Lions

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It was by their happiness that the good people of Lions approximated their value in the eyes of the Lord and, if you asked them, they would tell you how happy they were. How blessed. On Sundays most of them drove to the Bible Church in Burnsville, so while Lions was small enough, and bare enough, Sunday mornings it was dead empty, and absolutely still. In early summer, as on this particular morning, if you went out walking over one of the weedy fields or even down the dusty road toward the highway, the plain would open for you, pretty as a prayer book. The last of the white stars faded and the day slowly absorbed the paper face of the moon, like a soft blue cloth soaking up a small white spill. Georgianna Walker woke alone, and moved through the rooms of the house, opening windows, then stepped outside toward the highway.

She was in her tennis shoes and nightgown when Chuck found her walking along the bar ditch. He pulled over slowly behind her, a good hundred yards behind, and hustled to catch up with her on foot. He didn’t want to startle her.

“Mrs. Walker?” he called as he jogged, his keys jangling. It was a warm day already, the deep greens from snowmelt and early rain already drying out. She did not stop. She was carrying a white wooden cross. It struck him as odd. There were crosses like that stabbed into the front lawns of some of the houses across Lions, but he didn’t remember ever having seen one at the Walkers’ place. The Walkers weren’t like that. “Mrs. Walker! Georgie!” She paused and looked back. Her pale eyes were radiantly blue. She smiled, and he fell into step beside her.

“Making me run, at this hour!”

“I’m sorry, Chuck. I didn’t know you were there.”

“Good morning, Georgie. Are you in your nightgown?”

“Oh,” she said, with a little embarrassed laugh, “I figured everyone was in Burnsville.”

“Now didn’t you say last night when we left you that you’d take good care of yourself?”

“I’m sure I did.”

“You shouldn’t be alone on the side of the road like this.”

“Oh, Chuck I’m OK. And I’m hardly alone,” she said, and put her hand on his arm. It was worn and wrinkled and lined with veins. “But thank you.”

“What have you got there?”

She held it up. The cross was six inches wide and ten inches long. “We had it in the shop,” she said. “I don’t know what on earth for, but now of course I’m glad we did.”

“What’s it for?”

“For the dog, Chuck,” she said. “We meant to do it right away, but John got sick.”

He was quiet a moment. “Can I help you with it?”

“I’d appreciate the company and the help.”

They walked side by side until they came to the place where the grass had been overturned and the man had placed a small cairn of stones and gravel. Around them the long fingers of morning light played in the grass, fascinated with it, teasing and combing it in the wind. Georgianna sat down beside the pile of stones in her nightgown and set a hand over it.

“Poor creature,” she said.

An old pickup with a handmade wooden trailer sped past, rattling rusted metal.

“So loyal,” she said, “you know?” She looked up at him.

“Good dogs are that way.”

“We could have all up and left the town but if this dog thought that man was still here somewhere it would’ve waited forever.”

“It’s a strange thing.”

“Beautiful thing.”

They kneeled over the little mound and just above it dug at the dirt and gravel with their fingers until they had five or six inches cleared out.

“Should’ve brought a spade.”

“Oh well,” he said, “now we have dirty hands from good work.”

She smiled. “That sounds like John.” She placed the cross upright and held it still while he filled in the dirt. Then she sat back down in the dirt and held out her hand, palm up. At first he didn’t know what she was doing. Then he sat beside her and took her fingers.

Chuck could see she was crying, and his eyes filled with tears and he pulled his lips into his mouth.

“We are so sorry,” she finally said. “Forgive us. Amen.”

“Amen.”

A rig filled with sheep sped past and stank horribly. Instinctively Chuck held his breath in his nose for a few seconds after it passed. Georgianna brushed off her nightgown and stood, leaning on his hand to steady herself.

“Will you join me and Emily for supper later?”

“Thank you, Chuck, but no. I’ll gladly take the ride home though.”

“Absolutely. Don’t you move. You wait right here and I’ll pull up the car.”