"¶¶ wait in there misery ¶¶ ¶¶ where I heard this melody ¶¶" "¶¶ when I was just a little baby ¶¶ ¶¶ on mama's knees ¶¶" "¶¶ the old folks were humming ¶¶" "¶¶ the band Jew were strumming ¶¶" "¶¶ so sweet and long ¶¶" "¶¶ hush a by my baby go to sleep ¶¶ ¶¶ on mama knees ¶¶" "¶¶ journey back to these hill ¶¶ ¶¶ and dreams again with me ¶¶" "¶¶ it seems like your mother ¶¶ ¶¶ was there once again ¶¶" "¶¶ and the old folks were strumming ¶¶" "¶¶ that same old reframe ¶¶" "¶¶ wait in there misery ¶¶ ¶¶ where I heard this lubby ¶¶" "¶¶ when the stars are blinking ¶¶ ¶¶ and the moon was shinny high ¶¶" "¶¶ and I hear mama calling ¶¶ ¶¶ as in days long ago ¶¶" "Come on, let's go." "¶¶ singing her hush lubby ¶¶" "Ashlee darling." "Hm?" "Wake up." "Hm." "Wake up." "Temperatures are going to do nothing but go down." "We'll have another very cold day tomorrow." "Morning." "Morning." "...to freezing rain." "The Freewill Baptist Church is having a fundraiser, a covered-dish event, that's coming up here on Thursday evening, so they're having a band concert." "That will be on Friday night at the high school." "Better than nothing." "Who's this?" "Peanut Butter." "Where'd you find Peanut Butter?" "In the woods." "He's sweet." "Spell "house."" "H-O..." "H-O..." "A-woo." "U-A?" " Uh-uh." " U." "Ssssss." "S-E?" "H-O-U-S-E." "7 plus 2." "9." "Good." "Transfer." "Careful." "Cradle the head, and then take him to your shoulder... so he's up a little bit higher but you're still supporting the head." "Make sure you hold this right under..." "Could I have your attention, please?" "Forsyth, Missouri chapter of the Family, Consumer, and Career Leaders of America..." "Hey, Ree." "...will meet this Friday at 3:00 p.m. In Mrs. Boyer's room." "Truman University will be here..." "Forward, march!" "If you would like to attend, please sign up in the counselor's office." "March time." "Forward, march." "The Marine Corps Birthday Ball will be this Saturday evening." "All other P.C. Cadets and their families are encouraged to attend." "All right." "Hi, Sonya." "Hey, Ree." "You and the kids all right?" "We're just a little short on cash right now." "How long's it been since the horse ate?" "About four days." "That hay gets kind of expensive, don't it?" "Yes ma'am." "Actually, I was wondering if you could keep her with yours." "All right, Ginger, come on." "That's a girl." "There you go." "There you go." "Have a little bit of that." "Come on." "Get going." "Thank you, Sonya." "All right." "How are you today?" "Ask me inside." "I need to talk something with your mama." "She don't talk much." "Ma'am?" "I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions." "Ma'am?" "You better just tell me." "You know your daddy's out on bond, don't you?" "So what?" "Looks like he's been cooking again." "I know that's the charges you laid on him, but you isn't proved it on him." "You got to prove it every time." "Well, that won't be no hard thing to do, but that isn't even why I'm here." "His court date's next week, and I can't seem to turn him up." "Maybe he sees you and ducks." "That could be, but where you all come into this is, he put this house here, and your timber acres, up for his bond." "He what, now?" "Jessup signed over everything." "Now, if he doesn't show at trial, see, the way the deal works is, you all goanna lose this place." "You got some place to go?" "I'll find him." " Girl, I've been looking." " I said I'll find him." "You make sure your daddy knows the gravity of this deal." "Maybe they'll share some of that with us." "That could be." "Maybe we should ask." "Never ask for what ought to be offered." "Evening, Ree." " Evening." " Kids." "Hey, Connie." "Didn't want you to think we'd forgot you all." "Brought you some meat, some potatoes, and some stuff for a good stew, anyway." "Thank you." "We can use it." "I seen your woodpile's low out front." "We got that splitter up there in the yard." "You should use it." "I'll do that." "We seen the law was out here this afternoon." "Everything all right?" "He's hunting' for Dad." "Hunting Jessup, is he?" "You know where he's at?" "No." "You sure about that?" "Yes." "All right." "All right, well I guess you didn't have nothing to tell him then, did you?" "I wouldn't tell him nothing if I did." "Honey, we know that." "I'm going to let you get to it, all right?" "How about some deer stew." "That sound good?" "Mm-hm." "Both of you need to get over here and watch how I make it." "Thank God it's you, Sweet Pea, and not Floyd's mommy and daddy