October 27th, 1795 aex

Mak Garde

South of Picklewood, Watateje, New Alben

Mak sat in the loft of the barn watching the birds sleep in their nests. The swallows looked awkward atop the hen eggs but protected them as if they were their own. Mak wished they’d hatch. Since Milli’s stillborn, there’d been nothing but death on the farm. It wore on Konni and the kids. His hand trembled on his knee. It wore on him, too.

Dawn was about an hour away. The family slept, but Mak hadn’t been able to. Aldren’s bald head crashing on the ground reoccurred countless times in his mind. Murderer. Pa had no helpful quote for murder. The closest he could think of was: “A man can act real dog-like to protect the ones he loves.”

Even dogs don’t kill. Duke would catch mice or rats for him but would simply hold the thing between his teeth. It wasn’t until Mak gave him permission that the hound would shake its head in a fury, ripping the life from the poor critter.

A cool wind rustled the long grass around the barn and whistled through the cracks in the walls. Every noise made him hopeful that Jerri had returned, but the hope was quickly discarded. She’d been gone for nearly a full day. He could not think of any situation that would cause her to take so long. Any non-tragic situation, that is.

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He wanted to run for the house and drain the last two shots in the whiskey bottle, but he preferred to save it. He wrapped his arms around himself and rubbed for heat.

Footsteps came from the other side of the house, the side facing the road. A wave of relief propelled him down the ladder and out the door. He ran past the firepit and the house, a beaming smile on his tired face. It was Konni. His relief faded. He’d expected Jerri. She walked down the path toward the road in her thick traveling boots.

“Where are you going?” Mak asked, though he knew.

She jumped in fear and spun to face him. “I’m going to find Jerri, and you aren’t stopping me.” She glared at him with dark rings around her eyes. Mak wasn’t the only one missing out on sleep after all.

He approached her and took her hands, despite what she might think about that. “I won’t try to stop you, Kon. I agree. I’d go looking for her myself if it wasn’t for our situation. I need to stay here in case they come back. I know she’s safe in town. You’ll be safe, too.” He looked to the house and back into her eyes. “Safer than here, anyway.”

“Then why can’t we take the offer and leave?” Her hard expression was replaced by the soft, loving face he married. “We’d still have our things. We’d have each other.” She tightened her cold hand’s grip. “There’s lush soil up there and good weather.”

He stared into her eyes, speechless. He knew she was right. He’d known it from the start. He nodded, but the toils of his pa and grandpa came to mind, reminding him what the stubbornness was all about in the first place. “I can’t, Kon.”

Her face dropped, donning ten years of age in an instant. She ripped her hands from his grasp and paced for the road without saying goodbye.