Once Upon a River Page 0,68

valuable rifle.”

Margo nodded and glanced at the Marlin leaning against the wall. She would have liked to ask if she could come inside, clean up, sit quietly in the kitchen for a few minutes, but she only choked out, “Could I . . . ?” and stopped.

“What do you want from us?” Joanna was crying, and Margo found she was, too.

“To come back for a while,” she said, “until I can go to my mom’s.” Annie Oakley had begged her mother to let her return.

“Oh, Margaret. God knows I could use your helpful hands in this house.” Joanna glanced again at the door to the living room. She said, “I don’t want anyone to hear us. You knew that man who broke your uncle Cal’s legs? He told everyone in the courtroom he was doing it for what Cal did to ‘a certain young girl.’ That was a hard time for Cal, with everyone thinking the worst of him.”

“I didn’t want him to hurt Uncle Cal,” Margo said. She looked down at Joanna’s bare shins and at her feet, clad in the worn leather shoes Margo remembered. Joanna was blessedly the same. Margo felt mosquitoes bothering her face, but she didn’t move to slap them. One landed on Joanna’s cheek, and Margo hoped Joanna wouldn’t shut the door yet.

“Cal’s started walking with the crutches. We’re very hopeful.”

“I saw him,” Margo said. “With Julie.”

Joanna squeezed her eyes shut.

Margo recognized Joanna’s homemade dress. The blue-flowered fabric was more faded than when Margo had last seen it. Margo had never loved a dress more than she loved Joanna’s dress now. Joanna opened her eyes and shook her head. “You know, a strong marriage is a strange thing. It makes you have faith in your husband regardless of how things appear.”

Margo kept looking at Joanna’s exhausted face. Joanna, in return, seemed to be studying Margo for a clue to what had happened to all of them. Joanna had always been the opposite of Margo’s mother, strict where Luanne was permissive, plain while her mother was pretty, hardworking while her mother was bone-lazy, modest and religious while her mother was egotistical and dramatic. They were as different as Brian and Michael.

“I blame your mama,” Joanna said. “She should have taken you with her. I’m sorry if I had something to do with her going away.”

Margo didn’t know what she meant.

“Where are you staying? With friends?”

Margo hesitated, but because of the concerned look on Joanna’s face, she nodded and said, “With a friend.”

“Cal had someone on the school board look for you at all the schools in the county, and you’re not enrolled. This is no way to grow up, with no schooling, sneaking around at night. Let me think about this. Let me try to figure out whether there’s any way for you to live here until we find your mama.”

Margo did not want to disagree with anything Joanna might say, not about her mother, not about where she would be staying, not about going to school. She wondered if it would be easier to go to school now that she’d missed two years. She’d be with all new kids, younger kids. She’d heard of kids going to school part-time.

“I’ve got her address,” Margo said. “She wrote to me. Said she wasn’t ready for me to come yet.”

“I don’t know how much you know, but things aren’t going well for your uncle Cal and the company.” Joanna glanced behind her.

Margo nodded.

“If anybody comes in the kitchen, don’t let them see you. Billy will make a big fuss if he sees you. He’s still mad about his grandfather’s boat, you know.”

“Billy’s not locked up?” Margo felt her heart sink.

“Of course not. I mean, he had a little trouble, but he’s out now. Did you hear about that?”

“The police took him after he shot my dad.”

“Yes, for questioning and evaluation.” Joanna was looking at her strangely. “That was all. It was self-defense, defense of his papa. You and Billy both told the police that. So did your uncle Cal.”

“Oh.” Margo felt confused. “I wish I could say hi to Junior.”

“Junior’s in Alaska.”

“Alaska? With Loring?”

“He graduated from the military school. He was living back at home, and he and Cal were fighting all the time, so he went up there with a school friend. Now he’s working on a fishing boat. He says he loves it.” Joanna smiled.

“But I just saw him in the living room. You were sewing on his jacket.”

“You saw Billy. He’s gotten taller than