Allison's Secret (Book 2): The Accord

by Stalter, D

  The children broke out in giggles.

  “A little?” One of the eight-year-olds scoffed. “You were a lot gassy. And they stunk.”

  Jaden’s face reddened. “Uhm, yeah. Thanks for sharing that.”

  “They stunk bad,” another eight-year-old offered.

  “Yeah, well, I’ve smelled yours,” Jaden retorted. “They ain’t no picnic. Stop picking on me, twerp.”

  “You’re the twerp.”

  The women at the tables laughed. “Just like in the old days.” Karen giggled. “I actually missed all the arguing.”

  “Anyway,” Jaden continued. “Allison has been teaching me about herbs. She says that this time of year we should be taking herbs to stay healthy. I knew that chamomile tea might help with my gas. It did.”

  “Thank you, Lord.” One of the kids snickered.

  “Oh, shut up!” Jaden ordered. “Don’t disrespect the teacher.”

  “You’re not the teacher. You’re just bossy.” Lisa’s daughter Erin, said.

  Lisa cleared her throat and the children quieted.

  Allison brushed a strand of hair from her forehead before making her way to Jaden’s side. “All right,” she said. “I’ve actually decided to add a third herb today because I’m going to be showing everyone how we cut and then dry the herbs. I’ve got three herbs on the windowsill that need to be trimmed.”

  She turned to Jaden. “Would you mind coming up with a sheet for parsley as well?”

  “Happy to,” Jaden replied. “I’ll post it later today. Do you want me to bring over the pots of herbs we need?”

  “Please. I also need three bowls and a small pair of scissors.”

  “Parsley,” Allison began. “Before the solar flare we’d go to a restaurant and often there would be a sprig of parsley on our plate. Does anyone know what the parsley was there for?”

  No one offered a suggestion until Beth asked, “Was it to combat bad breath?”

  “It was,” Allison said. “Parsley has antibacterial properties that inhibit the growth of bacteria in your mouth. Chew on a sprig of parsley and it freshens your breath. Think of all the money you could have saved on breath mints.”

  The group laughed.

  “Eating parsley regularly can help eliminate body odor and,” she turned to Jaden and grinned, “it can help with excessive flatulence as well.”

  “What’s flatulence?” Erin asked.

  “Farts,” Her brother said. The kids broke out in laughter again.

  “I won’t bore you by going in depth into everything experts claim parsley can do, but besides preventing bad breath and gas, they say that parsley can help with fighting cancer, keeping the heart healthy, fighting arthritis, and helping with skin issues like acne.

  “It contains something called myricetin which is also found in cranberries and sweet potatoes. Myricetin is proven to fight cancer and also helps lower blood sugar while decreasing insulin resistance. This may help some of our members who’ve been told by their doctors before the flare to watch for these diseases.

  “Parsley boosts the immune system. That is why I wanted to talk about it today. It’s that time of year.

  “I have also heard that some people take a snip of parsley and rub it on chapped skin. I’ve never tried this, but considering the time of year we are in, we might find out if that’s a benefit.

  “And finally, we always need to consider how much is enough and how much is too much.”

  She raised her head and noticed the women had mostly stopped sewing and were watching her.

  “Unless you are allergic to parsley,” she continued. “And, there are some people who are allergic to some herbs. But unless you are allergic, then my recommendations are that the sprig you used to get in restaurants is about right for a daily dose. Whether you chew it or make a tea and drink it, that’s the amount you want to use.”

  She paused to let that sink in. “And with every herb, I suggest that you don’t take it every single day, 365 days a year. You’ve noticed that I’ve been pushing tea lately.”

  There were nods.

  “And I don’t push the same tea for more than a couple days at a time.” More nods. “I believe that at the very least, you’d be wasting the herb to use it every day – and at the very worst, your body would get too much and there would be other problems. So, I’m just making sure that you all understand that we have to limit everything. More isn’t always better. Okay?”