again." "The two watch me like I done something wrong." "Hush your mouth about them." "They put a roof over your head, isn't they?" "Hey, Floyd." "You goanna invite me in?" "Or I could just stay out here and talk to you." "Yeah, you can come in." "Hey." "Shit." "Don't start." "C'mon." "It's been a while, Sweet Pea." "Things stack up, is all." "What's going on?" "The Sheriff came by looking for Dad." "If he don't show up for his court date, we're goanna lose the house." "I got to get down to the Arkansas line." "I got to ask him." "It's his truck." "He said no." "Did you tell him I'd spring for gas?" "I told him." "He still won't." "Why not?" "He never says why not to me, Ree." "He just says no." "Man, that's so sad to hear you say he won't let you do something and then you don't do it." "It's different once you're married." "It really must be because you isn't never used to eat no shit." "Ned needs his nap." "Come here." "What brings you here?" "Somebody dead?" "I'm looking for my Dad." "Come on in." "Shake off the chill." "Let's keep it quiet." "Teardrop's still laying up in bed." "The law came by today." "Dad signed over everything to his bond." "Victoria, I really got to run Dad down to get him to show." "You ought not do that." "Don't go running after Jessup." "Show or don't show, that choice is up to the one going to jail, not you." "You know where he's at, don't you?" "Where a man's at isn't necessarily for you to know, neither." " But you do." " I isn't seen him." "Could be running around with Little Arthur and them, you think?" "Don't you ever go down around Little Arthur's asking them people about shit they isn't offering to talk about." "That's a real good way to end up bit by hogs... or wishing you was." "We're all related, isn't we?" "Our relations get watered kind of thin between here and Little Arthur's." "You know all those people, Teardrop." " You could ask..." " Shut up." "None of theme's goanna be in a great big hurry to tangle with you." "I said shut up once already with my mouth." "Jesus." "Dad's your only brother." "You think I forgot that?" "Hm?" "Jessup and me run together for coming on 40 years, but I don't know where he's at, and I isn't goanna go around asking after him, neither." "Ree, you still planning to join the Army?" "No, I don't think I can anymore." "Listen." "Hm?" "No." "She needs help." "Nope." "Listen." "Listen." "You tell that girl to stay close to home." "Don't move." "Give her this." "You send her ass on her way right now." "Teardrop says you best keep your ass real close to the willows, dear." "He hopes this helps." "Here's a Dobie for your walk." "Thank you." "Hey." "What's your business here?" "My dad's Jessup." "He's pals with Little Arthur, and I got to find him." "Hold on." "My name's Megan." "And I do know you, really." "I seen you at some of the reunions." "I knew Jessup when I seen him, too." "Never did talk with him much." "You knew him?" "Knew him when I seen him around, I mean." "He does stuff I hear about." " He cooks crank." " They all do now." "You don't even need to say it out loud." "If Arthur's been running on crank for a day or two, you should just leave, okay?" "I knew it." "I been in your dreams, isn't I, little Ruthie?" "It's Ree, you asshole." "I'm only out to find Dad." "Come on in, ladies." "This don't got to take long, man." "I'm looking for Dad and thought maybe you'd been seeing him." "Maybe you two been getting into stuff together again." "Not since the summer, at ya'll's place." "You isn't seen him nowhere since then?" "Uh-uh." "He kept leaving the house, going someplace." "You don't know where?" "You got cat shit in your ear, girl?" "I've got them two kids and my Mom to tend, man." "I need him." "If I see the dude, I'll tell him you said that." "Your dad left you to do all that?" "That's fucked up." "Well, he had to." "The way things go, you know." "You want a line?" "No." "You want to blow some smoke?" "No." "Then I guess I got nothing' for you." "Go on." "Don't tell nobody it was me who told you this, okay?" "But you're going to have to go on up the hill and ask for a talk with Thump Milton." "Now, I hope he'll talk with you." "He generally won't." "That man scares me way more than the rest." "Well, scared isn't a bad way to be about him, neither, hon." "He's my own grandpa, and I still make damn sure I never piss him off none." "You go see Thump." "Go on." "You got the wrong place, I expect." "Who might you be?" "I'm Ree." "My Dad's Jessup Dolly." "You isn't here for