Summer Sweat (Spruce Texas)

“Me, too,” I say back.

She finally looks up at me. “Maybe we can go someday. To see Toby again. I wanna see dolphins and jellyfish. I like animals.”

I smile. “Well, y’know, we’ve got an awful lot of animals at the farm,” I tell her. “Cows. Pigs. Chickens. A sheep named Peepers …”

“Peepers?”

“Yep. But not all the animals are named.”

Her eyes grow double. “They aren’t named?? How cruel!”

“Well, I might not’ve met ‘em all yet.” Her shock makes me let out a laugh. “But hey, who knows, maybe I’m wrong. Maybe they all got names. The pigs do. There’s Wilbur. And also Charlotte …”

“Charlotte?? But that’s the spider!” she protests.

“Dang it, that’s what I was sayin’!” I shout back, and the both of us crack up laughing. Our laughter rings across the dark yard and into the night. I’m sure even the aliens above can hear us.

And when it settles, our laughter ended, tears in our eyes, she looks at me. “You gotta go back. To the farm. You gotta name all the animals because I said so.”

I turn to my sister. I throw an arm around her, pull her close, then the two of us resume watching the night stars in silence.

Chapter 9

Harrison

Turtle is fucking weird.

There, I said it.

He talks to the animals. That wouldn’t be so odd if it weren’t for the fact that he acts like they talk back to him.

He sings songs to them, too. I catch him with the sheep, and he is singing to them about his “banana blues”, whatever the hell that is, while he adds hay for the sheep. Then later, I catch Turtle in the middle of singing a tune at the pig pen, where he looks like the happiest guy in the world cleaning out the trough. Fred comes by the coop a while later, lifts an eyebrow, and asks, “The hell’s he doin’?” I just shrug and say, “Serenading the chickens, I guess.”

There’s one thing I’ll say: Turtle is surprisingly fast. He wraps up his morning’s chores far quicker than I expected for a first day. I guess he really was listening during yesterday’s tour. “Sure, yeah, take a break in the bunkhouse. Lunch is soon anyway,” I reason. Turtle just nods, then hums to himself as he heads off.

I’m double-checking the chickens when I spot a car pull up in front of the main house across the field. I lift a hand to shield my eyes from the sunlight. Someone gets out of the car.

My heart stops. Is that—?

I abandon my task at once and head across the field under the blaring sun. The car has already driven away by the time I reach the front porch, ascend the steps, and let myself in.

I stop at the opened door of Gary’s office. Hoyt is in a plaid shirt tucked into a pair of what looks like his nicest jeans with a belt and a pair of boots. His hair is combed and perfectly in place. His shirt is buttoned up all the way to the top, too. I can imagine the anxiety he felt standing in front of his mirror this morning, making sure he looks sharp and ready for some serious groveling.

And that’s exactly what he’s doing. “I made a mistake, sir,” he is in the middle of telling Gary. “I really, really need this job. I left the team high and dry the other day, I know, and there just ain’t any excuse for that. I’ve … just had a bit of trouble adjustin’ is all.”

His outfit and demeanor does make an impression, even I have to admit. He looks squeaky clean, professional, and ready to work.

But it excuses nothing. “Well, well, isn’t this great,” I cut in.

Hoyt and Gary look my way.

A storm cloud rushes past Hoyt’s eyes at the sight of me. “I ain’t talkin’ to you. I’m talkin’ to Mr. Strong.” He faces him again. “I’m a hard worker. I will put in the work. This opportunity … I … I threw it away, and it’s my only shot of makin’ something out of myself. I’m beggin’ you to give me another shot.”

“We already got a replacement,” I cut in yet again, folding my arms and leaning against the doorframe.

Hoyt glares at me over his shoulder once more. “It ain’t your opinion that matters. You don’t run this farm. Mr. Strong does. It’s only his opinion I need right now.” He faces Gary. “Please, sir. I let my family down. I let you down. I need to afford college. Give me a chance to make it up. I’ll even work for free for today, just to show you I’ve got what it takes. I learned everything already.”

“Gary,” I say, smirking at him from across the room. Hoyt just keeps his back to me. I can tell he’s seething from my presence.