“Of course who else?”
“Well the Caleb I know got up to more shit than half the damn county. If I told you the sleepless nights his mother and I’ve had.”
“But your wife said he was the best behaved.”
“His mother lies for him, she always did. The boy was always part criminal in the making. There was a time there when I had a bail fund going.
I finally bought Marjorie a yacht with it last year, because that was the first time I started to believe that he wasn’t headed for the hangman’s noose.”
She laughed so hard she almost fell out of her chair. “You’re making it up.”
“If I lie I die.” The old lying ass put his hand over his heart and one in the air. I was grinning silently to myself because I’d never seen her this relaxed. I should bag some of dad’s hooch for later.
“Now you see this one here, where he’s covered in a cast from head to foot? He was seven, first time he went wrangling with a bull. Sent his mother to her bed for a week. Poor woman hasn’t had a sane moment since.”
“But he only has a cast on one arm.”
“Okay you caught me, I think he got that falling out of a tree if I remember correctly.”
He knows very well that I got it from him egging me on when he knew that mom didn’t want me to climb the tree, because it was too big and I was too little. Then again mom always thought we were too little to do anything.
Dad on the other hand would sneak and let us do it, as long as we didn’t involve him when shit went south.
It was the first time that I learned that as big and bad as my dad was in my eyes, he was scared shitless of mom, especially when it came to her kids.
For some reason it taught me to respect them both more. It also gave me a stronger sense of family.
Dad never became weak in my eyes because he deferred to mom in some things, no more than I found her weak those times when I saw him put his foot down and mom did as she was told.
As a kid I didn’t understand all the dynamics, I just knew I felt safe with these two people, as an adult I get it.
“Aww, my poor Caleb, he’s so little here.”
“Don’t let the little rascal fool you, he was always up to some shit. I slept with one eye open until he left for college.”
“Caleb went to college?”
“What do you think, that I raised an idiot? Of course he went to college.
It was hard on him doing both and of course he didn’t take regular classes like the rest of ‘em after his first year, but my boy sure did get his degree.”
“Wow, that must’ve been something, doing both at the same time, and so young.”
“I’m sure it was, his mother and I are very proud of him, now we have something else to be proud of him for.”
“What’s that?”
“You.”
“Me?”
“Yes you. I always knew he would choose the perfect gem. His mama worried forever about that boy settling down. His brother’s been married for a while now, and he’s younger you see, so she got nervous. But I knew and I was right.”
She was silent for so long that I almost walked in, but then I heard her softly spoken words and I couldn’t move if I wanted to.
“But I’m not a gem.”
“What do you mean?” his voice had gone soft too.
“He hasn’t told you?”
“Told me what sweetheart?”
“About me, about my past.”
“I know enough, I don’t see what that has to do with it. Were you the one running around shooting people and beating up on someone you thought was weaker than you?” She shook her head but kept it down.
“Well then tell me, tell me why a bright, beautiful and kind young lady doesn’t think she’s a gem?”
“Because...don’t you think your son deserves better than my past? Don’t you think he deserves someone like that Cecily girl?”
“Who? Listen I’d like to be sure of the lineage of my grandkids when they finally get here. I’ll thank you kindly not to wish that person on me and my family, thank you very much.”
“What do you mean?”
“Never you mind all that now, you just listen to your father in law, I know about these things. You’ve seen my wife? She’s a gem.”
“Oh but I’m nothing like her, she’s perfect.”
“It’s good that you think so, as her daughter in law it will make life easy. But I tell you I see some of the same qualities I saw in her over thirty some odd years ago in you. She’s another very strong female.”
“But I’m not strong like that as you know.”
“What’re you talking about? You’re here aren’t you? Do you know how much strength it takes to walk away from the known into the unknown? It takes a lot of guts and courage.