Chapter 3
SARGE
“Ma, you realize you don’t have to bring a gift or a covered dish every time you visit someone’s house, right?”
“Were you behind the door when God passed out manners, son? You were obviously in the restroom when he passed out brains, and I can’t do a thing about that, but I did try to teach you common decency and social niceties.”
“You know, sometimes when people overhear you talking to us, they think you don’t like us at all.”
“And most of the time, they’re right.”
I was still smiling a few minutes later when Ma said, “Son, I’m not sure if you think my name is Miss Daisy or who taught you how to drive, but if we keep toodling along like this, we won’t get to Texas before next Tuesday.”
“Ma, the speed limit on this stretch of road is 70 mph.”
“And you’re only doing 72? Should I drive until your balls drop, or do you think you could put a little more pressure on the gas pedal without my help?”
“Are you going to pay for the ticket I’ll inevitably get if I start speeding?”
“No, I’ll tell them you’re a wanted fugitive who kidnapped me, stole my truck, and is taking me to the border to swap me for three kilos of cocaine and a truckload of guns.”
I hooted with laughter. “What’s that gonna do other than get me arrested?”
“That’s exactly why I’ll tell them that. It will get you locked up so I can take the keys and go on my way. With you out of the driver’s seat, I’ll get to Rojo this afternoon rather than in time for Christmas dinner.”
“If you’d let me come by myself, I’d get home with the new stock this evening rather than spending the night and socializing so we have to drive home tomorrow.”
“I usually host dinner, so I rarely receive an invitation to someone else’s house.”
“I’m not sure that’s the reason, but okay.”
“What the hell do you mean by that?”
I could feel Ma’s glare, but I managed to keep a straight face and focus on the road as I said, “It’s because you’re a better cook than anyone else.”
“I just figured it out! Finally!”
“What?”
“You missed the brains and the manners because you got into the bullshit line three times. You never could follow directions.”
I couldn’t hold it in anymore and guffawed before I said, “I love you, Ma. You make every day brighter with your cheerful disposition.”
“And you make me think I should have stopped having children after my fifth.”
I was almost sad when Ma fell asleep, but I entertained myself for the rest of the drive with an audiobook I had begun last week while driving the tractor.
The book ended just as I saw the Rojo city limits sign, so I put my hand on Ma’s arm and gently patted it until she woke.
I hated interrupting her nap because it was rare that she ever slowed down long enough for one, but I knew she’d want to get herself together before we got there.
I regretted giving her the chance when she said, “How long have I been asleep? Is it already Tuesday?”
“I’m doing five over the speed limit!”
“Really? I can go faster than this in the tractor.”
“You woke up ten seconds ago, and you’re already back at it.”
“An idle mind is the devil’s playground.”
“I thought that saying was about idle hands.”
“That too.” Ma surprised me when she said, “I’m not getting any younger, Graham.”
“You’re in great shape for a ninety-year-old.”
“When you say things like that, it makes me think I should have beaten you more often.”
“You never beat any of us.”
“And I regret those lost opportunities more often than you can imagine.”
“I know you’re not ninety, and you don’t look a day over forty-nine.”
“And you’re a horrible liar. There are times that I feel every minute of my seventy-five years on this earth. Like right now. By the time we get out of this truck, I’ll be so stove-up I won’t be able to walk.”
“I’m going to stop and fill up before we go to Rip’s. If you want, you can get out and walk around to work the kinks out while I pump gas.”
“You have your moments, Graham.”
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Even a blind squirrel can find a nut now and then.”
“What you’re saying, without actually saying it, is that I just had a moment of brilliance and it shocked the hell out of you.”
“Apparently, today you’re a squirrel.”
◆◆◆
“If I didn’t remember my birth mother, I might think I was Ma’s long-lost child.”
“You know, Rip, someone might have switched you at birth. I have a feeling a DNA test would only confirm what everyone who has met both of you already knows: you’re Ma’s long-lost son, and you have more in common with her than the general public should be allowed to know.”
“Neither of us is a threat to the public.” Rip shrugged before he said, “Okay, that’s probably not true. Let’s just say that she and I aren’t a threat to anyone who doesn’t deserve it.”
“That sounds more reasonable than an all-out denial.”
“I’m pretty sure that I’m going to have to search your truck and trailer before you leave town because Scoot and her brother are going to try to hitch a ride so they can live on the farm with Ma.”
“And I’m positive that Ma meant it when she invited them to stay for a month this summer.” When Rip laughed at my forlorn expression, I said, “I adore your daughter, Rip, but her brother is a handful.”
“That’s probably the nicest description anyone has ever used when talking about Koda Forrester.”
“Remember me telling you I ran into Starla?”
“Yeah. My sister’s friend. She’s good people.”
“She lived on the farm for a year when she was a kid, and Ma always wondered what became of her. It was pure coincidence that I ran into her on my last visit to Rojo, and now she’s coming back to live on the farm again.”
“She’s going to be helping Ma with the books and everything, isn’t she?”
“Yes. If we had an office, I suppose she’d be the office manager. Either way, Ma wants to train her for a job she can keep as long as she wants, because none of us can or will take on that role.”
“One of you better learn the basics, because what are you gonna do if she finds greener pastures and moves on?”
“I guess we haven’t thought that far. I’m sure Ma has, though. Not much gets past her.”
“In a different life, I think your mom and I would have made the ultimate power couple.”
“I’ve never heard Bonnie and Clyde referred to as a power couple before, but I guess . . .” I let my voice trail off because Rip was laughing at the idea of them together.
