We ran smack into Mister Ward! It knocked him down! We fell too, but he didn't reach out and catch at me or Shoogie! He just grabbed at his own neck, pulled himself up against our hiding stump, and cried "O, God" again. Shoogie rolled me over so fast my mouth got full of dirt! Before I could spit it out she had us both down in a gully, up again, and headed across the field. She was dragging me every step. Cornstalks hit me in the face. They were hitting her too, but she wouldn't slow up. "Shoogie, wait and see what they're gonna do!" "No! We don't care what they gonna do! We gotta get outta here!" "I can't run so fast, Shoogie!" "We's gotta get back to that rail fence and that hickor'nut tree! Bandershanks, pick your feets up high! That's the way to run fast!" It seemed we were running and stumbling through all the cornstalks in the whole world, but Shoogie didn't care. She went streaking on. When Shoogie finally did slack down and turn my hand loose, she began whispering to me as if she were starting a secret she didn't want even the high weeds to hear. "Don't you dare tell Mister Jodie, Bandershanks! Don't tell your Papa Mister Ward done come back. Don't never let that mean white man's name roll 'cross your tongue. Not never!" "Shoogie, my papa—" "Gran'ma Huldie, she says don't breathe his name! Hit'll get you in trouble. She says she'll beat my hide iffen I gets in more trouble. And your papa might beat your hide!" I didn't want that! "Iffen Gran'ma Huldie finds out we seen Mister Ward, she'll get me for takin' you 'cross that field. She still claims hit was me what let Mister Ward steal you and run off with you. Says I ought not to 'a had you playin' by the road! Bandershanks, she 'clares iffen I gets you in bad one more time, she's gonna beat the daylights outta me! And iffen you tells Mister Jodie, he'll tell Gran'ma Huldie!" It was taking us forever to cross the field. When we finally got back to the buggy, Papa didn't say a thing about beating me or my hide. He hardly noticed us. Mama was there by the buggy, and they were looking at a big, double-barreled shotgun Miss Dink wanted Papa to fix. Papa walked back to hook the chain on Miss Ophelia's rickety gate, and he and Mama talked on-about Miss Dink being sick in the bed again, and about Miss Ophelia claiming she hadn't seen Ward since Christmas Eve night, and about some gunshots way across the field. Papa was more worried about the shots than about Miss Dink. "Nannie, it sounded like it was between here and Wes Bailey's house!" "Quit worrying, Jodie. It was probably them three boys out shooting at tin cans. Boys like to practice." "Maybe so, but let's get on home. These days I stay uneasy, 'specially every time I hear a gun go off." Papa glanced down at me and Shoogie. "You girls hurry and climb up in the back of the buggy there so we can go. My, y'all both look like you've been running pigs in a briar patch!"