Dark River Road by Virginia Brown

took only a couple of punches to put him out of commission, but by then Chris was on him again and Brad was getting to his feet. They piled on top of him. The breath got knocked out of him so he couldn’t get any air, couldn’t see anything but a haze of angry faces and fists. He managed to put his arms up over his face. Fists thudded into him, it seemed like from every direction.
    He heard somebody hollering, then suddenly the weight lifted and he could twist free. He rolled to his knees and tried to push up from the ground. A hand grabbed his shoulder and he jerked loose, stumbled to his feet and spun around so fast that he nearly lost his balance and went back down. Everything was a blur. Something wet kept running into his eyes. Sweat maybe. It stung.
    “Hold on there, son. Don’t be swinging at me.”
    Chantry sucked in a gulp of air but it made his ribs and belly hurt. He shook his head and that hurt, too, but his vision cleared some. Dale Ledbetter held up a hand, palm out.
    “Just stand there a minute. Don’t any of you move.”
    Chris and Brad started talking at the same time, accusing Chantry of attacking them for no reason. Adam Wimberly still lay on the ground, moaning. Chantry didn’t say anything. He didn’t think he could talk even if someone held a gun on him. His mouth felt thick, and he still couldn’t see worth anything.
    After a minute Mr. Ledbetter said, “I’ve heard enough. Just so there’s no misunderstanding, boys, I saw enough, too. It’s none of my business if you boys want to fight, but one on one. I don’t much care for three against one.”
    There was a moment of silence. Then Chris said incredulously, “You’re going to take that white trash’s side?”
    “No. I’m not taking any side. I’m just telling you to keep it clean and honest. Something you might want to think about, Mr. Quinton. Do you suppose you boys can go your own ways now without any more trouble?”
    One of Chantry’s eyes wouldn’t open. He peered through his good eye at Mr. Ledbetter and nodded. He just wanted to find Mikey and get home.
    Mr. Ledbetter looked at him. “I’ll give you a ride.”
    Chantry shook his head and nearly choked at the wave of pain that act summoned. “I can walk,” he got out.
    “I’m sure you can. But your little brother is already in my car and he can’t. Might as well accept the offer. I don’t intend to leave you boys here to fight some more.”
    There wasn’t much choice. Chantry slid a look at Chris, then went with Mr. Ledbetter. He had Mikey in the back of his car like he’d said, and Shadow sat in the cargo area panting happily and looking like he rode in a new Bronco every day. It was black and shiny, and Mrs. Ledbetter sat up front, looking a little horrified when she saw Chantry.
    “Good heavens,” she started to say, but her husband cut her off with a quick wave of his hand and she lapsed into silence. Chantry felt a wave of shame. He probably looked like a street kid, dirty and bloody and rough. Sugarditch trash. Mama would cry if she saw him like this.
    Two little kids sat in the back, strapped into car seats, and Chantry ended up riding in the very back with Shadow. The car still smelled new. Now it’d smell like dog. And blood.
    “I’ll clean your car for you,” he told Mr. Ledbetter when he stopped at the end of Liberty Road where Chantry insisted he leave them. “It got a little dirty where I was sitting.”
    “Don’t worry about it. I pay people at the lot to do that for me. It keeps them gainfully employed and out of trouble. You might try that yourself.”
    “Yessir.” Chantry didn’t offer any explanation or make any excuses. People never really believed them anyway, even when it was the truth. “Thank you for the ride.”
    “Are you mad at me, Chantry?” Mikey asked as they walked down the gravel road toward the house. “I didn’t know what to do, and he stopped and asked if I was lost and I just told him you were in trouble. Is that