They was shooting everywhere. Soon as the sheriff went down, they started shooting. Shooting out the front door, shooting out the window, shooting up in the ceiling—shooting everywhere. Just hollering and shooting. I told myself, boy, you better get out of here. Gram Mon had Toddy and Minnie by the hands and hollered for me to stop, but I told myself, no indeed, I’m getting out of here while the getting is good, and I shot out through the kitchen and went under the house. Then I started crawling toward the front. I didn’t stop till I had reached the front steps.
Now I could see the sheriff, old Mapes, sitting out there on the walk, trying to get up. Rocking this way, that way like one of them big old scoiling kettles—trying his best to get up. But he was too big to make it by himself, and I sure wasn’t going out there to help him.
The people was still shooting and hollering. I could hear them in the house over my head, shooting and hollering. I could hear Gram Mon calling me; Reverend Jameson calling the Lord—the rest of them just shooting and hollering.
Then I saw Lou crawling fast on the other side of the house. He was crawling on his knees and his elbows, crawling fast. Then something made him stop, and he looked under the house at me. It was dark under there, and it took him a good while to make me out.
“Snookum, that’s you under there?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Don’t you hear your gram mon?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Get to the back,” he said.
I didn’t answer him. I wasn’t going back there either. Gram Mon wasn’t going to beat me for not answering her the first time.
“Stay down,” Lou said, and started crawling again. He was carrying a pistol. He crawled over to where Mapes was sitting on the walk rocking, rocking, trying to get up. “You all right?” he asked him.
“Sure,” Mapes said. “I’m just sitting here for the view.”
“Your deputy resigned,” Lou said, showing Mapes the pistol.
“Keep it,” Mapes said. “Anybody else got hurt?”
“I don’t think so.”
Mapes tried to get up again, but he was too big.
“You need help?” Lou asked him.
“More than you can give,” Mapes said. “You’re in charge. Raise your right hand. You do swear—”
“Like hell,” Lou said.
“You’re still in charge,” Mapes said. “Now, don’t bother me anymore tonight.”
“What am I supposed to do?” Lou asked him.
“You figure that out,” Mapes said. “Just leave me alone.”