by Lisa Glenn
“Hey, what’s going on?” Daniel asked from behind me, walking into the clearing.
I was so relieved to see him I almost kissed his feet. “José is sick. I think he might have swallowed some snake poison. He’s really hot, and I don’t know what to do!” My gut tightened. All I could think about was what if he dies out here with just us?
“First things first. We need to try and get him cooled down." Daniel rushed over and picked him up. He carried him over to the stream and laid him down in it.
On his knees in the water Daniel demanded, “José, open your mouth.”
I frowned. What in the world? What could possibly be in José’s mouth? I saw him rinse it out myself.
Daniel held José’s mouth open. Using one finger, he poked around inside. I watched as Daniel frowned and shook his head. He looked back at me worriedly.
“José is poisoned alright, but not from just snake-juice...he has an abscessed tooth.”
“Oh, is that all!” I grinned, not getting it. The relief I felt was instant, and I let out a breath that I'd been holding.
Daniel’s frown deepened as he shook his head. “You're not understanding me, Shelby, that’s not good. The snake apparently was indeed of a poisonous variety and the venom got inside his abscess. It just kicked up into high gear.”
My relief bursts like a bubble. “Oh no, what can we do? Will he die?” Then as an accusation, “I thought you said it wasn’t poisonous, Daniel.”
“It’s not, unless you have something like an abscess exposed to it. Darn it! I should have known.”
“How could you have?”
“He confided in me yesterday that his tooth was hurting him. He thought maybe it was his punishment for stealing a candy bar,” Daniel said a little sadly.
“Why didn’t he say anything to me?” I asked, hurt. I thought I was his best friend. I shook off the question when I saw Daniel's mouth open to answer. It didn't matter right now.
“What are we going to do? I don’t know anything about sickness. My momma always gave me pills.”
Daniel didn't hesitate. “Go get me some burned charcoal pieces out of the fire...hurry."
I shook my head, puzzled. “Why?” I couldn’t figure out what in the blazes he needed burned wood for.
“Just do it and hurry! I have an idea.”
I went to the spot where José had built the fire last night and dug around for some pieces of burned wood. I brought them back over to Daniel. He took them from me and smashed them up in his hand, then added some water and mixed it into a soupy mess.
He propped José up a little. “Open your mouth, buddy.”
José’s mouth fell open, and Daniel shoved the stuff inside. He moved his fingers around inside his mouth, rubbing vigorously back and forth on his gums. José gagged and almost bit Daniels finger off.
“That stuff is awful!” José garbled weakly.
“It’ll soak up that abscess and poison, my friend.” He turned to me, “Shelby, we need to get to the closest town. I know we agreed that we would never trek through a big city, but we're going to need to go through Denver. We need to get him some medicine.”
“But how? We don’t have any money.”
“They have free clinics in bigger cites. We’ll find one. Trust me, okay?”
I bit my lower lip anxiously. “How are we going to take him? He can’t walk that far, being sick and all.”
Daniel sighed. “You’re right. You stay here with him, and I'll go. I'll move faster by myself. You'll be okay by yourself with him.”
No, I wouldn't, my head argued, then out loud, “Yes, of course, I will,” I lied. I wasn’t going to admit to him I was scared. What if José were to die on me, and me with no shovel to bury him with? I shivered. He’s not going to die. I was talking myself into the crazies. No problem, I can do this.
Daniel pulled José half in and half out of the stream.
He laid his hand on my shoulder. “Listen, I’ll hurry. Just try to keep the cold water on him. He'll be fine, Shelby.”
“You promise?” I asked him. I needed some reassurance that everything was going to be okay. I felt if Daniel said it was going to be okay; then it would be.
“Yes... I promise, cross my heart.” He drew an imaginary X across his breast.
I forced a smile and nodded my head.
