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Bon Appetit.
***
Justis hoped the Clockes didn't expect him to dress for dinner. All he had to change into was another sweatshirt and a fresh change of underwear. Ned hadn't said a word about that kind of formality, though, and Justis didn't really expect it. No one had their shoes on in the house and Cathy was making noises about her bra straps cutting into her shoulders. Her sisters were watching her carefully.
But high etiquette was very present elsewhere. "Knives go on the right side, Justis, facing in," Mae said, looking down the long length of her dining room table in its full-sized glory. "On the left of the plate is the dinner fork and on the left of that is the salad fork. Iced tea glass above the knife. That's actually where the wine glasses would go but we're not a wine drinking family."
Hollin said, "Wave hot holiday punch at us, however?" She made a snatching motion. "Arrr, where's me rum?"
Justis smiled. Those were the first friendly words Hollin had said to him since lunch.
"Beer's good, too," Mae said and Justis was surprised. A beauty queen drinking a beer? She went on, "Oh, no, the centerpiece is too small." Mae thumped herself on the forehead.
"We'll find something or I'll make something, Grandma, don't worry," Hollin said. Justis wondered at her generosity. Mae was the enemy, right? Hollin wasn't setting her assigned table. Or was she claiming it?
Mae waggled her fingers at the stacks of china and silverware. "Just do each setting like I did and make it pretty. And straight and even. Ya'll are artistic, you know how to do."
"One question?" Justis asked.
"Yes?"
"Why are there two dinner plates?" He pointed down at the cream-colored plate on top of a larger plate rimmed with swirls of gold. What was going to be served on that?
"The bottom one is a charger. It's just a decoration. And it saves the tablecloth a bit."
"Ohhh." The tablecloth was a warm, Autumnal red with a golden leaf pattern and Justis was already nervous around it. "You could make a nice dress out of this," he observed and felt stupid. Ned would have laughed if he'd been there but he was sitting in state with his dad in the living room, their burns giving them a free pass for the rest of the holiday. He was relieved when the women agreed and Mae even mentioned that the golden napkins she was folding now were the remnants of an old Christmas tablecloth. But anyway...
Justis and Hollin set to, the heavy silverware chiming, while Mae folded. She was counting out loud. "We've got Viv and Hal and Ned, Anne and Carl, Justis, Kirk and Elly, Sarah..." Her stack was getting high. "And we've got Newt, Fiona, Meryl, Devon, the Reverend Carol..."
"Not again," Hollin groaned.
"Now what's wrong with him?" Mae asked.
Hollin frowned. "He loves the sound of his own voice. The blessing last year?"
"Oh, that," Mae waved that away.
Hollin wasn't letting it go, "It was twenty-four minutes long. I timed him. Everything got cold and congealed."
"Aw, hale no," Justis sympathized.
"He's a good man!" Mae protested. "He just gets a little carried away. Now if you're going to kill yourself, Hollin, that soup spoon won't do it." Hollin left off sawing at her neck and put the gleaming spoon in its place. Mae went back to her napkins.
"Make me a swan?" Justis requested.
Mae grinned at him. "I can't make a swan. Here's a chicken, though." And she whipped up a plucked chicken out of a golden napkin. "Bok, bok, bok?"
Ellery angrily lurched into the dining room and disrupted the laughter. She had two DVD cases in her hands and she waved them through the air. "Grandma, Alex says I can't play these movies during dinner. He's being a real jerkweed."
"What movies?" Ellery handed them over. Mae's eyebrows went up as she looked them over. "The Last of the Mohicans and The Hunger Games? Are you serious?"
"Well, it is Thanksgiving," Ellery said. "Happy Kill the Indians and Take Their Land Day." Her accent changed to a nasal imitation of whichever one of her friends had impressed her with that observation. "Happy Waste Tons of Food Day."
Justis took one look at Mae's face and wondered if dropping to the carpet to elbow-crawl his way out the door was worth the risk of drawing her attention. He decided to hold still. Hollin was also frozen. She was hovering an iced tea glass three inches off the table cloth. Ellery, too, realized she was in for it and her smirk drifted away.
"Lights, please?" Mae muttered as she flipped the DVD cases over and over in her hands. "Let me inform you, young lady, as to what Thanksgiving is all about."
"Okay, I'm sorry..."
