Together is All We Need

by Michael Phillips

  ‘‘Yeah, that’s what he said.’’

  ‘‘It’s not even half of it, I know. But I’m hoping you’ll take my word for the rest. There’s no reason you should. My word’s not meant anything to you up till now and I know that. So you’ll have to make your own decision.’’

  Roscoe nodded but said nothing.

  ‘‘I want you to know,’’ my papa went on, ‘‘whatever you decide, that I’m sorry for what I did.’’

  He looked him in the eye.

  ‘‘I’m giving you my apology and I mean it,’’ he said. ‘‘I doubt you can forgive me for it, but I hope someday you can. And I hope you’ll see that I mean what I say when I say I want to make it right with you. I did you wrong and I want to make it right, no matter how long it takes.’’

  Mr. Roscoe took in my papa’s short speech thoughtfully. It wasn’t like anything he had expected, or had ever heard before either. Hearing a man apologize and say he was sorry and talk about forgiveness and making things right wasn’t something he’d encountered too often in his life. The truth was, he’d never encountered it!

  The jail cell got real quiet.

  ‘‘All right, then, Daniels,’’ said the rancher finally. ‘‘I’ll think some on what you said. I reckon you made me about as fair an offer as a man could who’s sitting in jail and got no money. So I’ll think on it.’’

  When Katie and Deputy Paxton got back to Ellicott City, after spending another night in Baltimore with Reverend Paxton’s family, there had been no change. Her uncle Templeton was still in jail. Her uncle Ward was staying at a boardinghouse in town. They had heard no more from Mr. Roscoe, and the judge had arrived and was supposed to see my papa the next morning and decide what to do.

  As soon as Katie heard that, she turned to Mr. Daniels.

  ‘‘Uncle Ward,’’ she said, ‘‘let’s go see Mr. Roscoe right away. We’ve got to talk to him so Uncle Templeton can get out of jail before that judge does something bad.’’

  ‘‘I don’t know, Kathleen. It might be too late. The judge is already in town.’’

  ‘‘Then we have to go today . . . right now. Please, Uncle Ward. I want to see Mr. Roscoe.’’

  Mr. Roscoe wasn’t altogether surprised to see Templeton Daniels’ brother again, though the sight of the pretty young woman at his side startled him some.

  ‘‘This is our niece I was telling you about,’’ said Mr. Daniels.

  ‘‘Hello, Mr. Roscoe,’’ said Katie. ‘‘I’m Kathleen Clairborne. I came to give you my money so that you’ll let my uncle Templeton out of jail.’’

  Still standing at the door, she took a wad of bills that totaled two hundred and ten dollars from her dress pocket and handed it to him. Beside her, her uncle could hardly keep from showing his astonishment. But before he could say anything, Katie had given the rancher the money.

  He took it, seemingly a little reluctantly, shuffled back and forth on his feet, then invited them in.

  ‘‘Please, Mr. Roscoe,’’ said Katie, following him into the house. ‘‘It’s all I’ve got in the world, every dollar. And if we can harvest our cotton, you can have more later this year and the year after that. But I need both my uncles’ help to do it. Cotton is a lot of work, and my father and brothers are dead and we don’t have any more slaves.’’

  ‘‘Yeah . . . well, Miss Clairborne,’’ said the rancher, ‘‘I talked to your uncle yesterday, so I’m thinking things over. To tell you the truth, I didn’t get much sleep last night from thinking about it.’’

  ‘‘And like I told you, Mr. Roscoe,’’ Katie’s uncle Ward now said, ‘‘I think I can scrape together another hundred for you. I’ll have to go down to Richmond. Likely take me a few days to get it together. But what I got’s yours.’’

  Roscoe nodded thoughtfully.

  ‘‘Well, like I told you before, that’s a fair offer. I’ll think on it some more.’’

  ‘‘But you’ll hurry, won’t you, Mr. Roscoe?’’ said Katie insistently. ‘‘The judge is supposed to see him tomorrow.’’

  ‘‘I’ll try, Miss Clairborne,’’ he said. ‘‘I’ll try.’’

  ‘‘We’ll even give you the deed to our house if we have to,’’ said Katie. ‘‘Won’t we, Uncle Ward?’’

