Hope Callaghan - Garden Girls 07 - Missing Milt (13 page)

Gloria and the boys beat the dinner crowd.  They had their pick of tables with the boys deciding on a booth in the rear.

Dot rounded the corner and smiled when she saw the boys.  She headed to the back and returned with two root beer floats. She set one in front of each of them.

Gloria shook her head.  “You’re spoiling them.”

“Not any more than you do!”

Ryan grabbed a spoon and scooped a chunk of ice cream.  “We’re building a tree fort,” he announced.

Dot nodded.  “I heard.”

“And Grams is going to let us sleep in it tomorrow night,” Tyler added.

Dot chuckled.  “Is she going to sleep in it, too?”

Gloria snorted.  “I don’t think so.  I’m going to sleep on the front porch – on the futon.”

“Sounds like fun,” Dot told the boys.

Ray stopped by with a glass of Diet Coke and set it in front of Gloria.  “Well, look who we have here…haven’t seen you two fellas in a while.”

Ryan nodded.  “We’re spending the weekend with Grams.” He eyed his grandmother.  “I wish I could live with her
all
the time.”

Tyler sipped his float.  “Me, too.  We have the most fun ever at Grams.”

Gloria’s heart melted.  She wished she could freeze this moment in time.  Just for a little while, so she could savor it for a quiet time, when she was all alone. 

Instead, she tucked it into her heart, vowing to remember it later, when they were older and Grams wasn’t as much fun.

Dot pulled her notepad and pen from her pocket.  “Do you boys know what you want?”

“A cheeseburger,” Tyler said, “with lots of catsup.”

“We’re having those tomorrow,” Gloria reminded him.

“Okay.  What else you got?”

Dot’s brow furrowed and she tapped her pen against her lower lip.  “How about having liver and onions?”

“Yuck!” Ryan shook his head violently.

“I would throw up,” Tyler predicted.

Dot laughed.  “Maybe you could settle for a couple plates of spaghetti and meatballs.”

“That’s more like it,” Gloria replied.  “We’ll take three.”

Their dinner arrived at the same time Andrea and Brian strolled in the front door.  They headed to Gloria’s booth.  “We still on for tomorrow?” Brian asked.

“Can we do it tonight?” Ryan asked hopefully.

“No, Ryan. We need to wait until daylight.  It’s going to be dark soon,” his grandmother reminded him.

Ryan’s face fell. 

Brian smiled.  “I’ll be there before you know it, bud,” he assured him.

“I’m grilling hot dogs and hamburgers after the fort is done.” Gloria turned to Andrea.  “You can come over too, if you like, dear.”

Gloria remembered Alice.  “Bring Alice with you.”

The couple left and headed to a table near the window.

After Gloria and the boys finished their plates of pasta, she paid the tab and the three of them headed down to the corner grocery store.  She let the boys each pick out a candy bar while she grabbed hamburgers, hotdogs, buns, a large container of potato salad and some coleslaw.  Normally, she would make her own but she knew she wouldn’t have time, not with the boys here.

Back at the farm, she let them horse around in the yard with Mally and then finally called them in for the night. 

Between the walk in the woods and playing in the yard, she must’ve worn them out.  Neither of them argued when she told them it was time for bed.

She tucked them in and listened to their prayers before slowly closing the bedroom door.  Mally settled on the rug in front of the bed, it was her favorite place to sleep when the boys were over. 

Gloria checked the doors, brushed her teeth and pulled on her pajamas.  Puddles was already in the bed. Gloria settled in and turned on the small TV she kept on top of the dresser. 

The late night news was on.  She managed to stay awake until the weather was over before she dozed off and woke to an infomercial. 

Gloria switched off the TV and rolled over.  There was no need to set the alarm.  The boys would take care of that.

“Grams!  Grams! Come quick!”

Gloria bolted upright in bed.  Her eyes frantically darted around the room.  Tyler was standing in the open doorway.  “What?  What’s wrong?”

He motioned her out.  “We caught it.”

