The Journal: Crimson Skies: (The Journal Book 3) (12 page)

“My boys have outdone themselves this time,
Mark. Look!” I pointed to the harvest.

“Jason and I were talking it over on our way
back, and we think this deserves a celebration,” Eric said.

“I know this is a bit early, but what about a
Thanksgiving dinner?” I suggested. “Even though Thanksgiving is
almost two months away, we really don’t know what the weather is
going to be like. The roads may be impassible by then. Plus, every
day should be a day of giving thanks.”

That sobered the mood a bit, remembering we
no longer had snowplows to keep the roads open and once the snow
fell we could be completely isolated for months.

It was decided that in a few days, we would
invite Colonel Andrews and Tom White out for dinner. Meanwhile the
boys needed to hang and cure the deer and I needed to clean some
birds. From past experience, I know that the quicker the cleaning
is done, the easier it is.

Dressing the turkey was easy since it’s just
a big chicken, though I wanted to save the organs and the neck for
making gravy. I boiled a big pot of water, dipped the bird, ripped
the feathers off of it and gutted it in less than an hour. After
setting it in the outside refrigerator, I called Amanda and Emilee
over to help with the second one.

We set up the sawhorses and boards like when
we cleaned all the fish in July. My thoughts momentarily drifted to
John and how his demolition expertise got us a hundred pounds of
fish in a very short time.

I dipped the bird again, then let those two
de-feather it for the experience.

“That wasn’t so hard, Nahna, but it sure was
messy,” Emi announced.

Next I opened the body cavity and pulled out
all the organs, separating the ones I could use and scrapping the
rest. The heart and giblet would be added to the turkey broth for
gravy, and the liver would make a delicate liver pâté.

Amanda had the job of using my propane torch
to singe off the hair-feathers from the now naked turkeys. I washed
the birds in cold water and set them back in the refrigerator. By
then, Eric and Jason, along with a curious Mark, had finished
skinning and hanging the deer.

“Mom,” Eric whispered to me, “Mark wants to
autopsy the next deer.”

I laughed. Mark certainly gets into his work,
and it makes sense to for him to see the internal workings of
different animals.

September 3

“What can I do for you, Allexa?” Colonel
Andrews said, and I could hear a smile in his voice.

“I’d like to do something for
you
,
Jim. How would you like to come out here on Friday for dinner? We
have some exciting news to share and my sons have managed to supply
us with fresh meat that we would also like to share.”

“Fresh meat? I thought all the animals died
in the ash fall.”

“Apparently not, Jim, and that’s part of the
good news.”

“I would be delighted to come to dinner, and
thank you for thinking of me, Allexa,” Jim said.

“I’m inviting Tom White also. You might want
to touch base with him in case he wants to share a ride.”

As much as I would have liked to invite Anna
and George, I had no idea where they were. Nor about their exposure
to this virus, and I can’t risk my family getting infected.

It was only Monday, and I felt our small
group shouldn’t have to wait to do some celebrating. I decided we
should have venison steaks for dinner tonight and save the two
turkeys for Friday. I called Amanda over to give me a hand.

“What can I help you with, Mom?”

“I need you to do an errand for me,” I
replied. “Would you take Jacob and Emilee for a walk down the road
to tell Ken and Karen and Joshua about dinner tonight? That would
sure help my timing out.”

“Of course! I think the kids could use some
diversion; they’re both getting fidgety.”

“What would you normally do with Jacob about
now?”

“We would go to the beach,” Amanda said
wistfully. “It’s too cold though.”

I filed this in my brain, wondering if the
boys could come up with a solution. After all, Emi and Jacob are
their
children.

~~~

With the days growing shorter all the time,
and the false dusk coming early, we gathered at six o’clock for
dinner. Along with the venison steaks, I had fixed a large bowl of
rice with canned ramp greens. Then I surprised Jacob with a
plateful of French fries, which got me a big hug.

“Thank you, Nahna! I love fries and I love
you!” Jacob exclaimed, dipping a fry into some catsup.

“You’re welcome, Jacob. You do know this is a
treat, right? We don’t have enough potatoes to make fries all the
time, but this is a special day.”

“I know, Nahna. I hope we can have more
special days!” He gave a fry to Emi, who had been eying the
plate.

“And here’s something for you, Emi.” I set
down a bowl filled with lightly salted homemade potato chips. Her
eyes got huge and teary. She picked one up and took a crunchy bite,
sighing with obvious contentment. Then she gave one to Jacob, and
passed the bowl around so others could have some too. It didn’t
surprise me that everyone took only one.

