Peanut gunned the Bronco before Wiley could answer and waved at Tommy as we drove by. I turned to watch the boys roll the gate shut as soon as we were through. Neither of them could be older than sophomores and had no idea what kind of man they were dealing with. When I turned back, Peanut smiled in the rearview mirror, and I looked beyond him. The Bohannon home sat upon the highest point on the property and gave a pretty view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Floodlights lit the driveway up like a night game, and Peanut parked next to an Excursion. Peanut cut the engine, kicked the door open, and slid out in one smooth motion.

“Y’all come have a beer.”

We followed him around to the front porch, and Buford was sitting there waiting for us. The old bastard looked at me, mirroring my disgust. It should’ve been him locked up in Sweetwater instead of my Deddy. He looked away before I did, and Peanut sat next to him. “What you know good, Deddy?”

Buford curled up a lip and spat out into the yard. “We’re almost outta beer. I probably oughta go get some.”

2.

“Y’all have a seat.”

Marshall did like he was told and took the rocking chair next to Peanut’s. He slung a leg over the arm of the chair like he belonged and looked at me funny. I kept standing, leaned back against the porch banister, and propped my elbows on it.

Marshall said, “Hey, Coy, don’t be so damn rude. Take a seat like Peanut asked.”

I ignored my brother and kept my eyes focused on the big man sitting across from me. The hard features of his face got hidden in the shadows of his baseball cap, but his smile flickered like a razor blade in the light. What actually went on in his mind was hidden by that full-toothed grin, but Peanut waved my brother off.

“Hell, Marshall,” Peanut said, “if Mack was cooped up in a freezer like Cody Eli said, he’s probably happy to stretch his legs. Let him stand if he wants to.”

“Why’d the Elis let y’all know where I was?” I asked.

The question made an Elvis Presley smirk curl Marshall’s upper lip, and Peanut pushed his hat back on the crown of his head. He said, “Caudell has a way of getting information outta people.”

“Peanut?”

He shrugged.

I crossed my arms over my chest and flinched. All the beatings I’d taken over the past couple of days were catching up to me. It hurt no matter how I stood, and moving around only made it worse. Marshall asked, “You all right, Coy?”

Peanut said, “Looks like hell, don’t he?”

I said, “I just need some sleep.”