“How you plan to do this?” he says. His face is hot and the pain in his shoulders has increased. Milo beside him slaps softly at mosquitoes. Delvin feels a familiar despair. The malaria brings with it an evocation of many kinds of dumb woe and he is caught now in some of the dumbest. “Jesus damn christ,” he whispers.
Milo looks expectantly at him. This is a frolic for him, and Delvin can tell he is experiencing a run of freshened life.
Over at the pens the hogs snuffle and one lets out a short squeal. Bulky has the rope on his shoulder. He measures out half of it and bunches this up with the other half. The grass rope is lightweight, but Bulky has woven so much of it that the bundle is heavy. Delvin asks again what he is going to do but Bulky ignores him.
“Ah, nah,” Delvin says his voice not really audible. He is beginning to feel foolish, not just beginning; but what does it matter, they are already in a prison. He begins to chuckle, low, the sounds more like quiet coughing.
Bulky looks back at him, vexed. He is crouched low.
Milo lets his hand rest on Bulky’s shoulder. Delvin thinks he must have something already worked out with the smaller man. Bulky has moved farther forward, followed by Milo, until the two of them make a single block under the tree. Together they ease to the edge of the big tree’s midnight shade. Delvin thinks he can hear the chatter and clicking of the raccoons. Together Bulky and Milo rise.
Delvin says softly, “Yall don’t,” but Milo is on his feet running behind Bulky who has the rope looped out and his arm back to throw it. At the fence, holding to the ends of the rope, he throws it as a man would throw a big lifesaving ring. The coils unloose like a card trick. The body of the rope catches in the top of the wire among the barbed jumble and hangs. Bulky pulls down hard and the fence bends toward him. He and Milo stand right up against the wire pulling on the free ends of the rope. The big fence bends where the rope catches it. Bulky scampers up the two strands of rope with Milo right behind him.
Their bare toes hook in the wire as they go up.
Delvin drags himself up against the tree’s grooved bark. He knows he can’t make it. He is sick to his stomach.
