Sling Blade Page #10

Thank you.

I'm just now getting around

to telling you,

but I fixed that washing machine

so that boy ain't gotta tote

that laundry no more.

Thank you.

Thanks.

You been real good to me.

Karl?

Hey, Karl.

How'd you know to come out here?

I knowed you'd be out here.

What you doing digging with that stub?

Just digging.

I ain't never gonna be happy now.

Not with that son of a b*tch

moving in for good.

I wish me and you and Momma

would just run away,

but she said wherever we went,

he'd find us.

He's crazy.

Sometimes I think it'd been

better off if I wasn't even born.

Well, I'm glad of it you was borned.

I don't reckon I'm gonna be

out there in the garage no more.

You have to, Karl.

You have to look out for me.

You can't let

that son of a b*tch run you off.

You're just a boy.

You ought not use language like that.

I don't mean to say

nothing bad about you,

but why don't you stop Doyle

when he's being thataway?

You're older than him.

You're strong, too.

My daddy wouldn't let him

do that to me and Momma.

That fella's a whole sight

meaner than me.

He'd just whup the tar outta me.

Yeah.

I guess so.

I'm real tired, you know that?

A boy my age

shouldn't be tired of things.

I'm tired, too.

Just 'cause I ain't gonna

be around no more maybe,

it don't mean I don't care for you.

I care for you a good deal.

I care for you

more than anything else there is.

You and me made friends

right off the bat.

I care for you, too.

But you'll be around. Don't say that.

It don't make no difference

where I was to be.

We'll always be friends.

Can't nobody stop that.

I aim for you to have these books.

You don't wanna

give away all your books.

I aim for you to have 'em.

Maybe you can make a little more sense

out of 'em than I can.

I made you a book marker and put it in

there in that book on Christmas.

Man.

Thanks.

You know when you got a feeling

and you don't know why?

Yes, sir.

I got a feeling today.

Reckon what kind of a feeling?

Like something different.

I don't know.

You're leaving, ain't you, Karl?

Would you do something for me

if I was to ask you to?

You know I would.

Whatever you want.

When you leave outta here tonight,

I don't want you going over

and staying with that Doyle.

He's got it out for you tonight.

I got me a feeling, too.

You ought not be over there when

he's all liquored up and mean thataway.

Your momma neither.

When you get up from here to leave,

I want you to go over

to that fella's house.

Your momma's friend.

I want you to give me your word on it.

OK. I give you my word on it.

Is everything gonna be OK?

Are you all right?

Yeah, everything's

gonna be all right, boy.

I kindly wanna put my arm

around you for a minute,

then I'm gonna get up

and leave outta here.

OK.

I love you, boy.

I love you, too.

All right, then.

Karl?

What are you doing here?

You want to come in?

I ain't a-stayin'.

I need to ask you for a favor.

OK.

This evening,

I want you to go get that Miss Wheatley,

let her and that Frank

stay over here with you tonight.

What's wrong?

Is everything all right?

That Doyle.

He's in a bad way again with that

drinking and a-bein' mean to folks.

Want you

to give me your word you'll do it.

Well, sure, OK.

He hasn't hurt them, has he?

No, sir, not yet.

Here.

I want you to give that

to that Miss Wheatley.

It ain't much.

But they might be

a little something there to help out.

It's what I made a-fixin' lawn mowers

and whatnot for Bill Cox.

Well, how about you, Karl?

You want to stay here?

I don't reckon that you have to go with

women to be a good daddy to a boy.

You been real square-dealing with me.

Bible says two men

ought not to lay together.

But I'll bet you the Good Lord

wouldn't send nobody like you to Hades.

That boy, Frank,

he lives inside of his own heart.

That's a awful big place to live in.

You take care of that boy.

I will.

Karl?

Where's everybody else?

You seen 'em?

Didn't I tell you

to get moved outta here?

How does a fella go about

getting hold of the police?

You use the f***ing phone, I guess.

Which numbers do you put in?

Can't you see I'm trying to relax?

I thought I told you

to get outta here, leave me alone.

What in the hell you doing

with that lawn mower blade?

I aim to kill you with it.

Well, to call the police, you push:

9-1-1.

You best tell 'em to bring an ambulance.

Or a hearse, if you're going to kill me.

Karl.

Yes, ma'am.

I need the police sent over here

at the Wheatley house.

I killed Doyle Hargraves

with a lawn mower blade.

Yes, ma'am. I'm right sure of it.

I hit him two good whacks with it.

That second 'un

just plumb near cut his head in two.

It's a little old white house

on the corner of Vine Street

and some other street.

There's a truck out front says

"Doyle Hargraves Construction" on it.

I'll be sitting here waiting on you.

Doyle said, besides sending the police,

you might want to send

a ambulance or a hearse.

Thank you.

So.

Now, on the third day,

I...

I washed her,

'cause she wasn't too clean, you know?

Well, I got all the right spots.

She was the first one I kept for any

length of time, I get bored easy,

I got a real short attention span,

you know.

Yeah.

I mean, I can't say

that she enjoyed her stay.

That washcloth I put in her mouth, held

in place with a fat piece of duct tape,

kept her complaining to a minimum. I

don't like people who talk all the time.

I like to do all the talking.

That's why I think I'm so fond of you.

'Cause you're just so easy-going,

you know?

Although I do sense

a little tension in you, time to time.

So you were out in the world?

Did you have fun?

Did you make any acquaintances?

There was a boy.

We made friends.

Yeah, I'll bet you did.

I mean, I was never bent that way.

I was bent the other way, you know.

So.

What was it like out there in the world?

It was too big.

Well, it's not too big in here, is it?

You know something?

I feel real generous today.

I feel like listening.

And I'll bet you got plenty to tell.

Karl?

Who'd you kill?

Was it the boy?

Don't you say nothing about that boy.

Fact of business,

don't you say another word to me.

I ain't listening to you no more.

Yeah.

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