trouble, are you?" "No, ma'am." "'Cause one of my nephews is Buster Leroy, and didn't he shoot your daddy one time?" "Yes, but that isn't got nothing to do with me." "They settled that their selves, I think." "Shooting him likely settled it." "What is it you want?" "I got a real bad need to talk with Thump." "And he isn't got no need to talk to you." "But I need to." "I really, I really, really got to, ma'am, please." "Some of our blood at least is the same." "Isn't that supposed to mean something?" "Isn't that what is always said?" "Isn't you got no men could do this?" "No, ma'am, I don't." "You go wait in the yard somewhere by that coop, and I'll tell Thump you're here." "Thanks." "Come on, already." "He isn't likely to have time for you, child." "I've got to talk to him." "If he don't know, nobody does." "Nope." "Talking just causes witnesses, and he don't want for any of those." "I'll wait." "You need to get yourself on home." "Here, drink it down and be on your way." "Thanks." "Thump knows you were in the valley, child, with Megan, and at Little Arthur's." "He knows what you want to ask, and he don't want to hear it." "And that's it?" "He isn't goanna say nothing to me?" "If you're listening, child, you got your answer." "So I guess come the nut-cutting, blood don't really mean shit to the big man." "Am I understanding that right?" "Don't you dare." "Don't." "I want you to listen to me, child." "You need to turn around, and get yourself on home." "Don't you make me come out here and tell you again." "Ashlee Dawn, come inside." "Bring Brownie and Cupcake." "Ree, get out here!" "Do you know there's people going around saying you best shut up?" "People you ought to listen to." " Get your ass in the truck." " Don't touch me." " Get your ass in the truck." " Get off!" "Get in the truck." "Hey!" "Would you rather I hit you, boy?" "Sonny, get back in the house." "Cook them taters till they're brown, then turn the stove off." " Don't hurt my sister." " Sonny!" "Having balls is good, boy." "Don't let 'em get you hurt." "Sonny, get in the house." "Get your dumb ass in the truck." " I'm not getting in there with you." " Get in the truck." "There's something you need to see." "Jessup and me may have had our tussles, but he was my cousin." "It's always a bad deal when these things blow." "Where are we going?" " Down the road." " Down the road to where?" "To someplace you need to see." "This right here is the last place me or anybody seen Jessup." "He never blew no lab before." "I know it, but something must have jumped wrong this time." "He's known for never fucking up labs or cooking bad batches." "He's known for knowing what he's doing." "Well, you cook long enough, this is bound to happen." "You're saying Dad's up there burnt to a crisp?" "That's what I'm saying." "I'm going up for a look." "No!" "That shit's poison." "It'll rip the skin off your bones." "If Dad's up there, I'm bringing him home to bury." "Ree!" "Ree, I know losing Jessup leaves you all hurting over there." "I know it's a lot to handle." "We'll make do." "Sonya and me talked about it." "We feel we could take Sonny off your hands." "Not Ashlee, I don't reckon, but we could take Sonny." "You what?" "We could take him and raise him up the rest of the way." "My ass you will." "We'd raise that boy way better thank you and that nut-job mama of yours can." "Maybe on down the line we'd take Ashlee, too." "You go straight to hell, you son of a bitch." "Sonny and Ashlee will die living in a cave with me and Mama before they spend one night with you." "God damn you." "You must think I'm a stupid idiot." "There's weeds growing chin high in that place." "It must have been a year since that place blew." "Come here, look at this." "Ash, quit playing around." "Come here." "This trigger shoots this barrel." "This trigger shoots this barrel." "Now, there's hardly ever goanna be a time where you need both, but if you got to kill something big and mean, then you use both." "Now, this gun is what you'll use when you're older, but this one is the gun I learned on." "This is Daddy's squirrel gun." "Now, the most important thing is do not put your finger on the trigger unless you're ready to shoot, you're aimed at your target." "And don't ever... both of you look at me... never point this at each other, not ever." "All right?" "Kneel down like you're praying." "Yeah, just like that." "Yup." "You see that cross?" "It's called the crosshairs." "Aim that up with the middle of your target, and when that's lined