Promise (4 page)
Authors: Judy Young
It was before the dinner stampede, as Pillie called it, and they were the only ones in the restaurant. Elana pushed open the swinging door from the kitchen. She was the most popular girl in Kaden's class, but except at Pillie's, Kaden rarely spoke to her. At school, Kaden tried to stay clear of Elana, because wherever she was, Luke was always close by.
“Hi, Kaden. Hi, Emmett. What can I get you guys?” Elana said.
“Three Jumbo Lightning Moo-Creams,” Emmett said.
“Three?” Kaden and Elana both said at the same time.
“Of course,” Emmett said. “One for me, one for Kaden, and you'll need one, too.”
“Me?” Elana said at the same time as Kaden said, “Elana?”
“Certainly. We don't want to eat in front of the young lady.”
“I'm supposed to be helping,” Elana said.
“You will be,” Emmett replied. “Helping yourself to a delicious sundae.”
“I mean . . . ,” Elana started to explain.
“Oh, don't worry, your mom won't mind.” Then in a loud voice Emmett yelled out, “Hey, Pillie, you mind if your
daughter joins us for a sundae?”
Pillie came out of the kitchen. “No, I don't care, as long as she gets the salt and pepper shakers filled before the stampede. What are you having?”
“Jumbo Lightning Moo-Creams,” Elana reported.
“Coming right up,” Pillie said.
Elana followed her mom into the kitchen.
“Why are you getting Elana one?” Kaden asked. But before Emmett could answer, Elana returned holding large canisters of salt and pepper. Emmett kicked Kaden under the table.
“Ouch,” Kaden said. “Why'd you kick me?”
“Go help her,” Emmett whispered, giving his head a jerk toward Elana.
Kaden rolled his eyes at Emmett but slid out of the booth.
“Want some help?” he asked. He could feel his face turning red.
“Sure,” Elana said. “Salt goes in the cows. They have four holes in their heads. Pepper in the bulls. They have horns and only two holes. Don't get them mixed up. Mom got really annoyed when Luke helped me.”
Kaden had heard about Luke's pranks. Showing off to Elana, they had been going on for weeks. At first, it was just minor stuff like putting salt and pepper in the wrong shakers.
But then Pillie caught Luke red-handed leaving a dried-up cow patty on the floor under one of the mural's cows. She grabbed the pitchfork from the corner and chased Luke from the restaurant.
Mr. Woodhead, Luke's father, threatened to file assault charges against Pillie, but Sheriff O'Connor didn't want to be on Pillie's bad side. The Purple Cow was the only place in town to get a good cup of coffee. The sheriff made Luke clean up the cow manure and Pillie banned Luke from her restaurant.
Now as Kaden picked up a bull and poured in pepper, Pillie brought out three enormous sundaes. She put two purple flashlights on the table and headed back to the kitchen.
Kaden started to slide into the booth but Emmett stopped him. “Ladies first, Kaden.”
Kaden stepped aside and let Elana slide in.
“What are these for?” Kaden asked, picking up one of the flashlights.
“You get one every time you order a Jumbo Lightning Moo-Cream,” Elana said. “Mom read that cows' horns sometimes glow during a lightning storm. They're supposed to represent the lightning.”
Without saying another word, the three of them dug into their ice cream, as a clock that looked like a cow ticked off the
seconds, its tail twitching back and forth. Soon their spoons were scraping the last bites from the dishes.
“Moo-chas gracias, Emmett,” Elana said as they slid from their seats. “See you Monday at school, Kaden.”
“Yeah, see ya,” Kaden answered.
When they left the restaurant, Kaden turned to Emmett. “Why did you invite Elana to have ice cream with us?”
“I thought it would be a good distraction,” Emmett said, grinning. “Worked, didn't it?”
As soon as Emmett started up the truck, all distractions made by Elana, ice cream sundaes, cows, and flashlights disappeared.
The closer they got to the cabins, the more nervous Kaden became. His heart was beating so hard when they pulled in the circle drive, he was certain Emmett could hear it over the sound of the truck's motor. The white pickup sat in front of Cabin Five. The cabin's door stood open. A fan gently ruffled the curtains in its opened window, but there was not a breath of wind outside, and Kaden felt like he couldn't breathe either.
Emmett pulled up in front of Gram's cabin, put the truck in park, but left it running.
“Aren't you coming in?” Kaden asked. He felt like he was going to be sick, all that ice cream on an empty and now nervous stomach.
“No, I don't think so,
mooo-cho
things to do at home,” Emmett said, trying to lighten the tension. But when he looked at Kaden's face, Emmett reached down and turned the key. The truck became silent.
