Page 97 of Double Bucked

“When dawn light played a summer’s day,

Twenty miners went with picks in hand

Into the yawning mountain’s clay

To earn their backbreaking pay.

“But in the belly of the beast,

The miners screamed and shouted,

The mountain trembled and began to feast,

As rocks closed in and all sound ceased.

“For three days they stood still,

And choked on smoke and coal,

Just as they were losing hope and will,

The darkness broke in burst a chill,

“What good glory did they see?

But a goddess with flowers in her hair,

Who with strong horses three,

Pulled down the rocks and broke the men free.

So sing the song of the Belleflower Queen,

Who saved the miners from death unseen.

Sooty hands and faces washed clean,

Flowers in her hair, she washed our sins clean.”

Ransom’s voice is low, calming. I’ve heard that song a million times. From the kids at the playground. From my father’s own lips, late at night, on the rare moment when I could get an inch of attention from him.

We’ve piqued Everett’s curiosity. “It’s an old folklore.”

“Sorta,” Ransom explains. “It was an old story from the twenties. Miners got trapped. This beautiful woman came out of nowhere and rescued them. No one ever saw or heard of her since. So we throw a celebration for her every year. Honor her.”

“Blackdamp,” Everett says.

Ransom blinks. “What?”

“Blackdamp. It’s an asphyxiant found in mines. Common source of death in mine collapses. When the oxygen level drops dangerously low and the carbon monoxide levels rise, you’ll start to feel light-headed. Perhaps even hallucinate. Much like those men did.”

“Yeah,” Ransom says, his voice sharpening as he get defensive, “or they got saved by the Belleflower Queen.”

I hiss between my teeth. “Belleflower Queens. Penny horses. Don’t fuck with Ransom and his fantasies.”

Ransom narrows his eyes at me. Whiskey makes me mean. I take another swallow anyway.

“Should we put on something while we work?” Ransom asks. “Music?”

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