Story Aunt Gus and Little Bear's Adventure Book 2 (Complete)

Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

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June 28 (R) – Key West​


Well, we made it. The southernmost city in the US. Key West. Lots of damage still being repaired but the tourist areas have reopened and are in full swing. Been a long time coming. Sometimes it feels like it took too long. Wall-to-wall people as usual. As one billboard put it: It’s vibrant history, funky bars, colorful characters, and laid-back vibe attract over two million visitors every year.

Good grief it was busy. Had Benny and I still lived here I would have been getting around on the bike but maybe not now that Benny has outgrown the carrier. First traffic light was at MM 3.9; if you go left it is State Road A1A. First comes Houseboat Row. All but gone today, the seawall and protected basin on the left was once home to a famously colorful houseboat community. The houseboats moved to Garrison Bight and Stock Island. The entrance to Key West International Airport is next. Small but busy, it could be insane at certain times of day/year. Especially during an evacuation or a convention or festival. After the airport is Smathers Beach, the longest beach in Key West. It is lined with palm trees and has restrooms, volleyball courts, and picnic areas and isn’t any less popular for walking. There is a long sidewalk along that side of the road that a lot of people take their daily constitutionals on. A1A eventually rejoins U.S. 1 at Whitehead Street.

If you go right at the stop light it is US 1 or Roosevelt after crossing the Salt Run Bridge (MM 2.3). There is a small but extremely busy supermarket complex at MM 1.9 and MM 1.7; both of the stores are Publix and yes people have their favorite even though they are so close together. Also at MM 1.7 is Palm Avenue, the entrance to the USCG Naval Station at Trumbo Point. Had I been alone I could have probably gotten us a campground at the Sigsbee RV Park that only serves military families.

Roosevelt Avenue becomes Truman Avenue and at Windsor Lane is the historic Key West Cemetery. The cemetery is a lot like the Key West: quirky, crowded, colorful and full of history. The cemetery was founded in 1847 after a terrible hurricane in October 1846 washed away the old cemetery, scattering the dead throughout a forest. As a result, the oldest gravestones in this cemetery — built on the highest point in Key West — are actually older than the cemetery itself. They date to 1829 and were moved there after the hurricane. Also on Windsor Lane is the historic Basilica of St. Mary Star of the Sea.

I turned right at Whitehead Street to make a stop at the Key West Lighthouse & Keeper’s Quarters. Not much further down the road was the Hemingway Home & Museum. The way it was told to me is that

Ernest Hemingway, the famous author, ended up in Key West like many others — by accident. He came for a day and ended up staying for a decade. That was more than a century ago, and the town has yet to recover from his presence. Papa, as he was known around town, left a spirit that continues to permeate the island, or so the ghost story tellers say. His former home, complete with a gaggle of six-toed cats, one of which had a liaison with one of Stella’s cats (obvious due to the resulting kittens), remains one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Keys. The Green Parrot Bar isn’t far from there either.

We finally made it to MM 0. Everything was looking familiar yet eerily not. Lev insisted on a group photo of all four of us at the mile marker afterwards I gave my memorized spiel from when I helped out at the local joints. U.S. 1 begins at the Monroe County Courthouse, 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, and continues north for 2,369 miles to Fort Kent, Maine, on the Canadian border. Segments are variously known as “Boston Post Road” (New England) or “Atlantic Highway.” The first 113-mile segment, built on the trackbed of Henry Flagler’s railroad, is known as the Overseas Highway.

Rick went to go sign in at Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park to make sure there were no snafus here at the very end and to meet with one of his supervisors that had flown down. I wasn’t sure what they wanted us to do from this point forward, but I had a few ideas and started talking them out with Lev.

We’d been walking around for about an hour, just giving Lev a chance to get more film when he got a text not to eat, that tonight we were invited to Sloppy Joe’s[1] and tomorrow we would be eating at Captain Tony’s (the original Sloppy Joe). I really hate those last-minute changes that Rick springs on us but it is a lesson in flexibility I am trying to learn. But yeah, ugh. There goes my menu. We were instructed to check into Fort Zachary Taylor and we tried to get in a few things before heading to Sloppy Joe’s.

I’ve bussed tables for tips at Sloppy Joe’s. I thought I knew everyone, but I didn’t recognize a single person there. The band had even changed and they’d been around a long time. Place was still loud, crowded, busy, with all the same memorabilia on the walls, but it wasn’t the same place I remembered. Or maybe I wasn’t the same person. It is crazy what a year can do.

