Sunshine Valley 

Mr. Smith?

     A few night creatures started their calls to nature. An owl off in the distance serenaded the moon. A few crickets join in with their chorus. 

     Evie finally broke the rhythm of nature, “were you ever married?”

     “No.” She sighed. “Too busy with maw n paw. Couldn’t get close ‘nough.” She patted the rifle next to her. “Leonard n me.”

     “You’re purdy handy with that broom.” Dillon remarked. 

     She laughed, a deep, free laugh. Her whole body shook. It reminded Evie of what laughing must be like for Santa. “Teach u to sneak up on an ole woman.”

     “Wasn’t trying to scare you.” Dillon said. 

     “Oh,” she pointed at him. “Should’a saw the look on your face. You ran like a rabbit.”

     He just sighed, “yeah.”

     Evie made a mental note of his lack of enthusiasm regarding this subject. It crossed her mind that he had been beaten with a broom before? Suddenly, she remembered, one evening she and her dad found him curled up at the bottom step of their back porch. For whatever reason, her mom wasn’t there. She had helped her dad care for him. His arms and legs were black and blue. There was a few whelk marks on his back. It was remarkable that he didn’t have a broken bone. Or 5. 

     Evie just watched him. It seemed to her he was thinking about that same thing. When she looked at Smith, she was watchin’ them both. 

     “You hadn’t been born yet,” Smith started talking. “Coral was a bad seed even back yunder. He’d pull my hair. Take sticks and lift up my dress tail. Had this coat, last thing paw bought me. He lit it ah fire with me in it.” She cleared her throat. “Beat his ass over that. He spit blood rest of day. Got n trouble by teach. Never went back.” She locked eyes with Dillon, “sorry didn’t teach him his lesson.”

     Evie hugged up her knees, “who was the Mr. Smith that got away?”

     Smith sucked air through her teeth and just sighed. 

Sunshine Valley