Be Good, and Walt Will Come Home

"Marry Ruthie and bring her home to wait on me and your mama, and you just go on back to school and study your books." That was the first good thing Papaw named when he was talking my uncle into getting married.

Ruthie was the only daughter of the bestoff family in the hollow, and she was the one who wanted to marry into ours. But my uncle never wanted her.

Every time the marriage came up you could see the disgust all over his face. Back then I didn't understand. What they wanted out of that marriage was never a daughterinlaw.

It was somebody who would stay and wait on the whole family. Chapter 1 My uncle was the only one in the hollow who went to college. He only came home on winter and summer break.

The rest of the time he was at the state school a few hours' drive away.

My uncle frowned. "I'm not marrying her," he said, short with it. "She's ugly, she never even finished school.

Besides, there's somebody I like." Papaw glared at him. "Fool boy, you're not thinking.

You marry Ruthie, and that bit of land and them animals her daddy's sending with her will pay your way through school. Once you graduate you stay in the city.

You think she's going to come to the city after you?" My uncle hesitated a few seconds. "I'll marry her," he said. "But I'm not going down to the county with her to sign a marriage license." Papaw and Mamaw both laughed. "Don't sign it, then.

It don't matter." Around here, if you put on the wedding supper and get everybody out to it, you're married.

Whether or not you go to the county for that piece of paper, nobody cares. The wedding got settled quick.

Ruthie was the only child in her family, and she brought ten acres of good bottomland down by the river, seven or eight goats, and four big fat hogs. Folks in the hollow envied us.

They said my uncle had married himself a prize. On the day of the wedding there were twelve tables set up in our yard, and everybody in the hollow came to eat.

When they went around the tables toasting, my uncle kept his face dark and never once looked straight at Ruthie. Ruthie, you could see she was happy. She drank his drinks for him.

That night, after everybody who came to drink had gone home, Papaw and Mamaw sat on the edge of the bed counting the money. Then my uncle came into the front room.

He threw his bedding on the bed. "I'm sleeping in here tonight," he said. Papaw kicked him. "Get out.

Get on back to the back room and sleep." My uncle brushed the boot print off his pants and sat down on the edge of the bed without saying anything.

Mamaw tried to talk him around. "Walt, be good. Go sleep in the back room." "I'm not going back in there!" my uncle shouted. "She's so ugly it turns my stomach to look at her.

I'm going back to school tomorrow." Right then I saw somebody standing back of the window. Whoever it was heard what he said and ran off. I figured it was Ruthie.

Papaw kicked him again, eyes big. "Walter Prater, you get in that back room right now.

If Ruthie goes back to her daddy's tonight, the land and the animals she brought go back with her.

Are you stupid?" Then he rolled himself a cigarette and smoked it. "Once it's done, it's done, and then she's yours, and then she'll mind you," he said. "Get in that back room." He shoved my uncle one more time.

My uncle finally got up, not wanting to, picked up his bedding and went back to the back room.

After he left, Mamaw gathered the money up off the bed, grinning. "We took in a good bit tonight. Everybody in the hollow came." Papaw laughed. "Walt's a college man.

They all want to get in good with us. Our good days are still coming." Then he turned off the light.

The next morning Ruthie had the food cooked and on the table, and she fixed plates for Papaw and Mamaw. Ruthie worked hard and she kept things clean.

She sat down next to my uncle and put food on his plate.

My uncle raked it right back off his plate, disgusted, and threw it on the table. "I'm going back to school tonight," he said.

Chapter 2 Ruthie stopped a few seconds and looked at him. "Don't school start in nine more days?

Why're you going so early?" My uncle acted like he never heard her and went on eating. Ruthie looked at Mamaw, then at Papaw.

You could tell from her eyes she wanted them to keep him home a few more days. Mamaw set her bowl down. "Walt, wait a few days.

At least take Ruthie over to her daddy's once before you go." My uncle's face went hard. "I've got something at school I have to see to," he said, loud. "I can't wait." Mamaw was quiet a few seconds. "What are you hollering for, boy?" she said, mad.

Ruthie saw the two of them starting in on each other. "Mama, it's all right. I can go over by myself. Walt's got something at school. Let him go on.

We can't hold him up." Her eyes were a little red when she said it. She put her head down and ate without a word.

After the meal, Ruthie cleared everything off and went out to the cook shed behind the house to wash the dishes.

Mamaw smiled. "That Ruthie's a good one." My uncle acted like he never heard her. He combed his hair in the mirror and put on his new clothes. "Daddy, Mama, I'm going," he said.

Mamaw dug money out of her pocket and pushed it into his hand. "Don't spend it all. Don't let yourself go hungry." My uncle took it and nodded.

Papaw got up off the bed and went out to the yard to start the old tractor and hitch the wagon to it. Town was a long way from our place.

You had to ride the wagon behind the tractor to get there. Once Papaw had it hitched, my uncle climbed up on the wagon.

Ruthie came running out of the cook shed. "Daddy," she said, quiet, "let me ride along and see Walt off." Before Papaw could say anything, my uncle glared at her. "What are you coming for?

I don't need seeing off." Ruthie's face went red all at once. There was a scared look in her eyes and she didn't know what to say.

Mamaw came over next to her. "Ruthie, it's a long way to town. It'd be dark by the time you got back.

