A HARSHER YEAR OF THE YEARLING

 

 

            In an alternate existence, in which the Forresters were far more attentive in their hostility and aggressiveness, and in which they were far less willing to allow months to pass with no further action against those for whom they held grudges, the Baxters and the Huttos suffered far greater than they did here in this reality, although one individual actually benefitted from the changes.

            On the day of the fight, when three angry Forresters returned home to tell their family about the ruckus, and Fodder-wing was enraged at Lem for hitting Jody and knocking him out cold, and Lem was sorely tempted to knock Fodder-wing into a similar condition, Buck and Mill-wheel were not quite fast enough to stop Lem, as they were here. As a result, the knocked-unconscious Fodder-wing was placed tenderly in his bed to recover by his bearded big brothers, and thus did not run away from home, get caught in a torrential downpour, and contract pneumonia. Ergo, the boy did not sicken and die as he did here. But there, the benefits ended.

            The furious Forresters made it a point to haunt the town of Volusia with much greater frequency than normal, spoiling for another fight, and now, all six of them went; nobody wanted to be left out again.

            However, the first Hutto that they came across was Mrs. Hutto. Only a few days had passed since the fight, and as the Forresters entered Boyles' Store, they saw to their unsavory delight that Oliver's mother was already in there. And she was buying a bottle of pain-curer.

            "For Oliver, I reckon," Lem announced loudly and smugly.

            Mrs. Hutto whirled in a huff. "You savages leave me be! And you leave Oliver be!!"

            "How bad's he hurtin'?" Buck smirked unpleasantly.

            "Jest ne' you mind!" Mrs. Hutto hurled back bitterly.

            "Oh, we don't mind at'all," Mill-wheel announced expansively. "In fact, the more Oliver's sufferin', the better we like it." Those three men sauntered casually closer to her as they spoke.

            "You filthy...!" She headed determinedly for the door. "Git outen my way!" she roared.

            But Arch and Pack and Gabby continued to block her exit, grinning at her.

            Mrs. Hutto turned back in fury, ready to give another piece of her mind to the more verbally-tormenting Forresters who had gradually circled around behind her. But her retorts died unspoken as she saw that the more vocal three now surrounded her very closely indeed. "What...??" She hesitated.

            "How you like this?" taunted Buck. "This is 'xactly the way the three of us surrounded Oliver, jest last Saturday." He towered over her to her right.

            "We figgered you might like to see jest how it goed that day." Mill-wheel gazed down at her from her left.

            Lem hovered directly in front of her. "How much of a demonstration wouldja like?" he threatened...or offered; his intention was not entirely clear.

            Flustered, Olivia Hutto sputtered for an instant, and then willed herself to silence. She stood glaring at the big men, but hesitated to further tempt them, not knowing just how bold they might be with their enemy's mother.

            It was Mr. Boyles who spoke up for her. "Fellers, please! She's jest a ol' woman. You cain't mean to beat her, too!"

            "Leave me go!" she fussed, though her voice quavered.

            "Say please," Lem ordered.

            She bit back an angry retort, and gritted her teeth. "Please!"

            Laughing in delight at their ability to humble her, they let her go.

 

            "Hey, Oliver," Lem taunted, peering into the patient's bedroom window.

            Mill-wheel's face appeared alongside his brother's. "My, my! We done a number on you. Your face is all kinda colors, and swelled up like old man Twistle after he stepped on the rattler."

            "Ma!!" the blond screamed in alarm.

            "She ain't here." Buck peeked in on the other side of Lem. "She's still in Boyles' Store, recoverin' from the scare we jest done gave her. You wanta come out for a few more rounds?"

            "Please!! Leave me be!! You-all done 'nough to me!"

            Lem grinned unpleasantly. "Well, since you begged real nice. But we ain't sayin' we're done with you, permanent."

 

            "Easy Ozell!" Lem roared commandingly down the dusty road of Volusia.

            "Wha...what???" the old man stammered as he turned to see the Forresters ranged all around behind him.

