“Patty, the lady with the son down the road?” asked Bill.
“Yes, that’s the one,” replied Sarah, now unable to keep quiet.
“I’m guessing my father told you about it, and I just want you to know it was my doing that brought them together. They have a lot in common, and both needed somebody to talk to after that animal of a former husband left our valley, never to return except for once…no, twice. Let’s just call the MacDonald sighting a trifecta.”
Mac was now the one appearing nervous, wondering how far she might take this.
“They are both assets to our communities and this valley as a whole,” she continued.
John listened intently and did not speak until she was finished.
“Dr. Melton.”
“Sarah, please,” she interjected. “You are such a good friend of my father.”
“As you wish, Sarah. Please be assured that I have respect for both Rico and Patty and greatly value their contributions to both of our groups. Rico is the only person I know that can keep the other training chefs in line and all moving in the same direction.
“Patty made your father and me the most incredible omelet I have ever tasted in all my years on this earth. You can rest easy in knowing I am not interested in firing or banishing either of them, but only need to be assured that their budding relationship will complement both groups, as yours and Mac’s has. Does that make sense, Sarah?”
“Yes, sir, it absolutely does,” she said, relieved.
“Excuse me,” she said, covering her mouth and running for the door.
“The only thing that’s constant now is change,” said John with a smile, pointing towards the door. “You should check on her, Mac.”
“Yes, I’ll talk with you two later,” he said, hurrying out the front door.
Mac got Sarah back into the truck carefully.
“I’m sorry about that,” she said. “I just felt sick.”
Mac smiled. “Ate some bad sushi, did you?”
“You did this to me, mister. I hope you’re happy!” she quipped.
“Like you can’t even imagine,” he replied, kissing her on the forehead.
They made a brief stop at the Ranch, with Mac relaying the message to Cory to come on back with the MacDonalds in tow.
They spoke briefly with Rico and asked him to speak with John and Bill as soon as he could.
“We can give you a ride,” Sarah offered.
“Thank you both, but I must decline. It’s only a quarter of a mile walk and a beautiful day at that. Plus, lightning never strikes the same path twice!”
Sarah, feeling better, checked in on her pregnant patient sitting with Sharon and Karl and talking about the new world her babies would grow up in.
All three agreed it could be more challenging in some ways but, on the other hand, families would be closer without the 8- to 10-hour work days miles from home.
The twin girls kicked visibly from the outside, like two leads on a soccer team. A quick check of the heartbeats reported nothing out of the ordinary. She gave the hopeful mother the “all’s good for now, but let me know right away if anything changes” speech.
Sarah dropped Mac at home and returned the truck to Samuel.
* * * *
Sharon realized it had been a few days since she and Karl had checked in on Mabel.
“I knew you two would be back sooner or later,” said Mabel. “I guess it’s later…and not even a Starbucks mint tea?”
“I’m so sorry, Mabel…” Sharon started to say, getting a laugh out of the old lady.
“I’m just razzin’ you, Honey. I don’t need much here, and unless it’s a handsome cowboy knockin’ at my door—sorry, Karl, you’re too young—then I’m staying put right here on the porch. The least you could have done was brought Sam Elliott or that Clint Eastwood fella by for some conversation, and whatever happens after that!” she said, coughing and laughing at her own joke.
Mabel sat on her porch with nearly 40 hand-rolled cigarettes lying on the table in front of her.
“You’re not out of tobacco yet?” asked Sharon.
“Nope, not by a long shot. Bought me darn near seventy pounds right off a plantation in North Carolina that my nephew works at. Did you know that the state grew over 300 million pounds of tobacco just last year? I made them 70 pounds light and paid pennies on the dollar.”
“How do you store all that?” asked Karl. “And how do you keep it from going bad?”
“It ain’t rocket science, my boy. Just old-fashioned Mason jars will do the trick. They tried to sell me some fancy humidor. It costs more than the tobacco! Seventy Mason jars from Kmart for under $100, and I’m good.”
“How many cigarettes do you smoke a day, if you don’t mind me asking?” inquired Sharon.
“What time is it?” Mabel asked.
“About 5 p.m., I guess,” Sharon replied.
“Then that would be…” Mabel paused, doing the math in her head… “Probably 23 for the day.”
“That sounds like a lot!” said Sharon. “You might live a few extra years if you cut back just a bit.”
Mabel laughed deeply, coughing only a little this time.
“Do you remember that movie with that Tom Hanks fella, where he ran everywhere all crazy like and had those shrimping boats?”
“Yes, I think you mean Forest Gump,” Karl said.
“Yes, maybe that’s it, or something like that anyway. Do you remember the fella with no legs?” Mabel continued.
“You mean Lieutenant Dan?” asked Karl?
“Sure, probably that’s it. Well, there’s a scene where he gets on the mast of the sailboat and screams to God to challenge him and sink the boat. Before the movie is over, he’s a multimillionaire. I’m kind of like that guy. Me and God, we have an understanding. I’m ready
