The Story of Annabelle & Alison

by Lydia Rose

  THE STORY OF ANNABELLE & ALISON

  BY

  LYDIA ROSE

  FOR LINDA

  CHAPTER ONE

  Annabelle Adams awoke with a start in the woods. It had been two years since she left her home state of Maryland to go toward warmer weather. The beginning of 1937 hadn’t shown any indication of being a better year since the crash in 1929. Annabelle thought about her younger sister Bonnie. Bonnie went that first winter when the family lost its apartment. Her father two years later. Annabelle did her best to provide food and shelter for her mother. She spent her days fishing and scrounging for food. After her father died, Annabelle changed her appearance. She cut her hair and started wearing her father’s clothes. It was safer for her and her mother for people to think there was a male presence. Since the lack of food had kept her body thin and the lack of breasts helped deceive the outside world. Even her mother didn’t question her actions. It was as if she had given up on life and just went through the motions. As winter was approaching again, her mother became less active. Annabelle could tell she was giving up on life and could do nothing to stop it.

  One night in the bitter cold, Annabelle held her mother close. “It’s okay, mom. You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”

  Rachel Adams looked into her daughter’s eyes and caressed her cheek. She didn’t have the strength to say anything, but the touch told Annabelle all she needed to know.

  Annabelle started walking south the next morning. She took work where she could get it and spent more days then she could count without food or shelter. The farms she worked in Virginia were either growing tobacco or cotton. Those farmers barely had enough food for their own family let alone anyone else. Annabelle accepted the jobs no one else wanted. She didn’t care as long as she was paid or fed.

  Entering the State of North Carolina should have been a welcome site, but she moved through the state getting work where she could. She set traps and fished to sustain herself when no work was available.

  As she got up from the damp ground, she hoped today would be a better day. She couldn’t remember the last time she ate and packed her things to move on. As she walked down the road, she paused at a farm. Unlike all the other farms she had worked, this one was different. This farmer was growing corn, soybeans and other vegetables. Annabelle walked toward the house. As she neared, a woman came out wiping her hands on the apron she wore. Annabelle tipped her hat. “Ma’am.”

  The woman looked at her cautiously, but she wasn’t afraid. “What do you want?”

  The woman looked young and her blond hair was pulled back into a bun. Even from where Annabelle was standing she could see the freckles crossing her nose and the light blue eyes.

  “I’m looking for work, ma’am,” Annabelle said taking off her hat.

  “My father is in the fields. He’ll be back for lunch soon.” The woman looked at the skinny boy realizing he was more than likely starving. “You can wait if you want.” The woman offered pointing to the porch stairs.

  “Thank you, ma’am.” Annabelle took a seat on the steps.

  The woman disappeared into the house and came out with a plate of food. “I think you can use this,” she said with a smile.

  “Thank you, ma’am.” Annabelle ate the plate clean.

  The woman came back out with a cup of milk. Nodding Annabelle drank it down.

  “Here’s my father now,” The woman said pointing to the man walking toward them.

  Annabelle handed her empty plate and cup back to her.

  “Dad, this boy is looking for work.”

  Her father took off his hat and looked over the boy. “You don’t look like you’d be much help to me. You’re too scrawny.”

  “I’m stronger than I look, sir.” Annabelle insisted.

  “What’s your name, boy?” Hank Legend asked.

  “Belle, sir.”

  “What kind of name is Belle for a boy?” Hank asked rubbing the stubble on his chin.

  “Sir, it’s a nickname my family gave me.” Annabelle swallowed. “It’s short for Belmont.” Annabelle had told the same story over and over again. It was partially true because her family did call her Belle.

  “How old are you?” Hank asked.

  “Twenty three sir.” Annabelle answered.

  “You don’t look older than fourteen,” Alison said to her father’s scowl. Alison turned and went into the house.

  “Have you done any farming, boy?”

  “Yes, sir. I’ve been farming since I left Maryland two years ago.”