I think I’m done. Done with the assignment, the grant, and The Keys. I might even be done with traveling though that doesn’t feel quite right. I still have a little of that left to do, at least enough that it will get us to the River House, at least for a while. I have no idea what comes after that.

[1] Home - Sloppy Joe's
 
Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

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June 29 (F) – Key West​


Haven’t seen much of Rick today, not that I am looking to. Lev is feverishly trying to finish the “Florida Assignment” and I haven’t seen much of him either. Do I smell or something? The one time the I did see Rick today he seemed t’d off about something. Not my problem I suppose. I wasn’t rude or anything, but I didn’t ask him why the attitude. Don’t feel much like writing but I’m not going to skip a log entry just because I’ve got the hormonal weeps. Not my usual but I guess I’m entitled on occasion.

For breakfast since I was jonesing we had PB&J Pull-Apart Biscuits using gluten-free dough.

We finished Fort Zachary Taylor but that isn’t all we did. After a lunch that was called Philly Cheesesteak Pizzas using gluten-free tortillas we did a conch train tour, ate at Captain Tony’s for dinner and went on one of those stupid “spooky” Ghost and Gravestones Tours because they were a sponsor.

I’m sitting here finishing a Peach Melba Milkshake and feeling sorry for myself. We are overnight for a second night at Fort Zachary Taylor but nothing feels like … home? And if I’m out of sorts, Benny has serious moments of confusion. He’ll grab my hand and hold on tight and I realize it is at a place that Penny made a memory with him. I wonder if he is really remembering or if there’s just some feeling like he should. I need to get him out of here. I don’t think I made the best decision to … no, Penny is his mother. I can’t just forget she existed even if there is pain involved, because despite the way it ended, it wasn’t all bad times. That’s the part I need to make sure Benny remembers.
 
Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

Administrator
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June 30 (Sa) – Key West and Wrap Up​


Just to prove that I had control of the emotional roller coaster I was on yesterday, I fixed Pineapple Upside Down Pancakes for breakfast. Benny nearly climbed into his plate and asked for seconds. Made me feel good and made the day start better than I could have hoped.

Spent most of the day going over the van’s inventory and trying to decide what to keep and what, if anything, to donate. While I was doing that Lev came and apologized for yesterday.

“Being stressed … um … it doesn’t excuse it. Piss poor way to end things.”

I could have let my hurt feelings rule but what is the sense in it? “Don’t worry about it Lev. I think maybe things just … I don’t know. Just don’t worry about it. Are you going to be around for last meal?”

“Er … if you don’t mind.”

I snorted. “Of course I don’t mind. I’ll even fix some popcorn later. How does Peaches and Cream[1] sound?”

He gave that same ol’ goofy grin and then asked if he worked here instead of at the office where Rick was holed up.

“Want me to set up the signal booster?”

“Sure. Um … I’d appreciate it.”

So I did that then fixed a light lunch of Sweet Lemon Trail Mix[2] and Watermelon Fries with Lime Sour Cream[3] since I knew … or at least planned … on dinner being a little more filling.

Turns out that I wasn’t just cooking for Lev, Benny, and Rick. The State made a big deal out of it and instead of burgers and dawgz, Admin popped for Grilled steaks and a huge Tropical Fruit Platter at a pavilion here at Fort Zachary Taylor.

So, the end. But tomorrow is another beginning. Or back to the beginning, at least for me. The night has gone a little later than I should probably have let it, but it was a celebration. Of sorts. I hope tomorrow … never mind. It is what it is. Long drive ahead of me so I need to hit the hay. Benny has already crashed and burned. He seems eager to leave tomorrow. Poor kid. I don’t blame him.

Resources:
Arnold's Exploding Bridge and Other Keys Fun Facts (fla-keys.com)
Welcome to the Florida Keys | Official Tourist Development Website
Key West Garden Club @gardeninafort
Audubon House & Tropical Garden
Historical Markers and War Memorials in Monroe County, Florida

[1] Peaches and Cream Popcorn
[2] Irresistible Lemon Lime Trail Mix
[3] Spiced Watermelon Fries with Lime Crema
 
Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

Administrator
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July 1st- 3rd (Part 1)​


I feel like I am losing my mind. Could things blow up on me any more? First it was driving away from The Keys and knowing that wasn’t our home. Heck, it didn’t even resemble anything I remember because of all the damage still in the process of being repaired. There were no feelings of attachment or anything. It was worse than the hollow feeling of Jacksonville. And Benny just looking around in confusion, like he knew he should remember the place but just couldn’t quite pull it off. I think it bothered him that he couldn’t remember being there with Penny. He remembers Groucho and Stella but Penny, in a way he kept looking for her and she simply wasn’t there.

