When we got home, Brian backed the truck up to the barn, in preparation for unloading the feed. We'd finished the remainder

of the ride home in silence. I got out after Guthrie, and looked around. It seemed kind of quiet. Nobody appeared from the barn to

greet us. I took note of vehicles that were parked.

The only one missing was Evan's truck. It looked as though everyone else was at home.

"We gonna unload the feed now?" Guthrie asked Brian.

"No. Let's go on inside. See where everybody's at," Brian said.

So we went up the stairs onto the porch, Guthrie and I following Brian inside.

We could hear voices coming from the kitchen, and when Brian headed that way, Guthrie and I did, too. Huddled together at one

end of the table together, were Adam, Hannah, Crane and Clare. Adam was drinking coffee, while Hannah and Clare were sipping

at cups that held tea bags. The table went instantly silent as we came into the room. Later, I would remember the look on Adam's face with

painful clarity. He looked-well, stricken would be the word, I guess. Crane didn't look all that great, either, and he got to his feet, as Brian

went to stand behind Clare's chair, resting his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, kids," Adam said. His voice sounded strange. And as if he was making a major effort to sound normal in his greeting.

"Hey," Guthrie said.

"Hey," I echoed.

Crane came over to Guthrie and I and wrapped an arm around both of our necks.

"What's goin' on?" Guthrie asked, looking at Crane for an answer.

Crane hesitated, and then said, "We're going to talk about it."

He gave me a sideways hug, and then went to pour a cup of coffee. That left me standing there, again with Guthrie. Waiting.

Brian sat down and scooted a chair up to the table.

"Sit down, you two," Brian told us.

Guthrie obediently went to sit next to Hannah, and she reached over to give his hand a squeeze.

I stood where I was.

"Come on, sugar, sit down," Adam told me.

"I'm not sure I want to," I said. "You all are scaring me. Marie said nobody had died, or anything. That's true, isn't it?"

"Nobody's died, sweetie," Hannah said.

"Then what?" I demanded. I knew, with absolute certainty, that I was not going to like what they had to say.

Brian pulled the chair next to him out, away from the table. He patted the seat of the chair.

"Come sit," he told me, his voice firm.

I went to sit where he told me, and when I looked across the table at Adam and Hannah, I could tell Hannah had been crying. It takes

a lot to make Hannah cry. Crane took the seat on the other side of me.

"Karissa is petitioning for custody," Adam said, looking at me.

I blinked at Adam, confused. "What?"

"Custody. Of you," Adam restated. "She wants you to live with her."

I looked at Brian, and then Crane, and then back to Adam again.

"Oh," I said, thinking. I shrugged a little, not taking it seriously. "It's just a whim, or something. She'll forget about it."

"No, sugar," Adam said, and it was then that I saw the papers in front of him. He lifted the papers and then let them drift down again.

"She's serious. These papers are from the court. A deputy brought them this morning," he added.

Brian reached across and pulled the papers over, and began reading them.

"Well, that's silly," I said. "I'll just say that I don't want to do that. And that'll be it."

"No," Adam said again, and then when it looked as though he was going to say more, he stopped talking, and took another drink

of coffee. I saw that his hands were shaking a little.

"Why not?" I asked, my stomach doing flip flops.

"Because, Harlie. This is a legal action. We have to see it thru," Adam said.

I wanted to scream. Yell. Stamp my feet.

Instead, I sat up really straight, and twisted my hands together tightly.

"Okay, then," I said. "What does that mean, exactly?"

"We'll need to get some legal advice," Adam said. "A lawyer. To represent us."

"Maybe we wouldn't have to do that," I persisted. "I can call Karissa-talk to her, and see what she's thinking-"

"It's fairly obvious what she's thinking," Brian said, with a snap, flicking the papers down.

"I don't think talking to her is going to change her mind," Adam said.

"You don't know that," I went on. "She might listen to me-"

"Harlie," Adam interrupted, "No."

I stopped talking, and met Adam's gaze across the table.

"Did she give you any idea at all that she was going to do something like this?" Hannah asked me.

"No!" I said. I couldn't believe Hannah was asking me that! "I would have told her what I thought if she had!"

