The sun hadn't even been up an hour before Alleghany was drinking a little of the hair of the dog that bit her.

6 days since her attempted escape. She counted the passing of days as a prisoner might. The only things she was missing was a piece of chalk and a wall.

She knew she should spend some of her time making another plan of escape because how likely was it that he would take her anywhere that she could get a letter mailed to home? The problem was, she felt such an overwhelming loss of control since the incident. She had thought she was control of her life, her destiny, even when she'd been forced into a marriage she didn't want. Now, it seemed like nothing she did mattered and it was hard to work up the motivation.

But maybe the first step to feeling in control again was doing something that would one day help her regain charge of her life. And the most obvious present obstacle to that besides Jackson himself was his dogs.

The usual 4 were standing guard just outside like they did day after day. How hard was it really to make friends with the flea-bitten animals? Wasn't she smarter than they were?

She raided the kitchen for some of the deer jerky Jackson kept. She opened the front door and threw a strip out to each one. Then she slammed the door shut.

She looked through the safety of the glass window panes. All of them were happily gnawing on the meat. That was a start. She'd outsmart their master yet.

sss

Jackson added a stick to keep the fire going under his copper kettle. Alleghany was drinking like a fish. He could hardly keep up with her demand. But he didn't dare say anything about it if it did anything at all to soothe her.

"Making some mountain dew, are we?"

He normally smiled at the sound of his friend's voice. The elderly man was possibly the only man in the Cumberland Mountains more reclusive than him. "Hello, Elmer."

"What's eating you?"

He barely spared him a glance. "Marriage."

"I heard you got married. Honeymoon over already?" He sat down in the grass beside him, a spry man to be in his 70s.

"To be truthful, I'm not sure we ever really had one. If by honeymoon, you mean enjoying each other's company."

"Well, I'm not too surprised. You didn't even know the gal, did you?"

"You saying my way of finding a bride was wrong?"

"Biblically speaking, there's no requirement that you know each other beforehand. Ya'll wouldn't be the first couple to say their hellos at the wedding. I've always thought love was a choice and not the romantic feeling you have beforehand. Though that's nice too, don't get me wrong."

"Hmm." He poked at the fire.

"Anything in particular wrong with your marriage?"

Maybe a friendly ear that didn't have 4 legs was what he needed. "She hates me for one. Stole from me and took off just like my mother did. I had to bring her back. And that's just the beginning."

"I've known you a long time. Your parents even longer. Maybe it's time you hear this. Your mother loved your father and he loved her. One of the happiest couples I ever saw. But he got to drinking and carousing. Put a heavy strain on the marriage. Always was a nice man sober, but he could be one mean drunk."

"You saying you think he hit my mother?" Jackson was angry and defensive of his father's honor.

Elmer kept an even, calm tone that dispelled some of Jackson's anger. "I don't know, son. I'm just telling you what I do know. Though there's no denying she did wrong leaving you, but maybe she thought she was doing what was best for you. Hard for a single woman to support a child."

Elmer let Jackson digest the new information and then continued. "My point in telling you this is both people usually have a part, big or small, in why the marriage fails. Your dad straightened up when she left and became a good father to you, but it didn't bring her back. You're lucky your wife came back."

"She didn't come back because she wanted to," he admitted. "In fact, I did something pretty awful. I was angry and I-well, I forced my attentions on her. I guess I should divorce her. That's what she wants, I know."

"God hates divorce, but He also hates when a man does violence to his wife. We're commanded to love our wife as we love our own flesh. What you did was a sin, but I don't know that another sin's necessarily the way to solve that."

"Fine, preachy words from someone who never attends church," Jackson said wryly.

The old man spread his arms out. "These woods are as much God's sanctuary as any 4 walls. I wish you could see that as plainly as I do."

"I love the woods too, but I don't see much of God in them or anywhere else for that matter." He sighed. "But you don't have to believe in God to know womankind is supposed to be cherished. My daddy taught me to respect women and I didn't even respect my own wife. She's never going to forgive me for that."

"Never is a long time. You plan on doing something that evil again?"

"No, not planning on it, but I wasn't planning on it the first time either. But I get sick to my stomach when I think about it, so I don't think it'll happen again."

"You told her that?" At his look of surprise, he surmised it was no. "You don't know a thing about women, do you?"

"If I knew anything about women, I wouldn't have had to marry one sight unseen."

Elmer smiled. "You got a point there. Just talk to her like you're talking to me. Talking's important to a marriage even if it don't always come natural to men like us. Tell her you're sorry. You ain't even told her that much, have you?"

"It don't seem like enough."

"It ain't, but it's somewhere to start. Then beg for her forgiveness. Maybe it's a good idea to act like you're not married and court her."

"And just how am I supposed to court her?"

"Sleep in another room. Clean yourself up. Give her sweet words and bring her gifts. Find some things ya'll have in common. And for goodness sakes take her out somewhere once in a while so she don't have to look at your ugly mug all day. But above all, let the next kiss ya'll have be hers to give."

"I reckon that's good advice considering it comes from a man who's never been married. Worth a try anyway."

"I can't guarantee it'll work, but it can't hurt." Elmer used his walking stick to pull himself up off the ground. "It's always easier going down than up. I'll let you get back to brewing that vile stuff."

Stopping at the edge of the opening just before the dense thicket covered him up again, Elmer turned and told him, "Jackson, even if she never forgives you, God will. As long as you turn from your evil ways. Remember that, son."