Wednesday Briefs: Bad Karma and the Family Plan #42 (8.5)

Good morning and Happy Hump Day! If it's Wednesday, then it must be time for more flash fiction from the Wednesday Briefers! We're a group of authors who bring you our finest flash fiction every week, 500 to 1000 words, inspired by one of our prompts.

Bad Karma and the Family Plan #41 (8.5)

“I’m so sorry.” Maureen continued to apologize for her ill-mannered child, even though she clearly wasn’t to blame for his bad behavior. And honestly I couldn’t fault the minister either. Face it, Joe Jr. was just a bad egg.

Ethan, Sarah, and Benny were quick to assure her that his words were not his fault, while I maintained a stoic silence. Both because I didn’t feel it was my place to intrude in this family moment and also because I had nothing but expletives to use regarding him and didn’t think that would be appropriate behavior on my part.

The minister retreated to his study, at least momentarily, leaving the rest of us to ourselves.

“I’m so sorry, where are my manners? I bet you’re all thirsty after your long trip. What can I get you?”

We all protested that we didn’t want to be any trouble but in the end Maureen prevailed, and Benny went into the kitchen with her to help bring out glasses of homemade Southern sweet tea. Not until everyone was settled with their drink, including Alex who was enjoying fruit juice in his special cup Grandma kept just for him, did the conversation return to the original subject of Joe Jr’s missing wife.

“Heather moved out suddenly one day,” Maureen explained. “I don’t know her reasons as I haven’t talked to her. And Joey hasn’t exactly been forthcoming with information.” She sighed. “Haven’t seen her or heard from her since then. Neither has Joe, and you know how close they were.”

Ethan and I exchanged glances but neither of us said a word. Didn’t seem appropriate somehow. Also, what could we say? From where we stood, they seemed closer than close. I didn’t want to be the one to accuse Ethan’s father of infidelity without at least some evidence of it, but they sure gave a good impression of being cheaters.

Well, there was that time we caught them shopping together, back when I was dressed like a woman and Ethan’s mother was in the hospital, before I came out as me. There was a negligee in their cart, a delicate little red thing, it was. And never mind that until we saw them, I had the strangest feeling Ethan was angling to get one of those same skimpy garments for me to wear. Thank goodness, that never happened.  Truth be told, we never did receive an explanation of what was going on that day, and they never offered to explain.  Not like we asked, either. Talk about awkward. I had ended up diffusing the situation by pretending to be hurt, thus drawing Ethan’s attention to something other than his possibly cheating father.

Still, although that in and of itself might look damning—and trust me, it did—I don’t think that testimony would fly in a court of law.

Caught up in my own thoughts, I almost missed what Maureen said next. That Joe’s insurance business had gone belly up (my words, not hers), and that’s why he was back home. Unemployed, without his wife, and generally miserable.

I could have told her he struck me as a very miserable person who deserved everything he got, but I wisely held my tongue.

Evening was already approaching. I hadn’t noticed before but a delicious aroma emanated from the kitchen, one that made my mouth fairly water. And reminded me we had miles to go before we slept, unfortunately. Ethan must have read my mind. We exchanged glances. I could see he felt worse than I did. It wasn’t often he was able to enjoy being in the bosom of his family like this, even if his brother was right upstairs. I liked the way this felt myself, so I could understand he was reluctant to end it.

But it’s also not like we had a choice.

“You’ll stay to dinner, won’t you?” Maureen asked. “I have a pot roast in the oven, with potatoes and vegetables. And I made fresh bread today.”

That sounded so very good.

“Mom, I wish we could—” Ethan’s phone rang, cutting him off mid-sentence. Anderson again? The hairs on the back of my neck stood up in alarm.

Ethan rose and beckoned to me to do the same. He excused us and we headed to the front porch as he answered the call, putting it on speaker for my benefit.

“How far from the hotel are you?” Anderson asked. No hello, no preamble.

“Maybe an hour and a half or so,” Ethan said. “What’s up?”

“I think maybe you should stay away from Atlanta for right now. Maybe for a few days even.”

 to be continued

Now go visit the other Briefers and see what's up with them!