I used one of my t-shirts and soaked it with the cold water. I dribbled it over José’s forehead, watching as it trickled over the sides of his face. I placed the shirt on his head until it heated, then repeated the process all over again. I kept his feet in the water. Daniel said heat originated at the feet. Ha...like I believed that one. It seemed my feet were always cold.
He was so tiny lying there. The sun was beating down on my head, so I decided it was my turn to get cool. I waded out and squatted just enough to get wet, and then went back to José.
My stomach rumbled out a warning that it was time to find something to eat. I scrounged around in José’s backpack looking for a half-eaten candy bar or one of the bags of nuts we had picked up but came up empty. Taking out his little hook and spring, I tied it to a limb like he taught me to and went scrounging for some bait. I dug some holes near the marshy area of the pond and found some small worms, carefully hooking a few on a small hook and tossed it in. There was a time not too long ago when even the idea of skewering a squirmy worm to a hooked needle would have turned me green, but not anymore.
I waited patiently, keeping one eye on the pole for any signs of twitches and the other on José, who seemed to be sleeping now. It wasn’t long before I had caught a small catfish, then another. I ran back and forth from the pole to soaking José with the cold water, making sure to dribble some of the water in his mouth, as well.
I had to build a fire to cook the little buggers. I watched José do it a million times, so figured how hard could it be? I gathered the limbs and placed them in the same spot as he had done last evening then picked up two sticks and rubbed them together. It didn’t work. I tried again. Still didn’t work. I couldn't for the life of me figure out what I was doing wrong. I went in search of more sticks, trying those instead, thinking maybe I had picked 'faulty' sticks the first time or something. It still didn’t work. I stopped my foot in frustration.
“Shelby?” José groaned.
I ran over to him grabbing the shirt from off his forehead and soaked it again.
“I’m right here, José.”
“I’m sorry to be such a pain in your butt.”
“You’re not,” I said, my heart all but breaking. “Are you hungry? I caught some fish,” I stated impishly.
He tried to grin, “Nah, but thanks anyway. Maybe later.”
“Okay. Hey, José? How did you get the fire to work?” I asked sheepishly.
“With my lighter,” he said quietly.
“Oh." I felt chagrined. Now I remembered...he didn't rub the sticks together, he used them to light the rest of the wood. I was only paying half-attention so forgot this rather important piece of information.
"Where is it?”
“In my pocket.”
“Hmmm,” I frowned. His pants were totally soaked by now. I got up and wandered back to the sticks. I heard that sushi was good.
Thankfully, I didn’t get to try any of that delicacy. After many attempts, the sticks finally started to smoke, and then as I had piled dry leaves around like a little teepee, it finally caught. I built the fire up and after cleaning them, (another José lesson I learned) I stabbed both fish with skinny branches and placed them over the makeshift grill José had set up. After they had been thoroughly cooked, I offered some to José, but he wouldn’t eat. I ate a few bites, feeling guilty the whole time. All I could think about was José stealing that candy bar because he had been hungry.
José was sick through the night and all the next day. He still wouldn’t eat. I helped him up once to do his business. I dug a hole and splayed two limbs across as a potty for him to use. I left him by the tree to allow his privacy,
counting the seconds before I might have to check on him to make sure he was okay and hopefully not catch him doing, 'Number Two', thus embarrassing him. He saved me from this though by calling out to me when he was finished.
He never asked me to help him after that; he just wet his pants. I could smell it and knew how embarrassing it felt by my own, personal experience. I knew it had nothing to do with his pride...he was simply too weak to make the trip, which told me that if Daniel didn't come back, and soon...it may be too late.
I drug him back and forth in and out of the creek-bed and let him lie there for a while to both refresh and clean him up a little. He didn’t mind and sighed contently every time I placed him in the cool water. If José had been any bigger, there would have been no way I could have done this. This was one of the times I was thankful he was so small. Sometimes I would still forget he was older than me, but now that didn't factor in, whatsoever. He was more like a brother than an age.
