Read Online A Father's Stake by Mary Anne Wilson - Free Book Online Page B

rarely heard from them. No cousins, distant or otherwise. That was why she was so thankful Lilly had her grandma.
    They walked, coming to a kind of barrier of low trees, vines and bramble. Jack turned to the left, striding ahead of her for about twenty feet. “We can get through here,” he said, motioning.
    She caught up to him and was surprised to see a parting in the crazy tangle of vegetation. The opening was narrow, held back by old pieces of wood stuck in the ground. With an easy motion, Jack ducked through the passageway and disappeared from sight. She was shocked he’d fit through and even more shocked when he called out, “Come on down.”
    She couldn’t move. “What about snakes?”
    “Can’t see any, and if there are some, they’re here for the shade. They’ll be angry if we disturb them, so we won’t.” His disembodied voice held just a touch of something she thought might be amusement. “Come on—I’ll keep my eyes open for anything.”
    She hesitantly went closer to the opening until she saw Jack standing in a shallow creek bed that looked bone-dry. He held out a strong hand to her, and now she could see the humor lifting the corners of his lips. Taking a breath, she gripped his fingers for support as she navigated the fairly steep decline. Once at the bottom, she let go of him and looked in both directions along the partially shaded trench. Rocks, sand, weeds, hardy plants that looked like bushes laced with vines, but no snakes.
    It was quiet down here, the now towering growth on either side shutting out almost every noise except a soft chirping.
    “This way,” Jack said, striding down the eroded path.
    She followed, staring at his broad back. There was no question of walking side by side in the narrow cut. “So, does this ever have water in it?” she asked.
    “At certain times of the year. There can be flash floods, and you’d be hard put to get out of here before the wall of water got to you.”
    Without thinking, she looked behind her, then back at Jack. “When does that happen?”
    “During the monsoon season.”
    “Monsoon?” She stopped dead in her tracks. “You’re kidding, aren’t you?”
    He slowed and turned. There was no smile on his face now. “No, I’m not. Monsoons hit this area anywhere from July to the early fall. We’re almost at the end of the season, and this year it’s been pretty clear. Actually, they help with the land, greening it up a bit, making it softer, better pasture and easier to plow.”
    “I thought monsoons were tropical storms, way south of here...like very south of here.”
    He shrugged. “I’ve seen heavy rain, wind, lower temperatures, large hail and the lightning....” He gave a “believe it or not” shrug. “The lightning is spectacular.”
    “Hail?”
    “Huge balls of hail. I’ve seen them break windows, beat cars down, a lot of damage.”
    She hugged her arms around herself. Snakes and monsoons. She’d never given either a thought. “Okay, so are we in danger being down here if a monsoon hits?”
    He did laugh then, that dimple appearing at the side of his mouth. “No, not today,” he said. “So, relax.”
    She could tell he wanted to keep going, but she held back. “Before we go any farther, what else goes on around here that I need to know about?”
    “Such as?”
    “Anything that can drown us, or bite us, or—” She held out her hands, palms upward. “Anything. Just tell me now.”
    He considered her with those dark eyes, then cocked his head slightly to one side. “Okay. Small stuff. Spiders, scorpions, lizards, that sort of thing. Larger animals. Wolves, coyotes, even had a bear once, but that’s usual. Mountain lions—”
    “Stop,” she said, her skin starting to crawl. “Enough. I understand. But I need to know how you survived living here all these years?” That smile, darn it, it was there again.
    “I’ll tell you, this is our home, and it’s their home, and we live in some sort of peaceful coexistence