Doing her best not to muss her dress or hair, Annie Mae leaned on the livestock pen holding Daisy. “I know it’s a long shot, but I have to win first place in this pageant. You have to win in your division without Pa selling you.” She sighed. “A person can’t win for losing, can they? We need you to win, but the thought of you being sold rips my heart out. With Marcus … gone, this is my way of helping. I can’t work the fields or slaughter livestock like he could.”
She straightened and pasted on a smile as Pa entered the tent. “Is it time?” Her heart thudded like the engine on a locomotive.
“Yes.” He drew her into a hug. “Don’t worry. You’re the prettiest girl in the county and can sing like an angel. The judges will love you. Besides, all you have to do today is smile. You’re only being introduced and telling a bit about yourself.”
“I’m still as dry mouthed as a man in the desert.”
“Then it’s a good thing you don’t have to sing.” He laughed and led her to the tent where the pageant would take place.
Ignored by the other contestants, Annie Mae made her way to the front of the makeshift stage. She peered through the curtains. At least fifty people sat on hay bales. Behind the judge’s table sat the head of the school board, Mr. Washington; the banker, Mr. James; and … Jonathan? Why Jonathan? The others were prominent members of the community, not hog farmers. She grinned. She might have a chance of winning after all.
Nine other girls, all dressed in their best, lined up behind the curtain, sneaking peeks at one another. Annie Mae forced herself to stare straight ahead. She wouldn’t allow herself to get drawn into any pageant drama.
She pasted on a smile as the curtains opened with a soft rustling and stared into the serious face of Jonathan. He lowered his head and wrote something on the sheet in front of him.
Mama had said they would be judged on poise, beauty, talent, and their vision for the future. Annie Mae had no vision for the future other than helping her parents. With the depression in full swing, a few of their neighbors had sent their children away because they couldn’t afford to feed them. She could not let that happen to little Robby and Lulu.
For days she’d thought on what she would say when asked that all-important question and still had no more idea of what to say than she had then. She closed her eyes and prayed. When her name was called, she stepped forward, prepared now for whatever the judges would ask, and wiped her sweaty hands subtly on the skirt of her dress.
Mr. Washington smiled. “State your name and age, please.”
“Annie Mae Thompkins, eighteen.”
“Your talent?”
“I’ll be singing.”
“Answer this question to the best of your ability, please, Miss Thompkins. In today’s troubled times, those with plenty need to step up and help the less fortunate. How do you intend to help your community?”
Annie Mae was prepared for this one. “Matthew 25:40 says, ‘And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.’” Tears clogged her throat, but she forced herself to go on. “Neighbors are losing their homes, land that has been in their families for generations, sending their babies to live with relatives who are better off, or sending them to orphanages. Our young men are leaving and seeking work elsewhere.” She avoided Jonathan’s gaze. “My goal is to help prevent this from happening to the community of Rabbit Hollow.”
“This is quite the undertaking. How do you anticipate helping?” Mr. James cocked his head.
“Hard work and perseverance, sir. Food drives through the church, fund-raisers, to name a few.”
“I have a question,” Mr. James said, raising his hand. “What is your personal goal for your future? Do you hope to marry someday?”
“No, sir. I plan to stay where I am and help my family in the absence of my brother.”
“Thank you, Miss Thompkins, you may step back.”
On trembling legs, yet feeling proud of herself, Annie Mae returned to her place in line. Prayer had helped, just as Pa had told her many times. Now if only she could remember his words the next time she was insecure and worrying herself sick.
Once the girls had all answered their questions, each question different, they filed off, still smiling, to the backstage area. Once there, they were collected by their family members.
Pa crooked his arm for Annie Mae to slip her hand in and led her to the truck. “You did well, daughter. Very well.”
“Thank you. They’ll post by tomorrow night each girl’s standing in the pageant.”
“You’ll be in first place. I guarantee it.” He tucked her hand close. “Our family is in fine standing with all of the judges. Now, if Horace Smithson was a judge … well, you know how we’ve not gotten along since we both competed for your mama’s hand. Not that the judges aren’t fair, they are, but with your face and voice … well, you’re bound to win.”
“I was expecting him, actually. I wasn’t expecting Jonathan.”
“The committee wanted a common man, and the Mercer farm is one of the largest in the county. Since Frank is injured, they asked Jonathan to fill in.”
“I was surprised to see him there.”
Pa opened the truck door. “It betters your chances, doesn’t it? The young man cares for you very much.”
“I want to win, Pa, but I want to win fairly.” She raised her gaze to his. “I know the pageant is a popularity contest, but if I found out Jonathan fixed it so I would win—”
“I’m talking out of my ears. I’m that nervous for you. Of course you’ll win on your own merits.”
