All the Earth, Thrown to the Sky

12

We went back to the car, and Bad Tiger let go of Tony.

“How’s Buddy doing?” Bad Tiger asked.

“Not so good,” I said.

“Yeah, well,” Bad Tiger said, “that’s how I figured it.”

“A stomach shot,” Timmy said, “that don’t do nobody any good. Not even a little bit.”

“That seems like an understatement,” Jane said.

“Girlie,” Timmy said, “you better shut your mouth before I shut it for you.”

Jane went silent, but I could tell it was paining her to do it.

“Would you say Buddy is going to get better?” Bad Tiger said to her.

“Not without some medical help,” Jane said. “You could leave him with us. Maybe we can stop someone that comes along the road.”

“Naw,” Bad Tiger said. “Can’t do that. I need you three for a while, and I don’t want you talking to nobody on the road. And I figure you’re right. Without a doctor he ain’t getting no better.”

Bad Tiger looked at Timmy.

“I got it,” Timmy said.

Timmy went out across the pasture. We watched him walk to the sycamore tree. He said something to Buddy we couldn’t understand. But we could hear Buddy.

“I hate to die in a bloody shirt,” he said.

“That’s just the way it is,” Timmy said. We could hear him clearly this time.

“I reckon so. Well, get it over with,” Buddy said.

We stood there stunned. I kind of knew what was coming but couldn’t believe it was about to happen.

Bad Tiger said, “Why don’t you kids turn and look down the road there.”

We did just that.

And then we heard the shot.

“All right, then,” Bad Tiger said, and we turned around.

Timmy came walking back toward us. I could see Buddy lying out by the sycamore tree.

Jane looked right at Bad Tiger and said, “You ain’t nothing but the lowest of low.”

Bad Tiger looked her right back in the eye. “You said yourself he wasn’t going to get any better.”

“Without a doctor he wasn’t going to get any better,” Jane said. “He shot him in cold blood.”

“Buddy knew the score,” Bad Tiger said as Timmy came back. “And I’ll tell you, cutie pie, doctor or no doctor, he wasn’t going to make it. I’ve seen it before. He had done mostly bled out. We done him a favor.”