Scarlet Sister Mary (1928, Bobbs-Merrill Company)/Chapter 10
Maum Hannah kept Unex while Mary picked cotton all the week until Saturday, when she washed the clothes early and ironed them all before noon. She was starting to the spring to fetch water to scour before night when Doll, July's sister, came by. When she saw Mary still working she burst out laughing, "How-come you duh scour when evybody else is pleasurin? How-come so?"
Mary began trying to explain: July didn't like her to be roaming around and trapesing up and down the road. He liked to find her at home whenever he came in.
Doll laughed. Being July's sister, she could say things about him nobody else could say. "Lawd, gal," she began seriously, "if you pay 'tention to July, you would pure work yousef to death. Put down dat scourin brush. Come on go to Grab-All wid me. Some fine new dress cloth come on de boat yesdiddy. You need some new clothes, well as me."
Mary was afraid to do it at first, for July had not come home for dinner yet, and he liked his victuals to be nice and hot. But Doll insisted, so she put up the scouring brush and changed her dress, put on a clean white apron and her fine hoop earrings and went to the store with Doll.
The dress cloth was beautiful, but she had no money to buy a single yard. June treated Doll and herself to a bag of candy and a battle of soda-water and after they had laughed and talked a while, he bought them each string of beads and a can of salmon, then they came on home.
July was standing in the door when they walked up. His face was frowning and he had little to say to any of them. Doll had prepared Mary for that very thing. Doll warned her that if July started any short talk, just to outtalk him; if he said anything rough, to answer him back still rougher. That was the way to manage men. July was spoiled. He was used to having his own way with everybody. He needed a wife who would rule him instead of one who was soft and gave in to all his spoiled ways.
Mary went in the house and started to feed Unex, and when she saw the black frown on July's face she put on one that was blacker. As soon as she laid Unex down on the bed July reached out a hand and took her by the arm. His eyes cut deep into her face, and his voice rum bled out, "Whe you been?"
"I been to Grab-All."
"How-come you gone off an' ain' told me whe you was gwine?"
"But I fetched you a nice can o salmon. You ought to be glad stead o cross as two sticks." July grabbed the salmon off the table and threw it on the floor so hard the can bent in.
"You better behave yousef, July." She tried to sound brave but her heart knocked clean up in her wind-pipe, for July's eyes were sparkling.
"I don' like you to take de baby out in de night air. Don' do dat not no more. It's you business to stay home. A married 'oman ain' to trapes de Big Road. It don' look nice. An' don' be spendin' my good money for no salmon, neither. I can' stand de smell of em, much less de taste."
"I didn' spend you good money. June bought de salmon an' gi em to me."
"You went wid June? Well, you stay home lessen I take you to Grab-All."
There was no use to fuss with him, so she stirred around and cooked him a nice hot ash-cake and some bacon.
"Whe'd you git dem beads round you neck?"
"June gi em to me."
"June? When did you and June git so thick?"
"We ain' thick."
"Well, take em off."
She hesitated, he had no right to order her around like a dog. Then the necklace seemed suddenly hateful. She unhooked it and started to throw it into the fire but July stopped her. "Go put em in de trunk and keep em in de trunk lessen I tell you to take em out. Is you hear me?"
If July would only have sat still long enough for her to talk to him, she could have made up with him, but as soon as he ate, he got his hat and left the house. Later on, when he came in and went to bed, she tried to talk but he pretended he was asleep.
Sunday morning he seemed more like himself, and then she tried to tell him she was still young, and liked to go somewhere now and then, to meeting or to a birth-night supper, or to Grab-All, just for a little pleasure. He ought to be glad for her to go. As soon as she began to talk, he shut up as tight as a clam, and in a little while he got his hat and left.
When night fell Doll came by on her way to meeting and Mary wrapped the baby up and went with her. She was not spying on July for be had disappeared down the street going toward Cinder's house while she went in the other direction. No harm was in that. But when he came in late that night, with his eyes all hot and bloodshot, he ground his teeth together and asked, "Didn' I told you to stay home to-night?"
