Фэнни Флэгг - The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop

WHEN BUD SAW Ruthie walking into his hospital room, the first thing he said was, “Oops. I sorta messed up, didn’t I? I’m sorry, honey.”

“Daddy, are you all right? I’ve been worried to death about you.”

“I’m fine, just a little embarrassed I got lost. I didn’t mean to cause all this trouble.”

“Are you sure you’re not hurt anywhere?”

“Nope, just a few scrapes, and I pulled something in my back when I skidded down a hill.”

“You look very pale. Are you sure you’re feeling all right?”

“I’m sure.”

He had always been her big, tall, handsome daddy. But today, for the first time, she couldn’t help but notice how much he had aged, and just how small he looked lying in that bed.

“What in the world were you doing coming all the way over to Birmingham by yourself, and walking on the railroad tracks in the freezing cold?”

“Well, I was trying to find Whistle Stop. I thought I knew where it was, but evidently I was wrong.”

“Thank God they found you. Did you know you had people in two states looking for you? Your picture was all over the TV and everything.”

“I’m sorry, Ruthie. I knew you’d be mad.”

“I’m not mad. I’m just…why didn’t you call me and tell me where you were?”

“I would have, but I forgot my phone.”

Ruthie sighed and shook her head. “You crazy old man. What am I going to do with you?”

“I don’t know. But now…there’s something else.”

“Oh Lord. What?”

“You’d better sit down.”

Ruthie sat in the chair by the bed and waited.

“Promise me you won’t get upset.”

“I promise…what else?”

“I lost my arm.”

“What? How did you do that?”

“I was trying to sleep and it was bothering me. So I took it off. Then when those EMT guys showed up, I was so glad to see them that I forgot to pick it up.”

“Oh, Daddy.”

“Now, I might be able to find it, if I could just figure out where I was. I could go back and try to look for it.”

“Absolutely not. You are not going to go wandering around in any more woods. Just forget it. Your arm can be replaced, but you can’t. Do you realize you could have caught pneumonia, or fallen and hit your head? What were you thinking?”

“Well…at the time, I was thinking I hope somebody finds me.”

Then Bud looked at her and noticed something strange. “What’s the matter with your eye?”

“Nothing. And why did you just take off like that, and not let anybody know where you were going?”

“I was trying to not cause anybody any trouble. I thought I wouldn’t be missed. But that didn’t work out.”

“No, it didn’t. The good news is the doctor says that other than the effects of hypothermia and a little dehydration, you seem to be okay.”

“Good. When are they going to spring me out of here?”

“Terry just told me they need to keep you a couple of days, just to make sure your blood pressure remains stable and your electrolytes are good.”

“Oh darn. I’m so sorry, honey. Here I was trying not to bother you and now look at what a mess I’ve caused.”

“That’s all right, Daddy. Just as long as you’re okay and not dead in a ditch somewhere.”

She gently pushed his hair off his forehead and took his hand.

“You know you’re the only daddy I have. I love you. And I need you to stay around as long as you can.”

“I’ll try my best, honey.”

She smiled. “So from now on you are grounded young man, okay? No more crazy trips, all right?”

He nodded and held up two fingers. “Scout’s honor.”

The entire time she had been talking to her father, the cellphone in her purse had been ringing. Finally she took it out and looked. It was her daughter, Carolyn, calling from Washington.

“I’m sorry, Daddy, I need to take this.” She stepped out into the hall and picked up. She was hoping Carolyn was just calling to say hello, but no such luck. She was frantic.

“Mother! Where are you? Grandmother called and said that Granddaddy has gone insane and ran away from Briarwood, and spent all night under some tree in Birmingham. Is that right?”

“No, honey, he’s not insane. He just took a little trip and got lost, that’s all.”

“And where are you? She said you just picked up and left without telling her a thing.”

“Carolyn, just calm down. I’m at the hospital in Birmingham with Granddaddy.”

“Hospital! Why is he in the hospital?”

“He’s just a little dehydrated, so they’re keeping him under observation for a couple of days.”

“Oh. Well, do you need me to come down there? I could fly out in the morning, I guess, but I’d have to come right back. We’re giving a dinner party for twelve people, including Brian’s boss and his wife, so I can’t just cancel it at the last minute.”

“No, no, honey. You don’t need to come. We’ll only be here a short while. You take care of your party and I’ll call you when we get home. Okay?”

“Well…if you say so. I’m glad he’s all right, but really, Mother, what’s wrong with him? Running away from Briarwood and embarrassing Grandmother like that? She said it’s been in the papers and everything. And after all the trouble she went to getting him in there in the first place.”

“Honey, I have to go. I’ll tell Granddaddy you said hello.”

—

RUTHIE WENT BACK in his room and smiled. “That was Carolyn, wanting to know how you were. She sends her love and hopes you feel better soon.”

“Did you tell her where I was?”

“No, that was the lovely Martha Lee, who just couldn’t wait to call her and tell her that you had spent the night under a tree.”

“Oh darn. I was hoping she wouldn’t find out.”

Just then, Nurse Terry walked in the room and Bud said, “Hey, Terry, this is my daughter, Ruthie.”

Terry nodded. “I know. We met over the phone, and now that she’s here, I hope you’ll behave yourself. Did you tell your daughter that you told me you were John D. Rockefeller?”

“Oh, Daddy. You didn’t.”

“I thought I might get better treatment, but she poked holes in me anyway. The woman is a vampire. Look out, Ruthie, or she’ll start going after you next.”

Her father was clearly going to be okay. She could tell he already had the nurses eating out of his hand.

—

LATER THAT DAY, Ruthie called a cab to take her to a nearby hotel. She was exhausted and desperately needed a nice, warm bath and a nap. In her rush to get to Birmingham she hadn’t packed a thing. All she had with her were her purse and the clothes she was wearing. After she checked in, she stopped at a little convenience shop in the hotel lobby and picked up a toothbrush and some toothpaste. She would worry about the rest later.

Bud was glad Ruthie had been so sweet about him losing his arm. She had gone to so much trouble to make sure he had the best prosthesis they could buy. He wished he could go back and try to find the damn thing but he knew, even if she would let him go back and look for it, the chances of him finding the exact tree where he’d left it were one in a million.

Bud didn’t know it, but he had been to that very tree once before. It hadn’t been as tall then, but neither had he. He had only been six years old when his Aunt Idgie had taken him to her secret bee tree. And there was more to the bee tree than he knew.

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA

EVELYN COUCH AND her husband, Ed, were, as they say, “sitting pretty.” They owned a lovely home, four nice cars, and a large luxury motor home. But after Ed passed away in 2011, Evelyn sold her car dealerships and retired. Now she mostly played bridge and managed her portfolio of property investments she had made over the years. But she was bored.