You did what?”
Callie knew her mother was waffling somewhere between shock and fury as she tried to take in what her daughters were telling her. The three of them stood around the kitchen table with Hepsy and Lily. The unbearable heat had finally broken with a thunderstorm during the wee hours, and rain was pouring down. There would be no work in the fields today, which meant the men could sleep late. Callie’s mother never slept in. She had found Hepsy pacing in the kitchen, frantic with worry, just before Lily arrived. They were both interrogating her when Callie and Emmy came to the kitchen, saw Lily’s predicament, and confessed.
“So you see, Lily didn’t do anything wrong,” Callie said. “She came home from the woods with Emmy and me because we knew it wasn’t safe for her anywhere else with Ryder out there—and mad as a hornet most likely. But don’t blame Emmy. It was all my idea to go down to the Dip. I talked her into it.”
“She didn’t have to try very hard at all,” Emmy said. “I wanted to go.”
“What on earth were you thinking, Callie?” their mother demanded. “Two young women traipsing through the woods at night? Anything could’ve happened. How did you even know how to find that swimming hole in the dark?”
“Well . . . the moon was pretty bright,” Callie said. Nothing under heaven could make her betray her father’s trust and tell her mother about the night hunts. “And I inherited Daddy’s sense of direction. I guess I just remembered from going there with the boys.”
“And you, Emeline?” their mother pressed.
“Oh, Mama, I would’ve been lost as a goose without Callie. She’s the reason—the only reason—we got home safely, all three of us.”
Their mother rubbed her forehead. “Everybody sit down. This standing around is getting on my nerves.”
Everybody took a seat except Hepsy, who poured the coffee first and then joined them. “What ’bout you, Lily?” Hepsy asked. “After all we been doin’ for yo’ protection, you went wanderin’ them woods at night too?”
Lily looked like she might cry any minute. “It was just so hot, Grandmama. I didn’t have any idea that man would be there. Thought I could just cool off for a minute and slip right back to bed without worrying anybody. I didn’t think cousin Juba would even miss me, let alone tell you I was gone. Last thing I ever want to do is worry you—or you, Miss Aurelia. I know you’re right mad at your girls, ma’am. But if they hadn’t been there, well . . . I believe we all know what woulda happened to me. I can’t swim. Wasn’t nowhere for me to go but back to the riverbank, and there he’d be. If I’d defended myself, he could’ve had me thrown in jail or worse.” She looked at Callie and Emmy. “I’ll go to my grave thankin’ God they were in those woods. They did what I’m not allowed to. That’s why they were there. They were sent to fight when it took all I had not to. Grandmama taught me a long time ago what to do when men get out o’ hand. But if I’d done that on the riverbank, I would’ve brought down all kinds o’ trouble on my family.”
Callie’s mother leaned back in her chair and sighed. “Of course we’re all thankful that you were not harmed, Lily. And if my girls had something to do with keeping you safe, I’m grateful they were there.” She looked across the table at Callie and Emmy. “But I am not done with you two. If I ever hear of you pulling a stunt like that again, I promise you before all that’s holy, you’ll regret it. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Mama,” Emmy and Callie said together.
“Now,” she went on, “to Lily’s situation.”
“It ain’t right y’all so mired up in this,” Hepsy said, staring at her coffee. “Something to worry this house just about ever’ day. The girls runnin’ through the woods at night. Mighta got hurt or worse. It ain’t right, Miss ’Relia. This got to end.”
“What’s not right is letting this get so out of hand because I didn’t want to bother Ira with it,” Callie’s mother said. “We are beyond that now. I’ll have him speak in no uncertain terms to Ryder and let him know, face-to-face, that I will not have the workings of my house dictated by a selfish, useless popinjay—and that his unwelcome presence on our farm will henceforth be met with a shotgun. Lily, I think, should stay closer to the house until the baby comes. And then we can find a better situation for her. I just need to determine where she might stay.”
“What about the old kitchen, Mama?” Emmy asked. When it was first built, the Bullock house had a separate kitchen in the backyard where all the meals were prepared. It was a measure taken to protect the house from kitchen fires. When Callie’s father remodeled the house for his wife, he had a brand-new kitchen built onto the back, leaving the original cookery building empty but still standing. The girls had made it their playhouse when they were little.
“You think it’s suitable?” their mother asked.
“Not as it is,” Emmy answered. “But I think Fisher could make it work just fine. The old woodstove is still there. It was big enough to feed an army in its day. I’m sure it can keep the building warm when the time comes. Lily can fix herself plates from our kitchen at mealtime, just like Hepsy does, so she needn’t worry with cooking out there. It just needs a good cleaning and a few repairs, which Fisher can certainly handle. Then a little furniture, which I’m sure we have in the attic.”
Their mother nodded as she listened. “Hepsy, what do you think?”
“Seem like a awful lotta trouble for y’all to go to,” Hepsy said.
“Lily needs a safe place to have her child so that she can get on with her life,” their mother insisted. “I cannot imagine going through those nine months worrying about my personal safety on top of all the other trials that come with bringing a baby into the world. Lily will not be tormented during this time of preparation. I simply will not have it. I’ll speak to Ira this evening so we may get started right away. Girls, I entrust you with selecting furniture from the attic. Fisher and one of the field hands can move it for you. I’ll have your father arrange it.”
“Yes, Mama,” Callie and Emmy said.
Their mother stood up from the table. “That’s settled. Now let’s be about breakfast for the men.”
As she followed her mother and sister out of the kitchen, Callie turned to tell Lily that everything would be alright. But Hepsy was holding her tight. Callie kept silent and let them be.