She made herself stand up straight and look him in the eyes.
"Looka here, July. No man livin can' boss me around dis way an' work me to death." She spoke out boldly and tried to jerk herself loose from his grasp.
"Yuh duh back-jaw me?" He pressed her. "Tell me dat?" His head was bent so close his eyes were near to her face.
"Sho, I'll back-jaw you much as I please. Who is you to be so big-doins anyhow?"
The words were hardly off her lips when he gave her face a slap that laid her flat on the floor. She jumped up like a cat and hit him back, but she might as well have used her fist on iron. July's sinews were too tough to feel her blow.
She reached up and tried to scratch his face, but he held her up off the floor with one hand and with the other he laid licks on her that knocked the breath out of her and blistered her skin. She didn't know a man's hand could fall so heavy. Lord, those were awful licks. She saw stars, and she couldn't suck in enough breath to yell for help. She had to think fast, for, vexed as July was, he might kill her. Her body was stunned, but her wits were strangely sharpened. She lay flat on the floor without moving, and when she saw him looking down to see if she really was hurt very much, she began to cry. Not a loud grown-woman's crying, but a poor little pitiful whining like a young baby too sick to live much longer.
"Git up off dat floor, May-e," July shouted, and she pretended to do her best, then fell back down like something hamstrung, crying weakly all the time.
"What de matter all you?" he stormed.
"My back's broke," she whispered, "broke in two—you done killed me, July."
He jerked her up roughly and tried to make her stand on her feet, but her bones melted and fear shook her like a palsy.
"Stand up! May-e!" He tried to compel her, but she fell up against him, and with her arms around his neck, she sobbed against his breast. She could feel the blood beating in his heart and his breath was heaving hard, but his big arms went softly around her and he picked her up and carried her to the shed room and laid her on the bed. She shut her eyes and held her breath so July would think she had gone off in a trance.
"May-e! Gal!" He called her and felt for the pulse in her wrist.
She waited a little before she answered feebly, "Is you call me, July?" and put a blind hand out to feel for him. "My eyes is gone blind, July. Dey can' see a bit. You done ruined me fo good."
"Great Gawd, gal. I didn't mean to hurt you so bad. Le' me go for Auntie." But she begged him not to leave her. She wanted him to stay by her. And he did, pleading with her to forgive him, promising her he would never do such a thing again; he was worried and fretted, so he forgot himself. After she was quiet and ready to sleep he sat by the fire a long time, staring at it and studying. Cinder had him conjured, poor fellow. That was his trouble. Cinder's black hand had him all but out of his mind.
For three days Mary made like she was nearly dead. She stayed in bed, while July waited on her and cooked for her and washed her face and tended to her as though she were a baby. He thought she was crippled, and he could not bear for anybody to know he had done it. Once he wept with grief and shame, but Mary had learned her lesson too. A strong man's hand can fall heavy, and the best way to deal with strength is to be weak and helpless. She was not able to fight with July. It was better to knuckle to him any day.
Maybe she could get Daddy Cudjoe to put a black hand on Cinder that would get the wicked slut out of July's way. Mary felt that she would be willing to kill her if it came to the worst. There were ways, plenty of ways. Poison roots and herbs grew in the woods; pleasant-tasting teas could be made out of them. Cinder would drink a swallow or two and then shrivel up and die and nobody but Mary would know why. Still, teas are dangerous and hard to manage. Sometimes the wrong person drinks them.
Mary had strong sharp teeth, set in blue gums If she could bite Cinder one time, one lone time, that would settle things. But Cinder had gums as blue as her own; Cinder's teeth were just as sharp; Cinder's sinews were like wire; and as quick as a whip-lash. Mary's mind milled one: plan after another, over and over. None was easy enough to try. Misery was gnawing a holedeep down in her heart, making a dark place where her thoughts stayed most of the time. Her blood got thin, her body weak and her skin grew ashy and pale.