Daniel made it back on the third day his arms loaded with medicine. He had both liquid and pills and gave both to José. When I asked how he got them, he just smiled and said, “Remember my trick?”
I nodded saying nothing. My only thought was; I’m falling in love with him.
Chapter Thirteen
Train Ride
We stayed at our camp for three more days while José slowly recuperated. It didn't take long before he was back up on his feet, (wobbly as his legs were) and making his own bathroom visits. It seemed to me he made these trips about every ten minutes and when I voiced my concerns to Daniel about this, he just smiled and assured me that it was only a side effect of the antibiotics and would pass. It was a good thing, too...the leaves we had to use seemed to be dwindling in supply faster than they could fall.
It was after this period when José got strong enough to continue that we left. We traveled at a faster speed because of the days we had lost. I glanced over at my boys, my boys... in a different light. We were a team, no doubt about that fact, now more than ever. For the first time in my young life, I felt like I had a true family. These boys were my family, and of course, Oreo, our little egg provider. We got back to our routine of traveling at night and resting in the day and kept close to the highways and interstates, unless we had to bypass a big city. Then we kept to country roads.
One evening I could have sworn on the Holy bible I saw the familiar maroon Chrysler pulled over at a rest stop. We usually stopped and washed up at these rest areas, but not this one. I told the boys it wasn’t a good idea, and we kept to the tree line behind the brick building. José didn’t think it could possibly be the same one, but I knew better. I remembered that scratch on the left side.
It was hot. Sweat was pouring a steady stream down my face and into my eyes. Even my palms were wet. I was burning up, having trouble breathing. The air was thick inside the car. All the windows were rolled up tight. The doors were locked, and I screamed...
“Shelby are you okay?” Daniel asked.
I shook myself. I looked at them both noticing the worry on their faces.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I was just remembering when I had put that scratch on the door.” The punishment for that was one I will never forget.
****
One late afternoon we had stopped in a small farming town. A large cart full of fruit and vegetables being towed by a lady was parked alongside the road. She had on a large, straw hat cocked to the side on her head, and was sitting on the back of the truck’s tailgate. Daniel walked up and asked her if she had any bruised ones that she might be kind enough to give us. She nodded and said as a matter of fact, she did indeed have a few. She put some in a bag and handed them to him. We thanked her, and after we had traveled down the road a bit, we opened and looked inside.
Daniel pulled out three large peaches. He handed one to José and me and took the last for himself. I didn’t see any bruises anywhere on the fruit. I asked José if he had any on his, to which he held it up, inspecting it with a half-interested eye, (he already having eaten about half of it) and proclaimed through a full mouth he didn’t see any either. I smiled at Daniel who smiled back in a, See? There are still some good people in the world! kind of way.
We walked along the railroad tracks singing bawdy songs, making up the lyric as we went.
“Old Jack Horner, sat in a corner, eating his corn and dogs, when up came a spider, and bit him on the finger...”
We were off-key and terrible, but we didn’t mind. The worse the lyrics were, the harder we laughed. The sun was beginning to go down when I heard the whistle of the sound of a train.
We all three got this kind of excited look in our eyes. I guess we were all thinking the same thing. We were going to jump a train.
Daniel grinned down at José, “Are you up for a new adventure?”
José laughed, “As long as it’s a good one.”
I knew I could run fast and jump high, but how was José ever going to make it?
Daniel handed Oreo over to me. “Put him in your pack, Shelby.
I nodded. I watched Daniel pick up José and swing him onto his back. “Hold on, buddy. Don’t let go unless you want to meet up with us in a month or so.”
José scoffed and bopped Daniel on the head, knowing he was kidding. They were the Three Musketeers plus one bird, after all.
I tucked Oreo inside my backpack.
“Get ready!” Daniel yelled. The train was getting closer. We could see it now as it came around the bend behind us. We stepped back. The wheels hissed and squeaked as the train braked slowly, then stopped.
