On Hummingbird Wings

by Lauraine Snelling

  “I was in a state of shock. I saw the news on the ticker tape that runs along the bottom of the screen on news shows. First I’d heard of it.”

  “Oh, Gillian, that’s terrible.” Allie leaned forward. “I am so sorry.”

  “Thanks, there is no turning back for sure.” She looked at her mother. “So if you want me to stay here, I will. If you want me to move, I can do that, too. But not until you are up and running.”

  “Of course you can stay here.” Mother looked one shade south of indignant.

  But do you want me to stay here? Can and want are two different things. I’m not a deadbeat crawling home because I have nowhere else to go. She felt like pounding the walls, perhaps going out to weed in the yard would be a good thing. “Thanks.” Gillian glanced at Allie, who was rolling her eyes. How about that, Allie did understand.

  “Besides, once I am gone the house will belong to the two of you anyway.”

  Definitely, it was time to weed or go shopping or…

  Interesting how her mother ignored her comment about being there as long as she was needed. When the doorbell rang, Gillian headed to the front door. “I’ll get it.” Who would be here now?

  “Hello, Enzio, how good to see you.” She pushed open the screen door. “Come on in.”

  “I see Allie is here, too. I can come back later if you like.”

  “No, you know now is the best time. I was just telling my gruesome employment story.”

  He set a white cardboard box on the table. “I just brought us all a little treat.”

  “If you say napoleons…”

  “No, I brought cannoli this time. I wasn’t sure if you’ve had that before.”

  “Pardon me while I wipe away my drool.”

  “They are delicious. Is your mother awake?”

  “Yes, come on in. I just told her my news. The coffee is hot to have with our treats.”

  Gillian kept one ear tuned to the bedroom. The greetings seemed to go fine. Mother was not screaming “Out! Out!” After a bit she ambled back there. Mother was now sitting upright and Enzio sitting on the edge of the bed. She left to bring in a couple of folding chairs. They still hadn’t talked about the appointment with the doctor, and Gillian still hadn’t called his office. After dialing his number and leaving a message with the receptionist, she brought the extra chairs into the bedroom.

  “I could have done that.” Enzio jumped up and finished carrying one around to sit beside Allie.

  Although Dorothy didn’t take part in the conversation, at least she stayed awake and seemed more alert. A bit later Gillian and Allie brought in two trays with coffee mugs, plates and forks, and the delectable cannoli. When everyone had theirs, Gillian took her first bite and closed her eyes in bliss. Talk about melting on the tongue.

  “As good as the napoleons?” Enzio asked.

  “Do I have to make a decision?”

  “When did you have napoleons?” Allie asked.

  “Friday or Saturday.”

  “We need an Italian bakery in San Ramon.”

  Gillian glanced at their mother, who had eaten at least one bite and now had powdered sugar on her face. That was good. She watched as Dorothy reached for the coffee mug on the nightstand. Another good harbinger.

  “So, are you ready to go get the rental car?” Enzio asked.

  “Any time.” Gillian ate the last bite and mopped her mouth. “That was so good, thank you.”

  “Why are you renting a car?” Mother asked.

  “Because I need transportation.”

  “What is wrong with my car?”

  “I don’t know. Nothing, I imagine.” Gillian had seen the car in the garage. Her mother had always kept everything up to perfection. “You want me to drive your car?” She stared from her mother to her sister. Mother never let anyone drive her car. Allie shrugged. Dorothy nodded. Enzio winked. “But what if I dent it or something?”

  “I have insurance.”

  “Ah, well, thank you. I need to do some shopping this afternoon.”

  “The keys are hanging on the board in the kitchen.”

  They were actually having a conversation. Some real give-and-take.

  “I need to go,” Allie said as she stood. “I’ll be back in a day or so.” She leaned over and kissed her mother’s cheek. “Thanks for the treat, Enzio. Good to see you.”

  “Then I am not needed as a chauffeur this afternoon. Dorothy, I guess you are stuck with me for a while.” He waved Allie off and moved over to take her chair and sit closer to the bed.

