by D. R. Mather
He headed around a corner and there stood his new crew: Jimmy, Larry, Lance and Dean. When Benny saw the crew he held up the gun, “We’re moving up boys, moving up fast now.”
They all got into Benny’s newly ‘acquired’ car and drove off into the night. The owner of the car was now floating, one hundred feet away, in the river. The new crew could be heard from a long way off as they hooted and hollered out the windows as the car sped through the warehouse district.
Benny didn’t yell out though. Instead, he sat and smiled. “Someone is gonna pay, someone is gonna pay big time.”
Chapter Eighteen
The International Beekeeper’s Convention started at the Expo the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Kevin, Judy, Alex and Beth were standing together near a display. Kevin thought it might be a good idea if they just got out of the Inn for a while. Cindy, Roland, Marie and April were there somewhere, but they had lost them a while ago. No big concern because they had driven in separate cars anyway. A mustang wasn’t exactly a bus. As they passed a display showing ultra-modern hives, Kevin turned quickly and saw two women from across the other side of the displays, looking at him. He had a weird feeling and an icy chill went up his back. One woman seemed to be somewhere in her mid-forties; the second looked like she could be the mom – sixty-five, maybe seventy or so. They stared at Kevin as his little group moved around a corner and out of sight. Judy saw Kevin’s face.
“Something wrong hun?” She asked.
“Ah, no, no, nothing’s wrong, everything’s fine,” said Kevin, shaking it off. He then beeped her nose with his fingertip. She giggled. She was in love.
Beth was trying to explain to Kevin why he shouldn’t be afraid of bees. It seemed she had a friend who had several hives in one of the places she rented years ago. “I never got stung once Kevin, not in the year I was there.”
Kevin looked at her and was about to say what he thought of that when Judy reached out from behind him and pinched his butt with her fingernail tips so that it felt like a small area with a big sting. Kevin swung around and started swatting at the air. Judy laughed her brains out.
Kevin looked over at her. “Oh just laugh it up chuckles the clown, you’ll get yours, just you wait.” He turned back to Beth and Alex and both of them were almost in tears from trying to hold back the laugh. It made them ‘puff’ out some all over their cheeks. He pointed his finger at them, “And you guys too.” Kevin then walked off mumbling to himself about, “Messing with a guy’s phobia like that…”
At the end of their visit to the convention, Judy and Kevin had nine jars of honey between them as they got to the main gates. They saw Cindy and her gang and Judy noticed that April and Cindy also had roughly the same amount of jars. Judy went running across the open area to meet up with them, holding her jars across her chest as she ran.
Kevin yelled out, “Judy, hide your honey jars while you’re in public. Shame on you, letting them jiggle around like that for everyone to see”. She didn’t turn, but Kevin could hear her giggle.
By three that afternoon, everyone was back at the Inn. In fact, except for Stan, Mark and Will, everyone who lived there was standing in the kitchen staring at nineteen large jars of honey that were sitting on the counter. No one was talking or moving, they just stared. Kevin had his left hand on his chin and Alex had his right hand on his head.
Judy piped up, “How about some honey-glazed doughnuts?”
“Yeah, about twenty thousand of them,” Kevin said.
Everyone laughed and Cindy added, “Honey oat bars?”
“Then that should cover half of the jars after we make the doughnuts,” Kevin replied.
“Hey, we don’t need to use it all at once anyway,” Barb said. “Don’t worry, honey lasts forever, we’ll use it, that we will.”
So Barb came up with the best solution – use it but don’t use it. Everyone dispersed and Barb said, “Judy, we can use some of it tonight if you want to make that bread?”
”What bread?” asked Kevin, turning around.
Judy stepped back, spread her legs, stomped one foot on the floor and gave Kevin what was SUPPOSED to be a tough, stern look. ”OUT MISTER!”
Kevin smiled and went over to her. “Okay, okay, you win. I’m gone.” He kissed her and left.