~~~

“That was delightful, Allexa,” Karen
commented while sipping on a glass of Eric’s latest beer, a dark
ale. “I think we’ve all missed fresh meat.”

“Oh, yes, Miss Allexa, it was a wonderful
change from dried fish and cheese,” Joshua chimed in. He’s been
quietly working at making his new home more comfortable for him and
his animals so we haven’t seen much of him lately.

“How are things coming along, Joshua?” Mark
asked. “Is the barn big enough for your cow and goat?”

“Oh, yes, Dr. Mark. The girls are right happy
in their new home. I think because they are still together. The
baby chicks are growing bigger every day and are always underfoot,
but they never get stepped on. Bossy and Matilda are real careful
around them.”

That seemed to be the cue for Chivas and
Tufts to appear from the living room where they’d been napping, and
were now on the hunt for table scraps. Eric pushed back his chair
to tend to the animals, giving them separate bowls of dry food with
some meat scraps and rice poured on top. The two pets were doing
well on the limited diet.

“While we are all here,” I announced, “on
Friday we’re doing another bigger dinner, with company. To truly
celebrate our thanks for Eric and Jason finding a source of fresh
meat, we’re doing a Thanksgiving dinner early and we’ve invited
Colonel Andrews and Tom White to join us.”

“What’s on the menu, Allexa?” Ken asked,
taking another roll from the near empty basket.

“Turkey with all the trimmings and a stuffed
venison neck roast is what I have planned. The meat won’t last much
longer even in the fridge. I think we should eat as much fresh as
possible, and then we’ll set up to can what’s left. Since it’s
their deer, Eric and Jason will cut the meat up and deliver it.
That way each household has the option of how they want to cook it,
or to freeze it if that’s your choice.”

“Other than the meat, what else is planned,
Mom?” Jason asked.

“I think it would be nice for Emi to do
dessert,” Eric said before I could answer. “She’s getting real good
at making sweet things.” My granddaughter beamed at the
compliment.