"Forget that hateful Puritan crap, thanks-givings are celebrated all over the world!" Mae barked and Ellery shut up. "Everyone that grows food celebrates the harvest. Everyone gives thanks that there's food for the winter. You think Japan and Russia and Mexico celebrates Kill an Indian Day?" Ellery miserably shook her head. "They, and we, give thanks for blessings. And this family is blessed even though two of us are gone, gone away for good. Your Grandpa. Your Uncle Chris. But I'm giving thanks that the rest of you are still here. So should you."
Mae moved nose to nose with Ellery. "I'm even grateful I'm still here and that's hard, believe me." She breathed deep. "You know what else I'm thankful for?" Mae asked. Ellery's eyes threatened tears but Mae was unfazed. "I'm thankful Hal and Ned got away with just a few burns. Your daddy and your brother almost died today, you realize that?"
Ellery swallowed.
Mae went on through gritted teeth, "I'm thankful all my grandbabies are loud and healthy, unlike the Reverend Carol's girl. She's still in a chair since the accident."
Justis flinched. Poor kid, what happened?
Ellery was crying now but she was also standing still and upright, taking her bawling out with dignity. Mae carried on, "I'm thankful Maud's unemployment finally came through and she won't lose her home."
Justis was floored again. Unemployment? But, but, but Maud's clothes? The swinging copper jewelry? The whole presentation? He pulled out a high-backed chair from the table and sat down.
"I'm thankful Hollin's tumor is gone!"
Justis startled and stared at Hollin.
She went pink and finally put the glass down. "Bump on my thyroid. I'm okay," she whispered.
Justis wasn't convinced. A bump? A tumor? Hello, that means cancer.
"And I'm thankful that Anne is finally getting rid of Carl!" Mae's anger pooped out and she put her hand over her mouth. She fearfully looked at the open door. They all did.
"Don't pass it, what are you doing?" Carl was shouting at the TV. The never-ending football was still playing loudly. "What kind of stupid play is that? What's that idiot coach doing out there?"
"He's winning. Touchdown!" Newt crowed and the crowd cheered while Carl stared, baffled, at the TV.
Mae deflated with relief.
"Is she really?" Hollin whispered.
Mae nodded. "She's serving the papers after New Years. She..." Mae raised her eyes to heaven. "She doesn't want to ruin his holidays." She turned to Ellery and handed the DVDs back. "So put on A Muppet Christmas Carol and be thankful you're not a Yoho on top of everything else."
"I am," Ellery said and she sounded like she meant it with all her heart. "Poor Alex."
Mae put a finger to her lips and nodded at the girl, bringing Ellery back into her good graces with their shared confidence. Relieved, Ellery nodded eagerly. Then she became grim, and a little excited, under the sudden weight of a genuinely serious secret. She about faced and left, sniffing hugely as she went.
Mae jerked a chair of her own out and melted into it. She covered her face with a napkin. Hollin went to her and put an arm around her shoulders. "Next year really will be better, Grandma," Hollin said.
Mae's muffled voice said, "You don't know. You don't know what's going to go wrong next."
"Well, it's all good right now," Hollin insisted. "And I'm thankful for that."
Mae sniffed hugely, too. And then she laughed. It was weak and worried but it was a laugh. "Well, what about you, Justis?" She wiped her eyes on her napkin. "What are you grateful for this year?"
It was a moment before Justis could speak. He was remembering a slogan he saw spray-painted on the Swanhaven water tower as he drove into town. It was being painted over but he could still read it. There are no virgins. Life screws over everybody.
Hollin watched him closely as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He found his favorite picture of Flam-bee in a black and yellow striped bee costume and showed it to his hosts. "This is my best friend, Flamala. She calls herself Flam-bee. She's at Duke studying mathematics. I've been sending her the pictures I've been taking. We. Uh."
He looked at Hollin again. Here's the part of the program where everyone pities him. "I'm thankful I met her, we have the same sort of background. Makes her easy to talk to. Ah." He forced himself to go on and say it. "We grew up in foster care and I'm thankful for that. Sometimes it's like being raised by wolves but it beats the hell out of being raised by MacNairs."
Justis was ashamed, an old, familiar feeling. His third foster mother had told him to get over himself. He would never have a joyous past of golden memories. Stop yearning for it. Stop apologizing for it.
He'd survived, he'd prospered, he'd achieved a full scholarship to Duke University.
Justis's chin went up. "Y'see, Dad's gone. He was shot during a home invasion. He was the invader. Great guy. Mom relinquished custody of me when she became a guest of North Carolina for dealing Vicodin. A hundred bucks a pill kept her in weed money. And so on and so forth."
He didn't feel any great need to say any more.
"Whew," Mae softly said and Hollin looked sad.
