@@@@@We've been booming for the past eight
@@@@@We've been booming for the past eight years-hell, there
are
more than twenty thousand people living here now-but you can't boom
without bucks He laughed mightily at his own wItScarlett laughed
with him, although she didn't think there was anything funny about
economic collapseShe knew men like to be appreciatedUncle
Henry's
laughter stopped abruptly, like water turned off at a faucet
Now Ashley's with his sister and his aunt, for good and proper reasons
and according to my adviceAnd that doesn't suit you"No, sir, it
doesn't suit at allHe looks awful, and they're making him worse
He's like a dead man walking
I gave him a good talking-to; tried to snap him out of the state he's
in by hollering at himBut I don't know if it did any good
I know it won't stick even if it didNot as long as he's in that
house She looked at Uncle Henry's skeptical expressionAnger
reddened her face"I don't care what you heard or what you think,
Uncle HenryI'm not after AshleyI made a deathbed promise to
Melanie that I'd take care of him and BeauI wish to God I hadn't,
butIdid Her outburst made Henry uncomfortableHe didn't like
emotion, especially in women"If you start crying, Scarlett, I'll
have you put out
"I'm not going to cryI've got to do something, and you're
no