up in the middle, then you squeeze the trigger and you shoot." " Okay." " Ree." "Hang in." "Hey." "We're back here." "Put this down." "Both of you sit on your hands." "Don't touch it." " Hey." " Hey." "Damn, Sweet Pea." "What's with all the guns?" "Just teaching them a little bit of survival." "Hi." "Got the truck off him." "You are who I always did think you were, darling'." "You truly are." "Now, you got to turn it this way." "Backwards?" "Yeah." "Give me that." "Does your mama know what's going on?" "I'm not sure." "You think you should tell her?" "This is the exact shit she went crazy trying to get away from." "It'd be too mean to tell her." "I guess she couldn't help anyhow." "Nope." "I look on that valley far below." "It's green as far as I can see." "As my memories return," "Oh, how my heart does yearn for you and the days that used to be." "High on the mountain, wind blowing free," "I wonder if you still remember me." "Play it through." "I wonder if you still remember me." "Or has time erased your memory?" "As I listen to the breeze whisper gently through the trees," "I wonder if you still remember me." "Say." "Come on in." "It's Ma's birthday." "Happy Birthday." "Y'all want anything?" "Something to drink, food?" "I'm hunting for Dad." "I was guessing that." "Stars on a summer morning." "Come on now." "First appear, and then they're gone." "Wish I was a little sparrow and I had wings" "and I could fly." "I'd fly straight away." "You know me and Jessup quit keeping company a good while ago." "I figured." "I thought you might still know a thing or two." "I'm kind of afraid I might." "I wish I could kick back for this one, Ree." "You still bad on the bottle?" "No." "No, I give that up." "A couple months ago," "Jessup and me run across each other by total accident." "He got me to laughing so." "Things rekindled for a day or two." "Then he was gone again." "About, maybe, three or four weeks back," "I'd stopped at Cruikshank's, and he was in there with three fellows I didn't know, and they didn't look to be having no fun, either." "Did Dad say anything?" "He looked square at me but acted like he didn't know me, like he'd never seen me before." "Something real wrong was going on." "I'm sorry." "If you stay really still and quiet... it'll come out." "Bless you." "How long do we have to wait for a squirrel?" "A long time, usually." "Wish we could get deer." "It's not time for deer." "When is it?" "In the morning or at night." "You know that." "Do you see one?" " Mmm." " I do." "Where?" "There." "Ah." "You want to help me pull the trigger?" "All right, put your finger right there." "All right, you guys want these fried or stewed?" " Fried." " Fried." "Fried?" "All right." " Hey." " Hey." "All right." "Now, get your fingers in there." "I'll get mine in." "1, 2, 3." "Pull." "Pull hard." "Now, I'm just goanna slit it down here." "Now, get in there and get them guts out." "I don't want to." "Sonny, there's a bunch of stuff that you're goanna have to get over being scared of." "I'm not scared." "I just don't want to." "Come on." "Put your fingers in there." "Good." "Do we eat these parts?" "Not yet." " You think I forgot about you?" " What do you mean?" "Forgot about you and everything happening over here?" "That's your business." "You forget us if you want." "The law found Jessup's car at Gullet Lake this morning." "Somebody set fire to it last night, burnt it down to nothing almost." "He wasn't in it." "He's gone, isn't he?" "This is for you all." "His court day was this morning." "He didn't show." "I'd sell off your timber land now while you can." "No, uh-uh." "We won't be doing' nothing' like that." "That's the very first thing they'll do." "Once they've took this place from under you all, girl, go out and cut them hundred-year woods down to nubs." "Might as well have the dough to spend on your own." "Hm?" "You get the taste for it yet?" "Not so far." "Suit yourself, little girl." "The pills helping your mama's mood any?" "She keeps taken' them, but they isn't working." "Tell her hey." "Mom, look at me." "There's things happening, and I don't know what to do." "Can you please help me this one time?" "Mom?" "Mom, look at me." "Teardrop thinks I should sell the woods, Mom." "Should I sell?" "Please, help me this one time." "I don't know what to do." "Who the hell is he?" "Judging by that car, he isn't from our neck of the woods." "Mike Satterfield, A-1 Bonds." "What is it you want?" "We hold the bond on Jessup Dolly, and now he's a runner, it looks