  Lisa blurted, “So before the flare, my neighbor in town used to brag that she drank four glasses of chamomile tea every single day to keep her healthy. Now you’re saying that drinking four glasses a day was too much, right?”

  Allison shook her head. “This is where it gets complicated. This is why I have so many notebooks. Unless you are an expert herbalist – which I am not – each herb is different in what they do for the body and in the amount that is considered safe. So, I always error on the safe side. Chamomile, as well as lavender, which we are going to be talking about, is considered safe in larger quantities – unless you are allergic, of course. If you are allergic, chamomile tea could lead to respiratory problems or even anaphylactic shock in an extreme situation.

  “Four glasses of chamomile tea is considered safe for anyone who is not allergic. Now, let’s go back to parsley for just a moment.”

  She closed her eyes, then opened them. “I’m trying to remember the side effects of too much parsley. This is why Jaden will be posting sheets. If I remember right, too much parsley can cause liver or kidney problems and anemia. It can also cause the skin to become sensitive to the sun. You’d probably get a rash. Taking a small amount of parsley is fine if you are pregnant, but large doses could cause an abortion or birth defects. If you have high blood pressure, parsley might cause the body to retain salt and that could make high blood pressure worse. Parsley also contains chemicals that could make kidney disease worse. So, always error on the safe side with any herb. A little is most likely good. A lot could cause problems.”

  “I understand,” said Lisa. “And the sheets that Jaden will be posting will have all of this information?”

  “Yes,” Jaden said. “I’ll make sure that I put all that information on the sheets.”

  “All right,” Allison clapped her hands. “Would you like me to talk about lavender or just wait for Jaden’s sheet and head straight into demonstrating how we harvest these three herbs?”

  The women looked at each other. Lisa shrugged. “I’d like to hear more, but if you want to move on to demonstrating, we can read the sheets later.”

  “Okay,” Allison said. “I need one of the children to volunteer to come up and help.”

  Seven-year-old Taylor, the youngest daughter of Bell and Chuck, jumped up. “Can I do it?”

  “Of course. Come on up.” Allison set the potted herbs about a foot apart with a towel next to each one. “What we are going to do is trim about a third of the plant off and lay the trimmings on the towel next to it. Can you show me how much a third would be? Just get close, we don’t need to get a ruler.”

  The kids laughed.

  Taylor studied each plant before carefully snipping the top of each one. She set the cut herbs on the towels and stepped back.

  “Great job!” Allison said.

  “Now, if Jaden will set these pots back on the windowsill, they can keep growing.”

  She looked at the women. “If you are at all familiar with herbs, one thing that you may notice is our herbs are a lot more leggy than herbs you see in magazine or might have grown in your gardens. This is normal for herbs grown on a windowsill in the winter. Herbs love the sun. They don’t get as much sun inside, even when sitting in a sunny window, so they are basically reaching for the sun.

  “Another thing you might notice is that we have different types of pots. The truth is, I don’t have enough unglazed terra cotta pots. The herbs will grow in plastic pots, but unglazed terra cotta is much better for them. Terra cotta allows air and moisture to pass through. The r
oots are living tissue and do need to breathe. I put my most important herbs in terra cotta pots. I sure hope we have power back soon so we can get back to living the way we are used to – like going to the store and buying terra cotta pots, but for now, we do what we need to do.”

  She fingered the pile of parsley. “We could use these fresh clippings right now to make tea or to chew, but I’m going to show you how we dry them so we can use them later.”

  The outside door flew open, banging against the end of the counter. Kim stepped in wiping snow off the shoulders of her light jacket. She looked up. Her eyes widened when she saw the group at the back of the room.

  “Oh, I didn’t know there was anyone in here. Sorry.”

  “Where have you been, Kim?” Allison asked.

  “Uh, I just ran to the outhouse,” she replied. “Sorry, I didn’t know I had to sign in and out.” The latter was said with sarcasm.

  “You don’t.” Allison’s voice was flat. “But we’ve been here for forty-five minutes. That’s a long time in the outhouse. Are you feeling okay?”