The Keys were a place to visit, but no longer “home” of any sort, if it ever had been. Benny was happy to leave. Key West disturbed him a bit though not as bad as I thought it might. Then it was realizing it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be to be with Rick and Lev all the way back to Lake City since the Jeep had to be turned in at Park Headquarters … which was why Rick had been tee’d off. Arriving in Lake City and picking up that final paycheck. Being gifted with a lot of the remaining sponsor items. That’s where I said goodbye to Rick. It was very … anticlimactic. Pretty obvious that we’d both moved beyond the what-might-have-been’s and were taking the next steps towards what-will-be. He was so damn eager to get going that it proved, as nothing else did, that whatever it had been, if anything, was over.

Lev thought I was being a little strange. It was obvious he didn’t have the full story and I didn’t have the right to be the one to explain things. I gave him a brief rundown but that’s all the sharing on the topic I wanted to do. He wanted to be mad at Rick for me. I didn’t want to reveal too much but simply told him that whatever he or anyone else imagined, Rick had some family responsibilities to take care of. That I respected him for that because I had my own.

Lev looked at me closely, trying to figure things out. “Uh, I don’t get it but … maybe Rick will come to his senses.”

“Lev …”

He put up his hands in surrender. “Hey, N-O-M-B. None of my business. I get it. Fine. But … look, I hate to ask but can I ride with you to the Live Oak truck stop? I’m supposed to get a ride there and …”

“And they left you hanging for how to get from here to there.”

He chuckled ruefully. “Yeah. They forgot that I gave up my car to take this assignment. So …”

“Oh for … get in. I swear you need a personal manager or something. Why am I the one telling you that you need to look out for yourself? How you could give me all those lectures on personal safety and all the other ways you helped, and yet still let yourself be taken advantage of, is beyond me. Just promise me you won’t go back to eating the crap you were eating before.”

“No way,” he said seriously. “I can’t believe you cleared up all my stomach issues. No one in the family believes it. If I get back before Thanksgiving …” He shrugged. “Look, just …” He stopped and shook his head. “You and Benny gonna be okay?”

“Yeah. My uncle needs the help and there’s other family stuff involved. I need to find a safe-haven for Benny. Might not be a permanent port in the storm but it is a port and … nothing else is falling into my lap. Time for Aunt Gus to start making the hard choices.”

“I thought you and Little Bear liked the traveling.”

“I do. Benny does. But that’s not the point. All good things eventually come to an end. And I have to figure out whether to put him in school or continue home schooling him and … job. I need one. No adventures without income coming in.”

“Yeah, I hear that.” And his tone told me he wasn’t just whistling Dixie on that point.

We drove twenty minutes from Lake City to Live Oak, and I dropped him at the Truck Stop right at the I10 exit ramp. In a weird way it was harder to say goodbye to Lev than it was to Rick. Rick I knew had a destination and a desire to get there. And people waiting on him. I also knew that Rick could look after himself. Not that Lev can’t, just … I don’t know, I felt bad. Lev is one of those lonely guys that is also a nice guy and that isn’t always a good combination. We worked well together, and it almost felt like I was abandoning him which sounds like a bunch of melodramatic crap when I put it into words. Only problem was I didn’t realize how much real melodramatic crap I was about to run into face first.
 
Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

Administrator
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July 1st- 3rd (Part 2)​


See, I thought that when I accepted Uncle Daniel’s offer to come live with him and housekeep that it had been a guaranteed thing. I should have had my head examined. I ignored history, gave them all the benefit of the doubt. Reality was a slap in the face. No, it was a boot-kick to the head.

What happened to my “port in the storm” that I thought I had figured out? Sharon and Charlotte talked Uncle Daniel out of it. Only that was just what was on the surface, there was more to it than that. A lot more to it with a side order of Gus needing to have her head examined for giving it a chance to begin with. And no, I’m not kidding. The whole lot of them stabbed me in the back. Family … real family … doesn’t do that and yet, that is exactly what they did. As was planned by their set up.

