Chapter 16

Ada June heard Pastor Gordon, but she pretended she didn't. She wasn't sure why. She'd been watching for him to come home for days. But she wasn't ready to talk to him with the teacher woman listening. Not yet.

She had told her Bo's name, but that was a short little word that didn't take much effort. Bo had wagged his tail when the woman patted his head. So, it was only right she knew his name. The woman had known Ada June's name, but she hadn't spoken her own name.

Joseph said she was the preacher's missus. If that was true, then she'd be Missus Covington. A fancy name like that suited her. She was pretty and appeared to like smiling. She hadn't frowned once. Excepting at Joseph when he said those things about Ada June's mother.

She didn't care what Joseph said. He wasn't nobody she had to worry none about. She could flatten him with one punch. She smiled, thinking how Joseph had been afraid to get close to her. He deserved being flattened for what he said about her mother. Or what he said his sister said.

That would be Ruby. She weren't but a year or two older than Ada June, if she was counting right. Her ma had taught her how to count. She'd have taught her how to read too if'n she'd lived long enough.

She bet that ol' Ruby didn't know how to number her fingers or what letter her name started out with. Ada June knew that. A, then came B. Bo started with B. She looked down at her dog matching his steps to hers.

He wagged his tail the way he always did when she was thinking about him. Dogs didn't have to have things said out loud. A dog knew what a person was thinking and whether it was for good or bad.

Pap Leathers had taught her that. He said he didn't even have to whistle up his old hound when he wanted to go hunting. The dog just knew. She wished she could remember that dog better. And Pap too. She couldn't hardly pull up what he looked like anymore. 'Course he'd passed on before her ma did.

She wasn't going to forget her ma. She couldn't ever forget her. She kept telling herself that, but sometimes when she tried to picture her mother, everything went shadowy. Except for the last, that part she sort of wanted to forget.

But one thing for sure, Ruby didn't know nothing about her ma. Nothing. She didn't have no call saying Ada June's mother was a witch just because she liked being off to herself out in the woods. What if she did dig up roots to make concoctions? They weren't witches' brews. Sometimes Ada June sort of wished they were and that her ma had taught her some spells she could throw on such as Ruby and that Connor.

Preacher Gordon would tell her that wasn't right thinking, but she figured he'd never had anybody call his ma a witch or try to chase him down to rub his face in the snow or the mud. And now this teacher woman was telling her that dogs couldn't come in the schoolhouse.

A few tears slipped out of Ada June's eyes. She did so want to learn to read, but she needed Bo with her. She wasn't sure she could make herself walk into the schoolhouse without Bo beside her.

Bo jumped up to try to lick her face. She sat down on a stump without even brushing the snow off and buried her face in his fur. She should have talked to Preacher Gordon. He might have helped her figure out what to do. He was always telling her she shouldn't keep worrying about the bad, but to think on the good.

She raised her head to let Bo lick the tears off her cheeks. The good. Her times with her mother before the end were good. That was what she would think about. A smile edged out on her face as she remembered trailing after her mother through the woods as she pointed out this or that wildflower and spoke their names. The jack-in-the-pulpit always made her mother smile when she lifted up the top of the flower to show the little preacher. If Ada June found one of those flowers this spring, she'd call it Preacher Gordon in the pulpit.

She laughed and Bo did his doggie grin that had surprised the teacher woman. His tail whipped back and forth. Bo was good.

That first summer after her mother died, Ada June had found the pup huddled back under a shelf of rocks. He weren't big as nothing and had beggar lice in his fur and a tear in one ear. Appeared to be pitched aside as worthless. Not a hunting dog. Not a fighting dog. Naught but a runt.

Something like she was. Considered good for nothing except packing in wood and such as that. Back then she was passed around like an unwanted stepchild nobody was glad to see on their doorsteps. So, half the time, she stayed out in the woods.

That day she found Bo, he hadn't give her no welcome either. He'd give out a growl when she reached under the rocks for him. He was too little to hurt her none, but she pulled her hand back anyhow. She didn't want him mad at her from the first. Instead, she stretched out on the ground to wait him out.

She talked to him. Her voice was some rusty, seeing as how she hadn't said one word to anybody since her ma died. But she warmed up her mouth talking to that pup. She told him all about her mother and how she hadn't ever had a pa so far as she knew. She told him it didn't do no good to always be growling and hating on folks, even if you was thinkin' they were growling and hating on you. She promised never to growl at him. Ever.

After what seemed like forever, he crept out from under the rock and cuddled up next to her like he knew she needed him as much as he needed her. She named him Bo right off. She didn't know why. The name just came to her.

They hid out in the woods for days. Nobody missed her. They were always forgetting whose turn it was to take her in. Whenever she saw Miss Effie or Miss Nicey Jane leave their houses to work in their sass patches or go visiting, she would sneak inside to snatch a hunk of cornbread or a couple of biscuits. She split what she got with Bo.