Justis waited for disgust and horror but nothing further came from either of them. He liked their understated reaction. The pain ghouls who dig for all the gory details made him want to vomit.
"Yeah," he said. "I cry a tear. But I'm okay." He wasn't playing the Who Suffered the Most game. Not anymore. He wasn 't winning, anyway. He'd never lost a child. Or his spouse. Or a job. Or had cancer.
"I'm sorry I've been bouncing around like a baby goat but this place is so exotic to me," he admitted. He turned to Mae. "Hal burned down your shed and you didn't shoot him in the leg? What's up with that?"
Mae reached out and gave his face an affectionate squeeze. It felt good. A granny-squeeze. "My .22 hasn't been fired in fifteen years," she said. "I don't trust it anymore."
"There's the shotgun?" Hollin suggested so helpfully. "You can club him with it?"
"When he's asleep," Mae agreed and they both laughed.
Justis felt a powerful relief surge through him. No sloppy pity, thank God, from either of them. He was impressed.
There was a sad sniffle at the door and Anne wandered in. "Mamaaa," she groaned, "I'm off to the store again."
Mae perked up. "Why? What happened?"
Anne genuinely looked like she might start rending her garments. "I put too many wood chips in the smoker. I turned it up too high. I made hickory flavored turkey jerky."
"Oh, no!"
"Not even Mr. Barkis would try it. So I'm making another food run to Souls by the Sea. Need anything?"
"It's past four! Everything's closed by now."
"I have to try. Aunt Maud's bird won't feed half of us and I hate to make Hollin scramble more eggs." Anne looked around at the red-eyed table setting committee. "Everything okay in here?"
"We're fine," Mae said, dragging herself together. "And I'll go with you, I know where everything is over there." She stood. "Ya'll don't mind being ditched?"
Hollin and Justis assured her they didn't.
At all.
And the two women left.
"We'll try the restaurants, too," Mae's receding voice said.
And Justis was alone with Hollin.
"They might come back with a carload of Quarter Pounders," she said. "That'll go with the Waldorf salad."
Justis replied, "Thyroid cancer?" and Hollin blinked at him.
"A tiny growth. Yes," she finally said and it killed him the way she downplayed it. "I had chemo. I expected them to strap me down to Frankenstein's slab and zap me but they just handed me a pill of pure radon, or whatever." She shook her head. "And then a couple more. I wasn't allowed near pregnant women or children for a while but I'm..." She smiled. "I'm feeling much better now. I didn't lose a single hair."
"I'm sorry I laughed," Justis said. He had to dredge up the strength to look her in the eye. "It all seems so squeaky clean and pure. But there's no such place as Fairyland, right?"
"You blind, stupid idiot! What were you thinking?" Carl yowled from the next room.
Justis clutched his chest and did his best impression of Ellery taking it like a man. Hollin quietly laughed.
"Did you see that call? Did you see it? I'd fire that umpire."
"That's the referee, you sawed off moron," Newt snapped back. "It's baseball has umpires."
"And the call was perfectly good," Devon said and the other Greens piled on, too.
"I forgive you," Hollin said and lightly pinched his forearm with her fingers. "I'm glad you finally told me about yourself. I was wondering if you were in the mob."
"No anymore, dollface."
She rolled her eyed. "And there is real humor in beauty pageants. Which is why I draw the comic."
"It's a good comic, I meant that." Justis stretched across the table and kissed her.
Surprise?
He waited for her to kiss him back or knock him out or...
She kissed him back.
He felt her hand drifting idly through his hair. Our kids will have fantastic hair, Justis thought and he took her by the shoulders to pull her closer. Her hand dropped to his bicep.
A burst of sheer, conceited joy shot through him. She liked his arms.
He liked her lips, firm lips, and sweet with gloss. Maple sugar gloss. He could taste it. He could taste her. Warm and soft and fine...
"Hey!" Marty barked at the door. "Knock that off and get the table set."
A world of insults and defiance crowded Justis's head so fast they jammed. He lifted his head to stare at the sour woman in the doorway and choked.
Hollin had the answer. She locked her arms around his back and threw him down onto the table. Plates, silverware, and chargers scattered, chiming across the table. Then Hollin crawled up and pinned him.
It was the most exciting thing ever done to him.
"We've got plenty of time to get it done, Aunt Martiiine," Hollin drawled and violently kissed Justis on the cheek and neck while his legs pedaled in the air.
"Help!" he gasped. "Marty, help me!"
