July

Hot, sticky, black, stillness swallowed this small southern town. He’d smiled and joked with the lady as he asked her about the hay for sale on her farm. She told the stranger he’d have to talk to her husband because she had to go into town. The tall stranger grinned and followed her to the front door of her house. She did remember that he was tall and the truck he drove was tan or brown or gold with a sticker on the bumper. Now it was dark and a crowd gathered across town while sheriff’s deputies strung yellow crime-scene tape around the yard and house.

Sunday Everning

No need to hurry, I thought, as I surveyed the dark water. It would take another 6 or 7 hours of steady rain before the muddy water began to seep under my front door and another day or more before it reached the top of the stairs. I decided to meander into the kitchen and get a cold Pabst Blue Ribbon out of the fridge. I popped the top and leaned against the bar. I was glad that I'd stocked up on beer when I did. Can't buy beer from anywhere 'cept bootleggers on Sunday anyway.

Sunday Night

It rained all day Friday,Saturday,and by Sunday evening waves of water cascaded over the top concrete step in the center of the front porch. I reached in my shirt pocket,pulled out my Zippo, and lit a Kool.