Page 23 of Killer Moonshine

“Less?” scoffed Antoine. “Brother, I’ve known you for fifty years. You’ve never had patience.”

“You’d be surprised at how much patience I actually have,” he said quietly. “She is acclimating to her new surroundings and helping Yarrow as well.”

“Pops said she accepted his offer and will be enrolling in college for the summer semester. I’m thrilled for her. He said there’s enough natural gas on that land to keep her going for a lifetime.”

“That is the hope. Has anyone found Yaz Sumrall?” asked Trak.

“Not yet,” said Miller. “We’re still looking. I knew his father, Yuma. Something about using a ‘Y’ for the first name. I mean, shit, pick an easier letter. His dad was a good man. Worked for the parish in the parks department for years. I just knew Yaz as a kid.”

“Mama said Yarrow showed up at the church scared to death when her father dropped her off. The church ladies knew what to do, though.”

“They always do,” said Trak. “We need to find these other stills. So far, this man has held the land and a child over their heads. He’s using intimidation, bribery, and scare tactics to take the land and force them to run the stills.”

“And we still don’t really know why,” said Antoine. “Ella and Jean ran the numbers. He’s not going to get rich selling moonshine. So what is he doing?”

“Hastening his death.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“I still don’t understand any of this,” said Lydia. “I don’t understand how my burns and wounds were healed. I don’t understand why Mr. Matthew would pay for my college education. And I don’t understand why he would go into business with an eighteen-year-old kid who knows absolutely nothing about oil and gas.”

“Sometimes we don’t have to understand things like that,” said Katrina. “Sometimes we just need to be grateful for what we’ve been given.”

“My stepfather will try to take the land from me,” she frowned, pushing the food around the plate with her fork.

“Lydia, when I was a girl, my father wasn’t a very good man. I mean, he was always a good father. But his occupation was in the realm of organized crime and drugs. That all changed when these men entered his life. Someone kidnapped me, my uncle, and they saved me. It made my father realize that he had to change his ways.

“Now, these men could have killed my father for all he’d done. They could have easily ignored his pleas to save me or saved me and then taken me from my father. But they didn’t because they have an uncanny ability to see the good in people and to do good for them.” Lydia nodded at the woman, smiling at her.

“And my stepfather? What about him?” she asked.

“We wanted to tell you,” said Erin, looking at her. “Your stepfather is dead. The boys found him, and it appeared he’d died from an overdose of the moonshine.” Erin hoped her lie was working. She knew that someone probably poured those damn moonshine jars down his throat.

“Don’t hate me, but I’m glad,” she said. “It’s an absolute relief.”

“Lydia, did he touch you, honey?” asked Riley. She blushed, looking at her food.

“He tried. When my mother ran off, I guess he thought I’d be a suitable replacement for her. He’d been tolerable up until then. When I threatened to tell the police, that’s when he got mean, beating me for any little infraction.”

“We’re sorry, honey,” said Bree. “We can talk about it at your appointment this afternoon.”

“I think I might need to,” she nodded.

“Is my dad coming back?” asked Yarrow. “He’s not mean. He’s a good man.”

“We’re looking for your father,” said Faith. “He’s probably hiding to stay away from Hugo and his men. But our men are better. They’ll find him and keep him safe.”

“Promise?” asked the little girl.

“We promise, honey.”

“I’m done with my lunch. May I go play?” she asked.

“Absolutely,” smiled Grace. They watched as she ran toward the other children in the grove, happy to be outside in the sunshine.

“She’s struggling with blaming herself for everything,” said Bree. “She honestly believes that her dancing is what caused all these issues. I’m trying to get her to understand that this had nothing to do with dancing and everything to do with Hugo trying to control her father.”

“That’s terrible,” said Lauren. “She’s so young. I’m sure she’s finding it hard to understand the mind of an adult male with nothing but horrible intentions.”

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