As Judy and Barb prepared to make bread, Cindy came back into the kitchen. She stood at the entrance just looking at Barb and Judy. Judy ran over and pulled Cindy in, “Come on girl; I have a bread secret to share. There is only one important topic to be heard in the kitchen, new love.”
Kevin was standing at the entrance to the living room talking to Alex and Beth when the main door opened. Two women walked in and made their way to the desk in the corner. The three of them just stared at them in disbelief, as Will came buzzing out of the dining room and headed for the stairs. He had a mop and bucket in one hand, a broom in the other. He hadn’t noticed a thing.
“Ah, Will…?” Kevin said when he saw him.
Will stopped and looked at Kevin, one foot already on the first step. Kevin just nodded his head toward the two women. Will turned, saw the women, and dropped his broom. As he picked it back up, he didn’t seem quite sure what to do and started stammering.
“Ah, ah, ahem… Hello, welcome to the Colburn Inn. May I help you?”
“Yes, I believe we need a room for the night.”
Will headed over to where the two visitors were, juggling a broom, a mop and a bucket as he moved. Kevin turned to Alex and Beth, put his arm behind each of them and escorted them into the far end of the living room. They all heard a loud crash as the bucket, broom and mop hit the floor, followed by the sound of Will apologizing.
“I saw these two women at the convention, they were staring at me like I had lice or something,” said Kevin.
“Did you hear the accents?” Alex put in, “They sure aren’t from Chicago.”
“It sounded Slavic to me,” said Beth.
“You mean they’re Russkies?” asked Alex.
“Oh get a brain Alex, the language is much more widespread than Russia.”
“Now Beth, Alex has a very good brain, when he turns it on that is.”
“Oh thanks Kevin, I thought you’d be on my side.”
Kevin just smirked at him. “Well,” he said, “they seem fashionable enough, not like the ones we used to see in the travel magazines when we were kids.” They looked at him strangely, like they had no idea what he was talking about. “Oh, you know, Black shawl, and black kerchief on their head, walking with a cane that looks more like a stick than a cane.”
“OOOHHH…YEAH,” said Alex, “I remember those pictures.”
Beth looked at them with her arms folded across her front, “Idiots.” She walked toward the desk and came up behind them, then asked if they needed any help with their luggage. Both women jumped as if someone had lit a cherry bomb behind them.
“Hi, my name is Beth; do you need assistance with anything?”
The younger one turned and looked at Beth for a second, then said, “Oh no, thank you, we only have these because we will only stay one night.” She held up a small suitcase to Beth. “My name is Gabrijela Novakovic, I am pleased to me you.” She reached out and shook Beth’s hand. “And this is my mother, Anamarija.” Beth reached to shake her hand but the elder lady pulled back. Gabrijela turned and said something to her in a strange language, and then the woman took Beth’s hand as well.
“Your mother, she doesn’t speak English?”
“I am feared she does not. We are from Croatia you see, we do not see a lot of English speaking people, at least my mother does not.”
“Well, you seem to speak it well enough, so we should get along just fine,” said Beth with a smile. She then turned to Will. “Are we all set here Will?”
He shook his head to indicate yes but didn’t say anything else.
“I see,” says Beth, “and will the visitors be sleeping in a room or on the sofa?”
Will shook his head a bit and smiled at
everyone, “I’m sorry, I was thinking of all the things I have to do, of course they get a room. Beth, would you show them to room fifteen please?” He handed her the key.
“Always happy to please Will, you know that.” She gestured the ladies towards the stairs. As they crossed the living room entrance, both women stopped and Beth almost ran into the back of them. They both looked across the room at Kevin for about ten seconds, then turned and headed up the stairs.
“That was creepy,” said Kevin.
“I think I just peed,” said Alex. Both men started laughing.
Beth brought the ladies to their room. It had two beds in it and Beth just knew Will never even bothered to ask if they would like separate rooms. Beth asked for him.
“Oh no, no,” Gabrijela said. “This will do just good.” Her mother grabbed her arm and said something in Croatian to Gabrijela. Gabrijela said something in Croatian to her, patted her hand and looked at Beth, “Is there a place we can get a meal here please?”
