Chapter Thirty Four

Jack's boots slogged through the mud on the road towards the factory as the same thoughts she had entertained for days revolved through her mind. How to stop Max Slate. How to override Oliver's authority. How to save Donovan. How to avenge Titus.

Nothing.

Jack was normally a quick thinker, full of harebrained ideas and crazy schemes, but all of the death in the last few weeks had shaken her. She was afraid, and she hated it.

"Well, you're not much for conversation," Minnie complained from her right. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were pining after Donovan."

Jack's lips curled, but she couldn't deny it. Though she hadn't let her thoughts rest on Donovan too much in the last few days since the funeral, he was always in the back of her mind like a premonition. She hadn't spoken to him or seen him since their fight on the day of Titus's murder, and the missing made Jack's heart ache.

"You shouldn't go spreading such nonsense," Jack said with a grunt. "How's Julius? Has Oliver said anything to him?"

Given Jack's and Julius's involvement in the deaths of Titus and Clyde, Jack had expected they would both be brought in for questioning, but nothing had happened. Even Donovan had remained mysteriously untouched which made Jack suspicious. What was Max Slate planning? Or Oliver, for that matter?

"Not a word," Minnie said, shaking her head. "But it would be just like those criminals to pull Julius into this. It's happened before. It's been happening to blacks and Indians for years."

Jack frowned--for all her indignation at Donovan's treatment, she'd barely stopped to consider the fact that this was nothing new for them. They'd been experiencing prejudice and unjust sentencing for years. Perhaps even the Bookers had seen friends or family condemned and punished for crimes they hadn't committed.

"I know. It's just...not right."

Minnie let out a low chuckle. "Lots of things aren't right, Jack. Neither of us can vote. Boys barely old enough to grow beards are dying in France. Black men are shot for voting, for crossing the street, for riding the bus."

The sheer magnitude of injustice in the world overwhelmed Jack, and she couldn't speak for a few minutes. Who was she to think that she could somehow stop the tide, even in the case of just one man?

"They're going to win," Jack murmured. "No matter what I do, they're going to win. They're going to take Soka's land and maybe even kill Donovan, and there's nothing I can do."

"Don't say that, Jack," Minnie said, touching Jack's shoulder as they walked. "Don't give up."

They walked for a few more minutes, and the factory came into view. The last thing Jack wanted to do was face Margaret Hunt who had been coming to work despite the previous events. She watched Jack sometimes, her face pale and her eyes bleary, but she didn't say anything. Jack couldn't speak to her for fear that she would try to tear Margaret apart. She was an accomplice in Titus's death and Jack couldn't stand to look at her.

"Jack, wait a minute," Minnie said, stopping a few feet away. "Donovan asked me not to tell you this, but I'm going to anyways." Jack's heart hammered in her chest, and she froze. No. It was too soon. She turned to face Minnie, but she already knew what her friend would say. "He's signing over the deed this afternoon and giving it to the mayor. That's why he hasn't pressed charges yet."

No. If Donovan was signing over the lease, that meant he had given up. Max Slate would win, Soka and her son overseas would lose their land, and Donovan would have to run to get away with his life.

"He's leaving?" Jack whispered through dry lips.

Minnie nodded, her eyes creased in concern. "As soon as he signs over the deed."

Jack felt paralyzed. The end had finally come despite all of her efforts to elongate it. Donovan was going to leave, and she would never see him again. Even though she had anticipated this for weeks, it still stung her like a blow to the head. Everything within her screamed that he couldn't leave, that she couldn't let him, but what could she do? Beg him to stay? She had tried that. Offer some solution? She'd pondered the dilemma for weeks with no results.

There was one niggling possibility that resurfaced from the depths of Jack's subconscious. Donovan would have to leave as soon as he signed over the deed, and he might not be able to return to Irvington for months, possibly even years. But Donovan still wanted to be with Jack--he had said as much. He didn't want to leave her; he had to.

But Jack could go with him.

The possibility startled Jack even though it had been lingering in the back of her mind. She had no real ties to Irvington besides her family, and Corrie had her husband now, and hopefully David would return from the war soon to take care of Christina. Jack wanted to travel, and she wanted to be with Donovan; perhaps this was her chance. She knew Donovan would never ask her to give up everything to be with him, but Jack realized she didn't have all that much to give up.

"When?" Jack asked, her eyes jumping to Minnie. "When is he going to see Oliver?"

Minnie's eyebrow drew together. "He's going to gather his things after teaching and then leave immediately after meeting with Oliver so Max doesn't have time to stop him. He has to get the deed from our house as well. Why? What are you thinking, Jack?"

Jack dismissed her friend with a wave of the hand. "Nothing, Minnie. Don't worry about it."

As Jack changed into her jumpsuit and tucked her hair underneath its net, she couldn't stop her hope from surging. Perhaps they couldn't beat Max, but maybe they could escape together and get away from all of this. The idea was reckless foolhardy, but even the chance of them being together was better than the possibility of a life without Donovan. Jack's resolution grew as she entered the factory floor, already buzzing with the noise of the machinery.

Jack's labor kept her mind occupied as she supervised the girls' work on the floor, bolting from girl to girl. Still, she couldn't get the thought of escaping with Donovan out of her head. She thought of all the places they could go--the forests of Maine, the wild plains of the west, the bayous of Louisiana. There were so many places to explore, and so many things to forget in Irvington.

