Reckless Lives: A Tale of the Old South

A New Crop and a New Plan

Sorry this chapter is so short; I'll post again very shortly! Feel free to vote and to comment! Enjoy the story!

“Well, look at the price of cotton, Mr. Henderson. We only got three quarters of what we got last year.” They were sitting in Mr. Henderson’s study, or at least Mr. Henderson was sitting.  “That’s a pretty big difference. And they’s been these three balls for Lizzie. And fancy dresses for a lady. And all the musicians and special food ain’t cheap. An’ there’s still the tutor comin’ every day. An’ since Michael lef’ for the plantation, Lizzie an’ you both decided there was gonna be extra food on Sunday’s. Not that I mind that, at all. They’s still a lot of hungry people even with a few extra eggs and chickens. Don’t make much difference when there are several hundred mouths to feed. But it still costs money. An’ here is where everyone got a new outfit for Christmas, though you know we couldn’t afford it; she insisted, couldn’t stand seein’ Michael raggedy all the time.”

“God, Patsy, but it was that much? Why didn’t we see it before?”

“I don’t know Mr. Henderson, we must have not added it up right. I probably used the old price for cotton when I gave in to all of it, ‘stead of protestin’ like I shoulda.”

“Aren’t you ever going to talk to me without that slave talk anymore, Patsy? Haven’t we been through enough?”

“We haven’t ever ben through Mr. Stack, yet. Mr. Henderson. I like to stay in the habit of talking like a slave, just in case he interrupts us some day and we aren’t paying attention. I’m goin’ back to it now, if you don’t mind.”

“Alright, Patsy. Do you remember the old days, before you met John?”

“Of course, I do,” she said, lowering her voice and whispering his first name. “Now I’m not going to say that again.”

“I still can’t believe you chose him over me, Patsy. It showed great courage, and I’ve always admired you for it.”

“I loved him more, Mr. Henderson. He been dead a long time, but I ain’t gonna rock the boat. There are already too many skeletons in your closet. I don’t want to add to the list.”

“Why would anyone need to know, Patsy, if you still feel the way you did then?” He asked hopefully.

“I guess I’s like Michael, Mr. Henderson. I ain’t gonna stand around and serve while you pretend like I’s just some slave.”

“I suppose that would be the way wouldn’t it?” He said, pulling himself from the pleasant daydream of Patsy as his wife. It could happen, but his social position already seemed so precarious, he hesitated to endanger his daughter by making Patsy his wife. He would do whatever he could to assure Lizzie the best chance he could in life. It seemed she was all he had now that his son was stuck out on the plantation. Expecting a son, or at least a baby of his own. Lizzie had said Michael hoped it would be a boy, but Scarlett had confided she felt it was a girl, but wanted to let Michael hope, because what else did he have to look forward to, to keep him going? “What are we going to do about the debt Patsy?”

“Ain’t not much you can do, but borrow more money to pay off this loan and hope the price of cotton goes back up next year, maybe higher. Or plant somethin’ that costs less to harvest, and fetches a higher price. Like what I told you about. But it’s too risky to plant the whole field. We don’t even know if it’s grow around here.”

“That’s alright Patsy. We’ll have to give it a try.”

“No, Mr. Henderson, we can’t. If it doesn’t take, we’ll be completely ruined. If cotton goes up, we can pay off the debt and be fine next year, providin’ we don’t do too much more extra spendin’”