I stood up, agitated beyond belief. "This is crazy!"

"Sit down, peach," Brian told me.

I sat down again, sighing.

"I don't understand why she would do this," I went on. "It doesn't make any sense."

"When has she ever made any sense?" Brian said darkly.

"What do the papers say?" I asked.

"Just that she's filed a petition for custody. Once we have a lawyer, then our lawyer will talk to her lawyer. We'll know more then," Adam said.

"And then what?" I asked.

"There's probably going to be a hearing," Crane said.

"A hearing?" I asked, feeling my heart jump. "Is that like a trial?"

"No, it's not like a trial," Crane said. "It usually only has the people involved there. It's smaller. No jury."

"Oh," I said, in a small voice. I bit at my lip.

For a few moments, nobody said anything at all. Crane reached over, and took my hand, squeezing it.

His hand was big, and warm, and comforting.

"We'll get it all figured out," Adam said. He gave me a smile, but it was a forced smile. It didn't reach his eyes.

He stood up, and Brian did, too, and they started talking about sorting the calves, so they could be weaned from their mothers.

Adam gave Hannah a quick kiss on the cheek, and then walked behind my chair. He let his hand rest for a moment on the back of my

head. And then he went out, followed by Brian. Guthrie got to his feet, too, looking as though he was stunned.

"Need a snack?" Hannah asked him.

"No, ma'm," Guthrie said. He hesitated, looking at me. "Guess I'd better get outside to help with the calves." And he was gone.

Clare gave a sigh, and then got up, clearing the cups from the table and carrying them to the sink, where she began running water.

"We could use your help, too," Crane told me quietly, giving my hand another squeeze.

"I just don't understand this," I said.

"Come on," he said, standing up, and pulling me up.

"It'll do you good to be outside in the sunshine," Hannah said, in a forced cheery voice.

I shook my head, feeling suddenly as though I was going to burst into tears. I pulled my hand from Crane's, and ran out the

back door. I could hear Brian calling to me, asking me where I was going. But I didn't stop, I just kept running. I ran all the way to the

creek. I was totally out of breath by the time I got there, and my ankle was hurting. I found a grassy spot to sit down.

I tossed rocks into the water, and finally, I laid back on the ground, looking up thru the trees at the sun. I don't know how long I stayed

there, but I knew it was getting on to be late afternoon. I'd gotten up and poked thru the weeds at the side of the creek, looking for wildflowers.

I was sitting down near the edge of the water, on a log, weaving the flowers together in a wreath, when I heard someone coming thru

the grass up above.

"Harlie!"

"Down here!" I hollered back.

Adam appeared at the top of the hill, and then came down, sitting down on the log beside me.

I waited, but he didn't say anything at first. So I was silent, too. He picked up a handful of pebbles, and began sending them

skipping across the water.

"Where's the old boat?" he asked, after awhile, speaking for the first time since he'd sat down.

"Huh?"

"The canoe. I haven't seen it for awhile."

"Oh. It's got a big hole in it. I think the boys put it up on the bank further down," I told him.

Adam nodded, and sent another rock skipping. "You missed lunch," he said.

"Sorry."

I turned to study his face, trying to read his mood, without being obvious about it.

"I don't know why she would think I'd want to live with her," I said. "I can't figure it out."

"Yeah," Adam said, in agreement, looking thoughtful.

"After we get a lawyer, then what happens?" I asked.

"He'll talk to us, to you, and get our side of things. Then he'll talk to Karissa's lawyer, and then come back and we'll talk some

more. They'll figure out a case."

"So the lawyers figure it out?" I asked.

"A judge will make a decision."

I wrinkled my forehead in thought. "But it's really a waste of time. Right? Won't the court be upset by her bringing up such a silly case?"

Adam skipped another rock. Then he turned, and scooted backwards, changing position to straddle the log, so that he was

totally facing me.

"I don't think you're understanding this, sugar." He sighed. "This is serious. It's big. It's not silly."

"When I tell them, though, that I don't want to live with her, won't that be the end of it?" I looked at Adam hopefully.

"We can hope so," Adam said, but it had taken him too long to answer, and I felt a knot of fear begin inside.

7