Cool Hand Luke - Donn Pearce [92]
“Oh, yeah? Well, Drag. Ah’m a pretty evil feller already. You know that. Hell, everybody knows that. Ah mean ah done killed people and stole real money and everything.” And ah says—
“Aw, come on Luke. Don’t do that. Dummy up and lay down here awhile. Let’s rest up some. Come on now.”
Cool Hand keeps on talkin‘. Ain’t nothin’ gonna shut him up. And he’s shakin‘ his fists in the air and his face is all screwed up like he’s hurtin’. Hurtin‘ real bad. And he says—
“Ah mean, Lord. Ah’m a pore, dumb son of a bitch and all like that. But you gotta admit. You sure do make it mighty hard for a man to keep up. How come you’re all the time fixin‘ it up so that ah cain’t never win out? Anything ah do, no matter how ah do it, it’s all wrong? So that most of the time ah don’t even know mahself what’s wrong and what ain’t?”
Well, by this time ah don’t even know what ah’m doin‘ no more. Ah’m crawlin’ across the floor over to Luke. Ah’m practically beggin‘ him to shut up. It was jest beginnin’ to git daylight. The sky was all red and there was thick clouds out yonder. And Luke, he’s arguin‘ and cussin’ and mad all at once. Ah tries to humor ‘im. Like you gotta do some nut. Ah talks nice and soft to ’im. Real coaxin‘ like. Ah says—
“Please Luke. Come on. Ah don’t like this kind of talk. And God don’t neither. It’s blasphemy! Anybody knows better than that. You’re gonna bring down the wrath of God on yoreself. On you and me both.” But Luke says—
“The wrath of God? Ah thought God was love, Dragline? You know. Love thy fellow man and all that.”
By this time ah’m prayin‘. Yeah. Ah mean it. Ah’m down on the floor on mah knees. Now ah ain’t scared o’ nothin‘. Nothin’ on this earth. Ah ain’t a-scared o‘ man, beast nor the devil. But fuckin’ around with God. Now, that’s different. So ah’m down on the floor, mah hands put together like they taught me in Sunday school. And Luke, he’s still preachin‘. And ah’m prayin’. Ah says—
“Don’t listen to him, Lawd! He’s crazy! He’s outta his pore, misbegotten mind! They done beat on his haid too much, God. He don’t know what he’s sayin‘. But don’t punish him. Please. Have pity on us pore convicts. We know we been bad. Real bad. But have mercy anyway. O.K.? Is it a deal, Lawd?” And Luke, he says—
“Yeah Lord! Have mercy! Have pity! Cause ah’m a bad one aw right. But then again maybe you had better punish me. But good. Cause ah really need it. Ah mean ah done stole! Money! Right out of the mouths of pore, hongry municipal governments. And worse yet—ah done killed people. Well, maybe not exactly people. But there was fourteen of ‘em. Before ah was even a man. Before ah could even vote. In cold blood. Men ah didn’t even know. And one of ’em even had a Bible in his pocket. What did you tell him about love, God? Or don’t you really speak that heathen tongue o‘ his’n after all? And what about all them starvin’ heathen kids and women folk? And them ah wasn’t allowed to feed or even talk to cause they was enemies? And how come after ah had to do all this burnin‘ and killin’ they made me out somethin‘ special? Music, speeches, flags, medals? Hell, ah was Good Guy Number One. And how come everywhere ah went ah could always see some man of the cloth hangin’ around? Smilin‘ and grinnin’ and salutin‘? Wearin’ war ribbons and officer’s marks and all like that there?”
Man. It was too much fer me. Ah couldn’t even look no more. Ah jes covered up mah face and ah says—
“Oh, please. Don’t lissen to him, Lawd. You cain’t hold his sins against a crazy man. Can you Lawd? Ah mean. That ain’t fair. He’s nuts! His haid is all banged up and scarred. He’s had hisself a pretty tough time. But it ain’t his fault. Is it? Is it Lawd?”
But right then. Right in the middle of this threeway argument we’re havin‘. Comin’ from right outta nowhere, ah hears this voice callin ‘out—
“Luke! Dragline! Come on out of there!”
Course, ah knew who it was. Boss Godfrey. And ah says to mahself, “Oh, damn, damn. Lawd he‘p us. Boss Godfrey’s out there.” And then