“No,” Daddy said.
“Yes,” Mom said. “You’re here to talk about what your son did to my daughter.”
“What?” Daddy said.
“He hasn’t heard yet,” Mom said. “We were just about to discuss it.”
“I see,” said Mr. Stilwind. “Might we sit down?”
“Your son is a dead sonofabitch,” Daddy said.
“Now you hold it,” Mr. Stilwind said.
“Stanley,” Mom said. “Just wait . . . Come sit down, Mr. Stilwind.”
“I’ll po’ up some coffee,” Rosy said.
They seated themselves around the table, except for Rosy, who made fresh coffee, and myself. I sat on the counter and let my feet hang.
“My son told me he had a misunderstanding,” Mr. Stilwind said.
“It was no misunderstanding,” Callie said. “A misunderstanding didn’t tear my blouse.”
“I think it’s best the adults discuss this,” Mr. Stilwind said.
“It happened to me,” Callie said. “I think that makes my opinion worth something.”
“A young girl. A young man. Things can go a little too fast.”
“A little too fast,” Callie said. “He had his motor running from the start, had his foot on the gas.”
“Then,” Mr. Stilwind said, “you must admit, you should not have gone with him. Should not have encouraged it.”
“She didn’t encourage nothin’,” Rosy said. “That boy of yours ain’t no boy. He a man. He know what he’s doin’.”
“I’m not accustomed to the hired help speaking to me in this manner. My help. Anyone’s help.”
“I’m beginning to have an idea what’s going on here,” Daddy said. “And what I’ll tell you is this. If this boy is your only son, your name will not be spread. If you get my meaning.”
“Are you threatening my son?” Mr. Stilwind said.
“If what I think is being said here is being said, then I wouldn’t dare let you think I’m threatening. I’m making you a promise, and him one too.”
“It may not be what you think, Daddy,” Callie said. “I wasn’t . . . Well, you know. Nothing like that.”
Callie took time to tell her story. When she finished I told mine.
Stilwind said: “Girls tease. Boys don’t always know when it’s a tease. Perhaps you encouraged him.”
“I don’t care if she flirted with him or not,” Daddy said. “He went too far, teased or not.”
“He ain’t got no right to lay hands on Miss Callie,” Rosy said.
“I don’t believe you have a dog in this fight,” Stilwind said.
Callie barked sharply.
Stilwind turned red.
“Mr. Stilwind,” Daddy said. “You and me, we’re already on weak scaffolding. You speak one more time to Rosy like that, say one more disparaging thing about my daughter, suggest it, I’m going to forget you’re twenty years older than me, and you may not wake up.”
“Threaten me, and the police will know about it.”
“I’ll bury your ass in the suit you’re wearin’ out back of my place and I’ll plant a goddamn row of cactus on top of it.”
I laughed.
Daddy looked at me sharply, and I went silent.
Mr. Stilwind, red-faced, sat for a moment sucking air. Finally he calmed. “All right,” he said. “Let me cut to the chase. My son told me what he did. He was ashamed of it. Let’s say it was his fault—”
“It was,” Daddy said.
“Very well. I’m prepared to apologize for him, and present you with some compensation for the anguish and so the story will not get spread.”
“Compensation?” Daddy said.
“Money.”
“You want to pay Callie off to not say anything?”
“The police will not get involved in this matter,” Stilwind said. “I can assure you of that. I know them quite well. The chief, the old chief, and the young man who will most likely take over the job, are all good friends of mine. I’ve always had good relations with the police.”
“You give them money, they’re your friends,” Daddy said. “That what you’re saying?”
“You could say that. But the money I’m offering is substantial.” Stilwind looked around. “You could do a lot with this place with that money.”
“There’s nothing wrong with this place that a good fumigation won’t cure when you leave,” Daddy said.
“I need not pay you a dime, sir. The police hardly see the flirtations of one little girl worth the trouble of bothering my son. I’m sure of this. But I don’t need the word spread. It’s not good for me. It’s not good for my son. It certainly wouldn’t be good for your daughter.”
“Why isn’t he here to speak for himself?” Mom asked.
“I felt this was the better way to go about it.”
“Come in, pay us off, go to the house, forget it,” Daddy said.
“If you want to break it down to a crude summation, I suppose you are right. It doesn’t do us any good to do otherwise. Your family or mine.”
“I think your son is a coward,” Daddy said. “Uh uh, don’t speak, Stilwind. You listen to me. I think
“You’d go to prison for the rest of your life,” Stilwind said. “I’d see to that.”
“That could be. Let me tell you this, and I’ll deny it if asked. I’m not going to bother your son. My daughter is all right. She took up for herself quite well. But, someday, he’ll get his. I can promise you that.”
“Don’t lay a hand on him,” Stilwind said. “Never. I promise you. I’m going to make things rough for you in this town. Ordinances may not be being obeyed here. Police might need to pull you over from time to time, just to check and see if you’re driving right.”
“You know,” Daddy said. “I don’t think you care about James at all. I think you care about you. How this hurts you, or your name. I bet this boy has been in plenty of trouble, that you’ve bought him out of all manner of it. He doesn’t feel he has to be responsible. Just like I bet you’ve never been responsible.”
“I earned all that I have,” Stilwind said. “All of it.”
“So have I. It may be less than you have, but I earned it. I think it gave me character. I think it gave you money and a shoeshine.”
“Very well,” Stilwind said, picking his hat from his knee and rising. “You had your chance. It was not meant as a bribe. Just a token of apology.”
“Your apology is nothing to me. And I wouldn’t give me too much trouble about ordinances either. I’m a fighter.”
“Good day, sir,” Stilwind said.
“I won’t wish you that,” Daddy said. “I wouldn’t give a damn if you flipped your car and it killed you.”
“Stanley,” Mom said.
“You tell your son to stay away from my daughter. Forever.”
Stilwind put on his hat and made his own way to the door. I went to the window and looked out. There was a colored man in a black suit with a black cap waiting beside a long black car. The colored man smiled and opened the back door for Stilwind. Stilwind got in without saying a word. The colored man drove the car away.
Rosy picked up Stilwind’s coffee cup and dumped his coffee in the sink. “He didn’t even drink a drop,” she said. “And me goin’ to all that trouble.”
Callie took hold of Daddy’s hand and squeezed it. “Thanks, Daddy.”
Daddy squeezed her hand back.
“You did good,” Mom said. “Except for that car wreck part.”
“Meant it,” Daddy said.
“Uh oh,” Rosy said. “Think I smell our cake a burnin’.”