She was happy. The pup was happy. And she figured them that were passing her around were happy too that they didn't have to worry with her. She might have carried on that way all the summer, but Miss Effie wasn't like Miss Hallie and Miss Nicey Jane. She kept count of when it was her turn to see to Ada June. When she checked with Miss Nicey Jane, who had the turn before her, she found out Ada June hadn't been at nobody's house for some time.

Ada June, lurking around behind Miss Nicey Jane's, aiming to grab some vittles, heard them jawing at one another about it. She hadn't been close enough to hear all they said, but she knew it had to do with her.

She ought to have run back out into the woods, but she didn't have that good of sense then. So wasn't nothing for it but to go on up to the porch when Miss Nicey Jane hollered for her. She could've pretended not to hear, but even then, without good sense, she knew doing something like that generally made things worse.

With Bo hid inside her shirt, she crept on up to the porch something like Bo had crept out from under that rock shelf when she found him. She weren't expectin' to find love like as how Bo had though. She figured Miss Nicey Jane would be making her go find a switch.

Instead, both her and Miss Effie appeared to be struck speechless when they saw her. She smiled a little, remembering the looks on their faces. She had surely been a sight. She hadn't so much as washed her face in the creek for days. They didn't stay speechless long.

"Land's sake, Ada June. What have you been into?" Miss Effie had a way of sounding cross, but Ada June wasn't ever afeared of being at her place.

"I ought to wear you out." Miss Nicey Jane propped her fists on her hips. "Ain't no need you actin' like some kind of wild child."

Ada June had stared down at the ground. She wasn't fearing a whipping. It was what they would make her do with Bo that had her heart thumping as she held him under her shirt.

"I reckon she's my worry right now, Nicey Jane." Miss Effie had come down off the porch. "I'll tend to her."

Ada June peeked up at her. Miss Effie had a way of looking at her like it didn't much matter whether Ada June said anything or not. She already knew what she was thinking.

"Come along." She stalked off down the trail without so much as a fare thee well to Miss Nicey Jane.

When she hurried after her, Bo made a couple of yips. Miss Effie kept walking like she didn't hear. But instead of heading up to the swinging bridge over the creek, she led the way right down to the water.

"Wash the dirt off'n yore face."

After wading out into the creek, Ada June splashed water up on her face.

"Now come on back here and show me what you got hid in your shirt."

Ada June wanted to run the other way, but she knew better. Not that Miss Effie ever took a stick to her, but she expected any young'un to do as she said. Tears mixed with the water that hadn't dried on her face as she stepped out of the creek, pulled Bo out of her shirt, and held him out for Miss Effie to see.

"Well, leastways it ain't a polecat." She took him out of Ada June's hands and held him up to study him.

Bo must have known he needed to act nice. His tail whipped back and forth to make his whole body wiggle. He wasn't much bigger than Miss Effie's hand. Ada June hadn't washed herself, but she had let Bo play in a creek to get the mud off'n his black-and-white fur. So, at least he was clean. Miss Effie set some store on things being clean.

"Ain't much to him." When Miss Effie set Bo on the ground, he ran straight to lay on Ada June's foot.

"You give him a name?" Miss Effie asked like as how she expected an out-loud answer.

Ada June had the feeling Bo's fate rested on whether she could speak his name. Her heart beat up in her ears as the pup nibbled on her big toe.

Miss Effie's voice was soft. Not hardly cross sounding at all. "Can't have no dog around less'n it has a name."

Ada June's jaws felt locked up like she'd just eaten a green persimmon. She stooped down and picked up Bo. Him licking the tears off her cheeks got her mouth loosened up somehow.

"Bo." His name wasn't much more than a whisper of breath, but Miss Effie heard her.

"A good enough name. Bring him on. He can sleep on the porch." She started up toward the swinging bridge.

Ada June didn't follow her.

Miss Effie looked back. "Come on, girl. It's nigh on suppertime."

Ada June stayed where she was. Miss Effie stopped and frowned at her. "All right. Long as we ain't having a thunder boomer, you can sleep out there with him." She shook her head and started walking again. "Lord help me. I must be goin' soft."

After that, Miss Effie didn't make her go anywhere else until Mr. Luther came beggin' her for Aunt Dottie the next year. Ada June had cried a little. She liked Miss Effie and she was going to miss her knowin' what Ada June was thinking without her saying anything out loud. Fact was, she hadn't ever said another word after saying Bo's name, but she reckoned that was enough.

That had been nigh on four years ago. Thinking back on it, Ada June sort of wished she'd given Miss Effie a hug before she went with Mr. Luther. Not that Miss Effie was much of a hugger, but when Ada June looked back at her, she had the corner of her apron up wiping something out of her eyes.