“You can go home,” Otis said to the father and son. “You’ve loaded enough coal.”
Otis moved off into the darkness. Earl and his father rested on the coal. After a while Earl sat up and drank a little water. Then he passed the bottle to his father. The father poured water on his face. He got up shakily. Then they staggered out of mine.
The rain had stopped. The sky was gray. Thick clouds hung in the sky. The two men could hear the sound of water from the streams.
Earl and his father did not talk until they got to the muddy road. Ahead of them was their house. It was a wooden cabin that badly needed paint. The father slowed down.
“You can go to Detroit,” the father said. Then he asked, “Are you going to see your brothers?”
“I guess so,” Earl answered.
“Tell them to write once in a while. Your mother likes to get letters.”
“I’ll tell them.”
The father went into the yard. Earl followed him. His father waited for a moment at the front door. Then they entered the house together.