Blood Ties - A Magnolia Novel

by Ashley Fontainne

  Karina moved closer and put her arm around her grandfather’s frail shoulders. “Grampa, there is nothing to feel humiliated about. We love you both and wanted to make this change, this move. You didn’t ask, we offered.”

  Junior let out a sigh. “I know. And believe me, Gram and I are so happy to have y’all here. I mean, this place,” Junior raised a shaky hand, pointing toward the hay fields, “is our legacy to you both. Eight generations of our family has owned all this, and we’ll leave it all to you and your ma. Does my heart good to see ya both takin’ good care of it. Your ma’s got the house all shiny and clean, and lordy, all the work you’ve put in outside? Means a lot. A lot. But, it still sticks in my craw sometimes that I can’t do it anymore.”

  Karina was at a loss as to what to say. How would she feel if in his shoes? The mind solid, but the body weak? She shuddered and hugged him tight. “Never mind that kind of talk. It’s what families are for, right?” She pulled back and whistled for Ranger. “Listen, Grampa, if it’s okay, I would like to talk to you about the barn. I know it’s been around for generations, but that’s the problem. It’s in poor shape, as I’m sure you know. When Bo and I were inside it earlier, looking for gas, he agreed with my assessment. It’s unstable, and needs to be completely torn down and rebuilt from the ground up. Bo offered to bring his brother and a few friends to help construct it, when the time comes.”

  A shadow of sadness creased his brow as Junior focused his gaze on the crumbling building. “I know, sugar. I know. It’s just really hard to let go of things in the past. Part of gettin’ on up there in age, I guess. Old folks like me need to eyeball items to keep our younger days fresh in our heads. Had me some great times inside the four walls over the years. My pa taught me everythin’ I needed to know about bein’ a man inside it.”

  Karina winced when she noticed tears shimmered behind his eyes, immediately feeling like an ass for broaching the sensitive subject matter. Suddenly, she watched his soulful eyes become playful.

  “Okay, so your gram don’t know this, so just between the two of us little birds, but my first taste of bein’ a man happened in the hayloft with Marci Sue Davenport. Mercy, the girl was a beauty. Gave me a right proper sendoff before I left for the war. Right proper.”

  Blinking twice in shock, Karina burst out laughing, tears streaming down her face. “Grampa, you are too much! As the kids say nowadays, that was too much information! I…uh…wow. Believe me, I won’t say a word to anyone. I would prefer to never think of it again.”

  “Whatsa matter, girl? Were you under some strange impression my only romp in the hay was with…”

  Tears ran from Karina’s eyes. Her sides hurt from laughing so hard. She caught her breath and held up a hand in protest. “Please! No more. I get it. I don’t want to, but I do.”

  “Hey, if it weren’t for that ol’ gal breakin’ my heart with a Dear John letter while I was overseas, I woulda never met my Ruth. Even sadness has its reasons.”

  “You’re right, as always. Though you could have simply said that last part without the other.” Karina smiled and took a sip of beer. “So, back to the original topic at hand. The construction, or reconstruction I should say, of the barn.”

  In a flash, Junior’s tone shifted. “I know it needs to come down before it collapses on its own, but I can’t do it. I don’t want to be here when it happens.”

  Karina wiped away the wetness from her cheeks, thankful to be back on topic. “Believe me, Grampa, I understand. It’s a part of my life, too. I remember following you around inside, watching you tinker with the tractor, build things, telling me stories about our family. But the memories are here,” Karina pointed to her head, then his, “not encased in the old wood. It won’t matter if the structure is new or not, they will still remain inside us.”

  Junior tapped out the spent tobacco and cast a woeful glance toward the barn. He nodded his head once in solemn agreement. “You’re right, sugar. It is a danger in the condition it’s in, and it would be a cryin’ shame to continue to watch it die a slow, agonizin’ death. Tell you what: you and your new squeeze take care of it, just let me know when you plan on startin’. I’ll use it as an excuse to take your gram to Branson for a few days. She’s been beggin’ me to take her for years, and all them contests she keeps entering ain’t come through, so now is a good time. I…don’t want to watch it come down.”