"That's not funny, stop it!" Marty did not have the Voice of Death, she had nothing at all, and Hollin carried on, dropping hard pecks on Justis's chin, forehead, eyelids, mouth...she dug her fingers into his ribs and Justis laughed with delight.
He could get used to this kind of treatment.
Marty left to go stomping through the house. "Cathy! Cathy, do you know what Hollin's doing?"
Justis reached up and crushed Hollin to his chest. He hungrily found her mouth again. He could feel her heart fluttering. His own matched...
Another, softer, and much more amused voice sounded from the door. "Excuse me, you two." It was Great Aunt Maud.
Hollin and Justis leapt apart as if someone had dropped a cherry bomb between them.
"Wewerejustplaying," Hollin gasped. Her hair was wild. Justis knew he looked just as interesting.
"Seen Mae?" was all Maud said.
Hollin began to pull the wrinkles out of the tablecloth. "Aunt Anne's turkey died. They went to town to see if they could find rotisserie chicken or something."
"So it's all up to you now," Justis said.
Maud became as grim as a soldier in a foxhole. "Great. Here I go, then," she turned to go, then she slowly leaned back in. "But do get that finished, please," she said.
"Yes, ma'am," Justis said, and jangled the silverware. Maud left and he and Hollin broke down. They snickered and blushed as they straightened the cloth, the runner, and set well over a thousand places, it seemed like.
Cathy drifted by and looked in. She sighed but continued on her way without a word.
Hollin placed the tiny centerpiece, one pillar candle surrounded by a wreath of bright red maple leaves, in the place of honor. It didn't work. It looked like a piece of candy in the center of a forest of glittering gold and glass.
"Okay, we'll put that on the kids' table," she said.
She didn't sigh or moan or sag or pout, she had no expression at all, but Justis still felt her wither.
She smiled at him, half hopelessly. "Will you come sit with me tonight?" she asked. "I'll need moral support when I separate all those crazy twins."
Justis gave her a sweet and quick kiss. He took her hand.
"No," he said. "Not on your life."
She actually jumped. "What?"
Hollin was hurt but Justis still shook his head. "No," he said again. " I wouldn't be caught dead at the kids' table after all I've been through in my life. I'm going where I belong. And so should you."
She understood his meaning and relaxed. "Justis, they don't want me..."
"Yeah? They'd rather have dear Uncle Carl?"
He brought her closer and enjoyed it, the freedom of it. "You fed them all. You kept your cool every single time Marty came after you. You took control during the fire when Granny couldn't. And now, after all you've been through in life, Miss Thyroid, you're going to sit where they tell you and eat mac 'n cheese with Roy and Hill?"
Her eyes slowly closed.
They opened again, just as slowly. "Alex!" she shouted and it was Justis's turn to flinch. "Alex, come here!"
Justis grinned at her, proud. "But if they throw you out again, I just want to say that no matter where you go I'll be right behind you," he said. "And I mean that in a non-stalker sort of way, I swear."
Hollin hugged him. "You can take pictures of this, it's beautiful," she said, slightly muffled against his thick sweatshirt. She waved her hand at the expanse of comfortable, gleaming luxury with steely anticipation. "And tell Flam-bee I said hey."
*
D Day
*
ANNE AND MAE HAD HIT the jackpot. They'd found Big Ben's BBQ on the road between Souls and its satellite town of Plum Tree. It was packed with customers but desperation made them pushy and they charged in. Oh, please, we don't want to take up a table, we just need a turkey replacement. Oh, please, oh, please. Big Ben, herself, sold them five pounds of pulled pork barbecue, two juicy rotisserie chickens, and two enormous turkey breasts without jacking up the price at all.
"We found a new family restaurant!" Mae proclaimed as Hollin climbed a ladder to bring out a couple of antique casserole dishes of milky white glass from the highest cupboard. "And the soup tureen, too, please."
Hollin poked around. "The one shaped like a cat or this round one?"
"The round one."
"When you die I want the cat tureen," Hollin said as she carefully climbed down.
"Done," Mae agreed and gave it all a rinse before she began to platter the food. The barbecue was wrenched away from Viv to go into the tureen. "We're all going back, often. Bless those nice people."
"Bless 'em," Viv agreed around a mouth full of spicy, melt-in-your-mouth, pork. "I could drink this vinegar sauce."
Cathy pulled her sister away. "Don't eat it all before it even gets to the table, Viv."
"No promises," Viv said.
"Grandma, the Rev's here!" Roy shouted in passing.
"That's Reverend," Mae said but the boy was long gone. "That's Reverend," she said to Hollin and shook her finger.
Hollin tried to look contrite.