  ‘‘Well, it’s something we can talk about anyway,’’ said Mr. Daniels, ‘‘if it comes to that. But that’d take more time than Templeton’s got.’’

  As they rode the four miles back to Ellicott City, Katie couldn’t understand Mr. Roscoe’s hesitation.

  ‘‘Why did he take my money and not let Uncle Templeton out of jail?’’ she asked.

  ‘‘It ain’t all his decision, Kathleen,’’ said her uncle Ward. ‘‘That’s why there’s a sheriff and a judge.’’

  ‘‘But he took my two hundred dollars. He’s got to do something.’’

  ‘‘He doesn’t have to. As far as he’s concerned, Templeton took him for a thousand dollars. He might figure he’s entitled to that two hundred but that Templeton still ought to do jail time anyway. And the judge’ll likely agree with him.’’

  ‘‘Then I shouldn’t have given him my money until he agreed!’’

  ‘‘I was thinking you were a mite hasty, Kathleen. But before I could say anything, there you were shoving your two hundred into Roscoe’s hand. That’s why I wasn’t too anxious to start shoving the deed at him too. We still don’t know what he’s going to do.’’

  ‘‘Oh, Uncle Ward, then I was stupid!’’

  ‘‘Too late to worry about that now, Kathleen. We’ll just have to wait and see what comes of it.’’

  IN FRONT OF THE JUDGE

  39

  WHEN THEY GOT BACK TO ELLICOTT CITY, THEY were in for a surprise.

  The first they knew about it was when they walked into the sheriff ’s office. There sat Deputy Paxton. He jumped out of his chair the instant they walked through the door.

  ‘‘You two are finally back!’’ he said. ‘‘Since there was only one case, the judge moved Mr. Daniels up to today.’’

  ‘‘Today!’’ exclaimed Katie.

  ‘‘They’re over in the courthouse right now.’’

  The three of them rushed from the sheriff ’s office. The deputy led the way along the boardwalk, then turned into another street with Katie running along beside him.

  ‘‘Hurry, Uncle Ward!’’ she called behind her. ‘‘We’ve got to get there before it’s too late.’’

  The deputy led them into a building with a few offices in it, and down a corridor to a large room which was used for a courthouse on the few occasions when one was needed.

  He opened the door and they rushed inside, Katie’s uncle Ward puffing from the run. There sat the judge in a black robe with my papa standing in front of him.

  The judge stopped and looked up.

  ‘‘What is this?’’ he said.

  ‘‘They’re Daniels’ kin,’’ said the sheriff, ‘‘—brother and niece.’’

  ‘‘All right, then, sit down,’’ he said. ‘‘I’ll let you stay if you don’t make a disturbance.’’

  There were six or eight chairs in the room and they sat down.

  ‘‘As I was saying,’’ the judge said, ‘‘according to the complaint filed by Mr. Roscoe, you not only falsified legal documents about the parcel of land in question, it says here that you have had a pattern of such behavior, and that this is not the first of such schemes. What do you have to say for yourself?’’

  ‘‘Nothing, Your Honor,’’ said my papa. ‘‘I’m afraid it’s true, though nothing else so serious as this.’’

  ‘‘So you admit it?’’

  ‘‘Yes, sir.’’

  ‘‘Well, then, that makes it easier. Though it’s commendable of you to own up to it, I don’t see that that helps you much. You’re still guilty, and I still have to pass a sentence on you.’’

  ‘‘I understand.’’

  ‘‘Do you have anything else to say in your defense?’’

  ‘‘Only that I int
end to try to make amends by buying that land back.’’

  ‘‘But you have no money?’’

  ‘‘No, sir.’’

  ‘‘I don’t see how that changes my duty, then. Good intentions are cheap, Mr. Daniels.’’

  ‘‘Yes, sir.’’

  ‘‘But please, sir . . . Judge!’’ said Katie all of a sudden, standing up. ‘‘We’re going to help him pay it.’’

  The judge glanced about the room.

  ‘‘Who are you?’’ he asked.

  ‘‘Kathleen Clairborne, sir. He’s my uncle.’’

  ‘‘Well, young lady, as I said, good intentions are cheap.’’

  ‘‘But we really are going to help him pay the money back.’’

  ‘‘Promises are just as cheap as intentions. I can allow no more such outbursts. Please sit down.’’