  “I feel wonderful. Thanks for asking.” Kim tossed her jacket on a hook by the door and hurried up the stairs to her room. Allison watched her until she disappeared.

  Jaden stood. “Want me to show them how we dry the herbs?” she asked.

  “Uhm, sure. I’d like to watch you do it.” She moved to a table near the other women.

  Kim’s door opened and she stepped to the railing above the tables. “I noticed you girls were doing the mending. I have a couple of things here that need mended.” She tossed a couple shirts over the railing. They landed on the table near Allison.

  “The nerve of that woman.” Karen, the mother of the twins snarled. “I’m not touching them.”

  “Neither am I,” Lisa Grant agreed.

  Allison fought to remain calm. “Nobody is mending them.” She picked up the clothes and turned to Jaden. “Do you have this under control?”

  “Yep.”

  “I’m going to go take care of this.” She rose and trudged to the stairs. Bella followed, and at Allison’s command sat at the top of the stairs and waited.

  Allison tapped on Kim’s door, took a deep breath and stepped into the room. Kim was laying on the bed paging through a magazine. She looked up as Allison entered.

  “What?”

  “I brought your clothes back. No one is going to mend them for you. Those women down there were showing each other the tricks to mending. You should have been there to learn yourself.”

  Kim shrugged.

  “And, where were you?” Allison asked.

  Kim let her gaze wander around the room before coming to rest on Allison. She ran her tongue over her bottom lip. “I told you I was in the outhouse.”

  “Where were you before the outhouse?”

  “None of your business.”

  “Oh, I think it is. Were you in my house again?”

  “What if I was? I didn’t take anything.”

  “Kim, that is my house. You weren’t invited. You stay out of my house.”

  “Well,” Kim shouted. “There’s no where else to go. This place is packed full of your friends who hate me.”

  Allison started to shake her head, then hesitated before saying, “Kim, they wouldn’t hate you if you just tried to fit in.”

  “By fit in, you mean do slave labor?” she snarled.

  Allison’s voice shook with fury, “Don’t you even imply that,” she shouted.

  Kim’s brows lifted in surprise.

  “I mean it.” Allison caught her breath. “I’m done dealing with your crap. I can’t throw you out in the middle of winter, but you are only here until you can safely leave.”

  Kim tossed her head and laughed. “I’d be careful if I were you,” she said with a sly smile. “It might be you that is thrown out in the cold.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Just don’t worry about it. But know that when you threaten to throw me out in the cold, it might end up being you that’s gone.”

  Ice trickled down Allison’s spine. “What have you done?”

  Kim crossed her arms. “Get out of my room.”

  Allison stood with her mouth open. She struggled with the thoughts going through her head. Continue this confrontation or find out facts before getting into an argument that she didn’t know the facts on?

  She turned with her hand on the doorknob. As she stepped out of the room, she tossed a glance over her shoulder. Kim was rolling up the magazine she’d been reading. When Allison closed the door behind her, she heard the magazine slam into the door.

  She walked slowly to the stairs and descended them one step after another. At the bottom, she turned towards the class.

  “Can we continue this lesson tomorrow?” she asked.

  Jaden said, “I can finish up real quick if you want, and then we can do another class tomorrow.”

  “That sounds fine. Thank you.”

  “Are you okay, dear?” Mary asked, rising and walking over to Allison. Karen and Lisa also came over.

  “What happened?”

  “I’m not sure. I need to go to the house and see what she’s been into. I caught her in there the other day. I think she was probably in there again today. I’m not sure what’s going on. But, I think we have to have a meeting about it. Do you think we could have someone occupy the kids in the arena before supper and gather the adults?”

  “Of course!” Mary replied. “I’ll make sure it happens. All the guys are in the arena now so we’ll make sure they know to come in early. Go on home. We got this. We’ll see you before supper.”