A handsome man in a dark suit and white collar appeared in the door. "I'm so sorry we're late...er...ooh! Do I smell barbecue?"
Viv graciously split open a warm roll, packed it, and handed it over. The Reverend Carol bit in as if he hadn't eaten in days.
Hollin wanted to pull him aside and quietly explain the beauty and benefits of a thirty-second blessing. Or crack him on the head and hide his unconscious body in the pantry. Too many witnesses, though.
She sighed and finished pouring out fresh tea into three glass pitchers and slowly carried them to the adults' table in the dining room. She was followed out by Anne who had a large bowl of steaming cranberry sauce in one hand and a large plate of canned cranberry jelly, proudly sliced by Justis, in the other.
Justis. Her boyfriend.
Yeah, it was official.
Hollin went pink and smiled.
And no one had yet noticed the extra chair at the adults' table. Well, they'd notice when she sat down in it.
She got back to the kitchen just in time to see Hal, his injuries no longer holding him back, pulling Maud's turkey out of the oven.
"Next year," he promised, "I'm going to make the fryer work and you'll have competition." Maud nodded, humoring him. "Look at that," Hal said.
The turkey was worth looking at. It had been basted with butter again and again until it was a crispy gold. Three types of potatoes, their skins cracked and steaming, surrounded it.
Maud scooped them out into one of the casseroles and the fragrance filled made Hollin's mouth water.
"Aw. I really had my heart set on rice," sighed the Rev. He spotted Hollin's expression. "That was a joke!" he yelped. "Just a joke."
"Oh, I know," Hollin said and fixed a smile on her face. "Ha heh."
Mae saved them both. "Reverend, come meet Newt Anderson, my big brother. He just moved into the area. You're sitting next to him so you can tell him all about Swanhaven."
"I'd love to."
They left and the kitchen felt lighter.
"Cathy," Maud said. "It's time to eat. Get everyone into the dining room."
"Let's go!" Cathy obediently shouted and Maud winced. "Time to sit down!" Cathy picked up the yeast rolls and the potatoes and left.
Time to sit down.
"Oh, God," Hollin whispered as she scraped gravy into a ceramic bowl she'd painted herself when she was nine. Her Grandma was required to like and use it but it actually was a gorgeous bowl, thank you very much. It gave Hollin strength but she couldn't bring herself to leave with it just yet. Viv filled another bowl with green beans glistening with butter and crispy garlic. She took it away.
Maud prepared a hundred year old turkey platter with a bed of fresh Romaine lettuce. "The bird's rested enough. Take it up, Hal."
Hal twisted the platter just so and picked up two enormous serving forks. He scooted one under the bird until it moved freely in the baking dish. Then he carefully inserted a fork at each end and lifted. His hands shot into the air as the turkey fell apart. The breasts separated, one fork clattered against the wall, and a leg quarter escaped to slide down the counter. Hollin stopped it before it hit the floor and (ow! hot!) pitched it back into the roasting pan.
She wiped her hands on a dish towel as Hal and Maud looked down at the wreck with wide eyes. Maud put her hands on her hips. "What do the kids say? I ain't even mad."
"That is one tender bird right there," Hal agreed and they all stared in wonder for a moment more. Then Maud chuckled and arranged the pieces on the lettuce, adding pear salads as an extra garnish.
Then she lifted her bird in triumph. "Let's go," she said and led the procession to the dining room.
Everyone was laughing, talking, pouring tea, and exclaiming over what had clearly happened to the main dish. Maud was modest as she set the bird down in front of Mae who was seated at the head of the table. Then she took her seat at Mae's right.
Hollin caught Justis's eye as she put down her bowl and smiled. Justis didn't smile back. Even Ned, seated next to him, was subdued. Hollin finally noticed why.
Marty had discovered the extra chair. She'd taken it away and plopped Dale in his high stool by her side. He was already enjoying chicken and vegetables from a melamine saucer balanced on his tray.
Marty looked up at Hollin and smiled.
"Okay," Hollin said and smiled back. She walked into the living room and saw Alex frowning. There was the high backed chair, empty, at the head of their farm table and he was standing next to it. All the children, even Tina Carol, small and pale in her wheelchair, stared at Hollin with wide eyes.
Hollin smiled at her. "Hey, sugar, do I get a kiss?"
Tina smiled and wrapped her arms around Hollin as the older girl welcomed her.
