Once in a Blue Moon

by Sharon Sala

  Ruby looked up, saw him all wet, muddy, and bedraggled, and shrieked.

  “What happened to you? I thought you were going to change into dry clothes before you went to get the food.”

  He handed her the sacks and kissed her cheek.

  “I did. This is the second set of wet clothes for the day.”

  “What happened?” Ruby asked.

  “Miss Earline’s little dog, Mister, escaped. I saw him running down the street in front of the Dairy Freeze, and by the time I got him in the car and then back home to her, this is the result.”

  Ruby laughed. “Oh, honey. You are a good, good man. That little dog means the world to her.”

  “I know. Everybody in town knows Mister. But he was so wet, I almost didn’t recognize him. So, rest assured your food is fine. It was in the front seat. Mister was on the floor in the back seat. Dog and chili dogs did not comingle.”

  Ruby laughed. “Good to know. Now get yourself home and into more dry clothes. Just leave all the wet stuff in the utility room. I’ll get it to the cleaners.”

  “Thanks, babe,” Peanut said, then winked at all the girls. “Enjoy your dinner,” he told them, and then ran out the back door into the rain.

  * * *

  While everyone else in Blessings was bemoaning the inclement weather, Cathy had pulled back the curtains in the living room so she could watch it. After all the years she’d lived in Las Vegas, a state with a startling lack of rainfall, a good downpour was an enjoyable experience.

  It also gave her a good view of the street and her driveway so she could watch for Duke to return. Twenty-four hours ago, she hadn’t even known he existed, and now he had been to her house twice.

  And so she sat within the quiet of the little house, lulled by the rain on the roof and watching it turning into a curtain between her and the world as it ran off the porch.

  All of a sudden, a small, bedraggled figure walked into her line of vision, dragging what looked like a black garbage bag. She was leaning forward, trying to focus through the rain, when it finally dawned on her that it was a child.

  Ignoring the pain in her ankle, she got up and quickly hobbled out onto the porch, staring in disbelief. She looked up and down the street, unable to believe a little guy like that would be out in this weather on his own.

  She called out: “Hey!”

  He looked at her without breaking stride and kept walking.

  Cathy knew immediately something was wrong. And he was way too little to be in this storm on his own. She didn’t think twice as she hobbled down the steps and then out into the rain, moving as quickly as the pain would allow until she caught up with him halfway down the block. Once she got in front of him, she stopped and got down on one knee.

  She was pretty sure he was crying, because his eyes were red, but it was hard to tell because of the rain. His brown hair was plastered to his head and down the back of his neck, and his clothes were sodden and clinging to his little body.

  “Hey, my name is Cathy. What’s your name?”

  “Melvin Lee.”

  “So, Melvin Lee, are you lost?” Cathy asked.

  “No, ma’am. I’m a’goin to my granny’s.”

  Cathy frowned. “Does your mother know where you are?”

  And just like that, he set his jaw and glowered.

  “I ain’t a’goin’ home, and you can’t make me.”

  By now, Cathy was soaked and freezing, and could only imagine how cold he must feel.

  “Are you running away from home?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Cathy stood. “I’m pretty cold. How about we go sit up on my porch out of the rain and talk some more, okay?”

  “I ain’t supposed to talk to strangers,” Melvin Lee said.

  “I understand, but you’re probably not supposed to be running away, either, right? Look at my ankle. See how it’s all wrapped up?”

  He nodded.

  “So, I hurt it yesterday, and I can’t stand up on it for long, and I sure can’t run, so you could outrun me in a second if I was mean, right?”

  He saw the wrapping on her ankle, and then looked straight into her eyes.

  “I reckon I could sit on your porch for a bit.”

  “Good. I need to sit down, too,” Cathy said, then held out her hand.

  He took it without hesitation, while she picked up the garbage bag. They walked back to the house together, then up onto the porch. The moment they were out of the rain, Cathy saw the tension in his little body let go. She helped him up into her porch swing and put the bag he was carrying up against the wall.

  “I’m gonna go inside and get us a blanket, okay?”

  He was starting to shake and just nodded in agreement.

