I phoned Kathy Jo before I went to bed that night. We’d gotten that phone put in only about three years ago. Daddy always asked what we wanted it for, we could just talk to each other if we wanted to talk. But Momma had convinced him we needed it in case of emergencies, and to check on Aunt Annabelle when Uncle Alvey was in a bad way like he got from time to time.

The phone rang twice before Kathy Jo picked it up. “Hello?” she said lazily.

“Kathy Jo, it’s me, Peggy June. Listen, I know where to go, but we gotta go tomorrow.” I was rushing. I didn’t want anybody to start eavesdropping after the dishes were all washed up. Momma didn’t make me help because I’d been up to check on Mr. McCaffree that afternoon, and it was rule that you didn’t do dishes if went to check on him. That’s how she got us to agree to visit with him.

“What? Tomorrow? No, Peggy June. I gotta work at the store!” she protested.

“Listen! Momma’s gotta take Mr. McCaffree to town tomorrow morning. Tell your daddy to tell my daddy you’re sick. Then go out like you’re going to work once he leaves.”

“That’s not gonna work. If I tell Daddy I’m sick, then Momma’s gonna wonder why I’m going to work.” I could almost she her crossing her arms, wearing that smartypants smile like she knew so much better than me about everything just ’cause she was older.

“Come on, Kathy Jo! Figure out how to make it work. We gotta go tomorrow!”

She huffed into the phone. “Alright, Peggy June. I’ll figure something out. But you owe me for this.”

“Oh, I know. I’m gonna owe you a long time I think,” I said, grinning at my own joke. “See you tomorrow.”

Momma left the house next morning about 8:30, to give her enough time to get all the way to the hospital with Mr. McCaffree. Daddy said he was going down to the store early, so he left around the same time as Momma did. I pretended I didn’t feel good, just like I’d planned, and as they went out the door, I thought they might have suspected something was up. They didn’t say nothing to me about it though, just gave me that stink eye look as they went out the door, Jenny Kate and Mary Sue in tow.

“If you start feeling better later, you better find a way down to the store to help out,” Daddy said. “It’s stocking day.”

It sounded more fun that it actually was. Calling it “stocking day” made it sound like Christmas, but it was only when we put new cans out on the shelves. “Okay,” I said weakly, pulling an old afghan up to my chin as I hunkered down on the couch. I pretended to drift off to sleep until I was sure everybody was gone. Then I popped up and waited for Kathy Jo to come get me. It was like watching water boil- worse actually. Most boring morning of my life, watching out the window for Uncle Alvey’s car to come rolling into the drive.

When it finally did, I was so excited I hollered. I flew out of the house at lightning speed, making for Uncle Alvey’s old Ford as quick as a thoroughbred. I yanked open the door of the truck and climbed up onto the bench. Kathy Jo looked a bit nervous as she eyed me from behind the wheel.

“I sure hope you ain’t gettin’ us both in trouble with this con you’re pullin’ on your momma,” Kathy Jo said. “I didn’t exactly lie to mine, but I didn’t tell the truth neither, you hear me?” She lectured like she was grown. Irritating, since I would be just as grown as she was in a few years. She was looking over her shoulder as she backed down the gravel driveway.

“She’ll never know, Kathy Jo. Just hush up,” I said. “Just take me up past Mr. McCaffree’s place. He told me yesterday you gotta just keep on going until you get there.”

“That’s the way to everybody’s place,” Kathy Jo huffed. But she did as I said without any further comment on it. I held my breath as we rolled back Mr. McCaffree’s house. Of course nobody was there. He’d gone with Momma to town, but it still made me nervous. That irrational part of me was thinking all kinds of horrid stuff like “What they never left, and she sees us?” Silly, really. Momma would never let Mr. McCaffree miss his appointments.

We drove for longer than I thought was right, and I was just starting to wonder if maybe Mr. McCaffree had gotten it all wrong somehow when we turned round a bend in the road and I saw it- the Chew Witch’s old rickety bucket of a truck parked outside a rough looking house. I saw rough looking because the wood was rough and unfinished. There were web all over the outside windows. The roof looked like it might have leaks in it, and some of the gutter was hanging off the side of the porch. The porch was nice looking either. It had a big hole in it near the stairs. As we pulled in behind the Chew Witch’s black truck, I could see that somebody had put a couple cinderblocks on top of each other to create a makeshift stair case that avoided the rotted out wood.

Kathy Jo killed the engine of the Ford and we sat in silence for just a minute, staring at the house. My palms were all sweaty. “Well,” I said, trying to find my courage. “You gonna come with me?” I asked.

She sighed real heavy, and then shrugged. “Why not. I came all the way here.” Kathy Jo hopped down out of the truck and I followed quick behind her. But we went slow up the cinderblocks and across the porch. This place looked as good as abandoned and it gave me the creeps. I knocked on the door anyway to show Kathy Jo I was braver than I felt.

The Chew Witch didn’t answer. I knocked again harder. All I heard in return was the calling of birds up in the trees. I looked up at Kathy Jo. “What should we do?”

Kathy Jo frowned. “Well, she’d gotta be here. Her truck is here.” She stepped up beside me to the door and turned the handle. It wasn’t locked. The door creaked open, and Kathy Jo called inside, “Hello?”

From somewhere inside the house we heard a thumping, real rhythmic, but also frantic, like someone was trying to get our attention. All my hair stood on end. “Mrs. Mabry?” I called, louder than Kathy Jo had called. “Are you home?”

The thumping sound grew louder. Me and Kathy Jo followed it, winding through the house until we found the room where it was coming from. The door was only closed over, and we could see the footboard of a bed. “Mrs. Mabry?” I asked again. And this time we heard a human noise, like a whimper almost. It was a horrifying sound, but also one that made you wanna spring into action to help. Kathy Jo pushed open the door of the room so we could see all the way inside.

Mrs. Mabry was lying in her bed, still in her nightgown, but her face looked all wrong. She was thumping her arm against the headboard. She didn’t turn to look at us at all, she was just staring straight up at the ceiling. The way her mouth drooped on one side filled me with dread. I’d seen Kathy Jo’s granny like that once, before she died. I didn’t know exactly what it meant, but I knew we had to get her help.

“She’s having a stroke, Peggy June!” Kathy Jo ran over to the bed. “It’s okay, now,” she said tenderly, grabbing Mrs. Mabry’s hand to still it. “Hey, hey, you just hush. We’ll get you some help, ok?”

Mrs. Mabry sounded like she was trying to talk back, but it was just a jumbled up mess, like her mouth was filled with marbles.

Somehow- and I still don’t know now- me and Kathy Jo managed to carry Mrs. Mabry out of her house and put her in the bed of the Ford. Then Kathy Jo drove as fast as she dared down the mountain to the grocery store. Before the truck even stopped rolling, I had flung open the door and went running and yelling for Daddy. He came fast, practically running up the store aisles himself when he heard that distress in my voice.

“Peggy June!” he exclaimed. “I thought you were sick, child!”

“Daddy, you gotta call an ambulance,” I said, not wanting to waste any time.

“What?” he asked, his confusion rooting him to the floor. I could see the phone right next to the check stand. I started to move towards it, but Daddy caught my arm. “What’s going on?” he asked, all stern, but also looking mighty scared.

“Daddy, Mrs. Mabry’s in the back of the truck. Kathy Jo says she’s had a stroke you gotta get an ambulance here to help her!”

I was so glad that he didn’t ask any other questions of me before he picked up the phone and called 9-1-1.