Page 90 of Our Own Light

“Yup.”

“Why?”

Roy rocked back on his heels. “Well, I heard they were trying to free them strikers who’re behind bars in Mingo County, but first, they thought they’d hang Chafin, probably because they’d have had to cut through our county to reach the poor miners over there, anyway.”

“Hang him?!” Floyd spluttered.

“Yup,” Roy said with a shrug. “I’d have probably helped if I had known sooner.”

Floyd shook his head in bewilderment. “What happened?”

Meanwhile, Oliver’s stomach was in knots. Hopefully, Donohue Coal and Steel wouldn’t be impacted by this. Floyd had made it crystal fucking clear that he’d more or less implode if faced with some kind of change for his family.

“Chafin stopped ’em. Of course.”

John chimed in. “Roy’s making it sound easy, but our fellow miners put up a struggle.”

“Oh yeah, there was a huge battle.”

Oliver couldn’t hold back a scoff. “Battle?!”

Roy nodded. “Yup. People shooting at each other and everything.”

“I heard Chafin’s recruits had even set up machine guns,” John said.

“Where’d this happen?” Oliver asked.

Roy clicked his tongue before answering, “Over at Blair Mountain. Not sure if you’ve been there yet. It’s a mountain ridge between Boone and Logan Counties.”

“People are saying that Chafin even had bi-planes. Dropped bombs on people.”

“God, that’s horrible,” Oliver said.

“Yep. Federal troops came, though, and put a stop to everything,” Roy said. “I wonder if them miners’ll try again. Heck, I reckon I’d fight, too. Everybody in Rock Creek ought to.”

Oliver opened his mouth to say something—something about how every single miner everywhere deserved better—but then he caught sight of Floyd.

Poor Floyd was standing there completely frozen, staring off into the nearest tunnel. While Roy and John kept up their back-and-forth, Oliver continued to watch Floyd, and only seconds later, he realized that Floyd’s hands had started to tremble.

Oliver knew he’d better shoo Roy and John away before they noticed, too. Damn. Floyd was probably worried that his family might have to leave—leave the coal company, leave the coal industry, or hell, even leave West Virginia.

Oliver spoke up. “Uhm, say fellas, we have a lot more coal to shovel. We’ve barely even started filling our car. Do you think we could chat about this a little later?”

“Yeah, sure,” Roy said. “We ought to find our butties anyway, but we thought you’d want to hear the news.”

“Definitely,” Oliver said through a strained smile. “Thank you for always taking the time to relay information from your relatives, Roy. Lord knows Donohue wouldn’t want us miners knowing about the struggle.”

Luckily, Oliver’s comment must have seemed sincere enough because Roy and John left after they had exchanged a few parting words. Floyd waved to them half-heartedly as they left for one of the other tunnels. Once Roy and John were out of sight, Floyd flung his shovel to the side and placed his hands flat against the rocky black wall, finally surrendering to whatever it was that he was feeling. Oliver rushed over, throwing his shovel off to the side, too, and placed a hand on Floyd’s back.

“I’d put money on the UMWA not taking hold in West Virginia now,” Oliver said, trying to be encouraging. “I wouldn’t worry too much, Floyd. I can’t imagine that there will be future unrest here in Logan. I mean, hell, federal troops were involved!” Oliver started moving his hand in small circles, hoping it would provide some comfort, though he wished he could be more openly affectionate. “I’m sure your family is safe. I’m sure your life is safe. I wouldn’t think anything would change because of—”

“Ollie...” Floyd choked out, flexing his fingers and pressing into the black rocks. Oliver winced. “I can’t listen to none of this right now. I can’t stand here listening to you trying to make me feel better with these kind-sounding words.” He turned to face Oliver, hurt in his eyes. “Not when I know how you really feel.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t pretend you wouldn’t want the UMWA coming here, changing things. I still catch them little comments of yours, the ones about the coal company cheating us.”

“What, me pointing out that the price of corn at the company store is three cents higher than it is in the city?” Oliver asked, fighting to keep the frustration from his voice.

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