Bartered

Chapter Nine

"Git in that motorcar 'fore I git a switch an tan your hide."

I shoot him a stern glare, but Eddie just cackles at me as he tosses more suitcases in the motorcar. A knot settles deep in my belly as I watch them suitcases pile up. I'm nervous, nervous an excited 'bout the future.

Eddie an I are leavin' this place fer his home in Knoxville, Tennessee.

I'm nervous as hell to meet Eddie's folks, 'specially since we ain't hitched yet, but Rose an Emmett assure me that they're kind-hearted folks, an will eagerly accept me into their lives with open arms. I've been exchangin' letters with his mother, Esme, who's excited 'bout me an Eddie's upcomin' nuptials.

Eddie an I are to be married sometime this fall, in the mountains of Tennessee. Eddie's described them mountains, how they're covered with a veil of vibrant reds, yellows, an burnt orange hues, durin' the fall. He describes them so well that I feel as though I can see them every time I close my eyes.

Rose an Emmett stand on the porch just a-wavin'. They've decided to stay behind an tend to the family farm. Rose claims Emmett's found his callin', teachin' the area's farmers 'bout proper irrigation. Emmett's a smart feller, I tell Rose, an the town's lucky to have him.

I don't feel like I'm leavin' too much behind, 'cept fer Alice an Lil 'Un. I heard Ma died sometime back in the summer. Some folks say it was the consumption, others say it was malaria. I don't rightly know which is which. None of the times I went to visit her did Pa allow me inside the house.

I think 'bout Ma, Pa, Alice, an Lil 'Un as we putter on down the road. I know I'll miss 'em, Alice an Lil 'Un that is, but Alice made the decision to stay behind with Pa. She once said we ain't goin' nowhere, but I'm 'bout to prove her wrong.

I breathe in the scent of the gently slopin' hills, an the great Oaks, feelin' a might contrary fer a moment, as we pass on by my old home place.

I see a girl in the distance past my house, stooped over in the pitiful field, workin' the cotton bolls. A burlap pick sack is slung over one shoulder an across her back. She wears a fuzzy shawl, Ma's bonnet, an an old, faded dress. I holler out her name an she turns.

Cuppin' one hand over her eyes, she stares back at me as I wave wildly from inside the motorcar. She watches me fer a moment, just as a clap of thunder sounds in the distance.

My eyes dart to the sky, watchin' in awe as the thunderclouds roll in, thick an heavy with rain. Then the girl turns back to numbly starin' at the field of white gold, stained with her own blood, I'm sure.

I pause, my arm hangin' in mid-air as we slowly drive away.

Lightnin' streaks across the sky just as a strange November rain sets in. Water pours down the girl's face, meldin' with her blood, sweat, an tears. Her shoulders are slumped in accepted defeat, but it ain't me out in that field.

It ain't me.

Reviews = a bittersweet ending.

Thanks to everyone who was involved with running the Age of Edward contest. This was a nail-biting experience. I've never felt worthy enough to enter a contest such as this one, a contest I've viewed as the biggest Twilight fanfiction contest of all-time.

Thanks to those who pushed through and read this story. I imagine Bella as having a thick, backwoods accent, much like my own. It was easy writing this, but a bitch to edit, and hats off to SunflowerFran for beta'ing this hot mess of Southern goth.

Thanks to AliCat for pre-reading and telling me 'this may be the best thing you've ever written.' Compliments from Ali are few and far between, so I hug them to my chest and cherish them forever.

Thanks to luvtwilight4eva and Jonesn who listened to me bitch and moan about not wanting to enter because I thought I wasn't good enough to enter a contest like this. Thanks for the push, girlies.

Thanks to CaliGirlMon and Jonesn for the beautiful banners. Mon's is sort of a 'before' Bartered banner, and Ashley's is an 'after Bartered banner. They're both amazing.

And thanks to all who read and reviewed. I heart you all.

J. Hood