            "We heered tell, was you fetched Penny and Jody to pitch into our fight with Oliver last Saturday," Lem accused.

            The six mountainous men continued their approach to the lame, hapless old fellow as he awaited them, trembling.

            Buck added, "Folks say, them two Baxters'd not've knowed 'bout the fight, iffen 'tweren't for you." They moved to surround him.

            "Wha...way...wait!" he begged, with hands raised to symbolically fend off an attack.

            "You hadn't oughta done that," scolded Mill-wheel. Six fists rose.

            Soundlessly, old man Easy Ozell fainted dead away, crumpling to the dusty street.

            Arch mock-complained, "Why, we ain't even got to throw a punch." Then all six of them guffawed.

 

            The Forresters were far more diligent about keeping an eye on the Baxters' hogs that they'd stolen in order to lure the small man and smaller boy to them. Thus, they were there when Penny found the tracks leading to where the men had the hogs penned. As such, Penny avoided the snakebite, only to face something far more unsettling. All six of the Forresters moved in on the two Baxters to give them a renewed beating. Penny faced up to them grimly, admirably concealing his fear. Jody backed off timidly, first hiding behind his father, and then, as his father began to suffer his beating, behind a tree.

            Penny was badly pummeled by the time that the Forresters deigned to take notice of the cowering boy.

            "Not so eager to take us on this time, eh?" Lem challenged.

            Jody could only shake his head in dread.

            Lem moved in on him quickly, caught and easily lifted Jody by the scruff of the neck, and coldly informed Penny, "You got back your hogs; we're takin' your boy in their stead."

            "No," the elder Baxter replied in a hushed tone, anguished at the prospect.

            "Leave you fret on him awhiles." Buck leered.

            Penny pleaded, "Leave him go."

            "You challengin' us?" Mill-wheel demanded.

            "You want more?" Lem showed his fist.

            To Jody, Penny appeared shorter than ever, small and helpless, stoop-shouldered, defeated.

            "S'all right, Pa. I'll go. I'll do as they want."

            Buck eyed the boy critically where he still hung suspended in Lem's grip. "Won't be no frolic like last time you stayed with us, iffen that's what you're figgerin'."

            "I know," Jody admitted softly. He managed to hold back the tears as they carried him off, until he was out of sight of his father, and then he let them flow.

            When they reached Forresters' Island, and dumped him from Lem's horse into the dust in front of their barn, Jody backed slowly away from them as the men dismounted and surrounded him.

            "What're you gonna do to me?" he asked in a very small voice. When no one responded, he gulped and asked, "Are you gonna hurt me bad?"

            Their only answers were grins.

            "I'm afraid," he told them frankly. "I'm afraid of you."

            Their grins widened.

            "Please, kin I see Fodder-wing?"

            "No."

            "Then, kin I see your ma and pa?"

            "You're jest hopin' they'll feel sorry for you and protect you," Mill-wheel surmised derisively.

            Jody nodded mutely, admitting it, with tears again flowing freely.

            Buck moved as if to throw a punch, and then instead reached past the cowering boy and yanked open the barn door instead, and shoved the child in ahead of him. All six of the Forrester men followed, and then shut the door behind them.

            Jody darted behind a hay bale.

            Arch grabbed a rope and went after the boy. Pack joined him, and they bound Jody's hands and feet.

            "You got to tie me??? Ary one o' you could break me in half without even tryin'. All six o' you...!!! And you got to tie me up???"

            Lem responded, "Sure. To make sure you don't run off. We ain't gonna do nothin' to you today. We want you should think on it awhiles."

            "You'll have all night to fret on how bad we'll hurt you," Mill-wheel informed him.

            "We'll beat on you tomorrer," said Buck.

            They left him there on the barn floor, and sauntered casually away from him.

 

            The next morning, Fodder-wing ambled into the barn to feed his pets, and found the bound Jody on the floor. Horrified, he bent to pluck at the ropes. Jody greeted his friend in tremendous relief. The youngest Forrester assured Jody that he'd had no idea that Jody was here. The blond, in turn, reassured Fodder-wing that he'd never doubted for a moment that his friend was not in on such cruelty. The dark-haired, crippled boy had terrible difficulty with the ropes, but at last Jody was free.

