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Back Come Again No More Save as PDF
Chapters (55)
  1. Cover
  2. Back Cover
  3. Title Page
  4. Contents
  5. PART I 
  6. 1.
  7. 2.
  8. 3.
  9. 4.
  10. 5.
  11. 6.
  12. 7.
  13. 8.
  14. 9.
  15. 10.
  16. 11.
  17. 12.
  18. PART II 
  19. 13.
  20. 14.
  21. 15.
  22. 16.
  23. 17.
  24. 18.
  25. 19.
  26. 20.
  27. 21.
  28. 22.
  29. 23.
  30. 24.
  31. 25.
  32. 26.
  33. 27.
  34. 28.
  35. 29.
  36. 30.
  37. PART III 
  38. 31.
  39. 32.
  40. 33.
  41. 34.
  42. 35.
  43. 36.
  44. 37.
  45. 38.
  46. 39.
  47. PART IV 
  48. 40.
  49. 41.
  50. 42.
  51. 43.
  52. 44.
  53. 45.
  54. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  55. Touchstone Reading Group Guide

She and Jake talked it over that night after Red was in bed. They couldn’t find Thelma Pearl, so the only choice was to take him to Oregon. Emaline already thought of the boy as her gift from the God she didn’t entirely believe in, paying her back for the loss of her unborn child. She was taking care of him the best she knew how. The worst thing that could happen to her would be for Thelma Pearl to show up at the door and take the boy back. He had a new mother now and Emaline McCloskey had the child she had always wanted.

When they were alone together the next morning, she told Red that he’d be coming to Oregon with them. “It’s a beautiful place, honey. We’ll take you right to the Pacific Ocean. That’s the biggest ocean in the world, waves taller than our barn.”

“Will I see a whale?”

“Maybe. You’ll see tall trees and mountains and a whole lot of beautiful country.”

“But I won’t see my mama, right?”

“I didn’t say that, honey. We’re going to leave our address in Oregon at the store in Stegall. She’ll know to go there to find us when she comes looking. Until she gets back, I’m going to have to be your mama, okay?”

“Okay, Mama. I like that. You’re a good mama.”

He was smart, this boy. Smart enough to see right through her. When she hugged him, she felt the slingshot tucked into his back pocket. Jake had made it from a forked tree branch and a strip cut off an old inner tube. Red never went anywhere without it. He used it to zip rocks at every magpie and blackbird and gopher on the farm. He was still too young to hit anything, but in the determined set of his jaw when he went after them, he was just like Jake.

They spent the day of the foreclosure auction at Jim Lindquist’s farm, saying good-bye to Lee and Jim. Some farmers watched the auctions with their families, wanting to know how much each item brought before the auctioneer’s gavel came down. All Emaline wanted was for it to be over, to find out how much they would have left to get to Oregon, if they would have anything at all. She had eighty-five dollars in butter and egg money, carefully saved over the years, but they would be hard put to make that stretch all the way to Oregon.