Family

Chapter 7

 We jus' stare at the barn air for a while. The horses inside their areas 'cause we gotta harvest today. Pa want them rested so he can use 'em if needed. They help carry heavy baskets of vegetables for Pa. Me and Mack gotta carry 'em up ourselves.

"Ya gotta get ya excercise for today," he tell us when he first had us help him. He don't see us put the basket down on the way to the storage shed. There rocks along the way we can rest on. He don't like us resting though. We alway gotta keep moving when he looking.

Mack jump when Pa shout our names. He rush to get his stuff for harvesting. I watch as he do this. "Come on, Annie, we gotta help Pa now."

"I know. I jus' watchin ya run for the man."

"I ain't running for the man."

"Then what ya running for?"

"For sleeping in my bed and not the room." I jus' nod and look as he run to the field. Then I grab my stuff and follow him. Pa standing there with his tools in his hands and baskets next to him. He waiting for us. Jus' starin at our path. Mack get there 'fore me. He don't look at Mack when he get next to him. He keep looking at me. I jus' get to work. Starting in one row of harvest. Mack go to the next row, and Pa go to the one after that. For hours we jus' work silently. Pulling vegetables and putting 'em in baskets.

Ma call us in for dinner when it start to get dark. Me and Mack put our tools in the barn and go inside together. Pa wanna finish his row 'fore going in. Me and Mack finish ours a while ago. We help Pa with his for a while. He let us go in for dinner, e'en though we can't eat without him.

When we get inside Ma ask for help with setting the table. Me and Mack look at each other, worried. Ma alway have the table set 'fore we get inside. She run 'round e'erywhere. She getting the nice plateware. "Ma, what happening tonight," I ask.

"What ya mean?" I don't say nothin' just stare at her as she continue run 'round. Mack don't ask nothin', he jus' do as she need with no stop. I start to follow his lead and get the table ready 'fore Pa get inside.

When Pa finally come in, we sit at the table and eat. Ma and Pa talk like they do e'ery night. And us children sit silently. All I think during it is 'bout Ma. Why she look nervous now? She ne'er nervous 'bout nothing. What happening that she scare 'bout?

Mack see I thinking 'bout something that got me worried. He look at me jus' as worried. I wonder if he thinking 'bout the same thing. We jus' eating and thinking. After dinner Pa tell us we mus' go downstairs after cleaning. Another night without reading. What happening? Ma look scare again. Something gonna happen tonight. Something gonna change and Ma don't like it.

We follow Pa's instructions and we go downstairs. There shouting upstairs. Ma asking Pa not to do what he planning. "I don't want a-" I hear him hit her. Claire, Megan, and Sam pause the game they playing. Mack look at me. His eyes fill with tears. He scared and I can't stop it. I can't make Pa stop hitting Ma. And I can't make Ma stop yelling at Pa. I stuck down here with four scared siblings and I can't do nothin' 'bout it. I tell the three sitting on the floor it time to sleep. "But I not tired," Megan told me.

"I know, but it late." I jus' want 'em to sleep so they don't hear what happening upstairs. They too young to hear 'em fight. They too young to know what e'en happening. "Jus' get ready for bed." They don't fight with me no more. They jus' do as I ask. I tuck each of 'em. Mack jus' stand away and watch. We wait for 'em all to go to sleep. We sit in silent listening to the argument upstairs. Then he whisper, "I wanna go up there and make her stop." I nod. I don't know what to say. Of course I wanna do the same, but he know that. He mus' know that. "Why she keep fighting," he ask.

"I don't know."

"Why he send us down here?"

"I don't know."

"What they fighting about?"

"I don't know, Mack," my voice get louder. I stop 'fore I wake anyone. I lower my voice back to a whisper. "I ask the same things, Mack. I ain't got the answers. I wish I did so it be easier, but I ain't got 'em."

"Why this happening to us? We ain't done nothin'."

"I don't know and I don't think we e'er know." He nod with tears falling. Then he move himself to his bed. I follow him and tuck him in. He still crying. "I ain't gonna let this continue," I whisper to him. He smile and turn his head into his pillow.

I walk to the bottom o' the stairs and stand looking at the door. They still fighting, but I can't hear what they saying. It all jus' mumbles for me. I walk up the stairs quietly. Trying to hear better. I don't hear it all, but I hear enough.

"I gonna see her tomorrow. I gonna make a plan get her," I hear Pa say.

Ma tell him, "I thought we done after Claire."

"We ain't done until I say we done."

"When ya gonna say we done? When we dead?"

"If ya don't want her, I raise her myself."

"How ya gonna do that? You ain't the one that cleans and cooks. Ya ain't e'en the one who teaches 'em nothin'"

"I teach 'em to work."

"But working ain't living."

He don't say nothin for a while. I thought he walk away until I hear him say, "I gonna get her whether ya want her or nah."

"Ya gonna need to give her a bed and a chair at the dinner table."

"I know. Tomorrow I gonna get her a bed, and I been making a chair in the barn."

I hear Ma turn and leave Pa where they were. She don't say nothin' or turn back 'round. Jus' walk to their bedroom and shut the door. It stay silent for the rest o' the night. No one say nothin' no more. They say what they had to say and left each other alone for the night.

I go back to my bed once I hear Pa walking the path as Ma did. Right when I lay down, I fall asleep. The light ain't e'en off yet. We all jus' asleep 'fore we had to. All laying in bed, but only one o' us know what Ma and Pa planning. I glad it me and not Mack. He jus' be sad and not sleep. I can sleep with it. Jus' like tonight.