Tides of Truth [02] Higher Hope by Robert Whitlow Page A

Zach asked her.
    “They’re not pets,” she answered. “That’s our supper.”
    “Don’t you think we should set them free?” he said. “They were happy in the pond.”
    My sister looked up at him with her blue eyes. “What would we eat? Chicken livers?”
    “Never mind.” He laughed.
    At home, Mama fixed an ice pack for Zach’s hand. Daddy and the boys came inside and washed up at the large sink in the downstairs bathroom. Kyle inspected Zach’s hand. The swelling had already gone down.
    “Did Tammy Lynn talk to you about the possibility of an amputation?”
    “Yes,” he said, raising his eyebrows.
    “She always brings that up when one of us gets popped by a cat-fish. Did she also mention the percentage of people who actually develop complications from a catfish sting?”
    “No.”
    “The chance of a serious infection from a catfish sting is about one in one hundred thousand.”
    “I’m glad to know the true expert in the family,” Zach replied. “Ellie said I should apply a coating of pond mud to draw out the poison.”
    Ellie, who was eating a banana, spoke up. “That’s what you said when we were fishing with Eric Newman.”
    “If I said that to Eric it was a joke. He doesn’t need an excuse to get muddy. He likes to fish barefoot standing knee-deep in the water.”
    Mama had cut up fresh fruit in a large bowl and cooled it in the freezer for lunch. I loved slightly frozen strawberries and peaches sprinkled with a hint of sugar. The mix also contained blueberries that had been picked from our bushes and stored in the freezer. The new blueberry crop would come in later in the summer. A few bites of the fruit made me feel like the day was starting over. Mama placed a loaf of homemade bread in the center of the table. The rich texture and nutty flavor of the bread went perfectly with the fruit. Three pieces of Mama’s bread could fill up Kyle’s stomach.
    “How many fish did you catch?” Daddy asked.
    “Five,” Emma answered. “I caught three, and Ellie two. Zach hooked a snapping turtle under the corner of its shell.”
    “What did Tammy Lynn catch?” Bobby asked.
    “None, but she took the fish off the hooks and put them on the stringers,” Ellie said.
    The twins talked all through lunch about our fishing trip. To my relief, they left out Zach’s question about wine, and they’d not heard his comments about my white legs.“What are we going to do with Zach this afternoon?” Ellie asked as soon as she finished.
    “Nothing,” Mama answered. “You girls are going to the garden.
    We have rows of pole beans to pick and okra to cut.”
    “What about Tammy Lynn?” Emma asked.
    Daddy spoke. “I talked on the phone with Oscar Callahan while you were fishing. He’s at home recovering and really wants to see you.
    I thought you and Zach could drive over for a visit.”
    It was a great suggestion.
    “I’d like to let him know how the job is working out. He gave me a great recommendation to Mr. Carpenter. I wouldn’t have gotten the job without it.”
    “And there’s another reason to go,” Daddy added. “Take Kyle’s truck and trailer. Mr. Callahan wants to sell a couple of three-year-old steers at the auction in Dawsonville. I told him we can take them down with the dairy calves from the Moorefield place.”
    “Who’ll load the steers?” I asked.
    “The man who’s helping him during the week culled them from his herd and put them in the pen beside the barn. Just back the trailer up to the gate and shoo them in.”
    I’d never gotten involved with Kyle’s cattle business. I looked at Zach.
    “Are you okay with this?”
    “Yeah.”
    I helped Mama clean up the kitchen while Zach and Kyle hooked the cattle trailer to the truck.
    “Change into something nicer,” Mama said when we finished.
    “Mr. Callahan will want you to come in the house to visit.”
    “What will I do if his wife starts criticizing the church?” I asked.
    “Keep quiet. It’s not your place to