I looked at Daniel and caught his eye. He frowned. He was probably wondering the same thing as I was‒why did it stop? There wasn’t anything here. We watched as some men got out and opened one of the boxcars. I laughed when I saw cows were being led down the ramps out into the field beyond. They must belong to some farmer.
This was perfect. Now we had an empty car to travel in. When the men were preoccupied, Daniel, José, (who was still attached to his back) and I snuck in and crept to the back far corner where it was dark and there were some wooden pallets to hide behind in case one of train guys decided to look in.
“We did it!” José squealed
“Yes, we did!” Daniel patted him on the back.
I took off my pack and reached for Oreo. I was sure he would love this place. There certainly was enough cow-poop in here, which meant bugs and for him, that translated to a feast.
We quieted as the sound of muffled voices came closer followed by the sound of the doors being slid closed, shrouding us in darkness. I heard a whistle blow again, and the train slowly began rolling out.
I closed my eyes, letting the motion of the ride rock me to sleep. We rode the train until the next stop. Daniel said we couldn’t ride on the train too far, as more than likely they would be picking up another load of cows or something and thus blowing our cover. I agreed, so when we stopped we jumped out, but not before it took all three of us to get the boxcar doors open. Once we did, at first panicking a little that they might be locked from the outside, (thankfully they weren't...just rusty) we quickly jumped and ran.
We landed in another small town. We had to ask a man on the street where we were.
“Mississippi,” he stated with his Southern drawl.
Wow, it sure didn’t feel like we had traveled six-hundred miles on the train. Daniel figured it was probably just being in almost total darkness that messed with our inner clocks. We made up for our lost days and then some. I looked over the map. The town we were in was about the same as the last, being it was small with old wooden buildings adorning the main street. It looked like an old western town, and if a carriage pulled by horses happened by, I probably wouldn't have blinked an eye. We kept to the back roads and walked along a creek bed, traveling southeast.
We were getting close, and my stomach was tying up in knots now.
Chapter Fourteen
Moonshine
“Look.” José pointed to what looked like a silver
set of jugs on sticks.
Daniel held José back. “Don’t go over there, José. That’s stuff for grownups.”
“What is it?” José, as always, was too curious to stay away. He ducked under Daniel’s arm and ran over to the stands.
I walked at a slower pace. I really didn’t care what it was, but the closer I got, the cooler it looked. A large metal jug sat on one end, and a copper tube ran around it like a crazy straw, ending up in another jug.
“Moonshine!” José exclaimed. “This here is moonshine. It’s what the back-wood folks call Devil-Juice. They make this stuff and then sell it.”
Daniel almost slapped José's hand when he tentatively reached out. “Don’t mess with it. The guys who made this stuff will be back to get it, and I don’t think we need to be here when they do.” Daniel backed up and glanced around wearily.
“I’ve never tried it before. I want to. Who’s with me?” José asked, looking right at me.
I have never consumed a lick of alcohol before in my life. I saw what it did to Jack and wanted no part of that. “I don’t think so, José.”
“Oh, come on ya big babies, just a taste. I dare you!”
He dared me. Well, darn it to hades. I can’t back out of a dare.
I glared at him. “One sip, that’s all!”
“Shelby don’t listen to him,” Daniel pleaded.
I grinned over at him, “Sorry Danny boy, but a dare is...well, a challenge. Once a dare is made, I can’t chicken out.” I glanced at Oreo, "No offense."
José found a small tin cup sitting on a stump next to the fifty-two-gallon jugs. He pulled off the copper hose and held it over the cup. What followed was a steady, drip, drip, drip.
“Is that all? That'll take forever to fill up. No wonder they left it out here!” I muttered.
José sat the cup down. “Hold this,” he said. During all this, Daniel just stood back, shaking his head.
I held the copper tube, while he tried to lift the jug. It was too heavy for him, so we switched places. I lifted the jug and poured a cup. It was clear like water, but the smell cleared the sinuses and burned my eyes.