on out." "Wouldn't have felt right leaving' town without coming' to say goodbye." "I'm sorry about what I said." "No, you were right to be mad." "You were right about a lot of things." "I don't traffic in the truth too often, but" "I did love her." "I do love her." "She loves you, too." "She said it." "Yeah, I just made mistakes." "Heck, we both did, you know." "It's a hard life to keep up with, can't blame her for gettin' tired of tryin'." "My dad says you can't count on women loving you." "He said you can't trust them." "That's not true." "You're a good man, Ellis." "You meet a girl half as good as you, you're going to be all right." "You're a good man, too, Mud." "No." "No, I ain't, Ellis." "Maybe from here on out, I can..." "Stay put." "Ellis!" "Ellis!" "Don't move." "Mud!" "Let him go." "You still down there, buddy?" " Yeah." " All right, stay put." "Flush him out this way." "Mud!" "Mud!" "Mud!" "Mud!" " Mud!" " Ellis!" "Ellis!" "Ellis." "Ellis." "It's okay." "Hello?" "You're speaking to him." "He's dead?" "Hey." "You got your bike back?" "Yeah." "Mud dinged the shit out of it." "They're really doing it." "It's the law." "It's bullshit." "They ever find Tom?" "No." "He's gone." "I heard on the news, they still hadn't found Mud's body." "You think he's dead?" "I don't know." "I hope not." "I gotta go." "Come by the apartments later, help me fix up my room." "All right." "I'll see you next week?" "You betcha." "Ellis." "You mind your mother, okay?" "This is a big change for her, too." "She's gonna need your support." "Yes, sir." "All right." "I love you." "I love you, too." "Come on, son." "You gotta see this."