Completely stunned I asked, “What do you mean I can’t live here? I thought that was the deal.”

Uncle Daniel sighed. “Situation has changed August. Your cousins are moving in with me. I must put my daughters first. They are more … what was that word you used to describe the boy’s mother? … fragile and … they need me.”

“Then what about the old hunting lodge? At least temporarily until I can find something else. I’ll even set a date. Even if it is only a week.”

“Unfortunately that was sold a couple of months ago. And there’s a closing tomorrow for another section.”

I looked at him and something wasn’t kosher, but I didn’t have time to hash it out because he had to “take a call” and I was already out of time since it was closing in on dinner time. He just turned his back on me and walked away. I could see my cousins on the porch, and I swear Charlotte was smirking. Me? I was feeling sick. And strung out. I knew something wasn’t right, but it wasn’t clicking. I’d been blindsided and the Hamster was going nuclear. I got in the van and turned it around.

“Aunt Gus? Aren’t we staying?”

I looked and Benny and couldn’t even come up with a good excuse. “I’m … not sure Benny. I …”

“Gus? Yoo hoo … Gus?!” I turned to look, and it was Mrs. Phelps calling to me from over the fence and she looked just the same, maybe a little more white than gray but otherwise just the same. I hadn’t seen her in years. They hadn’t been around at Christmas. Judge and Mrs. “Meemo” Phelps had been my grandparents’ best friends and lived next door to them. I rolled down the window and she said, “My goodness, I almost didn’t recognize you. Will I sound old if I say you’re all grown up? The Judge and I were just heartbroken we missed you at the holidays.”

I tried to smile but she could see I was upset and took charge, and I was in such straits that I let her with zero protest. “I don’t care what it is – but I can guess – I want you to come over here right now. Understand?”

“Mrs. Phelps … Meemo … ”

“I’m not playing Gus. And I know the Judge wants to have a word with you.”

I was wondering what kind of hot water I was in but what the Judge – now confined to a wheelchair – told me made me so furious that I decided to show everyone just how much I had grown up. And how much like Grandfather Barry I really was. First off, I located my backbone, re-installed it. Then I called the local Title Company and caught the lady right before she shut down the office phones for the day. I confirmed that there really was a sale scheduled for closing the next day. Right then and there I notified them that there was going to be a cloud on the title because Daniel Barrymore had sold a part of the Estate without dispersing funds in accordance with the Estate it was contained in and while I couldn’t stop a sale that had already taken place, I could stop this one and was doing so. With the Judge’s gleeful assistance, I also filed a lien on the Barrymore Estate and was able to do it online because the County Courthouse had finally joined the 21st Century.

Before six o’clock the buyers, already getting cold feet due to some pressure on the local government by property owners who didn’t want a development on the river, pulled out of the sale and were able to take their earnest money with them because Uncle Daniel wasn’t up front about some of the deed issues.

Judge and Mrs. Phelps insisted that we stay with them for the night. Uncle Daniel didn’t have anything to say about it because he’d gone to celebrate the sale in Tallahassee and didn’t get in until late. He neither knew nor apparently cared to know where I’d gone after he’d turned his back on us. He also didn’t find out about the sale falling through until about 10 AM the next morning at which time I was ready for him. I’d been waiting for the noise and there was a lot of it, enough that it could be heard several properties down on either side of the River House. The Judge smiled and nodded, at a couple of calls he got where he merely said, “It’s being taken care of. I’ll call everyone after this stage is finalized.”
 
Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

Administrator
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July 1st- 3rd (Part 3)​


I knew what my part was and I asked Mrs. Phelps if she would keep an eye on Benny and she was more than happy to. She said he reminded her of Lawrence so much it was hard to talk.

Kneeling down to his level I said, “Buddy, I need you to stay here. Do you understand? I’m not leaving you, but I have some adult stuff to take care of and I don’t want you to see me … go Barrymore.”

“You’re coming back?” he asked anxiously.

“Absolutely. Maybe fast, maybe not so fast. But I won’t be gone all day, not without coming back and checking on you. I swear on the Bible.”

“On … on the Bible? For real?” he asked, stunned at the depth of the promise I was making to him.

