San Joaquin Valley, California
“Won’t Winnie be surprised when she sees me shoot?”
“Yes, she will.” Scott stopped. “Wait. Winnie? How is Winnie going to see you shoot?”
”During her visit.”
Setting the Yellowboy down, Scott hoisted his cousin up to sit on the makeshift table so they could be eye to eye. “Winnie is coming here?”
“I wanted to surprise you.”
Concerned over her cousin’s frowning expression, Kinsey added more enthusiasm. “So,” smiling and holding out her hands, “Surprise!”
Scott rolled his eyes. “Kinsey, when is she arriving?”
“In two weeks. Well, that’s what she indicated in her last letter, she said…”
“Her last letter? You have been writing to Winnie since we left Boston?” Before his little correspondent could answer, he held up his hand. “No. Wait. Let me guess. Surprise.”
“Honestly Scott, Winnie is so excited. She mentioned she hadn’t taken a holiday in centuries and I said what better place than California to take a holiday and then she said the warm weather would help her arthritis and then I said…well, I forget what I said next. I can’t wait to tell everyone, now that you know.”
“No.” Scott pointed his index finger at Kinsey’s nose. “You do not mention this to anyone, especially Murdoch. I will handle it. You will say nothing.”
“And why must it be you who speaks to Murdoch?” This time it was the little cousin to hold up her hand for silence. “No. Wait. Let me guess. It’s complicated.”
“Complicated. Yeah, Freckles, that happens a lot around here. Best get used to it.”
Murdoch was a stickler for the evening meal being served at the stroke of six, no excuses, no exceptions. Late? It was a crapshoot how one would be welcomed to the table. The grandfather clock was chiming the last of its six as Scott and Kinsey slid into their chairs; disheveled but present. As Murdoch stared, Johnny grinned.
“Forget your pocket watch, son?”
“No, Sir. Just too busy making certain Kinsey didn’t shoot her foot off.”
The oldest son detected a slight smile on his father’s face. ‘Perhaps we have dodged the ultimate bullet.’
It was Teresa who set the record straight. “I believe Scott and Kinsey are what high society calls fashionably late.”
Scott smiled as he heard Winnie’s voice in his head. ‘ScottyGarrett, what has the Good Lord blessed you with today? Well, Winnie, it appears the Good Lord has blessed me with Teresa O’Brien.’
Only vague comments were registering with Scott during the evening meal as his mind was elsewhere; formulating the best approach to announcing Winnie’s pending visit. It took Teresa’s declaration of a chocolate cake for dessert to penetrate his thoughts and slowly bring him back to the dinner table.
“Winifred? McLoughlin? Here?”
Murdoch’s booming voice brought the three remaining dinner companions’ faces sharply into focus for Scott. Johnny, with a quizzical look, was staring at Kinsey’s apologetic expression, which was being offered to Scott who watched his father’s gaze slowly turn to his oldest son.
Murdoch repeated himself with a slightly different reflection in his voice.
“Winifred. McLoughlin. Here.”
Scott cleared his throat. “Well, Sir, it appears that will be the case. Perhaps we could discuss this further after the evening meal.”
“The evening meal just ended, son.”
“I beg to differ. Teresa is serving dessert.”
“You’re wrong. Teresa is not serving dessert.”
Hearing Murdoch’s revelation of “no dessert”, Johnny’s head snapped up to observe Teresa and the chocolate cake’s U-turn back to the sanctuary of the kitchen.
Rising, the younger son made his own announcement. “Maria needs help.” To confirm his statement, Johnny grabbed his dinner plate along with Kinsey’s as an offering to the kitchen gods.
“Excuse me! I wasn’t done.”
“Oh believe me, half-pint, you’re well-done. Darlin’ ya just don’t know it yet.”
Murdoch sat back and let silence take a seat at the table for a moment or two before inquiring, “Which one of you would like to begin?”
As Scott began to utter his first word of an explanation, Kinsey cleared up any misconceptions by disclosing, “I’m the one who invited Winnie and it will be a cold day in Hades before I apologize for doing so.”
His father’s frosty scowl indicated to Scott that day in Hades would be arriving much sooner than anticipated by his little cousin. Her removal from the room was now a priority. “Kinsey, Maria needs help. And here,” handing over his plate, “I gather you need one of these in order to gain entrance.” The look on her cousin’s face told Kinsey this latest turn of events was not up for discussion and reluctantly left the room.
“Sir, I know this is unexpected.”
“I consider Kinsey’s statement about baking a cake for Winnie’s arrival an excellent example of ‘unexpected’. What in the Sam Hill was she thinking? Inviting that bossy dictator into our home?”
“I wouldn’t say Winnie was bossy.”
“Scott, the woman will have St. Peter dusting his own pearly gates five minutes after she arrives in heaven.”
“Well, Sir, I’m encouraged you think that’s where she’ll end up.”
“I need a drink.”
As he watched his father leave the room, Scott decided what would better serve his needs at this moment was located in the kitchen.
Letting his long legs stretch out in front of him, the older brother slumped down in a kitchen chair as the younger one pushed a generous slab of cake across the table. “We saved you a piece.”
“Greatly appreciated, brother.”
“I’ve made a mess of things.”
Scott glanced over at his cousin. “The only mess I see is the frosting stuck to the side of your mouth. I’ll talk to Murdoch after he has his scotch and I have this cake.”
A sly grin played across Johnny’s face. “So, ScottyGarrett, is it?”
The older cousin rolled his eyes in the direction of the younger one who offered through her last bite of chocolate goodness, “It slipped out.”
Scott sighed. “Well, Johnny…wait. Your middle name is…? I just realized I don’t know your middle name.”
“Don’t have one.”
“What do you mean you don’t have one?”
Teresa verified. “He doesn’t have one.”
Once again, Judge Kinsey offered her verdict. “Unacceptable. We must find Johnny a middle name.”
Comments