Chapter 7 Throwin' A Plan Together

• *Isabella*
• The sound of my sister and brother slurping on their candy rubbed me the wrong way as I navigate the dusty walkway outside. Ma and Pa had told us to just come on home once they had their candy, assuming they’d be done with their meetin’ by then. But when we walk outside of the general store, I see our parents a few paces ahead of us and rush after them, draggin’ Robert and Alice along.
• “Keep it in yer mouth or else it’ll get coated in dirt,” Robert advises Alice.
• “My mouth ain’t as big as yours,” she replies.
• “Come on. We gotta catch Ma and Pa.” I give her arm a tougher yank, and she yelps.
• Recognizing the sound, Ma turns her head. “What’s the matter, Alice?”
• “She’s got lead for feet,” I answer. “Pa, I need to talk to you.” All the information Chet shared with me gets tangled in my brain as I try to remember all the important facts. Pa probably don’t need to know how he smelled like an endless field of golden grain, but he does need to know about the game.
• “What is it, Izzy?” He steps to the side of the walkway, takes his hat off, and wipes his brow with a handkerchief.
• It’s already hot out here, and it’s gonna get worse as we travel across the plains in the dead of summer.
• Dead–probably a good word for it.
• “I just ran into some Shaconage. They made some suggestions–good ones.”
• His forehead furrows as he considers my words. “Like what?”
• “Well, mainly, not to go,” I admit. He shakes his head. “I told them I didn’t think that was an option. They said we need wagons and our own game.”
• Pa nods. “I just spoke to the two fellas in charge back there about both of those concerns. They said we can move faster without ‘em, but it’s safer to have ‘em. They’ve done both ways.”
• “The others want wagons and game,” Ma tells me. “Most of ‘em have no money and no wagons.”
• I wanna curse, but I don’t. “We got any money?”
• Pa swears under his breath, and Ma scolds him. “Let’s get home and talk about it.”
• “Let’s get home, and you and I will talk about it,” Ma corrects him. “She’s a child.”
• “She’s old enough to know what’s happening.” Pa stands up for me, like he usually does, and I wanna grin, but I hide it. “If we’re gonna uproot her whole life, we can tell her what we’re doin’.”
• “What about Robert and Alice?” Ma folds her arms, a sign she’s digging her heels in.
• I turn and look at my brother and sister who are sticky with candy. “They ain’t even paying attention.”
• Ma lets out a sigh and takes hold of the little ones while Pa pivots toward home. I increase my speed to keep up with his long legs. It weren’t often I was allowed to walk alongside him.
• “You think Harry has any cattle we can buy?” I ask, pretending I can breathe while I walk this fast.
• “Won’t be able to afford many,” he replies. “Most of them cattle are set for auction.”
• “We could gather up the money we have. And we have a spare wagon. Chet said not to take any heavy furniture.”
• “Who’s Chet?” Pa turns and looks at me like he don’t like the sound of that man’s name on my tongue.
• I feel my cheeks heat up. “He’s one of the Shaconage. I think he mighta been someone important, the way the others talked to him.” I’m not sure how I got that impression, but I feel it in my soul.
• Pa shakes his head just a bit and turns away from me. We’re almost home, and he don’t wanna say more until we’re there, I can tell.
• “Where are Aunt Lena and Uncle Tim?’ I ask.
• “Still talking to Sanders and Burns. Tim wants the game. We’ve already been talking about that,” he reminds me. I did hear that part of the conversation around the table but thought it was dropped from the discussion because we couldn’t afford the hands to tend to it. “I’m sure they’ll be over directly.”
• Our house comes into view, my older brother Joseph is boardin’ up the windows, gettin’ ready for our trip. He don’t look happy as he holds nails between his lips. He pounds one into a piece of wood that covers the entire window.
• “Come inside, Joe,” Pa tells him before leading me through the door. My brother drops what he’s doin’ and follows along.
• We sit down at the table, waitin’ for Ma, who doesn’t join us when she herds the children inside. Instead, she walks over to the kitchen pump and wets a cloth to wash Alice and Robert up.
• “We got a bit of money we can use for cattle and food, but I ain’t supplyin’ nobody else’s family with wagons,” Pa tells us. “I’m gonna need both of you to come with me to Harry’s corral to see what cattle he’ll sell me.”
• Joseph looks a little confused at first but then catches up. “We are takin’ wagons then?”
• “Yes, and we’ll need to be prepared to drive them ourselves, too,” Pa tells us.
• With that, Ma scoffs. “The three of you? Better not be more than a handful of cows.”
• Pa narrows his eyes, but he knows Ma’s on edge, like all of us. “We’ll have plenty of people to help us.”
• “Until they die,” Ma mutters.
• “Whose gonna die?” Alice chimes in.
• “No one.” Pa’s words are stern. “Let’s not talk like that. It’ll be fine. We’ll move quicker than humans, and we’ll keep an eye out for rogues. We’ll let the packs we’re treadin’ through know we aren’t stayin’, and they’ll be able to smell that we’re like them.” Pa says it all like it’s not something to be concerned about, but I know better.
• “Chet said we should take trinkets to trade,” I tell him.
• He gets that look on his face again at the casual nature in which I speak the man’s name. I feel my cheeks heat again but hold his gaze. I ain’t got nothin’ to back down from.
• “Who?” Joseph asks.
• “Your sister’s been doin’ some scoutin’ with Shaconage,” Pa explains.
• “Oh. I hear they’re good folk,” my brother chimes in.
• Pa only grunts. “Let’s go down to the cattle yards and see what we can find. We’ll swing by and see if Tim and Sanders wanna go with us.”
• I hold back a groan at having to see Sanders again. I don’t like the man much, but I better get used to him because we’re gonna be together for a while on this trip–assuming we both make it through all the hazards he had Ginny rattlin’ off to her people.
• The men head out, and I follow along. Ma calls after me. “Isabella, be careful.”
• I turn and flash her a grin that lets her know it ain’t in my makeup to be cautious. It’s nothin’ she don’t already know.