Teaberry Chase

by R A Wallace

  “She’s beautiful,” Misty said.

  “She’s a beautiful handful,” Ian agreed.

  “How often do you tell her no?”

  He laughed. “Nearly every second I’m with her.”

  “Sounds pretty confusing, don’t you think?” Misty looked up at Ian.

  “What do you mean?”

  “How will she ever know what it means if you apply it to everything?” Misty rubbed the spot between Dakota’s eyes.

  “She has to learn to behave,” Ian said.

  “Agreed. But it might help if you give her more clues to what you want. Pick a different keyword for each situation. If you want her to stay down, try saying down instead of no. If you want her to stop pulling on the leash, try saying heel instead of no.” Misty shrugged self-consciously. “Just a suggestion. I don’t mean to tell you how to treat your dog.”

  Ian looked down at the Dakota. She was sitting quietly next to Misty. He tried to remember the last time he’d seen her do that. He couldn’t come up with anything.

  ***

  Zeke lifted the lid of the dumpster behind the camp store and tossed the bag inside before dropping the lid back into place. He secured the latch to help deter bears and returned to the camp store to find one of the campers browsing the aisles.

  “Can I help you?” Zeke crossed to the counter with the cash register and stepped behind it.

  “I’d like to place an order for a load of firewood to be dropped off at my camp site.”

  Zeke pulled up his registration software and pushed a large map across the counter toward the man. “Which site are you in?”

  The man glanced at the map and pointed. “Over here.”

  Zeke quoted the price while he pulled up the number of the camp site in his software. “You’re Alva Guzman?”

  “I am.” Alva pulled his wallet out and dropped the cash on the counter.

  “Zeke Banner. Nice to meet you.” Zeke opened the cash drawer and gave the man his change. “First time staying with us?”

  “Yeah. Nice place you have here.” Alva pointed to a flyer hanging on the wall behind Zeke. “A group of us are meeting up here for the Teaberry Chase.”

  Zeke nodded. “You all must have booked early. We’re full up because of it.”

  “We were lucky to get sites.” Alva tucked his wallet away. “Didn’t get them all in the same area of the campground but we aren’t complaining.”

  “With the off-road trail right next door, we’ve expanded our registration system to a year out.” Zeke entered the order into the system to add the wood delivery to Roxie’s to-do list.

  “Thanks for the wood. The rest of my group will be here for the weekend. I know we’ll be wanting campfires in the evenings.”

  Zeke leaned against the counter. “Roxie will drop the load off at your site.”

  ***

  LeAnn approached the front of the bank feeling as though her feet were encased in cement. The large glass doors in the center of the marble façade front sparkled in the sunlight. The four tall columns spaced evenly across the front lent the historic building an air of prosperity.

  After stepping inside, she waited her turn in line and watched the others in front of her as they completed their transactions and moved on. Jennifer was right. She shouldn’t have put this off as long as she did. Her marriage to Gabe had been over for a long time. She would open an account in her name only using funds transferred from their joint account in the amount Jennifer had quoted her, and have her future paychecks deposited into it.

  Raised voices jolted her focus back to the people in front of her. She recognized the teller. She and Misty had been in school around the same time. With her short straight-cut bangs and thick black arched brows above lavender tortoiseshell glasses, she always stood out in a crowd. LeAnn watched with everyone else in line as Rose came from her office and made a beeline for Misty. After a few more tense moments, Rose had the situation under hand. The customer left shortly after. The next person in line swung their head from Heddie in the next window over to Misty before reluctantly moving forward.

  “Rose, do you have a minute?” LeAnn moved out of line to join Rose as she walked back to her office. “I’d like to open an account.”

  Rose put her hand on LeAnn’s arm as they walked into the office. “Does this mean you’re ready for an account without Gabe?”

  LeAnn nodded as she took a seat.