Kaden sat there. He felt paralyzed. He didn't think he could even open the door.
“Come on,” Emmett said. “Let's get it over with.”
Kaden got out of the truck. Emmett put his hand on his shoulder as they climbed the porch steps. There was no sound except the steady hum of Gram's fan coming through the screen door. Kaden opened the door and he and Emmett stepped inside.
Gram was sitting in the easy chair doing nothing. Just sitting. All alone. She stood up and put her hands on her hips.
“Where have you two been?” she asked gruffly, but before anyone could answer, she turned to Kaden. “Go to your cabin and wash up for dinner. I need to talk to Emmett.”
“Butâ” Kaden started to ask where his dad was when Emmett interrupted him.
“Do what your Gram says.”
Kaden started to protest again, but Emmett gave him
a barely perceptible shake of his head. Kaden usually paid attention to Emmett's subtle hints to keep quiet. This time, however, he ignored him and turned back to Gram.
“No,” he said defiantly. “I'm staying right here.”
“I'm only going to say it one more time. Go to your cabin.”
Kaden stared straight into Gram's eyes. He was tired of being left in the dark.
“No. He's my father and I want to know what's going on.”
Gram looked surprised. She stared at Kaden but when she crossed her arms in front of her, she turned on Emmett. “I told you not to tell,” she said.
“He didn't,” Kaden said. “I already knew. I saw him today at the tower.”
Now Gram was really perplexed. “You saw him?”
“Yes, and I'm not going to my room. I'm going to go see my dad. I know he's in Cabin Five. What'd you do, tell him he had to go to his room, too?”
Suddenly the sound of a motor starting up came through the screen door. Kaden pushed past Emmett and darted out onto the porch just in time to see the white pickup spin its tires in the gravel as it turned onto the road toward town.
“Wait!” Kaden yelled, and ran after the truck. But the truck went around the bend before Kaden even got halfway down the circle drive.
Kaden stood, his hands balled into fists. He heard footsteps come up behind him. Gram put a hand on his shoulder, but Kaden jerked away and turned to face her.
“I had a right to see him! He's my father!” Kaden exploded. “And I would have if it weren't for you.” Tears of anger rolled down his cheeks.
“And you, too!” he yelled at Emmett. “You both treat me like I'm a baby. Always saying, âGo to your cabin, Kaden. Let's get ice cream, Kaden.' You're always talking about everything except what's on everyone's mind. You don't have to shelter me. I'm old enough to hear what's going on. So, what else are you keeping a secret from me? Did you tell Dad to leave? Did you make him promise to stay away?”
Kaden had almost worn out his anger but when Gram said nothing, it rekindled.
“Are you going to answer me for once?” he said harshly, spitting out each word. “Why did he leave?”
Gram still said nothing. Even Emmett looked at her, waiting to hear her answer. But Gram just stared past Kaden and Emmett, looking down the empty road, almost as if she were looking for a different scene, the way a life could have been. After a few seconds, she turned and looked directly at Kaden.
“I'm sorry,” Gram said in the quietest and most sorrowful
voice Kaden had ever heard her use. “I tried to talk some sense into him, but he's not ready.”
“What do you mean, not ready?” Kaden asked, still angry.
Gram looked straight at Kaden and said, “Your father is not ready to see you.”
It was the first day of school. The sky was just turning pink when the school bus pulled into the circle drive and stopped in front of Gram's cabin. It had been an uncomfortable weekend. Neither Gram nor Kaden had said a word about his dad or Friday's argument. Necessary conversations were brief and overly polite. Otherwise they kept their thoughts to themselves.
The anger had left Kaden but a sense of disappointment and puzzlement replaced it. All weekend, Gram's words echoed through his head.
Your father is not ready to see you
. Kaden had worried about seeing his dad yet never once thought his dad might be afraid of seeing him.
Something else about Gram's words kept nagging at him, too, and he worried that he might have misinterpreted his grandmother. Gram used that expression “you're not ready” quite a bit, and it always meant something different. Sometimes it meant he wasn't old enough. Other times, Gram used the same words when discussing Kaden's attitude, meaning Kaden needed to clean up his act. Gram also used those words to mean Kaden wasn't being responsible. Kaden kept bouncing back and forth, trying to interpret what Gram meant this time.
Was his dad afraid to see him, or did Gram decide Dad didn't have the right attitude or wasn't responsible enough?
These questions had driven him crazy over the weekend, so now Kaden was actually glad it was finally Monday, his first day of middle school. He needed to think about something besides his dad. Kaden stepped up into the bus. Doris sat behind the wheel.