  Chapter 21 Allison

  The house was quiet when Allison slid off her coat and hung it on the hook by the back door. A fire burned in the fireplace. The living room was toasty. Bella shook the snow off and laid down in front of the fire. She laid her chin on her paws and watched Allison.

  Allison sat on the couch and bent her head, placing her face in her hands. It was only then that she let the tears flow. Bella stood and padded to the couch. She climbed up, wiggled her head under Allison’s arms and laid her chin on Allison’s lap.

  She had to reach over to the table to yank tissues from the box. She wiped her nose for the tenth time when Bella raised her head and looked behind them. James stood at the end of the hall.

  “Allison,” he whispered.

  She shook her head. “What have you done?”

  “Nothing. I didn’t sleep with her.”

  “You’re lying. We’ve been married too long to try lying.”

  “I’m not lying. I didn’t.” He sat in the chair opposite the couch. He lifted his hand and ran it through his thick, curly hair.

  Allison sighed. She wiped her eyes, then leveled a stare at James. “I just talked to Kim. She said that I was going to be the one thrown out in the cold. I know she came from here.”

  James shook his head violently. “She was here, but nothing happened. I turned her down flat.”

  Allison leaned back, her head resting on the high back of the leather sofa. She closed her eyes.

  When she opened them, James was sitting quietly watching her. He reached across the space between the chair and the sofa and held his open hand out to her. “I love you, babe. You know that. I would never do anything to hurt you.”

  She held her hand out and touched his. “I know,” she nodded. “I believe you. Kim just caught me at a weak moment. I’ve seen her put moves on every single man here. I’ve seen the fights she’s caused. She has to go. We are having a meeting before supper.” She looked at the wind-up clock on the mantle. “In about an hour, I would guess. Someone will take the kids into the arena for some archery practice or something while the adults decide what to do with her.”

  She stared into the fire. The logs glowed red with heat. A spark and a crackle brought her out of her thoughts. She turned back to James. “I hate what I am thinking. I hate that I’m going to suggest that we take her to the FEMA guy
s like a common criminal. I don’t want to see Kelly uprooted. She fits in so well here. She has friends and she takes part in all the activities. I don’t want to see her go, but we have no choice.”

  James wiggled his fingers, then bent them and hooked hers. With a gentle tug, he pulled her to the chair and onto his lap. “I know, babe.” He pulled her close and stroked her hair. “Honey, Kim has to go. If she doesn’t, this whole group will be torn apart. You’ve seen her drive wedges between families. She tried tearing us apart. You know what we have to do. We hold no blame for it.”

  “It’s hard. She used to be my friend.”

  “You wouldn’t think she was your friend if you’d seen her stalking me, taking her clothes off.”

  Allison sat up straight. “She took her clothes off?”

  James reddened. “She started to. I was praying that you wouldn’t walk in the door and see it, but at the same time I was praying that you would walk through the door and rescue me. It wasn’t pretty.”

  Allison stood, her fists clenched. “Let’s go. Maybe we still have time to get someone to take her to FEMA this evening before it gets dark.” Bella stood looking from Allison to James.

  James stood and walked to the stack of firewood. Tossing a couple on the fire, he used the long poker to arrange them so they would burn longer. Then he took her hand and led her to the door.

  They arrived at the common room at the same time as Riley and Will. Will held the door open for them to enter.

  “Thanks.” Allison smiled.

  The room was fairly full. There were still a few people missing. The children were absent. Mary and Jaden bustled around the kitchen.

  Allison glanced up at the door to Kim’s room. It was closed. She looked at James who was also staring at the closed door. He looked back at her and shook his head.

  The last of the adults came in from the stable. “Are we ready?” Bill Jones asked James.

  James looked at Allison who nodded. The group settled at tables facing the kitchen. James stood next to Allison facing the tables. From where she stood, Allison could raise her gaze to see Kim’s door.

  She started slowly. “I think we all know why we are here. This has to end. I’ve given her every chance to fit in and she just can’t do it. Today was the last straw. It’s not just the fact that she went in to my house and tried to seduce my husband.” Gasps erupted.