  ***

  Giselle turned Dakota loose in her back yard as soon as she got home. It didn’t take her long to change out of her clothes and into something more comfortable. Within minutes, she had a portion of the salad already in the fridge transferred to a bowl with dressing on it. She carried the bowl outside to eat it on the deck while watching Dakota. It wasn’t the first time they’d kept each other company during Giselle’s dinner. Keeping Dakota entertained while Ian was at work had become something of a routine for them. It was, however, the first time she’d found Dakota digging up her newly planted annuals.

  “Dakota! No!” Giselle set her salad down on the deck table. As she descended the steps to her yard, she remembered Misty’s words. It really was no wonder Dakota was confused. ‘No’ was without a doubt her most commonly heard word.

  “Okay, we’re going to need to learn a new vocabulary for you.” Giselle bent down and replanted the flowers as best she could. “Come on. I’ll get you some water.”

  Dakota immediately ran to the deck and quickly went up the stairs.

  “Is that a word you understand? Water?” She watched as Dakota looked from her to the sliding glass door leading back to the kitchen. “Let me get your bowl.”

  Giselle opened the sliding glass door just enough to slide into her kitchen. She grabbed the water bowl from the corner of the kitchen where she kept it and brought it out. As soon as she set it down, Dakota began drinking.

  “Bowl,” Giselle repeated. The word reminded her that her salad was still waiting. She watched Dakota roam around the yard sniffing everything as she ate her salad. As soon as she was done, she called for Dakota. As usual, the dog ran straight to her.

  “Well, you are good at listening. Maybe we really just haven’t been using the right words,” Giselle muttered.

  She held up the leash. “Walk?”

  Dakota began whining and dancing in place.

  Chapter Three

  Misty sat on the edge of her chair with her hands clutched together in her lap. She was glad she hadn’t eaten much before coming into work. Rose had been waiting for her at the door. Misty knew what the look on Rose’s face meant when she asked to speak with her privately.

  After studying Misty for a moment, Rose leaned forward in her seat. Her office offered them privacy from the bank customers and tellers on the other side of the wall. “Misty, this just isn’t working out.”

  Misty unclenched her hands and pushed her glasses up. “I’m sure I can get the hang of it if you just give me another chance.”

  The grimace Rose made as she tilted her head held compassion. “I think we both know better. Don’t we?”

  Misty filled her lungs with air ready to argue her case with everything she had then slowly exhaled. Deep down, she knew it wouldn’t help. “Yeah. I guess you’re right.”

  “You’ve been short on your drawer consistently since you began working here. You must know that can’t continue.” Rose leaned back in her chair.

  Misty looked down at her hands. “I know. I just can’t seem to keep everything straight. No matter how hard I try, something always happens to throw things off.”

  “You do seem to get distracted easily,” Rose said gently.

  Misty knew it was true. She never enjoyed being trapped inside for much of the day doing the same routine tasks over and over. “Sorry.”

  “You’re very bright,” Rose said. “I just don’t think banking is in your future. Not from behind the counter, at any rate.”

  Misty stood. “Thanks. I appreciate you taking the time to speak with me priv
ately.”

  Rose also stood and followed Misty from the office. Misty glanced over at the other tellers working behind the counter. She saw Heddie look her way with a sad smile. Misty gave a little wave before walking toward the front entrance.

  She heard Rose’s voice behind her as she walked through the doors. “Good luck.” Misty stepped out onto the sidewalk allowing the heavy glass doors to close behind her.

  ***

  Phin Burch made another cast and watched as his lure made a satisfying plop into the larger fishing pond at the Teaberry Campground. It was out far enough that the bobber wouldn’t return to the shore any time soon. He resettled himself in his folding camp chair and picked up his coffee cup. This was his favorite time of the day. The fish almost always kept him entertained with a nibble at the very least. He loved watching his bobber bouncing with action.

  It was a catch and release pond which was a good thing for him. He didn’t really like eating the fish anyway. Mostly, he just enjoyed sitting out by the pond in the mornings before the heat of the day. During the camping season, one or more people nearly always stopped to ask him how he was doing. It kept him company to have a constant stream of people stopping by to talk with him.

