Part 11 (1/2)
P hilomene heard the whippoorwill call as she patched a frayed s.h.i.+rt collar of Ferrier's in the farmhouse. hilomene heard the whippoorwill call as she patched a frayed s.h.i.+rt collar of Ferrier's in the farmhouse.
She threw aside her mending and hurried into the children's room. Little Josephina was heavy in sleep. Oreline's daughter had settled some in her breathing. The thimbleful of brandy was having an effect. Philomene smoothed the girl's sandy hair from her face, rearranged the blanket, and gave her one last glance. The whippoorwill call sounded again.
She raced to the back door of the farmhouse and saw Clement, tousled and sweaty, waiting for her just beyond the clearing. His s.h.i.+rt had mud splotches down one sleeve, and one leg of his homespun trousers was shorter than the other, but he grinned widely and raised a palm skyward in salute. The upturned palm was an old signal between the two of them from Rosedew. Then it had meant ”I'm here, you're there. But we'll manage to be together later.” Philomene raised her palm in response and broke into a run to him. She hurled herself into his arms.
”I cannot stay away from the house for long,” she said, breathless, looking back anxiously toward the farmhouse. ”The girl has a cold and is sleeping. I gave her a little brandy.”
”I only have a short while myself. I took a detour in making this delivery to M'sieu Narcisse. I took a chance you'd be here.”
”If the little one hadn't gotten sick, that is where I would be now, along with the rest, visiting on M'sieu Narcisse's place,” Philomene said, leaning into Clement. ”Maman went, too. They will not return until after supper.” went, too. They will not return until after supper.”
”I had to see you,” Clement said. His arms around her waist, he lifted her until her feet no longer touched the ground.
”Put me down.” Philomene backed away from Clement, laughing. ”You're wet,” she said, looking up from his bare feet to the waterline at the knee on his trousers. The force of a frisson, a small chill, pa.s.sed through her, and she s.h.i.+vered. ”That leaky boat doesn't belong on the river.”
”I'm good with the boat,” Clement boasted. ”As long as I have bailing gourds, I can outsmart the river every time. M'sieu Tessier doesn't trust anyone else with that one, she's tricky. It saves two hours of walking getting to you.”
Philomene frowned.
”The river was in a playful mood today,” Clement said. ”I scooped more than I rowed.” He caught Philomene around the middle, pulling her close enough to catch the damp smell of the boat's cypress planks on him. ”What mood are you in?”
Philomene couldn't prevent herself from smiling. ”Clement, is that all you think about?”
”Close to it,” he answered with a slow, lazy smile. ”Out in the field when the sun burns, I think of you. In the stable over the red hot anvil, I think of you. At night on my pallet, I think of you. You and the baby. The rest doesn't mean anything.”
”I saw you in a glimpsing last night,” Philomene blurted out, ”and it made me afraid. The glimpsings do not come as strong as they used to, they are more like feelings than pictures now, but I saw your body cold and still, near a river.”
Clement let Philomene go and considered her for a long time. He made a visible effort to shake the mood. ”Death by drowning is a better death than most, but I don't plan on going yet,” he said simply as he stepped forward and held her again. ”At least it won't be smallpox or cholera or yellow jack, or being beaten or starved to death.”
”Should I have told you?” Philomene asked.
”Yes. You can always tell me anything,” Clement said. ”Meanwhile, we're here together. Let's go to the shed. I have something to show you.”
He carried a stack of skins by the bundler's knot in one hand, and with the other he pulled Philomene close to him by the waist as they walked to the toolshed. It was a small shed, barely big enough to hold the plow, hoes, pickaxes, and other tools for the farm, but it had a door, and it was out of the weather.
Clement cleared a narrow s.p.a.ce on the ground, unknotted the bundle, spread one of the bearskins skin side down on the cold, packed ground, and brought another bearskin and put it skin side up on top of the other.
”Get in between. I want you to feel these skins,” he said. ”Nothing is too good for you.”
”Clement, what if they find out you used the skins?”
”They'll never know. Take off your dress first.”
Philomene stepped out of her s.h.i.+ft and crawled into the shelter he had made for them, and Clement shed his wet pantaloons and s.h.i.+rt and followed. Under the bearskins he cupped his hands around her bottom and began to move his hands slowly. ”What do you have for your brown-skinned boy?”
”Please do not make fun of Maman, Maman, Clement. I should never have told you she called you that. She's come around,” Philomene said. ”Listen. Clement. I should never have told you she called you that. She's come around,” Philomene said. ”Listen. Maman Maman went to Madame Oreline about you.” went to Madame Oreline about you.”
She imitated her mother's voice, as if she were talking to Oreline. ”'M'sieu Ferrier is looking mighty tired these days, working out in the field like an animal, putting his hands in the dirt. And we should not be doing all this fieldwork, either. None of us was raised this way. M'sieu Ferrier should have some strong boy out helping him, and Clement is just the one. You should get M'sieu Ferrier to buy him in.'”
”What did Madame Oreline say?”
”That M'sieu Ferrier already went to your M'sieu. M'sieu Tessier does not care to sell.”
”I thought your mother disapproved of your brown-skinned boy,” Clement said, grinning.
”Now what she says is, 'The brown-skinned boy is family.'” Philomene guided his hand to her stomach. ”This changed her mind.”
Clement left his hand there and ma.s.saged her stomach with his fingertips.
”You take too many chances,” Philomene said. ”What if they miss you, or find out you used the skins?”
”They won't. I made good time on the river coming, I have my pa.s.s. I'll head over to M'sieu Narcisse directly and make the delivery, and get back to M'sieu Tessier's without him worrying.”
”What would I do without you?”
”Too much talking,” Clement said, and moved his hand from where he stroked the high ridge of her rounding belly lower. Philomene smoothed out under his touch.
”You make me feel soft as this fur,” she said, sighing. ”Like if I lean, you can hold the weight.”
The strong smell of the tanning chemicals still clung to the skin side, but the softness of the fur was intoxicating.
”In three days we will be married,” Philomene said.
”They put a marrying suit together for me, mostly from M'sieu Tessier's things,” Clement said. ”I'll do you proud.”
”Married by a priest,” Philomene said drowsily.
”Maybe M'sieu Eugene got the priest to come, but that doesn't make it any more legal.”
”It is as legal as we can get it,” Philomene said, her body starting to go tight.
”We can't afford to waste our time arguing. These bearskins need to get where they're going.” Clement used his foot to stroke Philomene's leg and gathered the bearskin closer around them. ”And we need to get where we're going.”
He traced his finger lightly down her cheek, stopping at the corner of her mouth.
”Open the gate, girl.”
Philomene relaxed again and smiled wide, revealing the evenly s.p.a.ced gap between her two front teeth.
”That's my gap,” Clement said, and he kissed her.
”Those are my lips,” Philomene said, touching his mouth.
He unknotted her tignon, tignon, threw it to the side, and used his slim fingers to fluff her long, s.h.i.+ny chestnut hair. ”Like cornsilk,” he said, ”but thick and wavy deep. I could get lost in it.” threw it to the side, and used his slim fingers to fluff her long, s.h.i.+ny chestnut hair. ”Like cornsilk,” he said, ”but thick and wavy deep. I could get lost in it.”