Walt's afraid it's not safe for you out on the road at night." Ruthie's eyes filled up. She nodded at Mamaw, then turned and went into the cook shed.

Papaw drove my uncle off on the tractor. It was just me and Mamaw left in the yard. It was dark before Papaw came back.

He brought me a few pieces of hard candy from town and put them in my hand. He brought back a pink scarf too.

He put the scarf in Ruthie's hands, smiling. "Walt bought that for you." Ruthie smiled.

She couldn't quite believe it. "Walt really bought this for me?" Papaw nodded. "He sure did." Once he said so, Ruthie was so happy she carried the scarf straight into the back room.

Papaw watched her go, smiling, and said to Mamaw, "What a fine girl." Mamaw's face went dark.

She called him into the front room. "Did Walt really buy that scarf?" she said. "He did," Papaw said. Mamaw twisted her mouth. "I don't believe it.

I don't believe Walt would buy Ruthie a scarf.

Did you buy it?" Papaw kicked her. "What are you running your mouth about?" he said, eyes big. "Talk like that again and I'll beat you to death. Walt bought that scarf.

He had me carry it home. You don't believe it, go up to town and call Walt." Papaw and Mamaw didn't fight much, and when they did, it was him cussing her and her keeping quiet.

She never fought back with him. Chapter 3 But that day Mamaw's face changed. "Virgil Prater, you think I don't know what you are? I'm warning you. Ruthie's our son's wife.

You dare do what an animal would do, and I'll cut your head off." "The hell are you saying?

Is that any way to talk?" Papaw raised his hand to hit her, and the two of them got to wrestling. Mamaw was no match for him. He kicked her hard in the belly a few times.

She tore up his face and his hands, and he bled a lot. Ruthie came running from the back room to break it up. "Daddy, Mama, what's the matter with you two?

Don't be hitting each other." Papaw sat on the edge of the bed and took a few draws on his cigarette. "This is none of your business," he told her. "Go on to your room." Ruthie helped Mamaw up.

Mamaw sat down on a stool and told her, "Go on to your room.

It's nothing." Then she said to me, "Hoss, take your aunt Ruthie on back to the back room." "Daddy, Mama, what's got into you two?" Ruthie said.

When Ruthie wouldn't go, Papaw got up off the bed and went out to sit in the yard. Mamaw held her belly and screwed her face up.

He had kicked her hard. "Mama, let's get you to town and have you looked at," Ruthie said. "No need. It's nothing.

Go on back to the back room." Ruthie sat in the front room a while, keeping Mamaw company. It was eleven o'clock at night before she went back.

Papaw didn't come into the front room until she was gone. He was still mad. He looked himself over in the mirror.

There were bloody scratch marks in several places on his face, and on his hands too.

He glared at Mamaw. "Look what you clawed me up like," he said, loud. "How am I supposed to go out now?" Mamaw said, "You had it coming. Virgil Prater, you remember this.

I'd kill you before I'd let you go out there and shame us." I heard from folks in the hollow that when Papaw was young he gave Mamaw plenty to worry about.

These last few years, after my uncle got into college and Papaw got on in age, he had settled down some. Papaw didn't say anything. He sat on the edge of the bed and smoked.

Mamaw said, "In a couple days it's time for Ruthie to go over to her daddy's. I've got everything ready.

Hoss can go along with her." With my uncle gone, I was the only one who could go with Ruthie. The day came soon enough.

Mamaw got two baskets of eggs ready, ten eggs in each, and sealed some money in an envelope.

Ruthie and I were just going out the door when Miss Nadine from next door came running up to our house. Miss Nadine was out of breath. "Something awful's happened.

Ruthie's daddy's dead." Ruthie went like she'd lost her mind, running for her daddy's place as hard as she could. The rest of us went after her.

When we got there, her daddy was lying on the bed. His neck was covered in dark blotches and his body had gone stiff. Anybody could see he had died the night before.

He had been in bad health a long time. Everybody in the hollow knew that. Ruthie cried until she passed out. There wasn't a soul in that house to see to anything.

Papaw rounded up some young men to haul a coffin back from town, and had them lay her daddy out in the front room and set it all right. Ruthie wore black and knelt by the coffin.

Everybody in the hollow came to pay their respects. By evening they had all gone home and it was just us. Papaw said, "Old woman, go on home and fix something to eat.

Everybody's hungry." Mamaw said, "All right, I'll go cook. You all sit up with him." The old rule around here is that the first night's sitting up has to be close kin.

The second night the neighbors can come help. Chapter 4 After Mamaw left, there were just the three of us in the house. Ruthie knelt on the floor. She had about cried her eyes out.

Papaw moved over close to her. "Ruthie, quit kneeling. Sit down a while." Ruthie shook her head and didn't say anything.

Papaw looked at me. "Hoss, run out to the store at the crossroads and get some more candles." He handed me the money. I took it and went to the store.

When I got back with the candles, there was nobody in the room where they had laid him out. Where had Papaw and Ruthie gone?

While I was standing there wondering, I heard a noise from the back room. There was no light on in the back room. It was pitch dark. I called out, "Papaw." Nobody answered.

It was quiet all around. I was scared to stay in Ruthie's house by myself. I set the candles down and ran for home