Page 25 of The Outsider

“I mean, he probably homeschooled us because he didn’t want teachers asking about what was going on at home.” She tried to imagine her and her brother, dirty and skinny as they sometimes were, going into a classroom where a teacher might have blown the whistle on them.

“Also, my dad would’ve had to enroll us in school, and that would’ve required him to give them the address and...”

“He doesn’t like being in the system.”

She nodded. “Hell, it’s kind of a miracle I’m in the system at all. That my mom got him to let her give birth in the hospital, let me get a birth certificate. I’m probably lucky I have documentation at all. I think as things progressed, as his views changed, he would’ve avoided that.”

“Right. So, no school. And what did you do all day?”

“We worked. Helped with chores and with batching the moonshine. He had a pretty big operation back in those days. He had a place to stay. The property. Hedidn’t end up keeping it. We got raided by the Feds at one point.”

“That must’ve been difficult.”

She shrugged. “If there’s one thing I learned from my dad that I really do believe, it’s that there’s no use wallowing in the hard times.”

“Right. Well. Now that I know little bit about your background, tell me what you want to do.”

“What do you mean?”

“How long do you think you want to work here?”

“You said it would probably take me about a week to earn the money for my starter.”

“And then what are you moving on to?”

She shrugged. “Doesn’t matter.”

“I’m serious. Do you have opportunities elsewhere?”

“I have the opportunities that I always have. I like to make my own way. I don’t want to be dependent on anybody.”

“But what if you stayed here for a while? Worked here for a while?”

“I’ll tell you what, Sheriff,” she said, ignoring the strange tug in her chest. “Why don’t you at least see how I work before you go offering pity labor.”

“Bix, none of this is out of pity. You told me that you had a hard time finding work, and I have work.”

“Yeah. Well. Like I said, maybe you should wait and see what you think after you actually see my work, and after you see my rap sheet.”

She got up and put more bacon on her plate, ate it until she felt full. And then she wanted to cry. But she wouldn’t.

“I have another question for you,” he said.

“What’s that, Sheriff?”

“I can outfit a place for you. But especially if you’re only staying short-term, I wonder if it makes more sense for me to get a bed to put in here.”

“You want me to stayhere?”

“It’s up to you.”

She squinted. “Let me think about it.”

“All right.”

She had a feeling that he took way longer to leave the house because of her. After she finished eating, she went and got clothes out of the dryer.

“Do you have stuff in your van that you need to get?”

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