Prologue #3
I wished old man Marshall still lived on the mountain.
He would protect us. He had no problem going up against Uncle Vernon.
At times, I would have sworn that Uncle Vernon was afraid of old man Marshall.
In fact, with old man Marshall around, everything was good.
Not great, but good. I attended school, ate three meals a day, and there were no more whippings.
Then the old man left, and the door to Hell opened up.
But while he was here, he taught me as much as I could learn.
From simple survival skills to tracking—something I excelled at.
Sometimes late at night, I would lie awake wondering if maybe things would have been different if the old man had stayed.
Maybe Mandy and I wouldn’t have ended up hiding, always looking over our shoulders, clinging to whatever scraps of safety we could find.
But there was no point in wishing for what we couldn’t have.
All I could do was hold on to what he’d taught me and hope it would be enough to keep us both alive.
It was a long night, and even after Mandy’s breathing evened out in sleep, I found my mind wandering restlessly.
The embers from our small fire glowed faintly, casting soft orange halos on the rocks and reminding me of all the places we’d called home—each one temporary, each one a little harder to leave behind.
I tightened the blanket around Mandy and stared into the darkness, determined to be strong enough for both of us.
Out here, I had to be.
By the eighth day, I knew Mandy was in trouble.
She needed a doctor. She had a wheezy rumble when she breathed and a cough that sounded gritty; she cried ’cause it hurt so bad.
But it was the fever that made her skin feel like liquid fire that worried me.
Nothing I did seemed to help, and when dawn crept over the ridge the next morning in tentative streaks of pink and gold, pushing away the night’s shadows, I sat there wondering what to do.
Bleary-eyed, hungry, and cold, I listened to the first tentative bird calls and watched the world come back to life around us.
For a moment, hope flickered in my chest—maybe we really could make it here, just the two of us.
But I knew better than to let my guard down.
The mountain was both sanctuary and test, and every day meant surviving just a little longer, holding out for whatever came next.
When Mandy finally stirred and blinked up at me, I managed to offer her a weary smile.
“Ready for another day?” I asked, trying to sound braver than I felt.
She twisted to face me as her body was once more wracked with shivers, and sweat beaded across her forehead.
That was when I heard the first snap of a twig.
Everything moved fast as I grabbed my machete and stood, facing whatever was about to come through that clearing.
I didn’t care what or who it was, animal or human, no one was taking Mandy from me.
Gripping my machete tighter, I stayed deathly still and dared not breathe as I watched a man and a boy, a smidge younger than me, step out of the tree line only to see the man put his arm out to stop the boy.
I don’t know how long the three of us stood there staring at each other, but I readied myself for another fight when I heard that man clearly say, “Dylan, run back to the clubhouse and get your aunt Roxy. Run as fast as you can and tell her to bring her medical bag.”
“But, Uncle Leroy,” the boy whined, moving closer to the man.
“Go now, Dylan. Do as I say and run,” the man softly ordered as the boy turned and bolted from the clearing.
The second the boy was gone, the man slowly held out his hand as he lowered his rifle to the forest floor, laying it on the fallen leaves at his feet.
Standing back up to his full height, he kept his hands out in front of him.
“My name is Leroy Franks. Are you okay?”
I said nothing as I gripped my knife tighter.
I never took my eyes off him as I inched closer to Mandy.
She needed me to protect her, and I wasn’t certain I could trust this stranger.
The name Leroy Franks meant nothing to me, but his actions spoke louder than words—he’d put down his rifle and sent a kid for help without hesitation.
Mandy whimpered, her fingers clutching at her blanket, and I tried to comfort her, whispering low that help might be on the way.
In that moment, I realized how desperately I wanted to believe that someone out here might care enough to lend a hand, even if I still couldn’t let my guard down completely.
“Can you tell me your name?”
“Jackson.”
The man smiled tentatively. “Hi, Jackson, and is that little lady your sister?”
I nodded.
The man smiled again. “You are lucky. I never had a sister. Only brothers. My wife and I wanted a daughter to spoil, but God gave me four boys. Dylan, the young boy who just left and went to get my wife—he’s my nephew. You are lucky. Little sisters are special, and they need lots of care.”
“I can take care of her.”
