Keep Me Safe

Chapter Five

Agnes was foolish to think that she would be able to fall asleep at a normal time. With everything that had happened that day, she would be lucky to fall asleep at all. It was well past midnight now, and she was wide awake.

Since it was summertime, the two windows on the far wall were open. The screen covering them blocked out the bugs, but did not prevent the sweet song of the cicadas from drifting in and filling the room. On any other night, this alone would have put Agnes to sleep in an instant.

But not tonight.

She tossed and turned, contorting her body into every possible position. She tried laying with her feet at the headboard. When that failed, she let the family dog, Argie, onto the bed. That also proved a bust when the terrier decided that he only wanted to play. Her last resort was hanging over the side of the bed and letting her head touch the ground. She abandoned that idea as soon as all the blood in her body filled her head. In the end, she gave up.

The rest of the house was silent. 

Meredith and Ethyl could often be heard through the thin walls arguing. Ethyl and her propensity to sneak out of the house in the middle of the night annoyed Meredith to no end. She spent many nights yelling and barricading the window. Mama and Papa had long since given up trying to interfere. Tonight, however, they were quiet.

The wooden floor creaked wearily under Agnes' bare feet. Her room was small and cramped, but the floor was relatively tidy and she didn't have to worry about tripping over anything in the pitch black. It was a short walk to the door. 

She cautiously stuck her head out into the hallway. Her parents' door was shut and no light was coming from underneath it. There weren't many rules in the Miller household, but Mama and Papa were strict when it came to not getting up and wandering the house in the middle of the night; once you went to bed, you stayed in bed.

Agnes was so focused on watching her step as she went down the staircase that she didn't notice the light coming from the dining room until it was too late. She froze mid-step and instantly sucked in her breath.

The voices were faint, but distinct. Mama, Papa, Floyd, and Lottie were all together in the room talking. Their words were difficult to make out.

Agnes knew it was wrong. She knew she should turn around and head back up to bed before she was caught, but she couldn't help it. Her curiosity got the best of her and she had to eavesdrop.

The last ten steps down the staircase were excruciating. She was terrified that a single creak or moan would give her away. She clung to the banister like it was a life preserver, and her fingers dug into the chipped wood.

She stopped on the last step and pressed her chest against the wall. The dining room was on the other side. She couldn't see them, but she heard everything that was being said.

"This is all my fault. I hate that I'm putting your family in danger because of what I've done," Lottie mumbled. Her voice cracked several times.

"Child, we've gone over this numerous times," Mama soothed. "You walking into to that room was nothing more than bad luck."

"And you shooting those men was nothing more than human instinct," Papa chimed in.

Agnes shoved her fist into her mouth to keep from gasping. Her eyes went wide and she leaned in closer.

Lottie sniveled loudly. "You guys have been too good to me."

"Ma and Pa are good to everyone. That's why I brought you here."

"Any friend of Floyd is a friend of ours. After what he told us about your situation, we just couldn't turn you away."

The room was silent for a minute. The severity of the situation- which was slowly becoming apparent to Agnes- hung in the air like a thick fog.