  ‘‘But don’t you want to hear what I have to say?’’

  ‘‘No, I don’t, young lady.’’

  Katie sat down, more irritated than contrite.

  The judge looked back down at the papers in front of him and was about to start talking again.

  Just then the door opened. Everyone turned around as the judge glanced toward the sound.

  ‘‘Who are you?’’ he asked again, becoming more than a little annoyed at these continued interruptions.

  ‘‘I’m Roscoe,’’ said the rancher.

  ‘‘The man who filed the complaint?’’ asked the judge.

  ‘‘That’s right.’’

  ‘‘I take it you’ve got something to contribute to the proceedings?’’ ‘‘Yes, sir,’’ said Roscoe.

  ‘‘All right . . . step forward.’’

  Mr. Roscoe walked toward him, glanced toward my papa as he stopped and stood beside him, then looked up at the judge.

  ‘‘What I’ve got to say is simple enough, Your Honor,’’ he said. ‘‘I’d like the charges dropped.’’

  A gasp of delight from Katie sounded, and a whispered comment or two from the others.

  ‘‘Why dropped?’’ said the judge.

  ‘‘Because Daniels is trying to make amends, Judge. He’s offered to buy the land back from me.’’

  ‘‘But he has no money. He’s admitted that.’’

  ‘‘Yes, sir. But I think his offer is on the up and up.’’

  ‘‘You believe him?’’

  ‘‘I’m willing to trust him.’’

  ‘‘After he swindled you?’’

  ‘‘Yes, sir. This young lady even offered me the deed to her place. People don’t do that unless they’re serious.’’

  The judge thought a minute. ‘‘I don’t know,’’ he said. ‘‘I’m still inclined to give him some jail time . . . but if you’ll sign off on dropping the charges—’’ He glanced at Roscoe.

  The rancher nodded his agreement. ‘‘I’ll sign it,’’ he said.

  ‘‘—well, then, I don’t suppose we ought to waste the taxpayers’ money. Charges dismissed.’’

  He rapped the top of the desk with a wooden hammer, although the sound could hardly be heard above a shriek of happiness from Katie and her uncle Ward’s whoops as he hurried up to congratulate his brother.

  The judge didn’t seem to share everyone else’s enthusiasm.

  ‘‘Next time you haul me out here, Sheriff,’’ he said, ‘‘make sure I don’t waste my time with a case that’s going to be dropped. This was an unnecessary trip for me to make.’’

  As he left his room in his long black robe, everyone else gathered around my papa and Mr. Roscoe.

  ‘‘Oh, thank you, Mr. Roscoe!’’ exclaimed Katie, jumping up from her chair and running over to give the rancher a hug. ‘‘We’ll pay you back all of the money, just as soon as we can!’’

  Flustered at Katie’s show of emotion, the rancher hemmed and hawed a little as Katie stepped back. Both Katie’s uncle Ward and my papa now offered their hands.

  ‘‘I want to thank you too,’’ said my papa. ‘‘And she’s right, Roscoe. I meant what I told you.’’

  ‘‘And I’ll get you that other hundred within a week,’’ added Katie’s uncle Ward.

  ‘‘Well, I want to talk to the two of you about the money,’’ said Roscoe. ‘‘I been thinking a lot about it, and I reckon that if the two of you believe in Daniels enough to give every cent you’ve got—’’

  He glanced at Katie and her uncle Ward.

  ‘‘—and if he’s given me an apology and a shake of his hand to back it up, then maybe I oughta practice what I preach and take him at his word. I reckon trust has gotta start somewhere. And there’s one other thing too—’’ he said, then paused again.

  It was silent as they all waited.

  ‘‘The three of you’ve shown that you’re willing to accept responsibility for what happened,’’ he went on after a minute. ‘‘You’re willing to buy back the land and give me back every penny. But that’s got me thinking, and I’ve got to look at my own side of it too. You can’t con a man who doesn’t want something that maybe he ain’t altogether entitled to. If I hadn’t been so greedy, Daniels, you’d have never been able to swindle me. People who get conned are usually trying to get something for nothing. The gold did go to my head,’’ he said, turning to Katie’s uncle Ward, ‘‘just like I told you. That was my own fault. I should have known there couldn’t be gold on that land. You only made me believe what I wanted to believe. I got no one to blame but myself. I gotta take my own share of the responsibility for what happened.’’

