Let's Go Play at the Adams'

and put the bags down on the counter with a thud. Pulling a damp handkerchief from his

pocket, he sponged off the back of his neck beneath the collar, his forehead, and face.

Refolding the cloth to find a dry spot, he finished by mopping under his chin. "Man, it's

really right out there today, I'll tell you." He pronounced right as "ruoigut" in the Eastern

Shore manner. "What're you. doing here today? Visiting? Where's the girl who ordered the

groceries?" He hesitated over whether to call Barbara girl or woman.

"Bar-bra!" Dianne turned and shouted through the house. "Did you order any groceries from

Mr. Till-

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man?" After a moment's silence, she turned. "She's in the bathroom.'' Here Dianne was a

trifle private. "I guess she can't hear me."

"Oh, she ordered them all right. All she has to do now is sign."

"OK, I'll get her. Wait a minute .... "

"Better not wait too long. Them frozen things half melted already. Mind if I have a glass of

water?"

"Sure!" From the door Dianne whirled around and came back. "Here's a glass"-she handed

him one from the cupboard-"and ice water." She opened the refrigerator and put a tall

green bottle on the counter. "Help yourself."

"Lord, honey, I don't need anything that fancy," , he laughed.

"Might as well. That's what they do." She left, calling ahead of her, "Bar-bra!"

"Hunhh?" In spite of the running shower, the voice from inside the bathroom sounded

frighteningly like Cindy's.

"Mr, Tillman's· here with some groceries .... " "Sign for 'em, like Mommy does!"

Oh! Dianne could have killed her. No baby-sitter would have said that, but it was out now,

and maybe Mr. Tillman hadn't heard. Making sure her own voice was loud enough to carry,

Dianne yelled, "OK," and went back to the kitchen. "She said sign for it, and is everything

there?"

Tillman bad drained his glass and was standing in front of the air conditioner. Now he

turned back, took a moist slip out of the bag nearest and frowned. "Well, we were out of

some of the frozen dinners she wanted, but knowing the kids, I stuck a couple of fried

chickens in for the turkey platters. Course now, she don't have to take 'em, only thing is, I

don't know when the man's coming back with the turkeys because his truck's broke down

to Bryce, and I figured I'd bring enough to eat anyhow." He showed her the delivery slip.

Dianne studied it.

"I guess so. I don't know-wait a sec." Dianne

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took the slip and made another round trip to the bathroom. This time she returned with a

signature and Cindy in tow. "She said it's OK, and thank you."

"We're going swimming!" Cindy, queen of the county so far as Mr. Tillman was concerned,

ran up and gave him a hug around the waist. It was a natural, accidental, and inspired

move. Mr. Tillman was fully, cheerfully distracted.

"Oh, you are, are you?"

.

"Soon as Barbara takes us." She looked up and gave him a crystal-bright smile.

Dianne sighed and forgave. Then Paul and Bobby came through the kitchen in bathing

suits, their faces absolutely blank. They might have been going to the dentist's.

"No swimming until Barbara gets there," Dianne

said.

·

"What?" Unprepared glances back and forth. "That's what she said, and use the towels off

the back line so she doesn't have to wash every day."

"OK." They stumbled out and down the back stairs. Once clear of the house, they broke

into what Dianne could tell was a terrified run, but she supposed it could be taken as one of

joy. Maybe.

Tillman looked after them. "Nothing better to do'n swim." He was silent long enough to

have possibly remembered his own earlier days on that same river. "Nice place Dr. Adams

built here. Cool."

Dianne nodded.

"Safe and peaceful, too. Great place to raise kids."

"Well, what about tonight?" John flopped over on

his stomach in the fine gray sand. At his feet riplets no higher than half an inch fell

fountain-soft on the miniature river beach.

Around him in various positions of after-swim repose, Freedom Five-except for Paul, who

was on guard-lounged in the shade. Their nervous fits of giggling, their recollections of how

scared they had been at various points of the day finally over, they con-

163

sidered what might come next. Though-it was just four o'clock-the sun was high and

darkness distant, still the shadows which had shrunk all morning were now reversed and

getting longer again. It was possible that a day of alarms could become a night of alarms.

"Well-" Bobby drew idly with his finger in the sand. "I mean about the Picker."

"What about him?"

"Well, like last night when I saw the fire, everything up here was quiet. Like everybody was

asleep. So what if he's really hungry or something tonight, and he comes up here looking

for something to steal? What if he comes to the door or looks in the window? It's just the

two of us. We're alone."

Cindy-the other part of "we"-was not yet visibly alarmed, but she was clearly thinking