  Gillian followed Allie to the door. “We still haven’t made any decisions.”

  “Well, it appears to me that Mother is doing much better and you don’t need me here. I’ll call you later.” With that she headed out to her car, leaving Gillian to stare after her.

  There it was again, that underhanded bit of sarcasm. What was going on with her sister that was causing her to act like this? Gillian shut the front door to keep the breeze from cooling the house too much. Just think, October and the doors could be open. Yes, there were cheery fall days in New York, but certainly not like this.

  She stopped by the bathroom to check on her makeup and hair, changed her shoes, and grabbed her purse before poking her head in the bedroom door. “I’ll get as much done as fast as possible. How long can you stay, Enzio?”

  “Oh, three hours or so?”

  “He does not have to stay to watch me sleep,” Dorothy grumbled.

  Gillian tucked her grin back inside. “Is there a garage door opener in the car?”

  “Yes, of course.” A glare accompanied the comment.

  Gillian started to say she could get her own car, but decided against it. She would eventually have to buy a car, if she stayed in California, but using her mother’s avoided that necessity for a time. Come to think of it, she’d never bought a car in her life. One did not need an automobile in New York City. She kept a driver’s license only to rent a car when she traveled. “Bye.”

  She put the car in reverse, backed out of the garage and down the short driveway. The Buick was definitely not a sports car. So many changes in her life in such a short period of time. When was she going to spend time thinking out her own future? A plan was necessary. But planning in the unknown was far different from planning with a secure job with a future. Or waiting for Scot to find something. So many ifs. Maybe that was why she was feeling like she was walking down a rocky path blindfolded.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Adam gave his father strict instructions to do nothing.

  “Do you mind if I sit in my recliner and watch television?”

  “Dad, you know what I mean. The doctor said to take it easy for a couple of days.”

  “He didn’t say my life was supposed to screech to a halt.” Bill tossed his son a half grin.

  “You can let Thor out, fix yourself some lunch, or read a book, but not go out to your babies. They can get along without you for another day. I checked on them. Oh, and you can talk on the phone. Please call Jennifer, or she will strangle me.”

  “I hardly think so.” Bill made shooing motions with his hands. “I’ll be fine.”

  Adam hoped Gillian was still asleep as he drove by her house. If only she had met his father so she could go up and check on him. Strange, that they needed each other to check on the other’s parent. Three hours’ sleep had not been enough. He should have gotten up a bit earlier to run, to force the blood to get moving in his veins and arteries. Instead he felt like a slug—the slimy crawl-on-the-ground variety, not the bullet kind.

  “Lord, I know You are taking care of my dad, forgive me for trying to do Your job, but You’re going to have to talk mighty loud to get him to listen right now.” Adam took the shoreline road to stay off clogged Highway 4. Sometimes going east on the freeway was easy, other times it bottled up. That was why he usually left for work earlier. With the SUV windows down, he could smell the marshes along the river, tasting the tangy bite of fall. White pelicans floated on one in
let, egrets and herons patrolled the shallows while ducks grazed the bottom, tail feathers in the air. The drive to the Pittsburg nursery was always a chance to see more of the water-bird kingdom; the way home a time to unwind and observe nature again. Coots paddled the ponds along with a goodly variety of ducks and some geese, mostly Canada geese. With blue sky and a good breeze this would be an ideal day to be out on the water. Especially with Gillian. If he could talk her into sailing with him.

  The nursery gates and doors were already open when he arrived, the way they should be. John was still working with his new opening man. Adam waved at them both and went directly to his office. He immediately called his father. When the phone rang four times, he almost headed back to his truck, but his dad finally picked up.

  “I told you not to fuss about me.”

  “I know and I’m not, but in all the rush, I forgot to feed Thor.”

  “He already told me, rattled his dish until I got the point.”

  “Thank you. Looks like I’m the one needing reminders.”

  “We’ll get through this, don’t you worry.”

  “Right. I have the nursery newsletter here in front of me; how about we cancel that birding trip in November?”