Life with Donovan. With all the turmoil with the Slates, Jack had hardly dared to imagine it, but now that was all she could think of. Perhaps they'd have to let Max Slate win, but they could escape with their lives and that was almost a victory.

As Jack worked, she noticed Margaret Hunt watching her, and she felt a stab in her gut that reminded her of Titus's death. Margaret had been there--she'd witnessed it, yet she hadn't said anything. She hadn't apologized or tried to make things right though Jack wasn't sure she would even entertain an apology. Though she herself hadn't wielded a gun, Margaret was a co-conspirator. She had aided and abetted Max Slate, and even now she was probably hiding him from the rest of the town. Even the sight of her with her frizzy braids and shadowed eyes made Jack sick to her stomach. No matter how guilty the girl felt, nothing could atone for the death she had allowed.

Margaret and Jack made eye contact for a moment, and Jack glared at her, every ounce of hatred translated into one look. Margaret finally looked away and Jack thought she saw a tinge of regret in her eyes. Good.

When work ended, Jack and Minnie walked out together but their paths diverged. "Julius and I are having dinner with Esther tonight," Minnie explained, "so you'll just have to walk back yourself." Minnie glanced down the road with worry in her eyes. "Be alert, Jack. Who knows what Max Slate will do next, and you aren't safe."

Jack nodded even though all she could think about was running home, finding Donovan, and telling him that she was going to run away with him. Safety seemed insignificant; they weren't safe now, and they never would be, but Jack could live with that if no one else was in danger.

"Bye, Minnie. Say hello to Esther for me."

"Alright," Minnie said with a smile. She lingered for a moment longer at the crossroads as if she wanted to say something, but she didn't. What could she say to make Donovan's departure better? Did she suspect Jack's daring plot? If she did, Minnie said nothing.

Jack's boots rushed down the path at a fast walk; she had to see Donovan, she had to stop him before he handed over the deed and left Irvington. Nothing else mattered but stopping him and convincing him she loved him and she wanted to be with him.

Jack's heart surged and all the tragedy of the last few weeks dimmed at the thought of happiness--finally, happiness. The cold wind surging around her brought heat to her cheeks and urged her on.

"Jack, wait!" Jack barely heard the call over the sound of her roaring thoughs. "Jack, Jack!"

Finally, she slowed and turned to find Margaret racing down the path on Jack's bike, her dress hiked to her knees. Margaret stopped and hunched over, gasping for breath.

"I had to--I had to hurry. You walk so fast." She dismounted the bicycle and wheezed for a few minutes and Jack resisted the urge to leave her behind.

"What do you want?"

"I need...need to tell you something," Margaret rasped, pulling herself up straight. "It's Max. He's gone crazy."

Jack frowned, eyes narrowed. "If you think I'm going to listen to you after everything that's happened, after you helped him kill Titus--"

Tears welled in Margaret's hazel eyes. "I'm sorry, Jack. I never meant for things to go this far--I thought he would, I don't know, get you to leave town and I wouldn't have to see you anymore or think about Roy or anything."

Jack crossed her arms over her chest. Could she believe her? Margaret had shown a cold, crazed side before; what had changed her mind?

"Why should I believe you?"

"Because I don't want caught up in this anymore!" Margaret exclaimed, throwing her arms wide. "I didn't think he was gonna kill people, Jack. It's just--he's so handsome, and he was so kind to me when nobody else is."

Jack's lip curled in disgust. How could Margaret find that man attractive? Why couldn't she see him for the bloodthirsty criminal he was?

"But he's gone too far, Jack. He doesn't just want the deed; he wants Donovan dead. Especially now that Clyde's gone too," Margaret explained, her chest heaving.

Jack's disbelief faded at the intensity in Margaret's eyes. If she was still colluding with Max, she wouldn't be condemning him to Jack. Perhaps she was telling the truth.

"The mayor was going to give him the deed when Donovan signed it over tonight," Margaret explained, and Jack's heart sank. How did Margaret and Max know about that? Was Oliver feeding them information? She shouldn't be surprised. "But that's not enough for Max."

Jack's hope that she and Donovan could escape unscathed plummeted. Of course it could never be that easy. Max Slate had lost too much--two brothers--to let them go, and he held Donovan responsible even though Jack's bullet had killed Clyde.

"What's he going to do?" Jack whispered, fear growing in her chest.

"He's...he's crazy!" Margaret exclaimed, the whites of her eyes showing. "He's gone mad, Jack. He doesn't just want the deed anymore; he's decided he has to kill Donovan, and he's going to destroy the deed while he's at it. Without the deed, he can just take the land he wants."

Jack's apprehension multiplied. Max Slate, with his dark, scheming eyes and calculating demeanor, had gone mad, and no one was safe. Not Jake, not the Bookers, and certainly not Donovan.

"Why are you telling me this?" Jack asked, her throat dry.

"Someone needs to stop him. I...I should have told you sooner, but you looked so angry--"

"I am angry."

"Well, that's fine, but you still need to listen to me," Margaret said, her hands on her hips. "Max is going to burn down the Bookers' house before Donovan leaves to sign over the deed. He's going to burn down the house and the deed, and Donovan with it."