  That was one of the reasons why he spent his summers at the campground. It was better when Margaret was alive, of course. Phin frowned as he thought about his wife. He still missed her, even after all these years.

  “Are you fishing or are you catching?”

  The voice behind him startled him. “What’s that?”

  A young man stopped beside him and pointed at the bobber. “I said, are you fishing or are you catching?”

  Phin laughed even though he’d heard a variation of the same question hundreds of times before. “Oh, today it’s mostly fishing. Caught a four pounder the other day though.” He looked up at the young man next to him. He was a solid guy. More solid than Phin had ever been. Now that he was older, he seemed downright boney.

  “Yeah?” The blond smiled at him. “Name’s Ken. Ken Medina.”

  “Phin.” He glanced at his bobber before turning back to Ken. “Are you here for the Chase?”

  “In a way. I’m actually in the area to promote a new opportunity.” Ken tucked his hands into his pockets as he watched the bobber.

  “Oh, yeah? What’s that?” Phin thought he saw the bobber move. He pulled back on the line but didn’t get any resistance.

  “It’s mostly for fun, really. It’s like a lottery of sorts. It helps out some charities and education. That sort of thing.”

  Phin raised a hand mottled with the scars that remained after his doctor had removed the many patches of melanoma and adjusted his hat. “That sounds a little fishy. Pardon the pun.”

  Ken laughed. “This isn’t. It’s totally legit. Like I said, the proceeds go toward education and charities. All local, of course.”

  “Legit, you say?” Phin pulled back on his line again.

  “Yeah. You can check it all out online. There’s a web address where you can place your bets. It takes most credit cards.”

  “Betting, you say? What kind of betting?”

  Ken pulled his phone out. “On the off-road trail, of course. That’s what I’m talking about. Everything is local and legit. Here.” He pulled up the website and passed the phone over to Phin.

  Phin squinted at it. “Well, I’ll be.”

  Ken smiled as he took the phone back. “I’m here to let the local people know about it. You might want to give it a try. Who knows, you might even make some money from it.”

  “Really?” Phin turned back to the water. His bobber was gone.

  “I think you may have something there.” Ken pointed where the bobber used to be.

  Phin pulled up on the line immediately. His bobber flew out of the water along with the hook. His bait was gone.

  ***

  Dena drove past Gabe’s Garage and wondered why it looked like no one was there. She tried to think back to the last time she had passed. It had seemed deserted that time too. She wondered what Gabe could be up to that would take him away from his work at the garage.

  Then she remembered. One of his customers had paid with an older model toy hauler. It was a trailer with space for someone to sleep but also space for something like a dirt bike or all terrain vehicle in the back. She had been the one to suggest that Gabe use the trailer out at the campground as a mobile repair unit for the off-road trail.

  It was the one thing that Gabe seemed really excited about. He liked anything with engines but the bigger, noisier, and faster they went the better. She assumed that must be where he was each time she’d passed his garage. Maybe he was getting enough business out at the off-road trail that he didn’t need to hang around at his garage as much. She wondered how that was working out. She couldn’t imagine people being happy if they couldn’t find him when they needed him at the garage.

  Dena parked her car behind the small building that housed several offices. She was running a little early with her cleaning schedule, just as she had planned. If she timed things just right, she had enough time between her morning jobs each Friday to stop at the bank and pick up some cash for the weekend. She left her car where it was and walked around the front of the building to head down the sidewalk. As she neared the bank, she saw someone she recognized.

  “Misty, hey. Aren’t you going in the wrong direction?” Dena stopped and looked at Misty. She could tell immediately that something was wrong.

  Misty managed a shaky smile. “Looks like my banking career is over.”

  Dena reached out and put her hand on Misty’s arm. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

  Misty shook her head. “It’s okay. I’ll find something else. I always do, right?”