“Absolutely for real. I’m promising you from my heart with the biggest promise I know how to make. And I need you to be okay with this. Meemo took care of me when I was your age. She’s absolutely the best lady. Give her a hand for me. ‘K?”

“I can help her?”

Meemo knew how to phrase it and said, “Well, I was going to ask but I understand if you aren’t comfortable. But I sure could use some help keeping an eye on Bartholomew and Potsy>”

“Potsy is your fat cat that looks like a giant mouse. Er … who is Bartholomew?”

Suddenly there was a screeched, “Order in the court! Order in the court!”

Benny looked at a curtain covered area that then emitted, “All rise! Order in the court I said!”

I looked at Benny who was looking at me. “That is Bartholomew. He and I are the same age. And the reason he talks so much is because when I was little neither one of us would shut up.”

Benny was intrigued enough that his separation anxiety didn’t factor in. And everyone got a good laugh as I headed out the door followed by Bartholomew singing, “Elvis has left the building!” followed by an imitation drum sound like the silly parrot was some kind of beatboxer.

My only relief was that Benny wasn’t going to be witness to what was coming.

I walked over to confront Uncle Daniel and the rest of them rather than bringing it into the Phelps’ yard.

“You’re going to fix this August. Or else,” Sharon snarled at me before I even put a step onto the porch.

“Or else what?” I asked her calmly, forcing her to come down to me.

“You just wait. You’ll find out,” she growled.

I was already ready for her. “And if you try and pull anything I’ve got proof of a few things you might not want to get made public. You owe a bunch of people Sharon.”

Uncle Daniel who’d finally stepped outside looked at her and asked angrily, “What does she mean?”

“Nuthin’. She knows nuthin’. Just talkin’ out her butt like she always did.”

“Keep telling yourself that,” I told her as I handed him a printout of some background work I’d done overnight. She made the mistake of trying to take it from her father, but she backed up when he gave her the nasty look I remembered he used to throw Dad’s way. To him I said, “That’s at a quick glance of what has been filed at various Clerk of the Courts here and in Polk County where she was living. She’s also driving on a revoked driver’s license because she’s been tagged as a habitual offender and owes an ungodly amount in fines and fees all over the State of Florida as well as south Georgia and even a couple of in Myrtle Beach. That’s why the Sheriff is sitting across from the gate, just in case you’re wondering. And wonder of wonders, lookee there, the repo man is coming for the very expensive car she’s been driving that is beyond three payments behind.”

“You little bitch,” she hissed.

“Nope. You and your stunt here has turned me into a big one,” I said, giving a growl of my own, momentarily startling all three of them, as Charlotte had slunk out of the house as well.

Uncle Daniel then tried to pull the sad eyes and told me, “August you’ve gone too far. I’m going to be forced to cut you out of my will.”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh well. Not like any of you gave a crap about Benny and me before. And by the way Uncle Daniel you can forget the sad face, I’m not falling for it again. Ever. And you can’t get us through Groucho either. He’s out of it and I’ve warned Stella not to take your calls … and your so-called mutual friends won’t help you out anymore either. I sent a copy to them of what I just handed you, and a few other things besides. I also sent it to Stella who is a very astute woman. What they do with their knowledge is up to them but from here on out, you contact me through a lawyer. You’ve got the email address and I’m keeping copies of everything that comes through the email addy. When or if your lawyer reaches out, my lawyer will look things over. This is going to be strictly by the books and everything in writing. Oh and another thing, I let the county assessor’s and appraiser’s offices in on the little stunt you and your so-called lawyer pulled, and I’ve sent letters to the Board of Realtors and the Florida Bar Association, and that is just the start. And furthermore, in case you haven’t realized it yet, I may look more like my mother than Lawrence did, but I can guarantee that if you lift my flaky crust, you will find Grandfather Barry’s doppleganger.” Turning to look at my cousins I told them, “It’s official. You made an enemy. Let your dad explain what that means to a real Barrymore.”

I turned back to the man who had managed to crush a part of me that I had thought was already gone and said, “I’m really disappointed in you Uncle Daniel. Dad would have never done you this way. Lawrence either. Never. I’m so done. The Barrymore’s have split before and it looks like it is happening again. Let me know when you have a buyer for the entire property - house included - the lawyers can talk the details out. I’m not agreeing to dividing the property; it is all or nothing from this point forward just like Grandfather Barry stipulated. If you can’t pay the bills due on it, that’s not my problem. If the county takes it, I’ll pick it up with a tax deed because by law I have the right of first refusal. You know which of the rules you can’t get around since I’ve discovered you’ve tried everything else to do it. This time your scheme backfired and I’ve got enough to take you to court if you don’t do things correctly from this point forward.”

