Chapter 27
27
Jewel
Jewel was about to text Mom about this new emergency, to tell her to bring out Dad’s relax pills, when she saw her mother’s pale blue bathrobe flapping in the wind as she raced toward them.
“What’s going on?” she asked as she joined their odd assembly by the hives.
As Jewel explained about the missing bees, her phone began to chime. “It’s Miguel,” she finally said. “I better answer.”
“Jewel,” he said a bit urgently. “Have you checked your beehives this morning?”
“As a matter of fact, the bees seem to have evacuated.”
“That’s because they’re over here.”
“What do you mean?”
“There’s a gigantic swarm on the old oak tree behind my house. My poor mama is so terrified for Anna that she’s locked them both in the bathroom.”
“Oh no. What should we do?”
“I already called my friend Walter. He’s an expert beekeeper. He’s on his way, but he lives on the other side of town.”
“Oh, good. Thank you.”
“But before Walter gets here, I wanted to check to see if they were your dad’s bees. You know, before he hauls them away.”
“Hauls them away?” She blinked. “How do you haul bees away?”
“I’m not too sure myself, but Walter seems to know what to do. And he’s got whatever it takes on his truck to do it with.”
“That’s wonderful. Thank you so much. I’ll tell Dad. He’s very upset.”
“I don’t know how long it’ll take,” Miguel said, “but I’ll keep you posted.”
She thanked him again and hung up. “Dad,” she called out. “We found the bees!”
“The bees?” His eyes grew wide. “Found?”
“Miguel has found the bees.” She spoke slowly to be sure he understood.
“Miguel found the bees?” Cooper asked eagerly. “Where?”
Jewel explained about the swarm in the oak tree. “Miguel and his friend will bring the bees back here.”
“Miguel? Has my bees?” CT’s brow furrowed.
“Your bees are in Miguel’s tree, but he will bring them home for you.”
“Miguel?” Dad sounded more hopeful. “Bees coming home?”
“Yes!” She nodded eagerly, realizing this was another opportunity for Miguel to score points with her dad. “Miguel has worked it all out. He will get your bees back here today.”
“Today?”
“Yes. But it might take a while.”
Mom took Dad by the arm now. “Enough time for you to eat breakfast.”
“Breakfast? I ate breakfast.”
“No. It’s still in the kitchen. Waiting for you. Come on.” Mom steered him away from the hives, gently guiding him back to the new house.
“I know you were supposed to meet with Anna,” Jewel told Cooper. “But because of her bee allergy, she is locked in the bathroom.”
“Locked in the bathroom?” Cooper rolled her eyes. “Sounds like overkill.”
“It was Marta’s idea. Trying to protect Anna, I guess.”
“Poor Anna.” Cooper’s mouth twisted to one side as she studied her phone. “But I still wonder why the bees left. Do you think I did something wrong, Mom? I hope the hive doesn’t have a disease. And I don’t think it’s lack of water. I give them water every day.” Her tears were gone, but her eyes were still troubled.
“I have absolutely no idea what went wrong, Coop, but Miguel’s friend Walter is an expert. Maybe you can ask him.”
She nodded. “Yeah. I do want to talk to him. I’m going over to the Oroscos’ right now. Even if Anna’s locked up, I can still go out and see the swarm. Maybe take pictures. I bet it’s big.”
“Okay.” Jewel cringed inwardly to imagine an aggravated bee swarm. “But please, be careful.”
“Don’t worry, the bees know me.” Cooper was already sprinting toward the alfalfa field.
Jewel took a deep breath and silently prayed that all of them would remain safe from the swarm of bees. It was one thing for Dad and Cooper to act so casual around the hives where the bees were mostly contained, but a loose swarm of agitated bees sounded terrifying. What if they were angry about something?
Honey
By the time Honey got CT back to the new house, he was still fully aware of his missing bees but had already forgotten that Miguel was working to get them back.
“My bees,” he lamented. “Where are my bees?”
Honey attempted to explain again. Then directing him to their old kitchen table, she pointed at his breakfast of scrambled eggs and peanut butter toast and helped him sit down. She knew the eggs would be cold by now, but she also knew CT probably wouldn’t notice that. She refilled her coffee mug, then sat down across from him, but seeing how upset he still was, she decided to get one of his relax pills. Thankfully, he never protested taking one. Maybe he thought it was one of the many vitamins she was always shoving at him.
She returned with orange juice and the pill, waiting for him to take it. “Looks like a nice day,” she said as she sat back down.
“Why did they leave?” he asked as he chewed on a bite of toast.
“The bees?”
“Uh-huh. Why?”
“Like Jewel said, they wanted a field trip.”
“In my field?”
“I guess they got lost,” she added. “But they are all together.”
“Together?”
“Yes. You know how bees stay together?”
“Uh-huh.” He nodded as if this made sense.
“And Miguel is bringing them home.”
“Now?” He started to stand.
“No.” She put a hand on his arm to stop him. “Later. I’ll tell you when.”
“Okay.” His hand trembled as he picked up his fork. “Okay.”
They ate breakfast in silence now. Not unusual for them these days, but for some reason Honey missed the friendly little chats they used to have more than usual today. Maybe it was the new house. Honeymoon Cottage. The sweet name seemed to hold so much promise. Promise that it could never deliver. Yet CT had been in such good spirits last night that she’d almost imagined they were their old selves again and actually on a real vacation. Drinking champagne to music that she had put on, playing a game of cards where she let CT win, and going to bed happy and enjoying the old familiar snuggles that CT never seemed to forget.