  Hank rubbed his chin again. “I’ll give you a try. I’m not making any promises.”

  “Thank you, sir. You won’t be disappointed,” Annabelle said taking his extended hand.

  “I don’t want any trouble between you and my daughter.”

  “No, sir. No trouble.” Annabelle wanted to laugh and tell him he had nothing to worry about when it came to his daughter.

  “Let me show you where you’ll be staying.” Hank led her to a small shed next to the barn.

  Inside the shed held a small bed, shelves and a small window for air.

  “It ain’t much, but it’s the best I can do,” Hank said patting Annabelle on the shoulder.

  “This is fine, sir. I haven’t slept in a bed in a long while.” Annabelle smiled.

  “Hank’s the name. I’m going to have some lunch and then we’ll go out to the fields. Did you eat?”

  “Yes, sir,” Annabelle said with a nod. “Your daughter fed me.”

  “Her name’s Alison. I expect you to show her respect.”

  “Yes, sir.” Annabelle unpacked her things while Hank went to have lunch.

  Hank and Annabelle spent the rest of the day in the fields. She could tell this man came through the depressed times better than most. Hank had a motorized tractor and his crops looked good. As they walked back toward the barn, Hank said. “Dinner will be ready shortly. Come up to the house after you wash up.”

  Annabelle went to the well and filled a bucket of water. She carried it to her new home and stripped off her clothes. She took the small bar of soap she had and scrubbed herself clean. Annabelle now put on the cleanest clothes she had and walked toward the house. She knocked on the screen door and Hank called her inside.

  “Have a seat, Belle.” Hank motioned with his hand.

  Alison placed a plate in front of Annabelle. “Thank you, ma’am.”

  “Alison,” she said softly.

  Annabelle waited until Alison was seated before she began eating. She saw the surprised look on Alison’s face.

  “Hank, I can hear running water when we were in the fields.”

  “That’s the river through the woods.” He pointed to where the woods would lead to the river’s edge.

  After dinner, Annabelle offered her help to clean up.

  Again Alison was surprised. “That’s not necessary, Belle.”

  “Thank you for the meal, Alison and thank you for the job Hank.” Annabelle did a slight bow and headed back to the shed for her fishing line and lure. As Annabelle reached the water, she took her knife and cut a thin branch to use as a pole. She continually moved her line in the water hoping the fish would be enticed to come over and have a taste. Looking around, Annabelle realized how lucky she was to come upon this farm. Hank seemed nice and Alison intrigued her. She only hoped this job would last a while.

  As the line started to tug, Annabelle dragged the fish to shore. One down. Annabelle said to the forest. By the time Annabelle began to lose the light, she had caught and cleaned five nice size fish.

  Alison was sitting on the front porch when Annabelle came through the woods. She watched the thin boy walk holding his catch in one hand
and a thin tree branch rested on his shoulder. Annabelle’s hair had lightened by spending all her time outdoors. Her skin was tanned, but her cheekbones were sunken from lack of food. The dark green eyes and small nose was Annabelle’s best feature. Alison continued to watch Annabelle approach.

  “I cleaned them already, ma’am.” Annabelle held up the catch.

  “Thank you, Belle. I think I’m going to smoke them. Would you help me get the fire started?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Please call me Alison. We’re the same age and you make me feel old.”

  “Yes, Mm, I mean Alison.” Since there was only a small amount of fish, Annabelle added some kindling and one piece of wood to smoke the fish. “I’ll watch this for you. You can go do something else if you want.”

  “You worked hard today, Belle. Go relax. I can take care of the fish.” Alison offered with a wave of her hand.

  Annabelle knew she was being dismissed and bid Alison good night. She went into her shed and changed for bed.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Annabelle was up at five o’clock the following morning. She went into the barn and milked the cow and fed the chickens. She also found a basket and collected the eggs the chickens had left for them. Annabelle opened the barn door to find Hank on the other side.

