Once Upon a River Page 0,40
a free country, that’s what Brian said. We can drink anywhere we want. But you know it’s been eating away at Brian what you said Cal done to you. He didn’t have any choice but to fight him.”
Margo had never seen Brian hit anybody, but she could imagine him, drunk beyond talking to, slugging and kicking Cal. Margo’s finger trailed the pectoral fin of the catfish. The pain was so sharp this time she was surprised not to see blood on her knuckle. Brian was a weapon, all right, but more like a land mine or a grenade than a gun or a knife.
“Next thing you know, the ambulance and the cops are there, and Brian’s going to jail. And now that they got him locked up, they’re getting him for killing that man.”
“Cal’s not dead, is he?”
“No. It’s the manslaughter charge.”
“What manslaughter charge?”
“Well, whatever the hell they’re calling it. Up in Rapid River, in the UP last summer. Brian must’ve told you. Why do you think he’s been out here in the woods laying low?”
The trees became thicker and taller around her. She tugged on the second catfish skin, trying not to let it split, but she stung her wrist on the spine of a dorsal fin and jerked away, making a mess of it. As she worked, the half-skinned catfish woke up. It curled its tail out away from the tree, still trying to swim.
“Hey, Charlie, toss me a beer,” Paul said. Margo looked up to see the can fly through the air with surprising speed and accuracy. Paul caught it with a smack, and when he opened it, foam poured onto his hand. “I thought you knew, Maggie.”
She worked slowly with the pliers on the last catfish, tugging around the sides evenly, removing the skin in one piece down to the tail and slicing it free. If what Brian had done in the UP was an accident, why hadn’t he mentioned it?
“All the police had on that trouble up north was a description, but it included them knife scars on the back of his hand. It was the same deal, Brian drunk and not knowing when to quit.”
“Can I see him?”
“It’d be better if you didn’t, honey. His wife isn’t going to like you.”
“His ex-wife.”
“He’s got an ex-wife, his first wife. He was planning on getting a divorce from his second wife soon, but the dumb son of a bitch hadn’t told her about it yet. He was hoping she’d take up with another guy, make it easier, get him better terms for the divorce. I’m not saying they were together exactly, but now she’s rallying ’round him. And she can do him more good now than you can.”
Inside the cabin, Margo moved numbly. She filleted and fried the catfish the way she would have for Brian, with cornmeal and flour, in the last of the bacon grease, which was on the verge of going
rancid. When they finished eating, Paul turned on a brand-new
battery-powered lantern with a humming fluorescent bulb. Margo was distressed at how bug-stained the walls were, how ratty the rug looked in the cold bluish light, and how grimy she had let herself become. She pulled her braid over her shoulder and looked at how frayed it was. Paul and Charlie took the lantern outside and started digging a hole with round-end shovels, and Margo was grateful to be out of the harsh light. She undid her braid and brushed her hair. When Paul came inside to get another beer, she asked him to tell her more.
“There ain’t nothing more to it.”
“Does Brian own this cabin?” she asked.
“Me and Brian own it together. You can stay here as long as you want, Maggie. Don’t you worry your pretty head about that. But I’m going to be storing a few things here, and I got to warn you, don’t touch any of them. You’d better take me seriously when I say that.”
“What’s in that barrel?” Margo noticed that Paul’s hiking boots looked brand-new, as did his watch.
“Don’t you worry about what it is, Maggie. I’ve got a drum full of a very valuable substance, and you’re just going to have to leave it alone.”
She nodded. “Do you know if Brian checked his PO box?”
“I wouldn’t know,” Paul said.
“Maybe my ma wrote a letter saying she wants me to come.”
“He didn’t say nothing about a letter. I can ask him next time I visit him.”
When Paul went back out to dig more, Margo washed the dishes