My uncle said nothing, Charlotte did. “You can’t do this! Besides, you aren’t twenty-five. The Estate papers say you must be twenty-five.”

“Already have “done it”. And whoever told you I had to be twenty-five didn’t read the papers close enough. Twenty-five was only if Dad or Lawrence were still alive otherwise the stipulation is twenty-one and I inherit the full 50% of the Estate that was left to Dad and that covers any portion that would have gone to Lawrence. Benny never came into it because no descendants were ever specified beyond Lawrence and I.”

Sharon hissed like a wet cat again. I turned to her and said, “You definitely need a smarter lawyer. And you should have known Grandfather Barry better than that since you knew him longer. He locked everything down, trying to make your dad and mine work things out between them. He also stipulated the house and property had to be sold together as one folio so that the land couldn’t be pieced out to developers. Uncle Daniel has already lost 25% of his inheritance for that little stunt … as stipulated in the will and estate papers. That means that I now have 75% of the estate coming to me. And looking at the calendar, you’re years too late to contest the will. And from the look on your dad’s face, he knows it too. And don’t plan on being able to sell anything to a developer. I’ve got an in-writing guarantee from the Planning Board that they are not approving any new subdivisions out here on River Road due to the ones that have failed and screwed up the infrastructure out this way.”

Ignoring most of what I said since she didn’t want to hear it Sharon said, “Don’t tell me my business August. I told you I’ve had a lawyer look at those papers.”

“No you didn’t. Got the whole ignorant story from the Title Company. You had your new father-in-law look at those papers and he lost his right to be called “esquire” a decade ago when he got caught in another land deal scheme gone bad. This time he might get caught for practicing law without a valid license. Not to be snarky but if you aren’t in on the swindle, your new husband and father-in-law are and they’re trying to fleece your father. I’d get someone that is more objective and doesn’t lie like an idiot thinking no one would get a second opinion. But that’s your business.” Turning I added, “Uncle Daniel, you have a standing offer from Judge Phelps to explain the papers to you, but it will be at the Court House with witnesses. He’s the one that helped Grandfather Barry write them up in the first place. He sure enlightened me about a few things that have been going on. Including that the HOA along the river has given you notice to clean your crap up or expect a notice of intent to lien the property. You also haven’t paid them the fees owed in two years and were expecting to get out from that debt at closing today … which won’t be happening. You shouldn’t have ignored Grandfather’s friends. You burnt quite a few bridges … even more than the one you burnt with me.”

Taking a deep breath I said something else for good measure as they tried to give me the cold shoulder and walk away. “If you try and touch Benny in any way, shape, or form I’ll come at you like Sherman through Atlanta. If you try and disenfranchise Benny in any way, shape, or form it won’t just be Sherman coming at you. And if any of you try and take control of his guardianship? Even think about it? All I got to say to you is you better pray you don’t make so foolish a move.” My cousin tried to open her mouth. “Shut up Sharon. You think you know? You better ask your daddy for some home truths on the Barrymore family. Starting with who all is in the family cemetery … and how they got there.”

At that it was me that turned and left having a pretty good idea that I likely was seeing the last of the last of my family for the last time. Benny and I were it for good. And I’m okay with that.

############
 
Kathy in FL

Kathy in FL

Administrator
_______________

July 1st- 3rd (Part 4)​


I was barely holding it together. Meemo wanted me to stay but the Judge had a doctor’s appointment in Valdosta.

“I love you both,” I told her and the Judge. “But it is safer right now to get Benny out of here. I’ll stay in touch. Promise. But my Barrymore is leaking out all over the place and I need to go figure out what my options are at this time.”

Meemo hugged me and the Judge said, “Your grandfather would be incredibly proud of how you’ve turned out young lady. I’ll keep you informed of where this goes but considering the mess Daniel has gotten himself into, it is likely going to take some time to unwind.”