  “You beat me to it, Belle.” Hank took the bucket of milk and Annabelle carried the eggs to the house.

  After breakfast, Hank and Annabelle spent their time weeding the soybeans.

  As the weeks passed, Annabelle began to build muscle. Her arms were hard and her stomach began to become firm and strong. Having three meals a day helped build up her strength. Even Hank began to notice.

  “You’re no longer the scrawny boy that showed up here,” Hank said as they ate dinner.

  Alison glanced over at Annabelle and nodded in agreement.

  “I enjoy the work, Hank,” Annabelle said looking at Hank.

  “You’ve been a big help to me and we both appreciate the fish you’ve caught. It’s a nice change to our diet.” Hank put a spoonful of the fresh fish in his mouth. “Aly, you cooked this fish well.”

  “Thanks, Dad.” Alison answered shyly.

  “Are there any crawfish in that river?” Annabelle asked.

  “Yes. I have some traps in the barn. Alison can give you some scraps to use.”

  “Thank you.”

  After dinner, Annabelle went to the barn to search for the traps. She was hot and sweaty again when she finally found them. Annabelle tripped over a box. “Shit,” she said to what she thought was an empty barn until she heard a laugh.

  “Are you okay?” Alison asked as she approached.

  “Sorry. I’m fine.”

  Alison handed her the food scraps.

  “Thanks,” Annabelle said filling the holder. “I’m going to get these out and maybe tomorrow we’ll have enough to eat.”

  “Can I go with you?” Alison asked. She waved to her father as the two women went off toward the woods.

  Annabelle took her shoes off and rolled up her pants so she could set the traps in the water. “The water feels nice,” Annabelle said with a smile.

  “I come down here when it’s real hot and take a dip.” Alison said with a chuckle.

  Annabelle climbed back on the bank and rolled her pants back down. She cleaned her feet with her socks and put her shoes back on. “I’ll come check them tomorrow evening and see if we’ve got anything.”

  “Do you like working here, Belle?” Alison asked as they walked back to the house.

  “I do. It’s the first place that feels like home in years. I’ve spent so much time living outdoors.” Annabelle sighed. “It’s nice to have a roof over my head.”

  “Do you have family in Maryland?”

  “Not anymore.”

  Alison motioned them over to a fallen log. “Tell me about your family.”

  “I had a younger sister named Bonnie. She was the first to take sick and died. After that my parents kind of lost hope. We lost our apartment and lived in a camp. My dad was the next to go. My mom really gave up after that. When she died, I started walking south to warmer weather,” Annabelle said with a shrug.

  “I’m sorry, Belle.”

  “What about your mom?” Annabelle asked.

  “She died when I was ten during childbirth. Both she and the baby died. It’s been just my dad and me since then.”

  “I’ve been to a lot of farms and yours seems to be the best I’ve seen.”

  “My dad is a visionary. When everyone was planting cotton, he planted corn and soybeans. When the crash happened and the price of cotton dropped, he continued to do fine. We’ve been very lucky.”

  Annabelle nodded in agreement. “We’d better get back before your dad has my hide.”

  Alison chuckled. “I trust you, Belle. You’re not like the other men that have come to work here over the years.”

  If Alison only knew the reason why she was safe with her, she would be upset. As they reached the house, Annabelle said. “Good night, Alison.”

  “Good night, Belle. Thanks for letting me tag along.”

  Annabelle tipped her hat and walked to her shed.

  Alison watched as Belle walked away from her. Alison had the muscles of a man, but still she didn’t seem hard like most men. Nor did she smell like most men that smelled of sweat, tobacco and alcohol. She also enjoyed talking to Belle. She was soft spoken and very polite. Alison thought about Belle as she went off to sleep.

