“I forgot about all this,” Judith said. “They only
started doing it a couple of years ago. I guess I’ve been
too caught up with my guests to think much about Halloween.”
“You’d better have treats in store for tonight,” Renie
said. “I understand some of the kids will be going out
a day early because Sunday is a school night.”
“I bought all my candy a week or so ago,” Judith
replied. “Hey, where are we headed?”
“Let’s go down to the bottom of the hill,” Renie suggested. “I haven’t had lunch. How about you?”
“I forgot about lunch,” Judith admitted. “Okay, I’ll
turn off by M&M Meats and we’ll take the back way
out of here.”
Ten minutes later, the cousins were sitting in a
wooden booth at T. S. McSnort’s. Even there a handful
of customers were dressed for the holiday.
“Would it be terrible to have a drink?” Judith asked.
“I could use one.”
“So could I,” Renie responded. “It’s been a rough
outing at our house the past few hours.”
The cousins ordered screwdrivers, telling themselves that the orange juice would provide them with a
healthy dose of vitamin C. To Judith’s surprise, Renie
didn’t even bother to study the menu.
“Aren’t you hungry?” Judith asked. Renie was always hungry. Her metabolism could have permitted
her to gobble up at least two aisles of Falstaff’s Grocery in a single day.
Renie shook her head. “I’ve lost my appetite. Besides, Bill and I can’t afford food anymore. We have to
pay for all of Anne’s wedding and pony up for our
share of Tom and Tony’s. Are you forgetting how
Kristin’s parents tried to fleece you and Joe when Mike
got married?”
Judith hadn’t forgotten, but as usual, she tried to be
charitable. “I think it was mostly a misunderstanding.”
“Ha.” Renie looked up as their waitress brought the
drinks and asked if they wished to order their meal.
“I’m having just a cup of clam chowder,” Renie said.
Judith quickly perused the menu. “That sounds
good. Your chowder is so delicious. I’ll have the small
Caesar with it.”
Renie looked at the waitress again. “Yes, I should
eat some greens. I’ll have the Caesar, too. You can put
smoked prawns on it along with the anchovies. Oh, and
maybe I’ll make that a
The curly-haired waitress smiled. “Got it. Anything
else?”
Judith shook her head, but Renie held up a hand.
“How about the lox platter with the thin slices of rye