like." "Dad isn't no runner." "He didn't show for court." "That makes him a runner." "Will you excuse us, please?" "Go on." "Look, I don't want to kick your dad's ass, all right?" "I just want to keep the judge off mine." "Dad is dead." "He didn't show for court 'cause he's lying dead somewhere." "When was the last time you saw him?" "A couple of weeks." "Who's he running around with?" "Where they all hanging out?" "He doesn't tell me that stuff, sir." "You know I got the legal right to go in there hunting the man any place I want." "I know you'd be wasting your time and pissing me off." "Jessup Dolly is dead." "He's lying in a crappy grave somewhere or become piles of shit in a hog pen." "Maybe he's been left out plain in the open." "Wherever he is, he's there dead." "And you know this how?" "You must've heard what Dollys are, isn't you, mister?" "Well, I've heard what some are anyhow, and I have bonded a few." "I'm a Dolly, bred and buttered, and that's how I know Dad's dead." "How old are you?" "17." "You know, uh, your daddy was short on his bond." "This house and stuff here couldn't cover it, not nearly." "D'you know that?" "I didn't know nothing'." "They told me everything after." "Well, he was short on his bond, but then this fella comes in the office one evening, got him a sack full of crinkled money and just laid it down right there, covered the rest." "Seemed like somebody needed him sprung in a hurry." "This fella with the money have a name?" "Shit, no." "Probably left that in his other pants." "How long before we get kicked off our own property?" "I reckon..." "I reckon you all got this place about another week." "That's my guess." "A week?" "And there isn't nothing I can do?" "Nope." "Isn't nothing left to do... unless you can prove he's dead." "Catfish, Blond, you boys staying out of trouble?" "Thump Milton!" "I need to talk to you!" "Thump Milton." "Thump Milton!" "Thump!" "I told you to leave him be." "Get her, Alice." "No, you don't." "That's what you get for not listening to me." "You was warned." "You was warned nice, and you wouldn't listen." "Why didn't you listen?" "What are we ever going to do with you, baby girl?" "Kill me, I guess." "That idea has been said already." "Got any others?" "Help me." "Isn't nobody said that idea yet, have they?" "I tried to help you some before." "This is what come of it." "You got something' to say, child, you best say it now." "I got two kids that can't feed themselves yet." "My mom's sick, and she's always goanna be sick." "Pretty soon the laws are coming and taking our house and throwing us out to live in the field like dogs." "If Dad has done wrong, Dad has paid, and whoever killed him, I don't need to know all that." "But I can't forever carry them kids... and my mom, not without that house." "Oh, shit." "I isn't goanna stand here naked when that motherfucker comes in." "Where is she?" "Don't get all excited, Teardrop." "She was warned, and more than once." "You hit her?" "He never." "No man here touched that crazy girl." "I put the hurt on her, me and my sisters." "They was here, too." "What Jessup done was against our ways." "He knew it, I know it, and I isn't raised no stink at all about whatever became of him." "But she isn't my brother." "She's about all the close family I got left, so I'll be collecting her now and carrying her on out of here to home." "That suit you, Thump?" "You're goanna stand for her, are you?" "If she does wrong, you can put it on me." "She's now yours to answer for." "This is a girl who isn't goanna tell nobody nothing." "You boys give him a hand." "Go on, put her in his truck." "Chomp down on that till the blood lets up." "Your daddy couldn't face this last bust, couldn't face a 10-year jolt." "He started talking to that fucking sheriff." "You own me now." "Understand?" "They been waiting to see if I'll do anything." "Watching." "I can't know for a certain fact who went and killed my little brother." "Even if you find out, you can't ever let me know who killed him." "Knowing that would just mean I'd be toes up myself pretty soon." "Deal?" "No, get out of the... open the door." " What?" "What's happened?" " Go on." "Watch out." "Goanna burn." "Squeeze my hand." "Thank you." "I just heard." "I brought these over for you." "They're painkillers." "They're real strong." "These are goanna kick in real quick." " Start with two." " Okay." "She's goanna want more, but start with two and build from there, whatever number lets her rest." "Thank you." "Will you stay