Sharon Poppen

by Hannah

  She sighed. "I tried. I did so want it to be different for you. But, it would appear my sons are hell bent on going forward with Pa's plan."

  "Thank you, Ma. I, too, wish it could be different." Nora sincerely, in almost a whisper, thanked her dear mother-in-law.

  "Well, what do we do now?” Ma looked at Jim.

  Everyone relaxed. Everyone was allowed to make suggestions and was included in the making of decisions. It turned out everyone would continue much as before with the exception that Jim and Joe would operate as a duo rather than a trio.

  And that's the way things continued for the next six years. The two oldest brothers would be gone for three to four months at a time. At first, they risked staying home for a month or so between trips. But as time went on, their time at home became shorter and shorter. Now it was down to a week at the most.

  When they were home, it was hard for the rest of the family to act normal. No one wanted to leave the house to shop, to go to school or to go to church. It was especially hard for Patrick and Sarah. But to Nora and Ma's credit the children managed to love and look forward to seeing their father and uncle and to disbelieve the talk about the Farrell outlaws.

  Michael and Danny’s close bond continued to grow. Each passing year, they depended more and more on each other’s companionship and trust. They did as much as they could to take Jim's place in teaching little Pat boy things and included him in their activities as much as possible. However, what neither Jim nor Joe realized was that as their younger brothers grew, they made plans for when their turn came to help with the family business.

  *****

  Michael turned on his side and through a crack in the window shutters watched the eager fingers of dawn bring this dusty little Mexican village into another day. He shook himself from his reverie and yawned. The hint of a smile tugged at the corner of lips. Soon, he promised himself, very soon, he’d experience the offerings of that bright and noisy street that Jim had avoided. His eyes became heavy. He closed them and relaxed. Finally, he drifted off to sleep.

  (This is the end of

  Chapter One of the novel

  After the War, Before the Peace.

  This novel is available at Amazon.com and from the author’s website www.sharonpoppen.com)