  Annabelle laid in her bed tossing and turning. She found herself liking Alison’s company more and more each day and that caused her worry. She knew Alison liked her too because she was always looking at her. Her scrutiny was what she feared the most. Suppose she realizes that Annabelle wasn’t a man, but a woman in disguise? If she did, she would have to leave and go back on the road. The only thing she could do was stay away from that sweet woman.

  The next morning, Annabelle did her morning chores and carried the milk and eggs to the house. Alison opened the door for her and found Hank wasn’t there.

  “Where’s Hank?” Annabelle asked.

  “He went over to Chet’s to help him.” Alison put a plate of food in front of Annabelle.

  “I would have gone with him if he asked.”

  “Dad said he wanted you to continue working on the soybeans.” Alison took a seat across from Annabelle.

  “Aren’t you eating?” Annabelle asked seeing no plate in front of her.

  “I ate with dad.” She picked up her coffee cup and sipped.

  Annabelle quickly finished her breakfast so she could escape to the fields. She picked up her plate and put it in the sink. “Thank you for breakfast. Will your dad be back by lunch?”

  “No. He’ll be back by dinner.”

  “Don’t go to any trouble for lunch for me. I ate enough at breakfast.”

  “It’s no trouble, Belle.” Alison offered.

  “I’m used to not having one meal a day. I’ll be fine.”

  Annabelle practically ran out the door to the fields. She worked all morning pulling weeds and stood up to rest her back. Annabelle took her handkerchief from her back pocket and wiped her brow. As she turned, she saw Alison.

  “I thought you’d be ready for something to drink and eat. Come out of here and sit on the grass.”

  Annabelle followed her instructions and sat in the clearing. “Thank you,” she said when Alison handed her a sandwich wrapped in a napkin. The water was fresh and she drank it quickly. The sandwich was gone in three bites.

  Alison laughed. “I knew you’d be hungry.”

  “You didn’t have to go to the trouble, but it was much appreciated,” Annabelle said standing.

  “Can’t you take a break?” Annabelle looked down at her. “It gets lonely being at the house all day with no one to talk to.”

  Annabelle took a seat again, but didn’t know what to say.

  “You’re a quiet one. I haven’t met too many men that couldn’t talk the
ear off a cow.”

  Annabelle laughed. “When you spend so much time alone, you forget how to converse.” Annabelle grinned. “The weather hasn’t been too hot this week,” she said with a grin.

  “So we’re down to talking about the weather, huh?” Alison asked as Annabelle shrugged. “Did the traps have any crawfish?”

  “No, there’s still food, but nothing. I guess I’m not very good with crawfishing. I moved the traps to another area.”

  “See, we’ve got something to talk about.” Alison smiled. “Are you going to go fishing tonight?”

  “Not tonight. I want to start building a shower onto the shed.”

  “A shower?”

  “Yeah. We get enough rain around here to collect in containers and I’ll build a small room to wash myself.”

  “You don’t like baths?”

  “Not too much. I like to feel the cool water covering my body and it’s much faster.”

  “I’ll be very interested to see this shower when it’s done.”

  Annabelle stood up. “Thank you for the lunch and talking to me.”

  “See you at dinner, Belle.” Alison waved and walked off.

  After dinner, Annabelle went about looking for scrap wood and tin to use on her project. She found a container that would hold the water over the shower and a length of hose to use. Annabelle added the metal that would tilt in order to have the water come through the hose. She had the shower built in three days.

  Alison walked over to see the completed project. “So this is a shower?” Alison asked with a laugh.

  Annabelle smiled and opened the wood door. “You stand in here and pull the hose to drop the water on your body. I hooked up some metal to catch water from the roof to drop in this barrel,” Annabelle said lifting the lid. “Then I just have to fill that container.” She pointed to the object on the roof. “Simple.”

  “Very nice, but I still enjoy soaking in a bath,” Alison said.

  Annabelle shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

  “Do you have soap?” Alison asked.

  “I still have a sliver left.”

  “Come to the house and I’ll give you some.”