Beth blew on a piece of hair that had fallen from her head into her face. She thought to herself, ’And I see Will didn’t bother to tell them the eating arrangements either’. She explained to the ladies that because they were not located near any stores or restaurants, the owners saw fit to include a breakfast and a dinner as part of the room price.
Gabrijela looked at Beth. “Oh a real American home cooked meal! This should be most enjoyable.” She turned to her mother and explained the eating arrangements. Gabrijela’s mother seemed most pleased with this idea. Beth showed Gabrijela the room and pointed out the bathroom around the back corner, as well as the view out of the window. She asked if they needed anything and Gabrijela’s mother came over, said something to Gabrijela and Gabrijela told her, “Later, later,” In their native tongue.
Her mother went to the window. Beth left them and headed downstairs and straight over to Will.
“It’s a good thing I’ve had my share of stays at hotels mister, or you’d be in trouble.” She reached over the desk and gave him a kiss on his cheek, “Two more will be joining us for dinner sir.” She went out to the kitchen.
Five minutes later and Barb was in front of Will, “I believe it was you who decided which of us would do what things when we opened the place?”
All Will could say was, “I…I…I…they caught me by surprise hun. We never actually got an overnight guest. I guess I just crumbled.”
“I guess you did indeed, there’ll be no sugar for you tonight.”
Will stood there staring at his wife as she headed back to the kitchen. No sooner did she go around the corner to the dining room, then her head was back around the corner looking at him.
“Don’t worry too much sweets, we do have plenty of honey instead.” Then she was gone again.
About an hour later, Kevin was reading a newspaper when he heard someone walking across the marble floor in the main entrance. He looked up and saw Judy coming towards him.
“Hi honey, short of sleeping, this may be the longest time you’ve been out of my sight. Miss me?”
“Yes, that’s why when Barb asked someone to go and find you, I was out the kitchen door before she finished her sentence!”
Kevin watched her come across the living room. ’Gorgeous, she’s just gorgeous,’ he thought to himself. Judy walked over to him and plopped her butt right on his lap, crushing the newspaper.
“Thank you dear, I didn’t want to know what was going on out in the real world anyway,” and he kissed her.
“You’re very welcome.” She gave him a kiss of her own.
Five minutes later, Cindy walked into the living room. “I told Barb we sent the wrong person.”
Kevin was reading his paper from a sideways angle and Judy was linked behind his neck, just lying with her head on his shoulder. They both looked up at her.
“Ah, sweetheart, I think you just got me in trouble,” Kevin said with a grin.
Judy bolted upright, “Oh crap, I forgot, Barb needs help.”
That was worth a laugh from Kevin and Cindy. As Kevin walked into the kitchen, he saw Barb and April trying to drag the huge maple workstation from one area over to another. He stuck his head in the kitchen door. “Need some help ladies?”
Barb looked up and said, “This two feet of movement we did to this workstation represents only ten minutes of work Kevin. What happened to you?”
“I believe Cindy put it best, you sent the wrong person for the job.” He finished his entry into the kitchen. “Where do you want this beast?”
“All I wanted was to turn it in the other direction; I thought it could be a lot easier to work on because it would be closer to the sinks.”
Kevin walked over. “No problem,” he said. He lifted the side up with one hand and swung it over to where Barb wanted it to go.
Barb looked at April, then at Cindy and Judy who were standing at the kitchen entrance.
“Ah Kevin, that thing must weigh over one thousand pounds,” Barb said out loud.
Kevin started to walk away and looked back while still moving forward, “Nah, felt like only nine-hundred and fifty to me.” He moved past Cindy and Judy and headed back to where he had come from. A few minutes later and Barb had to go into dry storage for some more yeast.
April looked at Judy. “That, my girl, was not natural.”
“I know. On the mission we went on before you joined us, he threw two men over twenty feet; one in each hand. They hit the reinforced glass hard enough to break it and go through it.” Cindy recounted Billy hanging from the floor for a few seconds before Kevin lowered him a bit.