  Karina whistled for Ranger again, and turned to walk back toward the house with her grandfather. “That sounds like a plan. Want me to help set up the trip? I can book everything online. You just let me know when you want to go.”

  “Let me talk to Gram first. Gotta check with the boss before I go makin’ plans. Guess I better get on it, since harvest season is comin’ up soon, and I know Bo will be busy.”

  “Sure. Oh, and Grampa? Bo and I are nothing more than friends at the moment.”

  Junior stopped in mid-stride, eyeballing Karina with a look of bemusement. “Friends, huh? I ain’t never seen two friends beamin’ from ear to ear after spendin’ the day in the hot sun mowin’ before, that’s for sure.”

  “Grampa…”

  “Honey, I ain’t judgin’. I’ve known that boy since he was knee high to a grasshopper. Comes from good stock, and he ain’t never been nothin’ but polite and respectful to me and your gram. Hard worker, that one is. You could do worse, that’s for sure. From what I heard, you have.”

  Thankfully, Karina was spared having to respond by the appearance of her mother at the back door.

  “There you both are! Karina, come help with the kitchen, please. And Dad, Cecil called. He wants you to call him back. He sounded sort of upset.”

  19

  First Steps

  Karina took off her glasses and rubbed her burning eyes. The past hour had been spent staring at the laptop, searching out hotels, the best route to get there, and things to do in Branson. Though she enjoyed the research, even though it was for the simple reason of helping out her grandparents, rather than cyber-stalking a criminal, it was familiar. Karina wouldn’t admit it to her family, but she missed the hunt, as she always called her investigations. Digging, probing, searching for little tidbits to combine together, forming a complete workup of her quarry.

  The research concluded Branson was a little over a two-hundred mile drive from Sheridan. It would make for a long car ride for her grandparents, and one Karina didn’t want them to make on their own. Mom would need to go with them.

  When the cell phone buzzed, Karina glanced down, and her anger rose fast when she recognized the number. She hadn’t heard a peep from Cal since the night of her arrival. “Figures he would contact me after the glorious afternoon I had.” Karina squared her shoulders. There was no way she was going to ruin the remainder of the evening by reading his text “Screw you, Cal,” she flicked the button, powering down the phone.

  She rose and stretched, disturbing Ranger, who had been asleep at her feet. Bending down, she patted his blocky head, cooing gibberish to him. Both turned their heads at the sound of a soft tap on the bedroom door.

  “Karina? You still up?”

  Instead of answering, Karina walked to the door and opened it, ushering her mom inside. “Hey, you’re up late. What’s wrong, Goldilocks? Bed too soft? Too hard?”

  “Funny, I could say the same thing to you. Looks like you’ve been cruising the virtual highways too long. Your eyes are as red as my shirt.”

  “They’ve been that way ever since we cut all the hay. At least I didn’t get all stuffy and start sneezing again. I just look like I’ve smoked a blunt. Or several.” Karina laughed, plopping down on the chair in front of the small desk. “Talked to Grampa earlier about tearing down and rebuilding the barn. He gave his blessing but doesn’t want to be here when we do it. He mentioned taking Gram to Branson, so I’ve been looking for a nice hotel for them to stay at. You know Gram; she’s so cheap, she’ll want to stay at a roadside dive or something. Pack a cooler full of food to eat while there, instead of eat
ing at a nice restaurant. Not going to happen. I want them to be in an upscale, fancy and safe place. My treat, of course. And for you to drive them. No way do they need to make the trip through the mountains on those windy roads. Grampa’s vision isn’t what it used to be. Gram gave her blessing, so I’m looking at setting things up for next weekend.”

  LiAnn grinned. “Oh, sounds like fun! I’ve heard there are some great shows there, and lots to do. I don’t mind driving, but not in their car. It’s too small, and Pop’s truck is a rattle-trap. And Mom isn’t cheap. She’s frugal. Big difference, you know.”

  “Frugal. Cheap. The word chosen doesn’t erase the fact Gram keeps a tight grip on her wallet. And don’t worry, Mom. You can drive Dragula. Just remember to watch your speed. The cops around here already got your number.” Karina winked. “Or you could just buy your own car and take them in it. Maybe a big SUV with a gas tank the size of a small boat. How you’ve made it all these years without your own vehicle is beyond me.”