Cia Nordwell

Wednesday Briefs: Bad Karma and the Family Plan #40 (8.3)

Good morning and Happy Hump Day! If it's Wednesday, then it must be time for more flash fiction from the Wednesday Briefers! We're a group of authors who bring you our finest flash fiction every week, 500 to 1000 words, inspired by one of our prompts.

Bad Karma and the Family Plan #40 (8.3)

Well, let’s just say luck was not on our side when we arrived at the Thorne family home. Thanks to having been alerted by Sarah, Maureen was waiting for us when we pulled up the long drive, but she wasn’t alone. Her husband sat beside her on the porch swing. He stood when we pulled up but made no move to follow her as she flew down the steps toward the car.

I was surprised to hear Ethan mutter something under his breath that sounded like a curse, surely not at the sight of his mother. Alarmed, I glanced around us, not sure what he was upset about. And then I noticed the other car parked on the grass and I recognized it from our last visit. Joe Junior. Weren’t we just the lucky ones? And why did I think his being here had nothing to do with the return of his uncle to the family fold? Also, shouldn’t he be working? Doing whatever insurance agents did every day?

I started to comfort Ethan but he had already exited the rental car before I could get the words out, so I simply followed him. Benny was ahead of both of us, and he and his sister were already embracing. Sarah brought up the rear. Understandable as she had to release Alex from his car seat.

By then, Joseph Sr. had strolled down the steps and approached us.  His face lit up at the sight of his grandson, who seemed just as excited to see him, wriggling in his mother’s grasp.

“Yes, yes, it’s Grandpa. Calm down a second.” She handed her son into her father’s outstretched grasp. He leaned down and kissed her cheek then turned toward Ethan and I with a nod, even as he hugged little Alex. I had to admit, he was crazy about that little boy.

“Hello Ethan, Vinnie. Did you have a good trip?” he asked us. I was gratified to see that he wasn’t excluding me in any way. I knew he was trying, and that had to be worth something, right? Even so, I let Ethan answer for both of us. I wasn’t sure what he would say, or how much he would reveal.

“We’ve had worse trips,” he answered evasively, although at the moment I couldn’t remember when that was. Maybe he was referring to Florida, but I wouldn’t exactly describe that as a road trip.

I worked at maintaining a strict poker face when my future father-in-law gave me a sharp glance. He didn’t say anything, so either I had succeeded in fooling him or he was withholding judgment. Hard to tell.

However, at the sound of his wife’s voice, he was most definitely paying attention. She repeated his name. She nodded toward her brother, whose hand she held within her own. I wasn’t sure what to expect, all things considered, and the way Reverend Thorne had previously treated Benny.

It wasn’t until Joseph Sr. took a step toward Benny, free hand outstretched, that I realized I’d been holding my breath. I quickly exhaled and glanced at Ethan. He seemed as relieved as I felt.

“Welcome home, Benjamin,” Reverend Thorne said, and I heard nothing untoward in his manner, thank goodness.

Benny took the proffered hand. “Thanks, Joseph,” he said. “Good to see you again. By the way, you’ve got quite the grandson there.”

Those words did it. Joseph Sr. smiled widely, tucking Alex onto his hip. “I do indeed,” he agreed. "Why don’t we all go inside and get comfortable?”

Crisis definitely averted. I’m not sure what I’d been expecting, but this wasn’t it. Looked like Ethan’s dad was still evolving into more of a human being all the time. Ethan and I exchanged glances and I could see he was a relieved as I was.

Joe Se. led the way, followed by Sarah and Benny. Ethan and I brought up the rear, stopping only to greet Ethan’s mom. She was in great spirits, and her color was quite a bit rosier than when I’d first met her, at the hospital, after her stroke. She had her family together, and I could tell she was happy about that.

Still, there was that elephant in the room. I knew Ethan would ask about it, and he did.

“Is Joey here?” he asked.

“I haven’t had a chance to tell you yet,” his mother apologized. “Things have been a little hectic last couple of days. Joey moved back home. Temporarily,” she hastened to add.

Holy shit, what was going on?

Before we could even ask, Maureen said, “Heather’s gone.”

What did that portend?

to be continued

Now go finish the other Briefers and see what's up with them!

Cia Nordwell

J Ray Lamb