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1
As October turned into November, and it looked like they’d be wintering over in Boston for the second year, Al Grossman threw Amberlin a curve by suggesting that she make her way South.
“Baez and Dylan are down in Austin, and it's a really happening place right now for folk music. I'd like you to join them down there if you don't mind?"
“Austin, Texas?” Spooks asked. “That’s a long drive. Are you going to cover the gas?”
“Ever the business manager, aren't you?" Grossman replied, then smiled. "Yeah, I'll cover the gas, and I'll make sure you have some decent venues to play as well as several radio stations to visit. Besides, it'll be a lot nicer down there in the winter than up here. What do you say?"
Amberlin nodded, then pointed to the newspaper she’d been scanning. “Sounds good to me. How close is Austin to Dallas?”
“Not that far,” Grossman replied. “Maybe, four or five hours driving. Why?”
“President Kennedy is scheduled to be in that area in the next week or two. I'd love to try to be there at the same time. How about you schedule a time I can sing for him like Marilyn Monroe did awhile back?”
“Sure,” Grossman replied. “Just as soon as you’ve hit it big in Hollywood like she has. So, can I start booking some venues in Austin?”
Amberlin looked to Spooks and Hannah who both nodded. “Yep, sounds like a plan.”
After Grossman left, Spooks turned to Amberlin. “Seems like a long way to drive to see the President, that is if he even keeps on that schedule.”
“I think he will," Amberlin replied. "It says here that he's going on that trip in preparation for running for President for a second term, so it's likely he'll be making himself available to the fine people of Texas. Who knows, maybe I'll get to shake his hand." She decided not to tell her mother about the sudden sensation she'd felt within herself as she'd read the article in the paper. Papa Herb had encouraged her to trust her heart, so this was one step in that direction. Besides, like Grossman had said, it would be a lot warmer in Texas than in Boston. She still remembered the cold, frigid months of last winter. She was ready for some warmer weather.
“Can you let Paula know that we’ll be heading south soon so she can be sure to book someone else in our place?”
“Will do,” Spooks replied. “You know there’s one other little detail that needs handling.”
“What’s that?” Amberlin asked.
“We no longer have a van.”
“Oh, right. I forgot about that,” Amberlin replied.
“I heard Tattoo, and his group is thinking of selling theirs," Hannah said. "Want me to check with him and see if it's true?"
“Do you think it can make the trip to Texas?” Spooks asked.
Hannah shrugged. “It’s at least in as good a shape as Ben’s vehicle was, and it got us here.”
“Okay,” Amberlin replied. “We’ve got a little extra in the kitty I was squirreling away for something like this. See what you can find out. Sounds like it’s time for a road trip.”
“Road trip, road trip...” Hannah started chanting.
“I’m getting too old for this kinda life,” Spooks replied with a groan.
“Hey, that reminds me. Has anyone seen or heard from Rose in the last few days?” Amberlin asked.
“Yes, she came back a couple of days ago and left this note,” Spooks replied. “Sorry, I forgot to give it to you,” she continued as she handed a yellow slip of paper to Amberlin. “She said if anyone needed her that she was staying at that address.”
“Okay, good,” Amberlin replied, glancing at the paper before sticking it in her pocket. “I’ll drop by and let her know of our plans. She may want to join us on the trip.”
“Or just fly down on her broomstick,” Spooks said.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Amberlin asked.
“Only that our dear, sweet, Rose seems to be embracing her special powers of witchhood."
Amberlin opened her mouth to admonish her mother for the comment but then thought better of it. As she turned to leave, she muttered. “Maybe it’s time all the Gentry women embraced our witchhood.”
2
Over the next week, Amberlin and her troupe made plans to relocate from the wintery weather of the Boston area to the much warmer climate of Texas. They were able to acquire a van of their own from Tattoo, who even included having the van detailed and serviced to be sure it would be in tiptop shape for the long trip.
Despite several attempts, Amberlin was unable to persuade her grandmother to accompany them to Texas. "I have a few other matters to take care of here," Rose said when Amberlin tried to talk her into joining them. "I have a life outside of taking care of my daughter and granddaughter, you know."
Actually, Amberlin hadn’t stopped to realize that until that moment, but when she tried to find out a few details about the other parts, Rose had clammed up and sent her on her way. “When you get down there and find a place, let me know where it is. I’ll be happy to join you eventually, just not yet. Oh, and if you have a chance to meet the President, be sure to give him a hug for me.”
Since there was no rush to get to Austin, the three women decided to take their time and see some of the sights along their almost two thousand mile journey. They invested in a tent and some other camping equipment so they could keep their expenses down. It turned out that Hannah and her mother had often gone on camping vacations, so she was a wealth of practical knowledge on the subject.
They even managed to find a few nightspots along the way where Amberlin sang in exchange for their food and lodging, which also included the three of them taking much-appreciated showers. While on the road, Grossman was busy checking out venues in the Austin area where Amberlin, Baez, and Dylan could all perform. He also located a small apartment that wouldn't break the bank. All in all, the transition went smoothly, and by the middle of November, they were all settled in the Lone Star state.
“He's coming, he's really coming!" Amberlin exclaimed as she waved the morning newspaper in her hand.