  “I didn’t need one in L.A. I could go anywhere I needed to with public transportation, plus I had my unit for work. And you as backup. I preferred to save my money, rather than spend it on a hot rod.”

  Karina shrugged her shoulders. “What can I say? I like to live on the edge. Can’t take possessions with you when you die, right? If I could, I would have saved up and bought a Lamborghini. Tooling around in the clouds in that baby truly would be Heaven.”

  Curious about Karina’s earlier remark, LiAnn asked, “So, you said we earlier. I assume you plan on using the handsome Bo Barton to rebuild the barn? You sure the work will get done? You know, in between bouts of playtime?”

  “Was I that obvious?”

  LiAnn sat on the edge of the bed. “Honey, the heat between you two could be picked up on a thermometer. Besides, not much hay was cut in comparison to time spent in the fields. Oh, and the biggest clue? The fact that your shirt was on backward when you arrived back.”

  Karina shook her head. Her mom didn’t miss a thing, especially not something as obvious as clothing thrown on backward in a hurry. With a few taps on the keyboard, she logged off and joined her mom on the bed. “Bo’s just teaching me how to be a laid-back Southerner, that’s all. He’s all about taking things slow and easy.”

  LiAnn stifled a giggle. “Wow, you must be tired if you’re giving me the G-rated version.”

  “Aren’t you the one who said I needed to be more PC on the way down here?” Karina retorted. She cocked her head and stared at the messy, blonde curls piled high on her mom’s head. Though pushing hard on sixty’s door, the woman was still gorgeous, especially when humor danced across her face. “Besides, after my conversation with Grampa earlier, I decided it was high time to tell my steamy love life to Ranger like you suggested. Boy, did he ever get an earful. Good thing he can’t understand a word I said, or he’d think I’m a slut.”

  Rather than rising to the baited statement, LiAnn cleared her throat and changed the subject. “Speaking of slow and easy, there’s a reason I’m up so late. I wanted to talk to you about my wardrobe.”

  Amused by the sudden topic switch, Karina replied, “Why, did you finally get tired of looking at starched white shirts and khakis? And exactly how does slow and easy tie into your closet of boring duds?”

  “You know, your mouth is…oh, never mind. I’m too tired to jump into a verbal sparring match tonight. Yes, I’m sick of looking at my old clothes, and need your fashion sense to help me pick out something to wear tomorrow night.”

  “What’s going on tomorrow…oh, wait! Jimmy asked you out, didn’t he?” Karina gushed. What an idiot I am, assuming the bemused look on Mom’s face was because of my interactions with a man, not vice-versa.

  “Yep. Right after painting class. I think he just felt sorry for me, since my artwork was horrendous. Whatever the reason, we are going to dinner in Hot Springs tomorrow. Some fancy Italian place, so I want to dress up a bit. I realized when rummaging around earlier, I don’t even own a pair of heels!”

  Karina jumped off the bed and motioned for her mom to do the same. “Okay, time for bed then. I planned on working on the hay fields again tomorrow, but that’s shot to hell now. I’ll just call Bo and tell him he has the day off. I’m taking you shopping. There isn’t a thing in your closet that could even be considered appropriate attire for a first date.”

  LiAnn followed, but stopped when she reached the door. “Sounds like a plan to me. Oh, and one other thing, well, two actually, I want to talk to you about before we hit the sack.”

  Karina smirked, “I told you already, I’m only doing the PC version of my life now.”

  “No, it’s not about your afternoon romp with Bo. Just one look at your face tells me all I need to know. You’re positively beaming.”

  “Okay, so what is it then?”

  “First, you need to come with us on Thursday to The Magnolia. I’m telling you, Karina, it isn’t anything like what you’ve got stuck in your head. Never seen any senior living place like it before. Ever. I think, once you visit and see what real retirement living is like, it will help the bad memories from Jubilee disappear.”

  Karina swallowed and forced herself not to hang her head in shame. She hated the fact she was disappointing her family by not going, but she just wasn’t ready. “And the second item?”

  “I want to introduce you to Jimmy. As I mentioned before, my man radar is skewed. Want to make sure he passes your sharp eye before I even think about jumping into a relationship. So, Thursday, will you come with us? Jimmy needs to see that at least someone in our family has artistic talent.”