Hollin straightened and noticed Alma and Annie Junior were seated on each side of the little girl. They were going to be Tina's helpers, obviously. Good. Ellery was at the foot of the table with Roy and Hill on each side of her. Kirk's kids and a smattering of Greens made up the rest of the company. They were all calm and clean. The TV behind Ellery featured a green frog singing 'tis the season to be joyous and jolly, fa la la.
There were no place cards. Oh, well.
"Beautiful, Alex. It's perfect." Hollin grinned at him, so proud, and actually felt a pang that she wasn't going to be joining this fine crew this year.
"But Hollin!" he whispered fiercely. "Aunt Marty brought this chair back and said..."
"Alex?" Hollin interrupted. "There's a kid at the adults' table you forgot. Let's go get him."
Alex's frown cleared. "Okay," he said. "Ellery, I'll be right back. You're in charge while I'm gone."
Ellery nodded and squinted at the others, daring any of them to act up while El Presidente was away.
Hollin left the high-backed throne for Alex and picked up the only other empty chair, one of the wooden folding chairs some of the other kids were using, and took it away with her. Every head turned when she re-entered the dining room with Alex in tow.
"Hollin?" Her grandmother slowly ut her fork down with a snap. "Don't."
"Don't what?" Hollin asked. "Alex has the situation completely under control. He doesn't need me." She nudged Alex and pointed at Dale. "Take him away. Take it all away."
Alex smiled and picked up the high chair by the arms, Dale looked up and gurgled at him. Alex backed away and Hollin unfolded her chair and plopped it into place, right next to Marty. She sat. The chair was low and the edge of the table came up to her chest. She didn't care.
Marty exploded. "Get up!" She pushed Hollin in the shoulder. Hollin swatted her hand away. Marty turned to Alex. "And you put my baby down. Now!"
"Take him away," Hollin said and Alex walked to the door. "The rest of us deserve a break, too, Aunt Martine," Hollin went on. "None of us want to deal with a screaming baby at the adults' table."
Which wasn't fair to Dale, the cheeriest baby in the world, but Hollin was making a point. There were murmurs of agreement. Marty had broken a rule.
"Dinner and a show," Newt murmured to the Reverend. "You wouldn't get this value for money at the bingo hall." Carol nodded and Newt slid his salad plate and fork across to Hollin. She thanked him.
But Marty wasn't giving in. "If she doesn't get out of here I'm taking Dale home and I'll be damned if any of you will ever see him again."
Marty's lips were peeled back from her teeth.
Alex stopped and looked back.
"Whoa, this got interesting," Justis said into the crackling silence.
Sarah's face was stone. "Just try it, Martine."
Marty's hands flapped through the air as if to scatter Sarah's attention. "You! Don't push me. Don't any of you try to push me. I mean what I say."
"You know what?" Cathy said. "I've had it with this crazy woman."
"That's enough from everyone," Mae said, and her eyes hardened into real anger.
"And you shut up!" Marty suddenly bellowed at Justis, the soft target. "Who're you to say anything here? You're nobody!"
Hollin's blood pressure went up. Back off mah man. "Who are you?" she shot back. "If it weren't for Dale where would you be tonight?"
"If I...If I might interrupt, please," the Reverend attempted.
"I'm taking him now." Marty slapped her napkin down.
"I SAID THAT'S ENOUGH!" Mae was on her feet and the original Voice of Death reverberated through the house.
No one said a word, not even Newt.
Mae stared at Hollin as the cause of...
Hollin looked her grandmother steadily in the eyes. "Well? Which one of us is it going to be, Grandma?" she whispered.
"What did she say?" Meryl asked. She was shushed by Devon.
"You all hate me," Marty hissed. "Ever since I married Chris I've gotten nothing but..."
"Enough, Marty," Mae said and she looked away from Hollin at last.
Mae seemed to be counting her children and her grandchildren.
And then she pointed at Alex.
"Alex, take Dale on into the living room. Give him some of Hal's mac and cheese, he loves it. And I better not hear the first peep of trouble from in there."
Alex beamed and left, sweeping out the door with Dale as if he were carrying a prince.
"Ned!" Mae barked. Ned jumped. "Trade seats with Hollin. You're taller than she is, you can handle a shorter chair."
Ned and Hollin got up and switched. Ned pulled on Hollin's fingers as he passed. Justis took her hand, too, and squeezed as she sat down. She wanted to climb into his lap.
And Mae looked at Marty. Marty glared back. "Martine," Mae said. "If you don't cool it I'm going to call your father."
That wasn't the threat everyone was expecting. The Clockes, Yohos, Greens, and Andersons were perplexed.
But it seemed to be the correct threat. "Like he'd listen to you," Marty said.