She flung the covers back, grabbed her robe and headed for the door.  Her brain was still half-asleep.  “Caught what?”

“The skunk,” Tyler answered.

She shook her head.  “You caught the skunk?”

“Yeah, come and see.”

Visions of Tyler and Ryan soaking in a tub of peroxide, soap and baking soda filled her head.  Gloria reached forward, grabbed the edge of Tyler’s pajamas and lifted it to her nose.  He didn’t smell like skunk.

The back porch door was wide open.  Ryan and Mally were nowhere in sight.  Nowhere, that is, until she gazed out at the other side of Annabelle where she could see the tippy-top of Ryan’s head.

She pulled her bathrobe tight and shuffled over to the car.

“Peppy is in there,” Ryan pointed at the passenger side window.

She narrowed her eyes.  “Peppy?”

“Yeah, we named the skunk Peppy,” Tyler said.

Her horrified gaze shifted to her car window.  She swallowed hard and squeezed her eyes shut, praying that Ryan did not mean that the skunk was INSIDE her car!

When she opened them, she leaned forward and peered in the window.  There, wandering around, appearing extremely agitated, was a large skunk.

“Can we keep him?” Tyler asked.

Gloria hadn’t heard a word that he said.  She was too busy calculating how long it would take to get the smell of skunk out of her car and where on earth she’d be able to find new seats to replace the ones that more than likely smelled so very, very bad. 

Ryan tugged on her hand.  “Can we keep Peppy?”

Gloria decided to pass the buck on this one.  “If your dad says you can keep Peppy, then by all means, take him home.”

The boys raced up the steps and into the house to phone home.  When Gloria got inside, she could tell by the looks on their faces it was a definite “no.”

“Go turn on the computer and see if you can find an animal or critter control to come pick up Peppy,” she instructed. “Pronto,” she added.

She pulled pancake mix from the pantry and the griddle from the cabinet.  It was going to be a long day.  It was time for a lumberjack breakfast!

The boys found several area critter people and she put Tyler in charge of flipping pancakes while she worked her way down the list.  The first two Gloria called informed her they did not pick up skunks.  The third finally agreed – when she begged him – at a cost of $50. 

Gloria glanced out the window at poor Annabelle.  “Really - $50?”

Ryan tugged on her arm.  “Hey Grams!  We can take Peppy out somewhere and let him go and we won’t even charge you,” Ryan whispered.

As much as Gloria would love to save the $50, visions of Ryan, of all of them, getting sprayed and spending the day trying to get rid of the smell, ran through her head. Although it was probably already too late for her poor car…

She covered the receiver.  “We want to work on the fort instead, right?”

Ryan nodded.  “Yeah, you’re right.”

The man on the other end told her he would stop by before noon, which gave Gloria and the boys plenty of time to eat and clean up.

The boys set the table while Gloria put the pancakes, along with some bacon and home fries in the center.  She slid into a chair across from the boys and bowed her head.  “Dear Lord, thank you for this food.  Please bless this food.” 

She went on. “Thank you for my grandsons, Tyler and Ryan.  And thank you that they caught the skunk but didn’t get sprayed,” she added. “Please, please, PLEASE save Annabelle from getting sprayed,” she begged.

“Amen!” The three of them ended the prayer in agreement.

The boys ate in record time.  She put them in charge of cleaning the kitchen and loading the dishwasher while she showered and dressed.

When they had finished, Gloria turned the dishwasher on and the boys headed to the porch to wait for the pest control to arrive.  A young man showed up a short time later. 

The marked truck, “Montbay County Pest,” pulled in the drive, right behind Gloria’s car.  A young fellow sprung out of the driver’s seat.  Young to Gloria, anyways.  The boys ran out to greet him.  “Peppy is over here,” Ryan pointed.

The man grinned.  “Peppy, huh? You sure you don’t want to keep him for a pet?”

Tyler’s shoulders sagged.  “My dad said no.”

