Guilt and Prayer

Guilt and Prayer

Suzanne Marsh

“Pa, Pa, come quick!” Jed cried in a plaintive voice. Mark Adams dropped the pitchfork he had been pitching hay with. Jed was not a boy to cry; whatever happened, Mark knew it wasn’t good. Mark ran to the other end of the large barn. He stopped short; there was boy about Jed’s age hanging from a rope. Mark quickly had Jed ride into the town of Fate to bring the sheriff and old Doc March. Mark, a protective arm around his son asked quietly:

“Do you know who that boy is Jed?” “Yeah Pa, Tommy Trainor, he was best friend Pa.”

Mark wanted to ask Jed more questions but with the body of Tommy hanging there, he just could not bring himself to do so. The most important question was why was Tommy hanging in their barn? The sheriff would certainly ask that question. Mark cleared his throat:

“Suppose you tell me Jed; how Tommy hung himself in our barn.” Jed turned and ran as fast as he could. Mark stood watching Jed, he shook his head as if to clear it and thought: ‘what is wrong with that boy? We been here in Fate. Texas for five years now. Jed has made friends, the farm is doing well. I don’t understand that boy at all.”

Jed Adams, tall and heavy-set for his age ran into the house; hoping Mark would not follow him. He did not know how he to tell the truth about Tommy or what happened early that morning as they played before school. He and Tommy were friends; that made this situation even worse. Jed thought: ‘I can’t tell pa, not the truth, I need to have a story ready.

Mark, saddled his favorite horse Comanche was a large beautiful bay who loved to gallop any where he was headed. Mark spurred him, to a full lope; he needed the sheriff to come out to the ranch; he covered Tommy’s body with an old horse blanket. Mark loped into town, found the sheriff patrolling the streets:

“Hey sheriff, I need you to come out to my ranch now. Tommy Trainor...I found him dead,

hung by his neck from a rafter.”

The sheriff, his Colt.45 on his hip:

“What happened Mark? You got any idea?” The men galloped out of town toward Mark Adams’s ranch. Jed watched through a gingham curtain, when he saw the sheriff, he ran out the backdoor, down into a ravine he hid in when he was in trouble. He trembled as he saw his pa and the sheriff dismount. Mark called Jed as he opened the door, the sheriff followed. Mark, became worried:

“Now where could that boy have gotten to? Sheriff, I am going to go look fer him, he can’t

have gone far.” The sheriff thought before he spoke:

“Mark, I’ll come with you, the boy is scared of something. Before we begin searching I would

like to see Tommy’s body.”

Mark led the way into the barn, strode over to Tommy’s body, pulled the old horse blanket away from Tommy’s face. Tommy’s face was twisted in pain, the rope burned his throat. The sheriff turned motioning Mark to recover Tommy’s face. They began to search for Jed, the sheriff thought: ‘Jed, knows more than he is letting on. Once we find the boy I am going ask some questions. Tommy hanging himself does not make sense.’ The men walked side by side, as they approached the ravine where Jed was hiding, he slipped into the cave entrance. Jed, had no idea how large the cave was, it seemed a great hiding place.

Suddenly, Jed’s foot slipped, fell down a shaft. He began to scream and yell:

“Pa, pa help!” The sheriff and Mark turned back and ran toward the sound of Jed’s voice. Mark, concern growing crawled into the cave. It was dark, the men would have to go to the barn, get several lanterns then return. Mark, yelled to Jed:

“We are goin back to the barn to get some lanterns, and shovels. Jed do you hear me?”

“Yeah, pa I hear ya. My leg hurts bad and I can’t move.”

Mark and sheriff ran back up and out of the ravine toward the barn. The sheriff knew the ranchers in the area; he rode toward the McMahon ranch first. Tom McMahon listened as the sheriff explained:

“Tom, Jed Adams is stuck in a cave down in a ravine a few miles from hear, can you spare some men to give us a hand.”

“Yeah” he motioned to four cowboys: “Boys, the sheriff needs some help getting Jed Adams

who is stuck in a cave. Take some shovels.”

Tom, turned on his heel and headed into the house. He contemplated how a kid had managed to get stuck in a shaft. Jed, was handful, he knew that too.

The sheriff arrived with the extra men, Mark had the lanterns ready so they could enter the cave. He hoped things would not become overly complicated. Mark went into the cave first:

“Jed, son, can you hear me? The sheriff and some men are here, where are you?”

Jed began to cry:

“Pa, I am in this here shaft, I can’t move. Pa you gotta get me outta here.”

The men began to enter the cave each with a lantern and shovel. They began to dig a tunnel on the opposite side of the cave. The men worked most of the night to no avail. Time was not on their side, the air inside the cave was becoming stale; one by one they went out into the cool night air, then returned. Jed, cried out: “Pa, I can’t breathe.” The men began to dig frantically; one of the cowboys had been a miner, mining for silver in Colorado until the vein he had been working dried up. He, went to his saddled horse returning with a rope:

“I am small enough to get down into that shaft, if we can get to the boy, we can dig him out

quicker.”

The cowboy had been correct, he dug Jed out, raised him up on the rope, then he followed. Mark thanked the men for all their help. Jed, was crying harder now than he had before. He said in quiet voice:

“Pa, it’s all my fault that Tommy’s dead. We was playin Hangman this morning. He dared me

me to put the noose round his neck. He laughed pa, thought it was funny. Then he double

dared me to kick the box out from under him. I did, Tommy made a gurggling sound. I

did not want to tell anyone. Pa, Tommy was unhappy, his pa was beatin him somethin fierce.

I done murdered my best friend pa.”

The sheriff had been listening closely to what Jed said:

“Jed, Tommy was tired of his beatin him. Ted Trainor is a miserable excuse for a person.

Tommy, knew what he was doin. He ran away from Ted several times. I threw Ted in

jail twice for hurtin Tommy.”

Mark, sighed a sigh of relief; now he understood why Jed tried to hide. Jed held Mark’s hand, he could feel the comfort that his pa gave him.