“I know you can. I can see how well you’ve done. You got the fire going, and you used pine needles for her bed. That was really smart, Jackson. It kept the cold off her. Jackson, can I ask you a question?”
I blinked but didn’t move.
“May I sit down by your fire? Dylan had me all over this mountain this morning chasing a rabbit. I’d really like to warm up my hands, if that’s okay with you?”
I wasn’t stupid. I knew he was warm. He was dressed for hunting—boots, jacket and layers of clothes.
I studied his face carefully, searching for any hint of deception.
The man’s hands were empty, and he kept them visible, palms open to the firelight, as if to show he meant us no harm.
Still, my body stayed tense, ready to spring if he made a sudden move.
The woods were full of danger, and kindness was a rare currency.
My heart thudded loudly in my chest as I finally gave a tight nod, gesturing toward the fire, hoping I wasn’t making a mistake by letting him closer.
The man lowered himself slowly onto a nearby log, careful not to disturb the fire or the delicate nest of pine needles.
He held his hands out, palms hovering above the flames, and let out a long, contented sigh as the warmth seeped into his fingers.
For a moment, we sat quietly, listening to the crackle of burning wood and the distant calls of birds echoing through the forest. The silence felt heavy, but not uncomfortable, as if we were all measuring each other, waiting for trust to take root.
“I grew up on this mountain. Spent my whole life here, and when my time comes, my family will bury me here. I’ve met every family that lives on this mountain, and I don’t have to tell you that not all of them are welcoming. Vernon do that to you?” Leroy asked, pointing to my black eye.
“He won’t hurt anyone again.”
“No. I don’t think he will.” Leroy smirked. “And his boys?”
I slowly shook my head.
Leroy sighed as he hunched closer to the fire.
“God’s will. That’s what my momma would say.
Rot always finds rot, and it’s only God’s will that stops the rot.
I wish I could tell you that the rot is gone for good, but I’m not going to lie to you.
There is rot everywhere, Jackson. Best you know that now. How long were you with them?”
“Long enough.”
He nodded. “Yeah. I guess you’re right. Question is now, what do you want to do?”
“I ain’t going back. Neither is Mandy.”
“Vernon your kin?”
“No.”
“Mom or Dad?”
“Ain’t got no one.”
Leroy glanced over, his gaze heavy with understanding.
For a moment, the crackling fire was the only thing filling the silence between us.
“Well, Jackson, sometimes starting over means leaving behind everything you knew—even the rot. You and Mandy, you got each other, and sometimes that’s enough.
” He shifted, the light flickering across his worn face.
“Just don’t let the past chase you so far that you forget where you’re heading. ”
I stared into the flames, letting his words settle, knowing full well that the past had a way of clinging on, even when you tried to outrun it. Mandy coughed, and I flinched. Turning toward her, she whimpered, and I held her hand as she cried through the pain.
“Bet my clubhouse she’s got pneumonia.”
Looking at Leroy, I asked, “What’s that?”
“A bad sickness for a little girl like her. Left untreated, it can do a lot of damage or worse, if you catch what I’m trying to say.”
I gulped, looking back down at Mandy. She was so small, tiny. She wasn’t made for the forest like I was. She needed warmth, good food, and a house. Things I couldn’t give her right now. Tucking her blanket around her, I asked, “What about medicine?”
Leroy unzipped his coat, then shrugged it off before handing it to me. “The right medicine will fix her right up, but that means taking her to a hospital, and somethin’ is tellin’ me you ain’t keen on going there.”
“No.” I vehemently shook my head as I covered Mandy with his jacket. “They will call CPS and separate us. Put us with a new family. Not putting Mandy through that again.”
“Don’t blame ya.” Leroy smirked. “I only trust my woman. She’s a fine doctor. Fixed me and my boys up many times. If you’re amiable when my woman gets here, she might help.”
“Will she hurt her?”
Leroy smirked. “More likely she will wallop me for doing nothing. My Roxy is real funny when it comes to sick kids. Very protective and she rules the roost. You’ll see soon enough.
Why don’t you come sit down and get warm?
Your sister is asleep again. I figure with both of us here, ain’t nothin’ gonna hurt her. Not with the both of us keeping watch.”