But in the light of day, the stressful upset over the missing bees and eating a cold breakfast, well, it was a letdown. Not that she would tell anyone. CT obviously wouldn’t understand, and she didn’t want to hurt Jewel’s feelings. And really, it seemed silly to even feel this way. So trivial. After all, she was here in a new house. With fewer responsibilities than before. She should be grateful. And she was. But still... She glanced across the table where CT was sitting with his mouth hanging open, like it so often did nowadays. His plate was mostly empty, and it looked like his relax pill was working. That was something. She stood up and smiled.
“You know, CT, I bet if you watch True Grit , the bees will be back before you even know it.”
“Huh?” CT looked confused, and she realized that she’d used too many words. That and he’d probably temporarily forgotten the bees.
She picked up their empty plates and tried again. “You can watch your movie.” She stopped herself from adding that he should rest until his bees came home. Let sleeping dogs lie.
“Oh, yeah.” He slowly shoved himself to his feet. “My movie.”
Honey guided him to his recliner. Everything in the new house felt closer and easier. Fewer rooms for CT to get lost in. And somehow the smaller house didn’t feel crowded. Really, it was a good thing they’d made this move. Honey would get used to it, eventually. And fortunately, despite their rocky start to the day, CT hadn’t mentioned that anything was different even once. Maybe he’d already forgotten the old farmhouse. How long until he forgot her? He seemed to get confused while looking at her sometimes, and she knew the day would come when he wouldn’t know her at all. She felt a lump in her throat when she considered the inevitable. But what would she do about it then? She inhaled a deep, soothing breath. She didn’t need to think about that now.
As she took her time to clean up the breakfast things, putting the tidy little kitchen back into apple-pie order, Honey remembered her old friend Donna and how they’d reconnected at the barbecue, even discussing a follow-up coffee date. Of course, after CT’s outburst against their poor host, Honey had been too embarrassed to call Donna for a coffee date later that week. And then she blamed her procrastination on her demanding life and too many distractions. But maybe she’d give Donna a call and invite her to meet up once the missing bees debacle was settled. Because Honey knew she needed someone to talk to. Someone outside of her family. More than ever lately.
Whether it was right or wrong, Honey had acquired the habit of putting up a strong front for Jewel and Cooper. Sometimes she felt like a phony, but not wanting to trouble them with her problems, she kept her ever-growing concerns to herself ... and to God. She knew the girls had their own struggles. Raising a sometimes-willful adolescent wasn’t easy for anyone. Add to that Jewel’s big B&B plans and setting up Honeymoon Cottage, well, it was enough to deal with. And young Cooper, still getting used to everything here, was building new friendships, meeting neighbors, and just being a confused teenager ... that was a lot.
So grateful for their help, Honey didn’t want to upset things with her heartaches and fears. And the truth was CT did frighten her at times. There were those moments when he was so disoriented he didn’t even recognize her. And more than once he’d accused her of being in cahoots with Miguel and even being romantically involved with the young man. That was worse than ridiculous but very real to him.
Then there were mornings when he was so disoriented he thought he was in his childhood home and she was his mother. Sometimes he got so confused and agitated over the imaginings, she couldn’t predict what he’d do. And she was equally unsure of what she should do if something went seriously sideways. And she knew that it could. And it probably would ... eventually. She just didn’t know when “eventually” would arrive.
The dementia books she’d read and reread described this behavior as the final stages of FTD. And for the last stages, when a patient became too difficult, the only option the experts recommended was supervision in a full-time memory care facility.
Honey hated the idea of this. She knew that CT would hate it even more. At least the old CT would. That can-do CT. The man’s man who’d farmed and hunted, driven and repaired farm trucks and tractors, been king of his outdoor world—that man would rather be six feet under than locked down in some bleak nursing home reeking of urine and disinfectant. And who could blame him? If she were in his shoes, she’d feel the same.
She could still remember the conversation they’d had after his father had been put in an institution like that. His dad had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s, but now Honey suspected it had been FTD as well. Concerned for his dad, CT and Honey had flown to Phoenix to visit him in his care facility. But they’d been appalled at the nursing home. CT had been so upset, he’d gotten into a full-blown argument with his stepmom, Dorothy, criticizing the poor woman for allowing such a travesty.
Honey glanced over to see that CT was now asleep in his chair, his familiar movie playing loudly. She sighed and refilled her coffee mug, then sat down at the kitchen table. She ran her hand over the familiar worn wood. She was afraid the old-fashioned farm table and chairs would look out of place in their new, modern house, but it actually seemed to lend some sweet charm to the place.
Maybe CT, like his dad, would be so impaired by the final stages, he wouldn’t know the difference if he needed to be in a nursing home. Tears began to flow at the thought of this. She’d been crying more and more lately. Not when anyone was watching, of course, because it only seemed to stress others out. But in her quiet moments alone, she’d been trying to let her tears flow freely. She’d read that her pent-up emotions could raise her blood pressure, and she sure didn’t need more of that!
Honey tore off a paper towel strip and used it to blot her eyes and blow her nose, then taking a deep breath, she looked out the kitchen window. Taking a few more slow, deep breaths, she gazed across the rich green alfalfa field. So peaceful, so calming. And then she began to relax, realizing she really did feel a bit better after a short cry.
She whispered her favorite prayer a few times and was grateful for its soothing. “Let go and let God.” Sometimes it was all she could muster in the form of faith.
She tossed her damp paper towel in the trash, then turned back to check on CT. Not to her surprise, he was gone. His favorite disappearing act. Just vanish without a word. That man! Despite his awkward shuffling walk, he could still slip away unnoticed when he wanted. She checked the master bedroom and bath. Finding both empty, she knew he’d gone outside. Probably in search of his beloved bees.