  “Now why would we do that?”

  “Well, to take some pressure off you.”

  “No pressure, the birders meet in our parking lot and Henry leads the walk. I don’t have to go unless I want to.”

  “All right, you promise?”

  “Adam.”

  “Okay, are there any other changes you want?” They went through this every month. Adam wished he had someone to delegate this job to. At least the printer came up with the graphics. When there was no answer, his throat tightened. “Dad?”

  “I’m thinking. I usually have a copy right in front of me, you know.” He paused a bit more. “Did we put a blurb in there about special sales coming in December?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good, then that’s about it. You’re taking it to the printer today?”

  “Yes. And we’ll send it out to our e-subscribers when the printed one is delivered.” They had pretty much cut out sending monthly mailers through the postal service due to cost but handed out a printed calendar version to all who came in to shop. The latter was due to Adam’s insistence. The e-mail letter always contained an extra coupon to encourage more people to sign up for it. “All right then, I’ll talk with you later. Take it easy.”

  His father hung up grumbling.

  Adam sat for a minute, trying to corral his thoughts. Should he have stayed home with his father? What if the test results came back and Bill couldn’t work any longer? What then? But another thought calmed him. His father would have his babies to tend. He much preferred time in his backyard than time spent at the nursery. So his dad would be fine. They would hire a manager for one or both of the stores, and Adam would oversee the entire operation.

  He glanced at his watch, the urge to call Gillian paramount, but it was too early. He’d stop on his way home, if he could hold off that long. Thinking about her made him smile. Amazing how he had come to care for her in such a short time. Had someone told him this could happen, he’d have laughed. “Get back to work, Bozo, you can’t spend the morning daydreaming.” Gathering up his computer disc and the mock-up of the newsletter, he picked up the outgoing mail and headed for his car. On the way, he swung into a Starbucks. Today he needed a triple-shot venti latte. He should have stopped before work, but the drive-in coffee shop had been out of his way then.

  Latte in the SUV’s cup holder, he dropped the mail off at the post office, checked the post office box, and headed for the printer. He took his latte in with him, when he saw a line waiting for service.

  “Hi, Adam,” said the man in front of him. “How’s life?”

  The two of them had gotten acquainted at the local chamber of commerce meetings Adam usually attended.

  “Good.” Liar, crazy would be a better word.

  “Missed you at the meeting Monday night.”

  “I know, I was planning on going but my dad wasn’t home when I got there. Found him being loaded into an ambulance in the Safeway parking lot.”

  “Is he okay?”

  They moved closer to the counter. “Today he’s unhappy because the doctor told him to take it easy for a couple of days until the test results come back.”

  “Maybe I should send him some flowers?” Both the man’s eyebrows and the corners of his mouth lifted.

  Adam snorted. “Thanks for the thought, but for some odd reason we always have plenty of flowers.” It did give him an idea, however.

  “Hope he gets well quickly.” The man stepped up to the counter, and one of the clerks waved Adam over to the farthest cash register.

  “Hello, Adam, must be newsletter time again.”

  He laid the manila envelope on the counter. “Sure is, and I’m even early this month.”

  “We appreciate that. Same quantity as usual?”

  “Yes. All the instructions are in the envelope.”

  “Okay, we’re good to go.” The clerk handed him a copy of the order form. “You know, I got more compliments on those pots you helped me plant. I keep telling people to come by the nursery and ask for you.” She grinned at him. “I know, anyone there can help. Just teasing. Hope you have a good day.”

  “You should come see our newest idea. Planting in cleaned out pumpkins. Chrysanthemums are especially gorgeous.”

  “Really? What a clever idea. Do you have some ready for purchase? I have a dinner to go to this evening. That would be fun to bring as a hostess gift.”