“Then an Emi-dessert it is. I’ll make rolls
and figure out some veggies. If anyone thinks of a dish they’d like
to make let me know. The less I have to do the better,” I said,
absentmindedly cradling my still very sore arm.

~~~

“You were awfully quiet at dinner, Mark,” I
said while we snuggled under the covers later that night.

“Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the family
dynamics, that’s all,” he confessed. “It still amazes me how Eric
and Jason treat you as a friend as well as their mother. The
interaction is so smooth and natural, and rare.”

“It isn’t rare to us; it’s the way we’ve
always been with each other. I was young when I had them and I
guess we grew up together. Although I maintained being the ‘mom’, I
also treated them as mini-adults, and with respect. I hoped it
would forge a deep bond between us, one I never had with my
parents.”

“Really? As stable as you are, I would have
thought you had a great upbringing,” he responded, sliding his hand
down my hip.

“I didn’t have a bad childhood, but there
were many things in the way I grew up that I set out to change with
my own children, and affection was at the top of the list.”

“Well, I would say it worked, because those
two young men adore you and would do anything for you.”

September 4

“Do those stitches itch, Allex? You keep
fingering them,” Mark asked, pouring me a cup of coffee.

“As a matter of fact they do. When can you
take them out?”

“Well, since it’s been two weeks. I think I
can take them out now, and I’ll take the ones out of your arm while
I’m at it.” He cupped my chin gently, tilting my head for a better
look.

The slice along my jaw Dr. Streiner made with
her scalpel was a grim reminder of what she did to me… and to
Kathy. The sooner the stitches came out, the sooner I could forget
about her, though it would be a long time before I forgot about
Kathy’s death.

With tweezers and thin scissors, Mark snipped
and tugged the few stitches out one at a time.

“You have remarkable healing, Allex. These
could have come out days ago.” He kissed the fine scar. “And the
scar is so faint it won’t be noticeable at all once the redness
fades.”

“I’ve got good genes, and a good doctor,” I
smiled up at him.

“Perhaps. I think it has a lot to do with
your health, and maybe your happiness, which I’ll be happy to take
some credit for.” He kissed me deeply and I silently decided he was
right.

September 7

Jason and Amanda came over early to help
bring in chairs and set the table. With all the extra guests coming
we set the three tables up in a “U” shape to have enough seating
space.

“I wish we had some table decorations that
would be suitable,” I lamented.

“Let me see what I can do,” Amanda offered.
She finished setting the table, then left.

I set the rolls for the second rise and
basted the turkeys again. They were small, maybe ten pounds each,
and both fit into one large roasting pan. They were now a golden
brown and the scents coming from the meat and the stuffing were
heavenly.

I saw Amanda coming back across the road, but
she veered off toward the barn and I lost sight of her. Even from
this distance I could see that determined look she gets, and I knew
not to interfere.

Ten minutes later, she came in, carrying a
basket, set it in the center of the large table, and proceeded to
pull things out. Shortly she stepped back, to reveal what she’d
been doing.

“What do you think, Mom?” She beamed at her
handiwork. On the table was the basket, with branches of hops and
bittersweet artfully spilling from it.

“That is stunning, Amanda! I know you must
have gotten the hops from down in the gully, but where did you find
the bittersweet?” The papery pale green hops contrasted perfectly
with the orange berries.

“They were in the basement, in a box marked
‘Fall Decorations’. Aunt Nancy was really organized. Do you like
it?”

“I love it. Thank you so much for doing
this.” I was feeling an unexpected tearing over her thoughtfulness
and gave her a quick hug.

Just then, Mark came in with an armload of
firewood.

“It smells fantastic in here!” he gushed. “Is
there anything I can do to help?”

“As a matter of fact, you can help me drain
the turkeys. My arm is still too sore to lift much.”

“Is it very painful? Maybe you’re doing too
much.”

“I’m fine, I just don’t want to stress it.” I
gave him a quick kiss, and then retrieved a pot we could use for
the juices that would become gravy.

At three-thirty the rolls came out of the
cook-stove oven as the military Hummer pulled into the driveway.
The boys took that as their cue to bring the family over, and soon
Ken, Karen and Joshua arrived. I’d say no one wanted to be late for
our early Thanksgiving dinner.

“The bar is open. Thanks to the Colonel’s
generosity during Kathy and Carolyn’s wake, we still have plenty of
alcohol.” I motioned everyone to the side counter. Soon I heard the
tinkle of ice cubes filling glasses, and friendly chatter among my
guests.

With everyone milling about, it gave me time
to pull Amanda aside so we could set the food out. Two golden brown
turkeys took center stage, and were flanked by a bowl of steaming
stuffing, a pot of rich gravy and a large casserole of green beans.
On the dining table were a basket of hot rolls and two platters of
deviled eggs.

~~~

Tom belched. “That was incredible, Allex. I
can’t remember the last time I ate so much. I’m stuffed!”

“But there’s dessert,” Emilee protested.
She’d been keeping her sweets a secret, even from me.

“I’m sure all we need is a few minutes for
dinner to settle, Emi,” I said to her. Her enthusiasm with baking
has been a source of pride for me.

“So, Eric,” the Colonel remarked, “where did
you manage to harvest our dinner? I really thought all the wild
animals were gone.”

“We thought so too, Colonel, but Jason wanted
to check out the private resort north of here for tools, and we
surprised a flock of turkeys in the road.”

“The resort is a private club that holds over
thirty thousand acres in wildlife refuge,” I added. “Most of the
animals there are accustomed to humans and to being fed. I’m
surprised, too, that there is wildlife still there. I know the
place pretty well; it’s where I’ve worked for the last eighteen
years.”