The man stepped to the driver’s side of the car and peered in.  The boys stood on either side of him.  Gloria decided the safest spot was on the porch.  Mally started down the stairs and Gloria grabbed her collar.  “Oh no, you don’t!”

The man returned to his truck.  He pulled a large cage from the bed of the truck, reached in the passenger side and pulled out a bag of marshmallows.  He dropped a few jumbo marshmallows inside the cage and made his way back to the car.

“Step back,” he warned the boys.

The boys took a step back.  The man took a step forward.  He slowly opened the driver’s side door and gently placed the cage against the front seat.  Next, he dropped a marshmallow in front of the cage door. 

From her perch on the porch, Gloria could barely make out the skunk as he eyed the man warily.  The tempting marshmallow was too much and the skunk took a small step forward.  He ate the marshmallow and took a step inside the cage, over to the far side where the rest of the marshmallows had rolled.

The man slowly lowered the cage to the ground and dropped the lid, clicking the lock in place.

Gloria was surprised at how close the skunk let him get without spraying him.

He kneeled down and studied Peppy.  “Well you’re pretty lucky,” he observed.

Gloria and Mally stepped onto the sidewalk.  “Why is that?”

“Peppy is a girl and she’s gonna have a litter of babies.”

Tyler’s head swung around. His eyes grew wide.  “Cool!”

The man gingerly carried the cage to the back of his truck.  He set the cage inside the back and turned to Gloria, who had bravely made her way down the sidewalk. 

“How did the skunk get inside the car?” the man wondered.

Tyler tapped the tip of his tennis shoe on the ground.  “It was easy.” He made a sweeping motion with his arm.  “Ryan just opened the door and the skunk climbed right inside.”

The man shook his head in awe.  “I never heard of a skunk willingly climbing into a vehicle.”

Gloria and Mally joined the trio near the front of the truck. The man reached inside, grabbed his clipboard and scribbled some notes on the front.  He handed the clipboard and pen to Gloria.  “Sign here, please.”

Gloria didn’t have her glasses on and couldn’t read the board but signed anyways.  She was just relieved to have the skunk and soon-to-be-babies – gone. 

She reached into her pocket, pulled out a check, and handed it to the young man.  “That was the best $50 I’ve spent in a long time.”

The man glanced at the check and slipped it under the clip on top of the board.  “Yeah, skunks can be pesky – and hard to get rid of.” He nodded towards Mally.  “You’re lucky your dog didn’t get sprayed.”

Gloria frowned.  “Oh, she did…yesterday!”

The three of them watched as the man climbed into his truck and drove off.

Now that the skunk was gone, Gloria turned her attention to Annabelle. Her steps dragged as she approached the driver’s side door.  She grabbed the door handle, took a deep breath and jerked it open.  She stuck her head inside and took a cautious breath.  It smelled – like a car.

“Thank you, God.” She felt like bursting into tears, knowing that the inside of her car was skunk-free.   

Lucy pulled in the drive at 2:00 p.m. sharp.  Brian pulled in right behind her.  He climbed out, walked over to the passenger side, reached in and grabbed his toolbox.

Ryan hopped up and down on one foot.  “Finally!  We’ve been waiting
forever
.”

“Or at least a couple hours,” Gloria teased.

Lucy and Gloria headed inside while Brian and the boys headed to the barn.  Gloria watched them go.  Brian was going to make a wonderful father.

Inside the kitchen, Gloria poured a glass of lemonade for Lucy and slid a box of cookies to the side. 

Lucy peeked inside. “Oh!  Oatmeal raisin.  One of my favorites.” She lifted a cookie from the box and took a bite.

Gloria told Lucy about the skunk.  Then she told her how the police had taken Frances down to the station for questioning and that someone had reported seeing Frances peeking inside Milt’s windows.

Lucy rolled her eyes.  “That woman.” She made a twirling motion with her finger near her forehead.  “Cuckoo. Cuckoo.”

Gloria couldn’t argue with that.  She wondered how it turned out.  Maybe she’d get a chance to call Paul later to see what happened. 

