Chance Encounters - Ch. 10

From the rough draft of Chance Encounters by Pat Otterness

CHAPTER TEN

I was up early the next morning, as sounds from the kitchen drifted into my bedroom. It wasn’t only the boys who were up and about. Hiram was there, too, and?Fletch, who had come to retrieve Danny. Pancakes all around, and sausages. I hurried back to my room to dress so as not to miss out on the food.

By the time I returned, Fletch and Danny were gone. Harm and Skeeter sat munching together, silently watching each other. I hated to intrude, but my pancakes were getting cold. I poured myself a glass of unanticipated orange juice and joined them at the table.

We all ate in silence for a while. I was enjoying the unexpected breakfast treats, and I knew Skeeter was too after his long, hungry wait for his dad’s return. I could tell Hiram was uneasy, not knowing how to breach the subject of Chance and the fostering thing.

“What did Chance say?” I asked at last.?

Skeeter perked up and looked at Hiram. “Yeah,” he said. The question lingered on the air for a moment.

“Umm …” said Hiram, looking down at the table instead of looking at either of us. “Umm … I told him about you,” he said to Skeeter. Long pause. “He’s thinking about it.” Then after a moment, he said, “He hasn’t said no.”

“Well, that’s good, “I said. “He?should?think about it. Adding another person to your household changes a lot of things.”

“He wants to meet you first,” said Harm.

“Okay, I guess,” said Skeeter, looking at me for approval.

“I’ll be with you,” I told Skeeter. He’s not a bad guy. Not exactly cuddly, but someone you can trust.”

Harm threw me a grateful look. “I’ll be there, too, Skeeter. We’ll face him together.”

There was a sharp knock on the door and Jordan walked in, dressed for a day in the fields. He wore tall leather boots that should protect him from snakes as well as traps. A flannel shirt and a canvas jacket completed the look. I enjoyed a moment of appreciation before asking about the days search.

“What’s the plan?” I asked. “Where are your deputies?” I was curious about how they were going to reach that inaccessible spot.

Jordan sighed. “We had to get some early-morning trucks out with gravel to resurface the road,” he said. “That’s slowing us down some, but my officers have parked at the far end and walked in. They’re looking for traps with their metal detectors right now. We can combine the search for Donkins with that process, since every inch has to be searched for traps anyway.”

“I hope your men are all wearing sturdy boots.” I looked at my own badly scuffed ones. “I was lucky not to have my ankle crushed.”

“They are. And they’ll be moving slowly, looking at the ground.”

“Can I come?” asked Skeeter. “I need to find my dad.”

“Not yet. Not without boots,” said Jordan, looking at Skeeter’s worn sneakers. “After we’ve cleared the fields, I guess you can come.”

Skeeter teared up, but he didn’t beg. He sat glumly, sipping his orange juice and saying nothing further.

Hiram patted Skeeter on the shoulder. It was just a gesture, but Skeeter threw him a grateful look. “Would you let us know when it’s safe to come down there?” Hiram asked.

“I’ll have someone let you know,” he said. “It’s going to take quite a while to cover that whole area. You might as well make other plans for your morning.” He turned to Harm. “I have your dog in the car. Hermione had a doctor appointment, and he couldn’t be left unattended in my house or hers. You’ll need to lock him up until we’re finished out there.”

Hiram jumped up and turned to Skeeter. “You’re going to love Wolf,” he said. He flung open the kitchen door and rushed out to greet his dog. From where we sat, we could hear the joyful cries of man and dog reuniting.

“Wolf?” said Skeeter. “Is he ferocious?”

I grinned. “Every bit as scary as Harm,” I replied.

“Woof!” said Wolf, bursting into the kitchen, his?whole body?a-wag. I braced myself quickly before his giant paws hit my shoulders.?Ick! Dog spit!?I tolerated having my face cleaned and pushed him away. He made a beeline for the room’s remaining occupant.?

Skeeter, wide-eyed, lost himself in the embrace of the shaggy beast and came out alive with a grin on his face. “Nice dog” he said. “Good boy!”

“I’m taking Skeeter to buy school clothes,” I told Hiram. “Can you keep Wolf away from the action until I get back? He’s going to know something’s going on. He won't be happy to miss the excitement.”

“He’s?my?dog,” he said. “Of course, I can keep him safe.” He looked fondly at his shaggy companion. “Right, Wolf?”

“Woof!” said Wolf, already looking to see where Demon was. The two animals looked at each other through the living room window. Demon’s back arched, and his fur stood on end. Wolf was beside himself with eagerness to get to the cat. “Woof!” he said again.

I grabbed the leash Jordan had left and snapped it onto Wolf’s collar. “No!” I?said. I knew I was talking to myself. “Take him home and lock him up,” I told Hiram, pushing the leash into his hands. “I need to get Skeeter ready for starting school. I’d better not come home and find that dog carrying my cat into a field of traps.”

“Doing?what?” laughed Skeeter. Demon and Wolf were facing off at the window.

“There is so much for you to learn,” I told him. “Now come on. Let’s go shopping.”

Charlottesville was the nearest town where we could shop for clothes, and it was a longish drive. I entertained Skeeter by telling him about the unlikely friendship between Wolf and Demon, my deaf feral tomcat. He thought I was joking. “It’s true, believe it or not,” I said. “Wait and see for yourself.”

We parked at Fashion Square mall and entered JC Penney. Finding clothes for a boy his age was quick and easy. I let him pick the shirts he liked, and we got him some new jeans and a warm jacket. November was going to turn cold pretty soon. A couple of sweatshirts, pajamas, underwear and socks … my wallet grew ever thinner as we made purchase after purchase. Our last stop was the shoe department. New sneakers were a necessity. Skeeter, however, had his heart set on leather boots. I resisted at first, because they were pricey, but like his foster-father-to-be, he was persistent. He walked out of the store with high-top leather boots on his feet and joy on his face. What can I say.

We stopped for a quick lunch at Arby’s before heading home. Skeeter was loosening up some with me. He was easy to talk to when he wasn’t so uptight and worried. He still had his doubts about Chance. My reassurances only got us so far. He needed to meet Chance and assess him for himself. I moved that up to the top of my to-do list.

Before we even reached the house, I could see my sister Hope’s Buick in the driveway.?Yes!?She was so easy. I pulled in beside her car and turned to Skeeter. “Prepare yourself,” I said. “You’re going to meet my sister. Try to look pitiful.” I grinned at him. “She is so easy to manipulate.”

“What do we want her to do?” he asked.

“We want her to like you,” I said. “We want her to use her influence on Chance.”

“Is she friends with Chance?”?

“Oh,?waaay?more than that,” I said, opening the car door and stepping out.