#20
Hands deep in the dish water, Clora rubbed her nose on her upper arm to forestall the sneezing tickle that was threating to cause her to sneeze. Drat! She sure didn't need a cold right now. Clora turned her head to see if there was any liquid left in the Elderberry syrup jar, there was, so help was at hand.
Personally she thought Elderberry syrup was one of the world's nastiest tastes, but it did work. Mark had sounded better this morning when he left for school, but the last minute upset of Deena demanding to be taken to town, had plastered a dark scowl on his face.
Their ungracious house guest had demanded, not asked, to be taken to Meadowville as she thumped downstairs in the clothes she had chosen from Tessee Phillip's trunk. When they walked out the door, she had started whining to Mark that maybe he should take her to Portland instead, so Clora had no idea how that was going to play out.
Steamed that Deena had so thoughtlessly destroyed the 'good vibes' Clora had so carefully installed in Mark earlier, she had a few 'conditions' should the woman ever want to return.
The ladies of the farm were coming in a few minutes, they had decided to have a gab fest to talk out Brett, and the other problems to see if there was a common thread, or link between the two.
Clora had been so busy, she hadn't taken the time to expend energy on Brett. She felt about him like she would a cow patty. Not worth the time to step in it. Mark agreed, but he thought a coffee klatch might bring out a random thought that could perhaps solve the mystery instantly.
Sandy came downstairs with the armload of Deena's bedding. "I'm gonna wash this and put it away. I don't think that b----, I mean person should be invited to experience our hospitality ever again. If Wayne wants her, he can trot his butt home and go find her." she disappeared into the laundry room.
Clora rolled her eyes at the acerbic finality shading Sandy's voice; not willing to bet the farm that 'over' actually meant OVER!
Another sneeze was itching her nose, but Clora sniffed and dampened the urge.
"Grandma would have dosed you with onion and a mustard plaster, had she heard you sniff twice in a row," Sandy flopped in a chair. "Hey, Lainey, Anne and Cheryl are already here. Christy and Joey also. Neat, I get to play Auntie, and then send them home," Sandy laughed, sounding brighter and more relaxed.
"Come in," Sandy hollered in a voice loud enough to shake the tea cups Clora was bringing to the table. Clora cleared her throat, but the effect was lost on Sandy, as she scooped up Anne and started baby babbling to the infant.
"I want everyone to know that I maybe coming down with a cold; I've dunked my hands in hot, sudsy bleach water when washing the dishes, so I think we should be OK." Clora shook her head ruefully when Christy offered Joey, refusing to give her germs to the infant.
"Hey, I want to be the firstest with the best news," Sandy swung Anne in a small circle. "Deena packed up her dry goods and groceries and demanded to be taken to town this morning. Good riddance!"
That started the talk, and it took 4 cups of tea apiece to bring the swirling news to an exhausted halt. "The main problem....who and why would anyone go to such lengths to fake a birthmark. I feel there is something staring me in the face, and I'm missing it completely." Clora rocked her tea cup as she pondered the mystery.
"I hate the feeling of being a pawn in some game I don't know rules for," Lainey spoke with some heat. "And by the way, I have not heard a word from my Father. Ben is so angry about his involvement in this charade, that I don't think Dad will ever be welcome in our home."
"Ben can be kind of a stiff neck when he disapproves of the way his family is being treated," Clora spoke with a little laugh. "Have I ever told you what he did to a boy I was interested in during my last year of college?" There were no's all around the table, as the warm friends all leaned in to hear Clora's confession.
"Well pooh," Sandy sputtered, laughing again. "That makes you sound almost human Clora," she tickled Anne into letting out a small coo.
"Well, now that you know my secrets," Clora reached behind herself to pick up a sheaf of papers. "Here's a cold fact, we need to brainstorm how we can reduce the electric bill for the farm. It's a super whopper this month. She passed the stapled sheets so everyone could see what she was talking about.
There were exclamations of astonishment. The bill was over two thousand.
"I got to thinking," Clora offered her tip of the day, "I think Brett's café coolers are still running. Maybe we need to schedule a work day, clean the building and turn them off. I believe they are empty.... and aside from what Ev has been grinding, it might as well be winterized so we don't have to spend the heat."
"Great idea," Cheryl approved. "We have been getting a few calls asking if Ev would consider taking over Wayne's flour route, but I'm not keen on the idea. That man can find enough trouble on his own, without having a gang stacking the deck."
There was soft laughter, Ev's prowess with troublesome situations was well known.
"Well, Benny and I have been looking at consolidating two of the freezers into one with the locker boxes," Sandy smacked her lips at Anne, drawing another smile. "Another two or three days and we will have the hanging meat all cut and wrapped. No one is bring in any animals, and quite a few people can't afford to pick up the meat they have had processed. It's really a sad mess the world has gotten into.
The phone rang, interrupting the flow of penny pinching ideas the group was writing down. Sandy went to answer it, and quickly turned her back to the group and spoke in a low, quiet way. Nodding she hung up and came back into the kitchen.
"That was Will. He's coming to get you Clora, Mark's been in an accident."