"We used to date."
"What?" Marty's defiance cracked.
"Whaaat?" Ned laughed and then stopped at a look from his dad.
"You heard me. Back in high school. He's one of my oldest friends."
Marty's jaw hung open. Clearly news to her.
But Mae wasn't finished. "But that's not why he'll listen. He'll listen to me, Marty, because he knows you." Mae paused to let that sink in.
Marty's left shoulder rose into a defensive hunch.
Mae sat down and her manner became completely conversational and normal. "He asks after you all the time. You don't visit enough. And he wants to see the baby more often. In fact, you should go see him just as soon as dinner is over and take him one of Sarah's pies. He'd love that."
Marty sputtered.
Mae's gaze caught and held her daughter in law's. And that was a staring contest she won.
Marty's shoulder drooped as all her fight left, leaving nothing but a sullen and angry lump behind.
Anger, Hollin realized. Marty wasn't just angry, she was angry. Hollin remembered how snappy Mae was when she overheard mention of Grandpa. Grandpa and the dream house they'd created together. Mae had swallowed her own anger, getting through her day and caring for her large, crazy family with stoic grace, as long as she wasn't reminded of her loss.
But Marty was lashing out in all directions without reason or mercy until she was a caricature of a shrew.
Rage on, Hollin thought, suddenly depressed. Both of you, rage on. It won't bring Grandpa or Uncle Chris back.
The kids in the living room suddenly burst into laughter and Mae tensed.
But it was all right. "Gonzo!" Alma shouted. "Light the torch, not the rat!"
"Hollin!" Carl shouted back. "Hollin! Hollin! Hollin! Hollin?"
The kids didn't join in. All the adults looked at Carl in disgust and he left off.
"Nobody has a sense of humor here," he whined and helped himself to a generous scoop of everything within reach without passing a single plate on.
Her Aunt Anne looked at him with hooded eyes and Hollin swore she could hear a clock ticking, marking his final moments as a member of the family.
Marty's fingers scuttled over her silverware aimlessly. Ned passed her the yeast rolls and she took one, tearing it into shreds with her fingers.
"Well! This all looks so good," Mae proclaimed. "Let's dig in."
The family fell on the food as if they were starving and for five minutes conversation was over-jolly and strained.
But five minutes was long enough to relax in and genuine cheer soon began to rise. Every dish really was so good.
Except one. "Giblet gravy?" Justis asked. "Really?"
Hollin reassured him. "Not on your life. Great-Grandmama Delama changed the recipe. She couldn't stand to see guts floating in her nice, golden gravy. That's leg meat." Justis was relieved. "Try a bit over your cornbread dressing, it's delicious." Hollin urged.
Meryl Green leaned close to let Hollin know that, "I found a lump under my boob last week."
"Really?" Hollin said.
"It was just a boil but I thought I had breast cancer. The doctor lanced it and pus is still coming out."
"Mama," Devon said. "Not at the dinner table."
Hollin clenched Justis's hand to keep him from rolling to the ground.
She noticed the Reverend Carol was trying to catch Mae's attention. "The blessing?" he nudged.
"Oh, my gosh, thank you for reminding me," she said.
Ned folded his hands. "Rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub."
"Quiet you." Mae knocked on the table with the heavy handle of her butter knife and the hungry chatter and clatter stilled.
"Everyone," she said. "I was just reminded by the Reverend that we were forgetting something. So. As we all know by now, by God, Hollin had her sixteenth birthday last March."
There was a round of applause and Hollin smiled and waved, the gentle side-to-side wave of a queen. She guessed what was coming and had just time enough to compose herself as Mae said, "She's going to say Grace for us."
The Reverend was half out of his chair and looked surprised and a little disappointed as he drifted back down.
Hollin stood up and cleared her throat. She bowed her head. Her family bowed theirs.
"Lord..." she began.
"Have mercy," said Newt.
Hollin grinned at him. "Thank you, Lord, for another year. We miss Grandpa and Uncle Chris so much but we take comfort in knowing that Grandpa's slipped disc doesn't hurt him anymore. And Uncle Chris is at peace." Marty leaned her head on her hand. Hollin carried on. "He's not totally gone, either, we can see him in Dale, the Joe Cool of babies."
"Hear, hear," Justis said. "He's the Buddha, I'm telling you." He realized he'd interrupted. "Sorry."
Hollin smiled at him. "Thank you for keeping Uncle Hal and Ned safe. Well, Uncle Hal, at least." Ned blew her a raspberry. "We hope they heal quickly. We also welcome the Reverend Carol and Tina and Justis MacNair."