“Is everyone okay?” Rip’s friend Leia asked as she walked onto the porch.
“We’re fine. Why do you ask?”
“Rip laughed, so I figured someone had gotten hurt.”
“I’m not that fucking grumpy,” Rip grumbled.
“Not as often as you used to be, but you still have your moments,” Leia said, stepping off the porch into the grass. Walking toward her house next door, she added, “I’ve got a call, but I should be back in an hour or so.”
“Where’s your husband?” Rip asked.
“You’re his boss. Aren’t you supposed to know shit like that?”
“You’re his wife, which means you and I both know you’re the boss. Where the hell is he?”
“He’s napping because his spawn kept us up all night.”
“I love how you refer to your child as his spawn, but never seem to recognize that half that kid’s faults come from you,” Rip pointed out.
“Someday your daughter is going to come home with a boyfriend, and I hope he’s just like you,” Leia called out over her shoulder before walking through her front door.
“That bitch!” Rip hissed. He looked so horrified that I couldn’t help laughing. “Fuck you, Sarge.”
“Why are you cussing me? I’m not the one who put that curse out in the universe.”
“And to think she calls herself my best friend.”
I was still chuckling when I said, “With friends like that, I’m not sure you need enemies.”
“You can laugh–your sons are grown–but I’m about to lay some bad juju on you, big guy.”
“Can’t do it. They’re their own men and can deal with the consequences of their actions.”
“I hope you knock up the next woman you have sex with.”
My laughter stopped abruptly, and it was my turn to stare in horror. “Man, fuck you.”
“Mmhmm. Now we’re both cursed.”
◆◆◆
STARLA
I couldn’t remember an instance when I’d been this nervous, and that included the times I’d stood in front of a judge for sentencing. Even though those hearings had shaped my life, today felt just as important.
I’d adored Ma from the second I met her.
When she put her arms around my thin shoulders and promised everything would be okay, I believed her.
Even though I was just a child, years of disappointment and upheaval had taught me that I couldn’t count on anyone, yet her firm but caring voice slipped past every defense I had built and made me believe my life could change for the better.
Surprisingly, it did. The moment I walked through the door, I became a member of the Brick family, and they treated me like a much-loved child and sibling.
The Brick brothers were older than me, but once I got to know them, they joked and teased me the way brothers would, making me feel as safe and welcome as their parents.
Pa stood strong but gentle; his deep voice calmed me as he taught me new skills around the farm and encouraged me when I needed it.
Ma’s abrasive nature never scared me. It made me giggle, especially when I watched her interact with the sons she loved so fiercely.
I knew she was all bluster and loved them more than life itself, and soon I felt that same fierce love from her.
The tears in her eyes when the social worker came to take me away proved that, and I never forgot what she told me when she hugged me one last time.
“Find your place in the world, even if you have to push and shove to make it, Starla. I want you to remember that you’re worthy of love, respect, and kindness.
If you don’t feel that from every person you meet, they’re not worth your time or your energy, sweetheart.
I want you to love yourself as much as I love you and know that no matter where you go or what you do, you’ll always have a place in my heart and my home. ”
Even though I remembered that conversation as if it were yesterday, her words didn’t truly take hold until a year ago, when I finally realized she had been right.
People who didn’t treat me with love, respect, and kindness weren’t worth my time, and they didn’t deserve an ounce of my energy.
If I’d listened to her when I was younger, my life would have turned out differently, and I wouldn’t have experienced nearly as much strife and struggle.
I could almost hear Ma’s voice telling me there was a reason for the path I’d taken. I believed the life I’d lived made me stronger, and I was grateful it had brought me full circle, back to the arms of the woman I’d loved so much.
I pulled open the glass door and walked into the diner where I’d spent so much time getting to know the people in my life, especially the friends I knew I’d stay in touch with no matter how far away I settled.
Lark’s grandmother had always reminded me of Ma, and I knew that was part of why I loved spending time with her.
The few times I’d been able to sit and visit with Martha Forrester, she had given me insight into the world, just like Ma had. She even had some of those funny little sayings I would never forget–a few of which were probably in Ma’s repertoire, and if they weren’t, they should have been.
“I’m so glad you came in to see us before you left town,” the woman I'd just been thinking about called out as I walked inside.
“I wouldn’t dare leave without coming to say goodbye!”
“Just in case you were going to try, I told Lark to call me before you left so I could have Smokey run me by to give you a good luck hug and remind you that you’ll always have a place here in Rojo with our family, Starla.”
“That means more to me than words can explain,” I assured her, my voice tightening with tears. “Thank you so much.”
“I’m glad you got the chance to explore the world, but if they don’t treat you right, don’t hesitate to call us. We’ll send someone up to get you.”
“I know they’ll treat me right. Ma was my foster mother for a time, and the memories I made on her farm are some of the best of my childhood.”
“She sounds like someone I’d like to know.”
“Luckily she’s here to meet me, and I’d feel a lot less nervous seeing her again after all these years with you beside me.”
Martha hooked her arm through mine. “Lead the way, sweetheart. I want to check this woman out before she tries to take you away from us.”
“I think you’re gonna love her.” I paused, winced, and whispered, “Or you’re going to try to kill each other.”
“Smokey worries about that every time the women in our family meet someone new. He says we’re either going to become best friends and take over the world or become mortal enemies and burn it down around us.”
“Which is more likely?”
“Honestly, it could go either way.”