I can always sell the land, if I have to."

Jess knew in his heart that Reau would do it. All of his hard work since he was able to help his mother in the fields would have gone to waste. He hated Reau then with a greater capacity than he knew existed within him. The depth of his feelings frightened him into silence, and he walked away from the house and across the fields to the riverbank. He sat in the growing darkness, throwing bits of bark and sticks into the flowing water, thinking about what he should do. He had never thought that Reau would ever stay for any length of time, and he knew that he couldn't bear the thought of losing what his mother had considered her home. He must stay, or he would lose it. The place meant nothing to Reau except as a place to come when he needed to. Staying would be a bitter medicine, but it was the only possibility. He made his decision to stay for as long as he could tolerate his father.