“Who? That crab? Shouldn’t wonder if she only let me have a drink of water because Dad makes her. Come on. Take it.”
Slim took the large glob of meat though his skin crawled at the touch. He turned toward the barn and Red sped away in the direction from which he had come.
He slowed when he approached the two adults, took a few deep breaths to bring himself back to normal, and then carefully and nonchalantly sauntered past. (They were walking in the general direction of the barn, he noticed, but not dead on.)
He said, “Hi, Dad. Hello, sir.”
The Industrialist said, “Just a moment, Red. I have a question to ask you?”
Red turned a carefully blank face to his father. “Yes, Dad?”
“Mother tells me you were out early this morning.”
“Not real early, Dad. Just a little before breakfast.”
“She said you told her it was because you had been awakened during the night and didn’t go back to sleep.”
Red waited before answering. Should he have told Mom that?
Then he said, “Yes, sir.”
“What was it that awakened you?”
Red saw no harm in it. He said, “I don’t know, Dad. It sounded like thunder, sort of, and like a collision, sort of.”
“Could you tell where it came from?”