  “I’ll put your name on one.” He went out the door with a wave. Shame he hadn’t had one in the car. Oh, well, one sold. He’d show a couple of his employees how to make them so they’d have a good supply in stock. When he returned to the nursery, he handed an instruction sheet to one of the women to copy for him and had the guys set up a table with the cleaned-out pumpkins on it and chairs in front. When they were ready, he picked up the mic to the loudspeaker and invited the customers to join the employees for the demo in five minutes. With a cleaned-out pumpkin on the table, he removed a chrysanthemum from a four-inch pot and, after filling the pumpkin about a third full of potting soil, set the plant in and filled in with dirt around it. “If the pumpkin is not full enough you can add more plants. Water it and add a bow on a stick.” He set it out for them all to admire. “One more good thing. When the pumpkin gets too soft, plant the entire thing in the garden. The pumpkin fertilizes the chrysanthemum.” His audience clapped and swarmed the table to give requests. Adam turned to John. “We need to make them daily since the pumpkin might begin to rot in a few days. We’ll tell people to put a plate or clear plastic saucer under it.”

  “And the price?” one of them asked.

  “I think fourteen ninety-five sounds about right. Probably nineteen ninety-five if someone asks you to make a larger one. Use various sizes of pumpkins and the price depends on how many plants are used.”

  He left them to make up a few more and watched as two customers bought three of them, including his, while they were being finished. Looked like it was going to be a successful idea.

  By the end of the day, they’d sold ten and had orders for more. He needed to get them on sale at the other store, too. “I’m leaving now,” he told John.

  “Early? You never leave early.”

  “I know, but I’m going to deliver some flowers on my way home. And I’m going to stop by the Martinez store and have them start making pumpkin planters, too. Had no idea this could be such a hot item. Oh, pick out a bunch more from the stack of pumpkins in front. We need to prepare some for the carving demo on Saturday. I’ll bring in the instructions, and we’ll set one of the high school kids to carving for practice.”

  “What’s wrong with faces?”

  “This article shows carving just the outer shell. Works of art. Next year we should have a pumpkin carving contest.” He nodded as he spoke. The
idea had just whizzed through his mind.

  “Divided into age groups. What do you want to use for prizes?”

  “Gift certificates from here and stores around town.”

  John nodded. “Great idea. Should bring in lots of buying customers. And the pumpkins could be used in the November display, too.”

  “We might just try wreath making in December. Blast, and I took that newsletter to the printers already.” He dug out his cell phone and clicked on the number in his directory. “Thanks, John.” He left with a wave, flowers tucked into the angle of his arm and cell phone to his ear. Grateful that he was able to add another announcement box to the newsletter, he drove to his father’s store and instructed two employees to clean out pumpkins. After he planted one, the crew got excited, and after he talked about the success at the Pittsburg store, they were even more enthusiastic.

  “We can sell more than they can,” someone said. And thus the challenge was issued.

  “We’ll tell you tomorrow what the prize is for the winning store.” Adam couldn’t believe he was saying such a thing. They’d never done a sales competition between the two stores before. He drew Keith aside. “You call John and challenge him. Tell him this is with my blessing. The contest will run until the end of the month.”

  Keith shook his head. “This is wild. Does your dad know yet?”

  “Nope, it all came about because of an article I read in Sunset magazine. How have things gone today?”

  “Good; the traffic has been good and sales are steady. We need to order more chrysanthemums.”

  “Great. Make me a list of what you need. We’ll let Dad place the orders. Not sure when he will be back to work.”

  “He only called twice. I’d say that’s pretty good.”

  Adam clapped the man on the arm. “You’re a good man, Keith. I’m glad you work for us. Thanks again for helping me get the truck home. Oh, and have someone clean out the pumpkins in the afternoons and then they can be planted the following mornings. Take special orders if you need to.”

  “We’ll do it.”

  Adam said good-bye and returned to his SUV. Now he could stop to see Gillian. Or perhaps he should go home first and get Thor? Nope, Gillian first. But when he parked on the street, there was no rental car in the driveway. He picked up the flowers and rang the doorbell. He rang it again. No answer. Five o’clock. Was she still shopping? Had someone taken her to get a rental car? Why, oh, why, didn’t he call ahead? Feeling like a balloon with a slow leak, he turned back to the car. Talk about going from high to low in less than an hour.