until I fall asleep first?" "Yeah, I will." "But then make sure they're doing their homework." "All right." "Does your arm hurt?" "No." "Not bad." "Blond Milton said him and Sonya would take Sonny in." "I tell you that?" "Raise him on up from here for me." "Does he know?" "Sonny?" "Not from us." "If he knows, it's from somebody else blabbing, 'cause I never." "He doesn't even know Dad cooks." "If they took him, that might help some." "What about Ashlee?" "She don't shine for them." "Well, what else can you do?" "Beg Victoria and Teardrop to take Ashlee in." "God, I hope that isn't the way it goes, Sweet Pea." "I hope to hell it isn't." "It was nice meeting you." " Have a good day, okay?" " Thanks." "Hi, how you doing?" "Sergeant Schalk." " Ree Dolly." " Nice to meet you." "So what brought you down here today, Ree?" "Um, I wanted to find out more about the $40,000 I get for signing up." "Well, that's a good reason for joining, but why don't you give me three better reasons for joining?" "Because once you join up, there's no turning back, and it might not be worth $40,000 dollars to you." "Well, the main reason is I need the money." "It'd be nice to travel, I suppose." "You know, five years is a long commitment." "Well, how long before I get the money?" "Well, after you sign up, it would be anywhere between 14 weeks to 82 weeks." "Well, how come it doesn't say that on the poster?" "Probably a clerical error, or it just wasn't on there." "It might have been in fine print at the bottom." "Do you mind me asking, what happened to your... your eye and your lip?" "I fell off my bike." "Fell off a bike?" "Well, um, how old are you?" " 17." " You're 17." "Okay." "Now, if this is something you really wanted to do, we'd have to bring Mom and Dad in on this, okay?" "I can sign for myself." "Not at 17, you can't." "At 17 you're still considered a minor by the U.S. Government." "You have to be 18 to sign up." "Would it be a problem getting Mom and Dad in here?" "I mean, I can come out to you guys' house..." "My mom is sick." "My dad's... gone." "Well, do you have any brothers or sisters that might be able to help?" "I got a little brother and a little sister, 12 and 6." "Well, who's taking care of them right now?" " I am." " You are?" "Is that why you need the $40,000?" "Yes, sir." "Well, it sounds like it might be a bigger challenge just to stay home, you know, and actually take care of your brother and sister because you know you're not going to be able to take them" "with you to training, right?" "I thought maybe I could." "Not right at the beginning." "Plus you wouldn't be able to have them when you're actually in the active duty Army because who's going to be there to take care of them if you have to go off and actually fight?" "So it sounds like right now you need to buckle up and stay home." "It's going to take a lot of backbone and a lot of courage to stay home, but that, I think, is what you need to do right at this point." "Okay?" "Now, something might change here in the next year or so." "You might decide this is what you want to do, you know?" "But don't take it lightly, and don't do it just for the money." "You need to have a good reason to do this, okay?" " Okay." " All right, well, it was nice meeting you." "Nice meeting you." "Have a good day, okay?" "Thank you." "What's going on?" "I'm tired of waiting around for shit to come down." "Let's get out and poke 'em where they're at, see what happens." "Oh, Lord." "Ray and them are over there." "Ray." "What do you want?" "I isn't seen him." "If I could help you, I would." "There's certain things you can't do." "It's bullshit, this fucking shit, man." "You're useless as tits on a fucking boar." "I don't know where he is." "It's goanna be much worse next time I come back." "I'll tell you that right now." "Best thing you can do is leave it alone, brother." "Believe me." "You come back up in here, you goanna get you an ass whooping' that won't quit." "Oh, yeah?" "Look what the fuck this shit already caused." "What the hell?" "Hey!" "What the hell are you doing?" "Hey!" "It's on now." "It's so on." "We're coming after you, dude." "We're coming, and we're bringing hell, too." "What the hell are we doing?" "Looking for humps that isn't settled." "Oh, hell." "He isn't here." "He isn't anywhere." "He's somewhere." "Teardrop." "You should stop." "Just see what he wants." "Shh..." "Get out of the truck, Teardrop." "I need to talk to you." "I don't think so." "It isn't about you." "You're not in trouble." "It's