She hoped so, she really did. With the pageant and Daisy, she was sure to make her pa proud.
Annie Mae didn’t want to get married? Jonathan shook his head as he gathered his score sheets. That was practically unheard of in Rabbit Hollow. He’d heard the murmurings of the other judges and had hoped Annie Mae would glance his way so he could give her a warning look. Her first question had impressed the judges; the second most likely lost her points.
But he couldn’t worry about that now. He had a farm to run.
After heading to the livestock tent and checking on Belle, he drove home to begin work that would take him well past dark. He’d accomplished a lot that morning, but judging the pageant cut into his day.
“I’ve kept your supper warm,” Ma called as he pulled in front of the house.
“I’ll eat later. I still need to feed the hogs.”
“Your brother did that. Come eat and tell me how the first leg of the pageant went. I’ve been waiting all evening.”
Jonathan planted a quick kiss on her cheek. “How’s Pa?”
“I’m fine, boy. Stop treating me like an invalid.” Pa scooted to a sitting position on the bed Jonathan had moved to the living room after returning home a few weeks ago.
Jonathan met his mother’s exasperated gaze. “See how my days go?” she said. “It’s like having another child. Sit.” She hurried to the oven and pulled out a plate, setting it in front of Jonathan.
“The girls were lovely,” he said, crumbling a slice of corn bread into his milk. “Annie Mae Thompkins told the judges she didn’t want to get married.”
“Why would she say such a thing?” Pa’s brow furrowed. “I thought you wanted to court her?”
“I never said that.” Jonathan dipped his spoon into the beef stew on his plate.
“I don’t see anything wrong with her comment. Things are changing. More and more women are choosing a career over marriage. It’s time Rabbit Hollow caught up with the times. I heard Annie Mae sent a poem to a big city magazine. Maybe she’ll be a writer. Nothing wrong with that.” Mom sat in a chair across from Jonathan.
“But it probably lost her points, and I was hoping she would win the pageant to replace the money she thinks she would have won with her quilt. Now she’s entered her hog and hopes to win first place. The community expects our young girls to be wives and mothers.”
“That’s not something you can help with, son.” Pa shook his head. “There’s no way she will win over Belle.”
He knew that, and Pa knew that, but Annie Mae definitely didn’t. If Belle beat Daisy, there would be one more wedge between them.
“Your face shows what’s going on in your head,” Pa said. “Don’t you dare lose unless it’s fair and square. Until I get back on my feet, we need that prize money.”
“I’ve no intention of not winning, Pa.” He’d find another way to keep his promise to Marcus and care for Annie Mae. “Don’t get yourself riled. The doctor said your blood pressure is too high.”
“That’s only because of the pain in my back.”
“Okay, Pa.” Jonathan finished his supper and headed to the barn.
While he mucked stalls, he went over and over in his mind how to help the Thompkins family. Charity wouldn’t do—not that the Mercers had much to give, not with Pa’s mounting medical bills. Before her answer to Mr. James’s question, he’d thought maybe proposing marriage to Annie Mae and combining the two farms was the best answer. Now, he had nothing. The first-prize money would only last so long. They needed a more permanent fix to their problems. Something to keep them all afloat until the depression was over.
If Pa wasn’t feeling poorly, Jonathan would see about getting a job at Smithson’s lumberyard. But that would take him away from the farm. Sometimes, he felt as if he were running in mud, going nowhere, and sinking with each step.
Pastor Forrest preached that God would provide. To trust in Him. Jonathan believed in God’s Word, but when he saw more and more people giving up and heading to the big city in hopes of finding a job, his faith faltered. He’d left home once. He didn’t want to do it again, nor did he want to sell the farm and pack up the family.
Suzanne stood in the doorway of the barn wearing her best dress. She twirled, the dress sailing around her knees. “Would I win the pageant if I entered?”
“If you were sixteen.” Jonathan leaned on the shovel. “You’re too young, sweetie.”
She pouted. “They didn’t have the fair last year, and I heard they almost didn’t have one this year. What if they never have one again? I’ll be destined to be nothing more than a wife with ten babies on my hip.”
“There are worse things than being a wife and mother.” Were all the women in Rabbit Hollow soured on their roles? “You can be anything you want to be, Suzanne. If you want to live the life of a beauty queen, there will always be pageants somewhere.”
She tilted her head. “I heard you tell Mom what Annie Mae said. I agree with her. I think I want to go to Hollywood.”
“If you still want to do that in a couple of years, I’ll do my best to help it happen.” Maybe Jonathan was fighting the inevitable. Maybe everyone left home in search of a better future. If so, why struggle to keep something afloat that might be extinct by the time he was an old man?