Lucy sipped her lemonade.  “Still on for tomorrow night?”

Gloria nodded.  “Yeah.  We need to crack this case.”

“What do you think of the guy that was talking to Milt the night he disappeared?” 

Gloria’s brow formed a “V.” She wondered if the police had tracked the man down and if his name was Vinnie.

The tree fort took up most of the afternoon.  Every once in a while one of the boys would pop in, asking for this or that. 

Halfway through, Gloria and Lucy brought them some bottled water and granola bars.  “How’s it going?”

“Great!” Ryan told them.  He looked at Brian, admiration shining in his eyes.  “Brian is the bestest builder ever!” he declared.

Brian sipped his water and winked at Gloria.  “I’m just practicing for someday.”

Gloria picked up the empty water bottles and wrappers and the girls headed back inside.  She threw the trash in the can and the girls wandered out to the porch to enjoy an almost perfect, nearly fall day. 

“We need to decide who investigates which house,” Gloria told her friend. She lifted a finger.  “First, there’s Trudy.  Then we have Vivian.  Next is Carol Towers.  Last but not least is the mystery woman.  Hopefully Liz was able to figure out who she was.”

Lucy shrugged her shoulders.  “I guess it doesn’t matter, except for whoever we assign to Frances.  It should be the person she’d be least likely to have a run in with.”

Lucy was right.  They would have to pick carefully – for Frances, anyways.  Maybe even Liz.

Lucy snapped her fingers.  “That reminds me.  I have those walkie-talkies.  You want me to bring them?”

Gloria nodded.  “Great idea!”

Tyler tore around the corner of the house and skidded to a stop in front of the porch.  “It’s done!” he announced.

The girls followed him to the tree in the front yard.  Sure enough, the fort was finished.  Well, all except for paint, which the boys could work on later.

Ryan and Tyler stepped out onto the deck, complete with a nice, large balcony.    “Hi Grams.  Are you gonna come up and see?”

Gloria shook her head.  “I’m afraid not.  I’ll give you my camera, though, so you can take pictures and show me,” she told him.

Lucy rolled up her sleeves.  “Well, I’ll go up,” she declared. 

The boys had built a swinging ladder and hooked it to the back side of the deck.  Lucy hoisted herself onto the first step and then quickly scrambled up the rest.  “Pretty cool,” she hollered down.  “You sure you don’t want to come up?”

Gloria was sure.  100%.  She shook her head.  “No thanks.” Brian and Lucy made their way down while the boys started to paint.

It was getting late.  Gloria was getting hungry.  She looked at Brian.  “If you want to go ahead and wash up, I’ll start the grill.”

By the time Brian emerged from the house wearing clean clothes and his damp hair slicked back, the burgers were almost ready.  Gloria emptied a package of hot dogs on the top rack and closed the lid. 

Brian settled into a chair at the little patio table.  “Andrea is on her way.  She’s bringing some chips.”

While Gloria grilled, Lucy busied herself, setting the table and pouring drinks.  Brian loaded the meat on a large platter as Andrea pulled in the drive.  He handed the tray to Gloria and made his way out to Andrea’s car to meet her.

Andrea hopped out of the car, popped up on her tippy toes and planted a sweet kiss on his lips. 

A twinge of jealousy shot through Gloria.  Andrea was a lucky girl.  Even better, Brian was a lucky man.  The two would have a wonderful life together.  Someday, maybe, it would be her turn.

The rest of the afternoon flew by.  Gloria enjoyed spending time with her friends and grandsons.

By the end of the afternoon, Gloria was feeling worn out.  The boys had been hounding her all afternoon about sleeping in the fort.  She had already decided there was no way she could tell them no.

She waved to Lucy, the last to leave, and headed to the front porch.  Gloria had already set a couple sleeping bags and extra pillows on the futon – Gloria’s bed for the night. 

She let the boys pull other camping supplies from the cupboard: a couple heavy-duty flashlights, some insect repellant wipes and a canteen that Gloria had no idea where it had come from but the boys declared a necessity for the fort. 

