Two years after school finished, Roy started working the big garden and the mine with his father. Thaddeus was not satisfied with just six years of education for his son, so whenever they went to town, Thaddeus collected books from various available sources. In the evening, he would make Roy read the books aloud. In addition, Thaddeus had Roy teach him how to read and write, which Roy enjoyed because it gave him a certain amount of control over his father. Roy never abused the power; it just felt good knowing that he knew more than his old man about something.
Thaddeus was a capable man-able to shoe a horse, build a barn, hunt, fish, and cook. He even taught Roy how to launder clothes on the rocks at the creek. At twelve, Roy was introduced to coffee. Thaddeus liked to drink his coffee strong and black, and Roy quickly learned to enjoy the stimulating effects of the caffeine, especially on cold dark mornings.
In addition to the big garden, Roy's responsibilities included milking their single cow, collecting eggs from the chickens in the hen house, and caring for their goat. Roy utterly hated the goat and was convinced the devil possessed the animal. Aside from providing hilarious entertainment for his father-watching Roy being chased by the goat-Roy could not understand why they even owned the stupid animal.
Occasionally, Roy and his friend Stanley would set off on two-day camping trips. Since the earlier train incident, the two boys avoided Franklin and Robert altogether. The four would see each other in town now and then, and were always polite, but their intimate friendship ended the day of Stanley's injury with the train. The locals and Sheriff Dawson were grateful and relieved by this news.
For almost a year after Stanley was injured, Mr. Riddle without question refused to let Stanley visit with Roy. Thaddeus was troubled by Mr. Riddle's actions and knew Roy and Stanley were like brothers. Living in their desolate location, Thaddeus wanted Roy to experience friendships and Stanley was also a source of Roy's happiness. Neighbors relied on one another for support and the situation between the two families needed healing. Thaddeus invited the Riddle family to dinner one evening. After consuming three bottles of homemade whiskey, Thaddeus finally convinced Mr. Riddle to yield. Meanwhile, Mrs. Riddle cursed under her breath, washing the dishes while the two men sat on the porch laughing and drinking. Mrs. Riddle was overly protective of her only son and was still angry about Stanley's train encounter. That evening, while the two fathers mended their friendship, Stanley and Roy forged a new bond agreeing that their alliance would last a lifetime.