“Who’s coming where?” Spooks asked from the stove, where she was putting the final touches on the bacon and eggs.
“Let me guess,” said Hannah from the kitchen table where she sat sipping on her cup of coffee. “It has to be our illustrious President Kennedy, right?”
“That’s right!” Amberlin replied, then paused. “How did you know?”
“He’s the only person you’d get so excited about,” Hannah replied. “Simple process of deduction. Just call me Sherlock Hannah.”
“When is he due to arrive?” Spooks asked as she carried the platter of scrambled eggs and bacon to the table.
“He’s in San Antonio today, and will be flying to Fort Worth tonight.”
“Really, that soon?”
“Yep,” Amberlin replied as she joined her mom and Hanna at the table. “We’ve got to go see him. We’ve just got to.”
“Well, count me out,” Spooks replied. “Grossman and I have a very important meeting scheduled for tomorrow. A meeting that will have far more influence on your future than some silly trip to see the President of the United States.”
“I’ll go,” Hannah replied. She reached across the table to scoop some eggs on her plate and take a couple slices of bacon. “It’ll be fun. We can take our camping gear just in case we don’t want to sleep in the van.”
“Really?” Spooks asked. “Two young girls in a van in a strange city all by themselves. My mommy genes aren’t too sure they like that scenario.”
“Ahh, we’ll be fine,” Amberlin replied. “This is the whole reason we traveled this far.”
Spooks shook her head. “I thought the reason we took this trip was to advance your career as a folk singer.”
“Well, yeah, that too,” Amberlin replied. “Right after breakfast, we’ll pack up the van and head north. Are you sure you don’t want to go with us?”
Spooks shook her head again. “Nope, I’ll stay here and make sure Grossman doesn’t try to pull anything that would jeopardize that career of yours. Go have fun, see the President, but please be safe.”
“We will,” Amberlin replied. “I’ll trust my inner guidance all the way.”
“And your common sense,” Spooks replied.
“Road trip, road trip,” Hannah started chanting. “We’re going on another road trip.”
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3
“WHERE DO YOU THINK the best place to see President Kennedy will be?” Hannah asked from the passenger seat of the van where she was serving as Amberlin’s navigator.
“I’ve been giving that some thought,” Amberlin replied. “I don’t want to just see him. I also want to shake his hand.”
“Wow, why not also see if Jackie will mind the two of you going out on a date?” Hannah said, chuckling at her own joke. “You do know that there will be thousands of other people wanting to do the same thing, right?”
“Yeah, so that’s why I think we need to increase our odds by planning to be at more than one place.”
“You can do that? I mean, I know you’ve got some incredible powers that us lowly humans don’t, but I didn’t know you could be at more than one place at the same time.”
“Not at the same time, silly. The President is spending the night at Hotel Texas in Fort Worth, so I think that's one place we should be. He'll have to come out in the morning to get to the parade route that's in Dallas. While he's having breakfast and giving speeches, it'll give us time to make our way to the parade route which will be our second chance to see him."
“You’ve really planned this out, haven’t you?” Hannah asked with a note of envy in her voice.
“I sure have. The only thing I can’t plan is what to do if they make a change, in which case we’ll need to be ready to adjust our plans as well.”
“And so, where are we going to spend the night while the President and First Lady luxuriate in Hotel Texas?”
“Oh, that’s simple,” Amberlin replied. She glanced over to Hannah to see how the news landed. “We’ll be secure in our little van here...in the parking lot of Hotel Texas.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Hannah asked, obviously aghast at the idea. “You’re not kidding. Spooks would kill us if she ever found out.”
“That’s why we’re never going to tell her,” Amberlin replied. “Look, what better place to spend the night? There will be plenty of people around, including the President’s Secret Service. We’ll be right there in the morning so we won’t need to worry about getting lost or stuck in traffic.”
“I guess,” Hannah finally replied. “But I doubt I’ll sleep a wink the entire night.”
“No worry. You can nap as I drive us over to Dallas.”
Hannah was quiet for a few minutes as she tried to get comfortable with the idea of spending the night in a hotel’s parking lot. Finally, she looked up from the map sitting in her lap she’d been pretending to study. “Do you know where along the parade route we should try to be?”
“Not for sure,” Amberlin replied. “I suspect it’ll be crowded along most of the route, but as I was thinking about it last night, I kept getting a ‘hit’ that we might try to get to a place along the route called Dealey Plaza.”
“And why there?” As she asked the question, Hannah folded up the map of Texas and pulled out a second map, this one of Dallas. She started looking for Dealey Plaza on the map.
“I'm not sure. For one thing, it's towards the end of the route so it'll give us more time in case we get stuck in traffic, plus it's close to the final destination, so it's unlikely that part of the route will be changed. But mostly it's because I promised Papa Herb that I'd trust my guidance, and that's where it directed me to go."
The two of them traveled in silence for several minutes. Finally, Hannah checked her wristwatch. “We’ve been on the road almost an hour. Don’t you think that’s enough time to dig into that bag of goodies Spooks packed for us?”
Amberlin laughed. “Sure, let’s see what we’ve got.”