about your brother." "Nope." "Tonight I isn't doing' a fucking thing you say." "Get out of the truck." "Put your hands where I can see 'em." "Come on, get out." "Why'd you tell?" "Why?" "You went and got his ass killed." "You happy now?" "I know you." "I know your family." "Get out of the car now." "Is this goanna be our time?" "What I really can't stand is why I feel so ashamed for Dad." "Well, he loved you all." "That's where he went weak." "Lots of us can be tough, plenty tough enough, and do it for a long stretch, too." "But snitching." "For lots and lots 'a years he wasn't." "He wasn't, he wasn't, and one day he was." "You always have scared me." "That's 'cause you're smart." "Will you look through this stuff?" "See what you want to keep?" "That's Dad." "And Teardrop." "Ashlee, you remember when Dad made that for you?" "Mm-hm." "Look at this guy with her." "That's him?" "Mm-hm." "How old was he in that picture?" "Probably around my age." ""I don't know how I ever latched on to someone like you," ""but I sure hope I can keep you interested in me forever." "I love you and will always be true."" "Ha!" "Found ya." "Found ya!" "We're going' to fix your problem for you." "Right now I'm feeling like blowing me a clean hole through your fucking guts." "I know you do, but you won't." "You'll put that scatter gun away and come along with us." "You must think I'm crazy." "We'll take you to your daddy's bones." "We know the place." "We need to put a stop to all this nonsense talk about us we've been having to hear." "I isn't said a thing about you." "I know, but everybody else has." "I'm bringing this." "No, you won't bring that, either." "You want his bones, you'll set that down and come along." "You go on and take that sack off now." "Give it to me." "Child, you might know where you are." "If you do, you forget you know it." "You get me?" "He should be right there." "You're goanna need to reach down and tug him up." "He isn't deep." "Straight down." "Can you feel of him?" "All right, now." " Here, take this." " What?" " How else you goanna get his hands?" " No." " Oh, come on, child." " No." "Your daddy would want you to do this." "Now, here, take the saw." "She can't do it, Merab." "Hold his arm out straight, child." "Shit." "Why'd you let go?" "You're goanna need both hands, or sure as shit they'll say he cut one off to keep from going to prison." "They know that trick." "Now reach back down in there, now, quick." "There you go." "Let's go, Alice." "Christian County 136, that thing comes back to a P.O. Box address out of Cassville." "The owner appears to be a relative of the female who is taking care of the kids." "Christian County to 160." "Got it." "Come on back." "Oh." "How in the hell did you come by these?" "Someone flung them up on the porch last night." "Reckon I'll run these straight over." "The lab can tell me if they're his." "They're his." "Those are my dad's hands." "We'll know yes or no on that soon enough." "I bet your dad would still be here if he was just growing his marijuana." "Hey." "I didn't shoot the other night 'cause you were there in the truck." "He never backed me down." "It looked to me like he did." "Don't you let me hear that's the story getting around." "I don't talk about you, man, ever." "You're a good boy." "Good boy." "Thank you." "Clip." "Thank you." "Sonny." "Hey, Ashlee." "I brung these for you two to raise up." "Thank you." "What's he doing here?" "I have no idea." "I know you." "Yep." "Looks like you earned this money with blood, kid." " That's yours." " How's it mine?" "Well, that feller never did give a name, but he sure was good news for you all when he put that down on Jessup." "Isn't it still his, though?" "You can use it a hell of a lot more than him." "He isn't goanna come back for it, neither, not the way things happened." "We took our cut, and that there's what's left." "That makes it yours." "I don't know how you did that." "Bred and buttered." "I told you." "Well, you take care, okay?" "Here" "Yeah." "Well, it's been a long time." "Back off a little." "You're making me nervous." "Oh, shit." "Hm." "I was never good like your daddy was." "I know who." "What?" "Jessup." "I know who." "You should have this." "Oh, no, you..." "Why don't you keep it here for me?" "Does that money mean you're leaving?" "I isn't leaving you guys." "Why do you think that?" "We heard you talking about the Army." "Are you wanting to leave us?" "I'd be lost without the weight of you two on my back." "I isn't going anywhere."