Boys Life

Donny.
    He said he’d deputized Jack Marchette, who was at the jail pulling guard duty right this minute, but that he was having trouble finding anybody else. He’d asked ten men, he said, and been turned down ten times. It would be dangerous work, he said. The deputies would each get fifty dollars out of his own pocket, and that was all he could afford to pay. But there were pistols and ammunition at the jailhouse, and the jailhouse itself was as firm as a fortress. The tricky part, he said, would be taking Donny from his cell to the bus stop.
    “That’s the story.” Sheriff Amory gripped his bony knees. “Can I deputize you, Tom?”
    “No!” Mom’s voice almost shook the windows. “Are you out of your mind?”
    “I’m sorry to have to ask this of Tom, Rebecca. I swear I am. But it’s got to be done.”
    “Ask somebody else, then! Not Tom!”
    “Can I get your answer?” the sheriff urged.
    Dad stood next to the fireplace, the logs crackling. His eyes went from Sheriff Amory to Mom and back again, with a quick dart toward me. He slid his hands into his pockets, his face downcast. “I… don’t know what to say.”
    “You know what’s right, don’t you?”
    “I do. But I know I don’t believe in violence. I can’t stand the thought of it. Especially… not the way I’ve been feelin’ for the last few months. Like I’m walkin’ on eggshells with an anvil strapped to my back. I know I couldn’t pull a trigger and shoot anybody. I know that for a fact.”
    “You wouldn’t have to carry a gun, then. I wouldn’t expect you to. Just be there to show Biggun he can’t get away with murder.”
    “Unless the Blaylocks murder all of you!” Mom fairly leaped from her chair. “No! Tom’s been under a lot of stress lately, and he’s not in any physical or mental shape to-”
    “Rebecca!” Dad snapped. She hushed. “I can speak for myself, thank you,” he said.
    “Just tell me yes, Tom.” Sheriff Amory was pleading now. “That’s all I want to hear.”
    Dad was in pain. I could see its grim mark on his face. He did know what was right, but he was all twisted up and hurting inside, and the chilly hand of the man at the bottom of Saxon’s Lake clutched the back of his neck. “No,” he said, his voice raspy. “I can’t, J.T.”
    May I be forgiven. I thought one word, and that word was Yellowstreak. Immediately I was overcome with shame, and my face was burning as I got up and ran to my room.
    “Cory!” Dad called. “Wait a minute!”
    “Well, that’s just fine!” Sheriff Amory stood up, and he plucked his hat from the coffee table and jammed it on his head. The crown was crushed, the silver star awry. “Just damn fine! Everybody wants the Blaylocks put behind bars and they kick my ass for takin’ his dirty money, but when it comes a chance to actually do somethin’ about ’em, everybody and their brother, sister, and uncle runs for the hills! Just damned fine!”
    Dad said, “I wish I could-”
    “Forget it. Stay home. Stay safe. Good night.” Sheriff Amory walked out the door into the cold. The leaves crunched under his shoes, the sound fading. Dad stood at the window and watched him drive away.
    “Don’t worry about him,” Mom said. “He’ll find enough deputies.”
    “What if he doesn’t? What if everybody does run for the hills?”
    “Then if this town doesn’t care enough about law and order to help their sheriff, Zephyr deserves to dry up and blow away.”
    Dad turned toward her, his mouth a tight line. “We’re Zephyr, Rebecca. You and me. Cory. J.T. The ten men he asked who turned him down, they’re Zephyr, too. It’s people’s souls and caring for each other that dries up and blows away before buildin’s and houses do.”
    “You can’t help him, Tom. You just can’t. If somethin’ happened to you…” She didn’t finish, because that train of thought led to a desolate destination.
    “Maybe he did wrong, but he deserves help. I should’ve said I would.”
    “No, you shouldn’t have. You’re not a fighter, Tom. Those Blaylocks would kill you before you could blink.”
    “Then maybe I shouldn’t blink,” Dad said, his face stony.
    “Just do what J.T. said, Tom. Stay home and stay safe. Okay?”
    “Fine example I’m settin’ for Cory. Did you see the way he looked at me?”
    “He’ll get over it,” Mom said. She made an effort to summon a smile. “How about a nice piece of spice cake and a cup of coffee?”
    “I don’t want any