Hortons Bend

underling. “Where the fuck is he?” she slurred. The mist from the river had set in and swirled around her legs which she found vaguely amusing. But still she was on a mission. He couldn’t be much further. And suddenly she found him as she fell right on top of him.
    Chapter 17
    Ragland never really saw what happened but both Curtis and Price could now see movement in their ill-lighted surroundings. Their vision had adjusted to the dark and it was hard to mistaken when a large woman tumbled. One minute she was huffing and puffing and the next minute she simply vanished but they most heard an unmistakable groan shortly thereafter. They just did not realize that it was Paul Brody who had groaned. Barbara Peabody was briefly dazed. Brody was just about to climb out of the small gulch when he was toppled by his museum director. He did not recognize Mrs. Peabody as he was struggling with having had the wind knocked out of him. More frightened than hurt, he leapt to his feet snatching his package with him as he frantically searched for a gentle slope by which to get out of the ditch. Once out of the ditch, Brody could still not make out who had stumbled on top of him. It wasn’t until the intruder in the hole opened their mouth that he realized who was there with him.
    The familiar voice slurred “Mr. Brody !.....I have had it! I have absolutely had it!”. Brody lacked any type of comprehension to what was occurring. It made no sense to him at all. What in the hell was she doing out here? He looked around briefly and then back into the hole and was about to respond when a voice shouted out to him. “Brody! Get off this land! You are trespassing and the police will be called!” Brody wheeled around but did not recognize the voice and could not yet see where it was coming from. It was at this surreal moment that the museum director began to claw her way up the least precipitous walls of the gulch. Brody felt as though he had been thrust into another dimension. These events just could not be happening. He had come out here alone. It seemed simple enough. Drop off the copper plate and walk back to get picked up by Jeanie. In a panic he started to move towards the paved road to look for her when the voices in the dark began to scream at him again.
    Jeanie King was not hearing screams but rather suggestions. Her mind was not under the influence of wine nor narcotics but something was influencing her to go back to the Horton farm. Jeanie had parked her truck on a side road to clear her head but she was overcome with emotion. Her earlier divination had possessed her to do something that she would never have done. The event caused her to trust Paul Brody and sway him to help her in ways that he could never understand. Her epiphany had imprinted something so cerebral that she couldn’t explain it but it was happening again. Here in the cab of her pickup, Jeanie knew two things: She had to get back to Paul and there was a storm brewing. Not a physical storm but forces were coming together to do great and terrible things. For one brief second she saw her son Ronnie. It was as clear as day but as brief as a falling star. In a rush she cranked the truck and turned it in the direction of Horton’s Bend.
    The voices yelling at Brody were mainly from Steve Price and Barbara Peabody who had managed to emerge from the gulley. Her business attire was covered in the orange clay so prevalent in the county ’s subsoil but she was completely unaware of it. Roger Curtis remained silent as he watched the two attack the man verbally. Initially he was amused but it did not last long as he began to consider his surroundings. The gentleman, who had something that looked like a small bundle in his hands, said nothing. He did appear to be shifting from side to side. Curtis expected him to bolt from the field like a common criminal but he didn’t move. He seemed to be in a trance but yet he turned his attention away from his accusers. Curtis’ attention became drawn to the same thing. The mist had gotten thicker and he thought he saw movement near the river. Price stopped his diatribe and realized that Brody had something in his hands. “Brody! What do you have?” he demanded. When no response came he called out again. “Put it on the ground and leave this farm. Right now!” he ordered. Mrs. Peabody had noticed neither the fog nor the package but continued to screech out for Brody’s undivided attention. All the while Robert Ragland