  He paused again.

  ‘‘So what I’m proposing is this,’’ he said. ‘‘Let’s us split the difference for what happened right down the middle. You give me five hundred and I’ll keep the land, and we’ll call it square.’’ ‘‘That’s a generous offer, Roscoe,’’ said my papa.

  ‘‘No more than what’s fair. You all showed that you want to do right by me. Well, I figure that’s my way of showing I want to do right too. The young lady here’s given me two hundred ten dollars. I hate to take the last of her money, but with the two of you to take care of her, I reckon she’ll be all right. I’m willing to wait for the rest till you harvest your cotton, whenever that may be. Keep your other hundred, Daniels,’’ he said to Katie’s uncle Ward. ‘‘And you keep your deed, Miss Clairborne. I’ll trust you for the rest.’’

  He and my papa shook hands again and I think for the first time they really meant it.

  They all left the courtroom and walked through the building and outside, the sheriff following behind them. My papa said he felt humbled and thankful. He’d never had to depend on people like this before in his life. He’d always figured he could talk his way out of anything that happened. It was humbling, in a good sort of way, to realize how much others cared about him and how much he had to be thankful for.

  ‘‘So, Sheriff,’’ he said, slowing and turning behind him, ‘‘what’s to be done now?’’

  ‘‘Nothing more to be done,’’ replied the sheriff. ‘‘The two of you’ve worked out your differences as far as I can see. The judge is heading back to Baltimore. You’re free to go.’’

  Katie and Deputy Paxton had fallen behind and were slowly walking together back in the direction of the sheriff ’s office.

  ‘‘What are you going to do now?’’ asked the deputy.

  ‘‘I imagine we’ll go home,’’ said Katie. ‘‘I’ll have to talk to my uncles. I want to thank you for your help.’’

  ‘‘Don’t mention it. I enjoyed making the trip with you.’’

  ‘‘Me too. Be sure to give your family my regards.’’

  ‘‘I will. And if you need a place to stay in Baltimore on your way back, I know my mother would be delighted to put you up again.’’

  ‘‘But I’ll be with my uncles.’’

  ‘‘I know. I meant them too.’’

  ‘‘All three of us?’’

  ‘‘Of course. You saw how big our house is.’’

  ‘‘That’s right, I did!’’ laughed Katie.

  ‘‘
My mother loves to have guests. Hospitality is her middle name.’’

  ‘‘It sounds like she should have been a Southerner!’’

  RETURN TO ROSEWOOD

  40

  IT WAS MADDENINGLY DISTRACTING TRYING TO DO anything during those days Katie was gone. I could think of nothing else but wondering when they would get back and when or if I would see my papa again. Emma kept busy with William, and Josepha always managed to find plenty to do in the kitchen and pantry and the rest of the house. It seemed like she had twice as much to do as Katie and I ever had. And Henry too seemed to keep busy in the barn and with the animals, and checking and fixing equipment and hoeing the weeds out of the rows of cotton growing in the fields. The milking and washing and cooking used to take up all my day, and now Josepha was doing so much of it. Even though she needed some help, there still wasn’t as much for me to do as before.

  Sometimes I didn’t know what to do with myself. I helped Henry with the hoeing some. But also I took a few long walks and I prayed more than I think I’d ever prayed before. I couldn’t stand the thought of my papa having to be in jail, no matter what he’d done.

  How many times I must have prayed, ‘‘God, bring him back . . . please bring my papa home!’’ Sometimes I couldn’t pray anything else.

  So when I was walking back toward the house one day from being at Katie’s secret place in the woods, my heart started pounding when I saw three horses, still saddled, standing in the yard.

  I started running toward them. Before I was halfway there, a tall figure, still wearing his hat from the ride, walked out of the kitchen door.

  It was him!

  ‘‘Papa . . . Papa!’’ I cried, running all the faster toward the house.

  He turned toward me, hurried down the three steps of the porch, and ran toward me. Vaguely I saw two or three other people following him outside, but right then I was only looking at him.

  He stopped before I did and opened his arms and I ran straight into them. He clasped me close, and I just stood there happy and content and crying against his chest.