  Despite her misgivings about stepping foot in a senior living environment, Karina couldn’t say no to the pleading face of her mother. “Okay, okay. Stop twisting my arm. But wait…I’ll meet him tomorrow, right? Isn’t he coming to pick you up for your big date?”

  “No. I’m…not sure where all this is heading, so I’m not quite ready for that. If things go sour during our dinner, I want an escape route. A way to leave. So, I’m taking Mom’s car.”

  “You always think ahead, don’t you, Mom?”

  “No other way to live, darling daughter.”

  “Now, off to bed so we can hit the stores early tomorrow.”

  “Fair enough. Goodnight, sweetheart. Love you.”

  Karina responded with a light kiss on her mom’s warm cheek. Once alone, she grabbed her cell, flicked it on, and sent a text to Bo.

  “Taking mom shopping tmr. You have the day off from work. Ha ha. Grampa said next weekend is fine about the barn. Guess we need to get some material. See you at seven.”

  Karina crawled under the cool sheets and turned out the bedside lamp. She didn’t have to wait long for a response.

  “OK. Got 2 go buy more skins anyway C U 2mr wear something easy to take off.”

  Karina chuckled inside the walls of the bedroom. No doubt.

  She put the phone on the table next to the bed, but curiosity overrode the sense of irritation. She picked it back up, and with a few clicks, pulled up the text message from Cal. “We need to talk. Call me ASAP.”

  A heavy stone of sadness and guilt slammed into her gut. Why now? Why not discuss things back when it first happened? He didn’t want to discuss his infidelity. Cal was more interested in keeping their business running. Suddenly, every assignment he went on was out of town. The chance to hash things out never happened because Cal Benson didn’t want to talk about it. Expected Karina to just lump the whole debacle into the crapper, flush it away, and go on with their relationship. Pretend it never happened. A “momentary lapse in judgment” is what he’d called it.

  My ass.

  Instead of responding, Karina deleted the message. There was a time in her life when Calvin Benson ruled every thought.

  Not anymore.

  “I recommend you try Feinmart first. Reasonable prices and good quality clothin’. If you can’t find anythin’, then try Today’s Woman. It’s only a few blocks away from Feinmart,” Ruth
offered while fixing a cup of coffee.

  “Thanks for the suggestions, Gram. Those places are in Hot Springs, right?” Karina asked, her fingers flying across the screen of her phone.

  LiAnn watched in amusement. Her daughter was more than fond of her electronic device. Karina was addicted.

  Ruth nodded. “Both are easy to get to. You just take the Bypass…”

  “Got it, right here, Gram. See? Technology is fantastic. When it works.”

  “Technology. Please. What if the directions ain’t right and you end up on the wrong side of town?” Ruth replied, a hint of worry in her voice.

  Karina laughed. “Well, that has happened before, just not to me. Sorry, I didn’t mean to cut you off, Gram. I’m a bit excited to finally take Mom shopping. Time to get her some clothes to show off all her assets. Sure you don’t want to come with us?”

  Ruth smiled and took a sip of coffee. “My days of traipsin’ around stores are over. My knees just don’t enjoy it anymore. You two have a good time.”

  LiAnn took a long drink of the cold, lemon-infused water. She was parched. Four hours and six stores later, Karina finally gave her approval on several items, including a pair of the sexiest black heels LiAnn had ever seen. The trunk was full of bags, and LiAnn was a hot mess from trying on clothes, tromping from one store to another, the stifling heat slapping her in the face each time they walked outside. Her stomach grumbled in anticipation of lunch.

  The smirk on Karina’s face, the look of bemusement and satisfaction from a successful day of shopping, brought a smile to LiAnn’s. Karina looked more relaxed, calmer, and most importantly, less haunted, than she had in a long time. Even the worry lines on her face weren’t as pronounced. In a word, Karina was radiant.

  When they walked into the restaurant, the waiter practically tripped over his tongue as it rolled out of his drooling mouth. Karina was oblivious to the way men, and some women, looked at her. She always had been. But LiAnn never missed the gaping mouths and bulging eyes as people watched her child enter a room.