Some distance back from the river, enclosed by a broken fence, stood an unpainted, two-story frame house.
Beyond the woodshed rose a barn, its roof shingles badly curled. At the pump near the house, a middle-aged woman in loose-fitting faded blue dress, vigorously scrubbed a copper wash boiler.
She straightened quickly as the skiff grated against the dock.
“Howdy,” she greeted the girls at their approach. Her tone lacked cordiality.
“Good afternoon,” said Penny. “May we have a drink at the pump?”
“Help yourself.”
The woman jerked a gnarled hand toward a gourd cup attached to the pump with a string. She studied the girls intently, almost suspiciously.
Louise and Penny drank only a few sips, for the water was warm and of unpleasant taste.
“You’uns be strangers hereabouts,” the woman observed.
“Yes, we come from Riverview,” Penny replied.