Part 36 (2/2)
”Shoogie, silly! That ain't a mean man. That's- Ouch, Shoogie! You're hurting my arm!”
Shoogie grabbed my other arm! ”Look, Bandershanks! Yonder, comin' this way! More mens! Naw, it's Ned and Little Stray!
Sylvie, too-just a-streakin' 'cross the field. Sylvie must be chasin' a rabbit. Lawd, no! There's a white man chasin' Ned!
Who's that white man, Bandershanks?”
”I can't see n.o.body! Where?”
Then I saw!
”Don't let him get me, Shoogie! Don't let him steal me!”
”Stop, Bandershanks! Come back here! Don't run! Mister Ward'll see us! Be still, still. Scrooch way low!”
We huddled closer together. Closer to the stump.
”Don't breathe, nor nothin'!”
We could hear the dry cornstalks popping like little firecrackers as Ned and Stray and Mister Ward got closer and closer. Shoogie poked her head up to look. I took a quick peep.
”He gonna shoot 'em! Mister Ward gonna shoot!” Two loud blasts! Another! Little Stray darted by. Another blast! Mister Ward kept coming! Shoogie shoved me to the ground! I couldn't see Ned any more.
”Get on your belly and crawl! We's gotta get outta here! To the woods! No, this way! Through the corn!”
The next shot whizzed right over our heads!
Mister Ward yelled, ”O, G.o.d!” He was right at us!
Shoogie jumped up, jerked me up, and darted back toward the woods. Then she whirled to go the other way.
”No, Shoogie! Not this way!”
We ran smack into Mister Ward! It knocked him down! We fell too, but he didn't reach out and catch at me or Shoogie! He just grabbed at his own neck, pulled himself up against our hiding stump, and cried ”O, G.o.d” again. Shoogie rolled me over so fast my mouth got full of dirt! Before I could spit it out she had us both down in a gully, up again, and headed across the field. She was dragging me every step. Cornstalks. .h.i.t me in the face. They were hitting her too, but she wouldn't slow up.
”Shoogie, wait and see what they're gonna do!”
”No! We don't care what they gonna do! We gotta get outta here!”
”I can't run so fast, Shoogie!”
”We's gotta get back to that rail fence and that hickor'nut tree! Bandershanks, pick your feets up high! That's the way to run fast!”
It seemed we were running and stumbling through all the cornstalks in the whole world, but Shoogie didn't care. She went streaking on.
When Shoogie finally did slack down and turn my hand loose, she began whispering to me as if she were starting a secret she didn't want even the high weeds to hear.
”Don't you dare tell Mister Jodie, Bandershanks! Don't tell your Papa Mister Ward done come back. Don't never let that mean white man's name roll 'cross your tongue. Not never!”
”Shoogie, my papa-”
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