“Strong is one thing. That, that, well, that’s just not natural is what that is,” said April.
“But he doesn’t seem to notice it, as if it’s normal to him,” Judy added. They went about making bread and peeling potatoes for dinner.
Dinner consisted of a nice burgundy marinated roast beef, with sides of mashed potatoes, diced carrots in a butter sauce, cauliflower in a cheese sauce, a broccoli casserole, gravy and honey oat bread. Everyone was seated when Gabrijela’s mother grabbed her arm as if to pull her ear closer to her and said something in Croatian to her.
“No momma, no…” Then she said something in Croatian back to her. Barb looked at them.
“Is something wrong?”
“Oh no, no, my mother, she asks where is the goat.”
Kevin snorted through his nose, excused himself very fast, and headed to the hall towards the kitchen. He left them all to their own devices. He came back a minute later with a bottle in his hand and sat down again.
“Is my food not clean enough for you Kevin?” Barb asked, looking at him.
“Huh, what?”
“Well you brought out a bottle of dish soap and I’m asking if my food was dirty or something.”
Not only did Kevin look down at what he had in his hands, but everyone did. He only had one word he could think of – “Shit”. He got up and went back out to the kitchen, then comes back empty-handed. He went over to Judy and sat beside her, silent. Judy was snickering and whispering ‘goat’ in Kevin’s ear. Several others were holding it back as well. Will was close to having to exit out the other side of the dining room himself.
Kevin looked over at Will “Maybe you can go get me the stapler at the desk so I can staple Judy’s mouth shut Will?”
That did it, everyone lost it now, and everyone broke out laughing; everyone except Gabrijela and her mother. They finally managed to calm down and Gabrijela asked, “Is this American tradition?”
Nobody could eat for five minutes after that question. Once again, the laughter died and then Barb explained that in America, goats were only used for their milk, not for eating. Gabrijela was explaining this to her mother and her mother looked dazed and shocked by the news. The two ladies ate some of the beef, but several others noticed that they seemed to fill up mostly on vegetables and bread.
Kevin leaned past Judy to speak to Barb. “Barb you may have to brush up on some internation
al cuisine, huh?”
Barb looked at him, “Oh? Does international cuisine include dish soap?”
Kevin sat back, beaten.
Judy leaned into him, “Honey, I don’t think it’s your night for talking, hmm?”
“Honey, I think your right.”
***
Later, everyone was sitting in the living room, Gabrijela and her mother included. Cindy was asking all about bees and how they made their honey.
“Kevin has a phobia about bees,” pipped in Judy.
“Thank you for telling them sweetheart.”
“No problem baby, and if you need me to tell them anything else, you just go right ahead and ask me, okay?”
Kevin mumbled something under his breath that Judy didn’t hear. Gabrijela heard what Judy had said and began telling Kevin about how bees worked and how they only stung when they were threatened, or to protect the hive. Kevin listened, Kevin didn’t care. As 10 p.m. rolled around, April, Barb and Alex were already off to bed. Will stood up and announced it was time for him to hit the hay, and said his goodnights. Cindy and Roland looked at each other and decided it was time to hit their hay as well. Marie followed them up because she was assigned to watch after Cindy. Wherever Cindy went, Marie was never far behind. This left only Kevin, Beth, Judy and the two Croatian women in the room.
Gabrijela got up and came over to Judy and Kevin. “Please, if I may speak with both of you?”
Beth took the cue and said her goodnights.
“Mr. Kevin, we….”
“Kevin, just call me Kevin.”
“Okay, Kevin. We did not come here by mere chance, you may already know this, yes?”
“Yeah, I knew that, so why did you come?”
“I did not come to see you Mr. Kev… I mean Kevin, I brought my mother to see you.” She brought her mother forward and her mother handed Kevin something. It was gold, both Judy and Kevin could see that right away. It was hand-carved and very elaborately done. Neither of them could quite make out what it depicted though. It had images carved into it, and the piece was three dimensional, like filigree.