By the time they were done, the boys had amassed a small stockpile of treasures to take with them.

Gloria stuck her hand on her hip.  “I’m not sure if all this stuff and the two of you are going to fit.”

“It will, Grams.  Don’t worry.” Tyler was convinced. 

Now all they had to do was wait for nighttime. 

They headed across the porch towards the dining room.  Ryan stopped. “What’s this Grams?” He patted the top of the old TV console. 

Gloria wandered back to the TV.  She leaned down in front of the screen.  Although she hadn’t used the old TV in years, she couldn’t bear the thought of parting with it.  There had been many nights where Gloria, James and the kids had gathered around that TV in the living room to watch TV as a family. 

Of course, back then, there was no such thing as cable and if you were real lucky, you could get three stations to come in.  Four was like hitting a jackpot!

“It’s a television set,” she told him.

Tyler grabbed a knob on the front and twisted.  “Does it work?”

“Hm. Let’s see.” Gloria reached behind the back, grabbed the plug and stuck the end in the outlet.  She switched the button to “on” and waited.  The screen was fuzzy at first but then it cleared up enough for Gloria to be able to make out some murky shadows. 

There was an old set of rabbit ears perched on top.  “I’ll be right back.”

She wandered into the kitchen and returned with a box of tin foil.  She ripped two strips off and crinkled the first strip around one of the antennas. 

“Let me try.” Tyler snatched the other sheet and began wrapping it around the second antenna.

She let Ryan fiddle with the other antenna and took a step back. She directed the boys to move the antennas until the reception was pretty darn good - for a TV that was over forty years old. 

A rush of emotion filled Gloria – along with tears she blinked back.  “How ‘bout Grams pops us some popcorn? We can sit out here and watch TV until it’s dark.”

Ryan turned an eager, young face to his beloved Grams.  “Can we?”

The three of them headed to the kitchen.  She popped two bags of popcorn. One for now and one for the boys to take with them, in case they got hungry later.  She poured three glasses of caffeine free pop and they headed back to the porch. 

Gloria settled in the center and one boy climbed in on either side. 

Ryan shoved a handful of popcorn in his mouth.  “Where’s the remote?”

Gloria snorted.  “There is no remote.  This TV is back from the good ole days…before remote.”

“You mean we have to turn it by hand?” Tyler was shocked. 

Gloria handed him her popcorn bowl and shuffled over to the TV.  “Just like this.” She grabbed the dial and turned.  Most of the channels were fuzzy.  Only two stations were clear enough to watch and she immediately vetoed one of them.  The other was an old western.  It looked vaguely familiar but it seemed to hold the boys’ interest.

The three of them sat there, munching on popcorn, watching the old western.  The moment took Gloria back decades, when Jill and the boys were young.  She closed her eyes and tried to burn this moment in her heart, so she could pull it back out later.

The movie ended and it was finally dark.  Gloria helped them carry their treasures to the base of the tree. 

Tyler had found some old rope.  He tied the end of the rope to a bucket and then scampered up the tree.  He lowered the bucket to Gloria, who was waiting below.  “Throw the stuff in here.”

Gloria loaded the supplies inside.  “How clever, Tyler.”

After everything was up and the boys had settled in, Gloria headed to the porch. “If you need anything. Anything at all, I’ll be right inside on the porch with the windows open.”

The boys’ heads popped out. Ryan nodded.  “We’ll holler just like this.” He let out a loud scream.

“That’ll work!”

Gloria opened the porch door and waited for Mally to go inside first.  She tucked a sheet around the outside of the futon and pulled a couple blankets over the top.  Gloria decided early on that it would be best if she sleep in some old sweat pants and t-shirt.  Just in case she had to run outdoors in a hurry.

She lay down on the futon. Mally curled up on the floor, keeping one eye on the tree and one eye on Gloria.  Gloria patted her head.  “Good girl.  Keep an eye out,” she told her.

Gloria whispered her prayers and closed her eyes.  Much to her surprise, she was out like a light.