            Still, the blond was concerned for his friend. "You'll be in turrible trouble for this."

            "Don't matter," Fodder-wing replied. "They'll not do nothin' too bad to me, unlike to you. Now, leave me go out first, and see iffen none of 'em's lookin'. Then, you kin run. And run fast, Jody, all the way home!"

            Jody escaped without incident, and fled home.

            Fodder-wing sauntered back into the cabin.

            Lem looked at him. "Takened you long 'nough."

            "I was playin' with the rabbit."

            "Uh huh," said Buck, keeping a straight face. "So, you didn't untie Jody?"

            Fodder-wing gasped loudly. The men began to laugh.

            Mill-wheel grinned. "We knowed you'd find him and turn him loose. That was the idea. We jest wanted to scare the very devil outen him."

            Fodder-wing sagged into the nearest chair.

 

            "Jody!" Penny cried, in relief and disbelief. Despite his injuries, he scooped up his young son and cradled him tenderly. Quickly, he interrogated Jody regarding his trauma at the hands of the vicious men, and the manner of his escape from them. Then, he gripped his boy's shoulders, and said, "We gotta hide you! Them wild men'll be back after you, more riled than ever!"

            Even stubborn Ory agreed. Penny and Jody mounted old Caesar, and took off for Volusia. They went directly to the Hutto house, and pounded frantically on the door.

            The Huttos were all too happy to keep Jody for as long as was needed.

            Penny instructed his son, "Now, boy, don't go outside this house for nothin'! Don't leave nobody see you! We don't want nobody to know where you are, in case them devils come 'round, askin'!"

            "Yes, Pa," Jody readily agreed.

 

            Jody had been staying with the Huttos for three days, when a knock came at the door. As planned, the boy dashed into the nearest bedroom and dove beneath the bed. He needn't have bothered. The visitor was old man Easy Ozell, who faced Oliver and Mrs. Hutto even more sorrowfully than usual.

            "I'm powerful sorry to have to tell you this, Oliver. But talk in town is, Lem found Twink where she was hidin', demanded she marry him; she refused, sayin' 'twas you she loved, and he kilt her."

            Mrs. Hutto and Jody tried their best to console Oliver, but he was inconsolable. He was not even healed from his terrible beating, and thus, he had never even seen Twink again, since the fight. And now, he never would. She was gone forever.

 

            At the Christmas doin's many months later, Mrs. Hutto was dancing with her pathetic admirer, Easy Ozell. It was a square dance. When partner changing was called, she happily changed to dancing with Penny, as Penny handed Ory off to Easy in return. Jody was hanging back, trying not to be noticed, and not old enough to be interested in dancing, in any case. Oliver was sitting alone, morosely, not interested in participating in the dance, still acutely missing Twink. The Forresters were raucously participating in the dance. The Baxters and the Huttos were studiously doing their very best to avoid the rowdy men. But, of course, the Forresters could not let that pass.

            Just as partner-changing was called again, Buck appeared by Penny's elbow, and demanded, "My turn." He seized Mrs. Hutto's dainty hands in his powerful ones, and dragged her along with him on the dance-floor.

            "Oh come on, Buck, please!" Penny implored on her behalf, but was ignored.

            "Unhand me, you brute!" she cried.

            Buck complied, but only when Mill-wheel was next available to grab her. The six Forresters made it a point to horrify and humiliate her, by passing her from one to another of them, and forcing her to dance with each one.

            Mrs. Hutto struggled and fussed...until Oliver appeared, and challenged the men to release his mother.

            Sadistically pleased, because this was what they had wanted all along, they, in turn, challenged him to dare to interfere, in exchange for his next beating.

            At that, Mrs. Hutto turned abruptly and warned Oliver away, ordering him, in no uncertain terms, to back off fast.

            Oliver obeyed but sagged: this was what his life would be like from now on, he knew.