Her mother had always had a beat-up old trailer. This house had a long front porch, a small back porch, huge rooms and an enormous bath room and kitchen. It really did feel enchanted. It also had something else that appealed to her. Tippy was spending a long time in the flower-strewn backyard with its flowering bushes and tall pecan trees. Cash had a hammock strung on a metal stand, and Tippy loved to kick back in it and sway in the cool spring breeze. Her rib cage was still sore, and it was difficult to get into the hammock, but once she was there, she could rest back on the long cushion and it felt wonderful. She was breathing more easily, thanks to the volume of fluids Mrs. Jewell was pumping into her. The bruises had faded to yellow. The confusion and headaches weren’t completely gone, but they were better. Her face still looked like a road map, but it stung less every day and it did look as though it was going to heal perfectly. Mrs. Jewell had kept a disconcertingly close watch over her lately, and Cash was giving her worried glances when he was at home.
