“Got her fixed,” said Tom. “We’re ready to go when the rest is.”
“Thank the dear God for that,” Ma said. “I’m just a-twitterin’ to go on. Wanta get where it’s rich an’ green. Wanta get there quick.”
Pa cleared his throat. “Fella was jus’ sayin’—”
Tom grabbed his arm and yanked it. “Funny what he says,” Tom said.
“Says they’s lots a folks on the way.”
Ma peered through the darkness at them. Inside the tent Ruthie coughed and snorted in her sleep. “I washed ’em up,” Ma said. “Fust water we got enough of to give ’em a goin’-over. Lef’ the buckets out for you fellas to wash too. Can’t keep nothin’ clean on the road.”
“Ever’body in?” Pa asked.
“All but Connie an’ Rosasharn. They went off to sleep in the open.
Says it’s too warm in under cover.”
Pa observed querulously, “That Rosasharn is gettin’ awful scary an’ nimsy-mimsy.”