“Yes Sir. But please be careful. Uncle Daniel appears mostly to be a sorry gambler but Sharon is a piece of work. I had no idea she’s been in so much trouble for so long. And that new husband of hers … I have no proof but where there is smoke there is fire and his family sounds like old time mafia.”

“I’m aware of that jackanape’s reputation … and his family. I … have some friends that are going to find this situation quite interesting. They’re coming for a visit tonight and I agree, it might just be best if you and the boy skedaddle for a bit. But you have best keep us informed. Understand?”

“Yes Sir.”

It felt like I’d just left a funeral I mustn’t cry at for a person I only thought I knew. No sooner had the van door closed and we were back on the highway than Benny started asking me so many questions, mainly why and where were we going to go next, that my stomach was in knots. Were we going to go live with Uncle Groucho (I still hadn’t told him the full extent of Groucho’s injuries). What. Why. Where. And I couldn’t answer a blessed one but couldn’t blame him for asking.

As calm as I could, hiding how close to breaking I was, I told him, “Look Squirt, I need to get some fuel for the van and some sugary energy for my own tank before we get back on the interstate. You want anything?”

“Gummy worms? Please?”

“All right. I’ll even get you a blue Slushie, a small one. But … no more questions for a bit okay? I’m still pulling the plan together in my head.”

“Sure Aunt Gus!”

I hated lying to him, it always cut me so deep, but I needed him to stop asking questions too. Little kids are so oblivious about stuff. I on the other hand was shaking badly and trying to hide it. I was still almost painfully angry … but fear was in there too. So was despair and a lot of other things.

I pulled in and all the pumps were busy, so I took a parking space and told him to stay put, that I was going to get his worms first. As I was about to get out Benny says, “Hey look! Lev is still here!”

I turned and looked and sure enough, the man who was supposed to have been gone yesterday was sitting in roughly the same place he had been the last time I saw him.

I locked Benny in the van with the AC running and walked over. “Lev? Didn’t your ride show up?”

Obviously not in a good mood he snapped, “Does it look like it? What are you doing here? I don’t need pity.”

He looked tired and stressed but being I was in the same condition I let it pass. “Getting gas and trying not to feel sorry for myself … or let Benny know how freaked out I am at how upside down my plans have gone.”

He stopped feeling sorry for himself just that fast and gave me a good look. “Aw hell, you look like crap. What happened?” he asked while he scooted over so I could take a seat on the bench beside him.

“Gee. Thanks. And to answer your question, my world caved in. Or at least the part of it that I thought was under control. Need a lift some place?”

“Is Benny okay?”

I blinked. Then sighed. Someone got it. I wasn’t completely alone in this universe. “Yeah. And … thanks for asking. You’re the only one that has.”

“Which way are you going?”

“I have absolutely no freaking clue,” I told him in complete honesty.

He looked at me again. “Aside from the fact that since you are crazy enough to offer and I’m crazy enough to accept, are you okay to drive?”

“Yeah. As long as it is out of here. Memories are crowding and … and I need to find someplace that I can think without little boys with big ears figuring out enough that Aunt Gus is going to take a high dive off the pedestal she has been sitting on.”

“Nah. At least on that part. As for the place to think. Come with me to Alaska.”


End of Book 2



(Stay tuned for Book 3)
 
kyrsyan

kyrsyan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
I have to say, I was sad to see Lev go. I really was. And I was hoping that at some point he'd reach out to her and they'd reconnect.

But I couldn't have imagined this.

And I'm so glad that she had friends to help her and keep her from being cheated. If she were real, and I had money, I'd offer her enough to buy her uncle out and evict him. Through secondaries, of course, so he wouldn't get into the whole "screw with her" game.

I might be feeling that part a bit more. A dear friend is dealing with something similar at the moment, after her father's passing. Dad had a relative do something similar last year. Just many shades of wrong.
 
DIMDAL

DIMDAL

Contributing Member
I was wondering how you would end and was hoping Gus, Little Bear and Lev would have more adventures together. Alaska's home schooling laws are pretty easy going and is a fantabulious State to visit.
Poor Gus is going suffer with the cool temps. Tell her to layer up and she will be fine. (Can't figure how to insert smiley faces here, lol)
Thank you Kathy, I can not express how grateful I am that you share your wonderful stories with us.
 
Walbash

Walbash

Contributing Member
Thank you for this wonderful story and the expansive Florida history that was included with it. Learned a lot about the state that I wouldn't have ever known.
 
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