Hollin waited for the round of embarrassing woohoos to stop before she went on. "Bless all the kids, especially Alex who's doing a really good job in there you'll all notice."
She gave Mae a look as another burst of laughter sounded from the living room. To her credit Mae was a little shamefaced.
"Bless all this wonderful food and bless this beautiful, old house. It's going to hold many good memories."
Mae looked around her dining room as if she'd never seen it before. She seemed to be counting her children and grandchildren once again. Hollin was pleased to see her resentment wasn't as strong. Or, at least, not as apparent.
Hollin took a deep breath for the big finish. "We're all so lucky and we recognize that and are truly grateful. Amen."
Thirty seconds! That was how you do that, Rev. Hollin sat down amid the applause and 'Amens' from all sides.
"You didn't mention my cancer scare," her Aunt Meryl groused. Devon groaned in disbelief. Meryl rolled right on. "You didn't mention yours either, Hollin."
"Well, I don't like to talk about it."
"Tuh!" Meryl answered as if that were a moral failing.
"Whoever hid the barbecue had better bring it back," Viv warned the world at large.
"That reminds me," Newt said. "My doctor said that eating fat was okay. It's the sugar you have to watch out for."
Meryl jumped in. "Well, my doctor still says that fat is the number one killer."
Maud said, "I read in a magazine it was the lack of exercise." She rolled her eyes. "I can't afford a doctor."
The debate began to rage, sugar vs fat, and healthcare vs everybody.
"It's all the President's fault," Meryl decided.
"No politics!" Mae shot back. "That's the rule. No politics at the table."
"I just want to say that the damn Democrats..."
"Meryl," warned Mae, a card-carrying Democrat since birth. Meryl left off, muttering.
Hollin thought about asking if anyone had read any good books lately but she didn't want to draw any more attention to herself.
"So! How are you enjoying the adult world so far, Hollin?" Cathy asked, smiling down the table at her daughter. "Fascinating, ain't it?"
Hollin grinned back and reached for a sweet roll.
She finally realized she'd won.
Triumph and relief rolled over her in luscious waves. Her father was hooting over something Anne said and Hollin wished she knew what it was. Sarah and Cathy knew. They were in tears they were laughing so hard.
And there was Aunt Maud and Uncle Hal, red specks on his arms, pointing at each other as they argued over the best way to serve her turkey. Carve it or just pull it apart? Ned was shamefacedly bringing back the barbecue from its hiding place in the sideboard. The Greens and Newt were rehashing the Note Dame game. Marty wasn't saying a word. Good choice.
The familiar, beloved voices and the cheerful noise overflowed to fill the entire world. Hollin did a lazy, contented backstroke in it.
How lucky she was. How very, very lucky.
A flash of light made her jump.
"I had to," Justis said, putting his phone away. "You looked so happy."
*
HOLLIN DUG THROUGH the wet, charred wood pile and found another few pieces of dry oak. She loaded a couple into Hill's arms.
He was insulted. "I can handle more than that, Hollin."
"You can? Okay." She found a good, hefty log and piled it on. Hill hardly staggered at all. "Wow, you really are strong. You go, Mr. Muscles."
Hill went, practically strutting as best he could under his load as Justis lit the path with a weak beam from a flashlight.
Roy stepped up. "I can take even more than that," he said and Hollin obliged. Three really big logs and lots of kindling had him weaving back to the house.
Both boys made it inside and Justis put the light down on a stump. It flickered.
And Hollin was alone with him again. "How strong are you?" she asked.
He gave her that wild grin. His grey eyes sparked in the dim light. "I'm not strong at all," he said and gathered her in. She hugged him back and it was so good.
A friend was a wonderful thing.
She felt his breathing pick up as she broke away and stood on a thick chunk of blackened pine. Now they were face to face. She took him by the arms, his lean, muscular arms, and pulled him close, very much in the mood to celebrate. She was an adult. And she was alive.
So forget poise. And gentle grace. Her mouth landed on his and those long, strong arms she liked so much wrapped tight around her. The very center of her body and soul pulsed, slowly, deeply, out of time with her fast-beating heart. She welcomed that joyful need as she kissed Justis, this almost complete stranger, her hands tangling in his windswept hair, his lips strong and warm and wet against hers.
The chilly November wind cooled her hot skin.
Breathe now.
Hollin broke away again with a gasp.
The flashlight died and they were left in the glorious dark.
"You are definitely invited down for Christmas," she said.
––––––––
THE END