  “I don’t know if Ava has any openings right now, but I really like working at Maid in Teaberry. Ava is an awesome boss.”

  Misty glanced at the bank behind her. “Rose wasn’t bad either. I don’t think we can place the blame there.” She gave Dena a wry grin.

  “Well, maybe we should celebrate your new career path. Whatever that may be.” Dena smiled back. “What are you doing this weekend?”

  Misty laughed. “Not much of anything, I guess. What did you have in mind?”

  “The boys and I are going to the Teaberry Chase. You could come with us. It would be my treat to get you out of the house. Being around a lot of people might be a good thing. What do you think?”

  Misty didn’t hesitate. “You talked me into it.” This time, her smile seemed genuine.

  ***

  Dan pulled into the campground and parked his truck in front of the office. He found Zeke inside at the counter. The man had always reminded him of a grizzly bear. “Morning, Zeke.”

  “Hey stranger. You need a pass to visit your brother?” Zeke reached for a blank hang tag. He quickly wrote a date on one side of it and held it out. “Just make sure the date is facing out when you hang it on your mirror.”

  Dan reached for the hang tag. “Thanks. Have you seen him around?”

  Zeke pointed at the map of the campground in front of him on the counter. “His site is here.” He used a marker to show Dan how to get there. He tore the map from the pad and handed it to Dan.

  Dan waved the hang tag as he left the camp store. He hung the tag as soon as he slid into the truck then drove slowly through the camp following the map. He saw Gabe’s truck first. It took him another moment to recognize his new trailer.

  “There you are.” Dan stepped from his truck and joined Gabe in the back of his trailer.

  “Hey, you just caught me. I needed something else to work on an engine over at the trail.” Gabe continued looking through his toolboxes. “What brings you all the way out here?”

  “I was wondering how work was going.” Dan watched his brother digging through a tray in a toolbox.

  “Work? Work is great.” Gabe closed the drawer and opened another.

  “How can that be? You seem to be out here most of the time now. What’s goin
g on at the garage with you gone so much?”

  Gabe pulled something out of the drawer and smiled at it. “Here it is.” He moved toward Dan to exit the back of the trailer.

  Dan followed him down the ramp. “Gabe?”

  “Yeah?” Gabe turned to look at Dan. “Listen, I have to get back over there. I’m in the middle of something. You understand, right?” Gabe moved toward his truck. “I’ll call you when I have some time. Okay?”

  Dan shook his head as he watched Gabe drive toward the off road trail.

  Chapter Four

  It was her favorite time of the day. Megan sat on her back porch with her tea mug and waited for the show to begin. She could hear the birds around the house as they began their day. She could see the sheep in the field on the other side of the barnyard. They were in the distance this morning, closer to the woods than the barn. The grass in the rolling field between the barnyard fence and the woods was luscious and green. Flora and Dora, the miniature donkeys, were sticking close to the Fletcher horses.

  Megan didn’t know if it was because the donkeys enjoyed being with others they more closely resembled or if they somehow understood that the horses were at a difficult juncture. Since the death of the doctor that had kept them before, the location of their future home was unknown. Megan took a sip of her tea as she admired them. They were beautiful animals. She only had four left at this point. Casey had been slowly finding homes for them all. He would arrive periodically to take one or more of them away.

  A noise in the chicken coop brought her attention to the other side of the barnyard. The hens were out in their large pen, clucking over something as they searched the ground within the fenced area. Outside in the barnyard, Henry the rooster took center stage. Megan no longer wondered if Henry accidentally positioned himself between the barn and the house at the same time each morning. She knew it had to be by design.

  Dan emerged from the barn after the morning chores and walked toward the back porch where Megan sat. She saw the firm set of his jaw as he drew nearer the brown leghorn. Henry waited until Dan was within range and then lifted his head to turn his one good eye toward his adversary. Man and rooster stood staring, as though suspended in time. Megan wondered who would win the battle of wills this morning. From her count, they were currently at a draw.