  Afraid he would run, Cathy hobbled quickly into the house to call the police.

  Avery, the day dispatcher, took the call.

  “Blessings PD. This is Avery.”

  “This is Cathy Terry at 311 West Cherry Street. There’s a little boy at my house who says his name is Melvin Lee. I don’t know what’s going on, but I saw him walking past my house in this downpour dragging a garbage bag. I thought he was lost, but he says he’s running away from home, and he’s soaked to the skin.”

  “Oh my word! Yes, ma’am. We’ll get someone right there,” Avery said and disconnected, but before he could dispatch a cruiser, the 911 line rang.

  “Blessings 911. What is your emergency?” he asked, then heard a lot of kids crying and a woman who sounded on the verge of hysterics.

  “This is Junie Wilson. My son, Melvin Lee, is missing. I called him to come eat lunch, and he didn’t answer. He’s not in the house. I’ve looked all over, and oh my God, I don’t know what happened to him,” she wailed. “I can’t go look for him on my own because I’ve got all these babies and it’s pouring.”

  “Someone just found him and called it in. I’m about to dispatch a car to go pick him up,” Avery said.

  Junie wailed again. “Oh thank God…thank God. Is he okay? Where was he? Who found him?”

  “Ma’am, all your questions will be answered in time. Just calm down. He’s safe, and someone will be bringing him home.”

  “Yes, yes, okay. Thank you, again,” Junie said, and disconnected.

  Avery sighed, and was about to send out the call when Chief Pittman came up to the front desk.

  “Chief! A lady named Cathy Terry just called reporting she’d found a runaway kid. He’s at her house and needs to be picked up. And…I just took a call from the frantic mother who just discovered he was missing.”

  Lon frowned. “Same kid, I presume?”

  “Yes, sir. Melvin Lee Wilson. The oldest of Danny and Junie’s kids.”

  “You said Cathy Terry found him?” Lon asked.

  “Yes, sir. Do you know her?”

  Lon nodded. “Yes, and I know where she lives. I’ll take the call.”

  “Okay,” Avery said. “I’ll log it in.”

  Lon had just taken off his raincoat, but he turned back around to put it on again.

  * * *

  Now that Cathy had notified the police department, she grabbed the blanket from her recliner and hurried back outside.

  “I’ll bet you’re freezing,” she said, and wrapped Melvin Lee up in the soft, thick covers. “We can keep each other warm a bit, okay?” she said, as she pulled him up in her lap, and then cuddled him close.

  Melvin Lee nodded.

  “How old are you, honey?” Cathy asked.

  “Almost eight.”

  “Then you must be a second grader. Did you run away from school?”

  He started crying. “I’m supposed to be a second grader, but they held me back in first grade ’cause I couldn’t read so good. My mama keeps me out of school a lot to help her with the babies.”

  Cat
hy hugged him a little closer, patting his shoulder as she began to rock them both.

  “Are you the oldest?” she asked.

  “Yes. Then Willy, then Arnie, then Lucy.”

  Cathy was trying to imagine having four children under the age of eight and couldn’t. She’d never even had one.

  “Why are you running away?” she asked.

  “Mama told us today she’s havin’ another baby, and I don’t want no more brothers or sisters to take care of,” he said, and started to wail. “I don’t wanna be the dumb kid in the class. I need to learn myself how to read, and how to count money and stuff.”

  “Oh, honey,” Cathy said, and then held him closer.

  She was still holding him when she saw Duke’s truck, and then she saw the look of concern on his face as he pulled up in the drive and got out with the sack of food.

  “Cathy! What happened? You two are soaked to the skin.”

  “This is Melvin Lee,” she said. “Melvin Lee, this is my friend, Duke Talbot.”

  Duke frowned. “Are you one of Danny Wilson’s kids?”

  “Yes, sir,” Melvin said.

  “I went to school with your daddy. Are you hungry?”

  The little boy wiped the tears off his face.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Do you like chili dogs and french fries?” Duke asked.

  Melvin Lee’s eyes widened. “Yes, sir.”

  “I’ve got plenty. Come inside where it’s warmer. Both of you,” he said.

  Melvin Lee let go of the blanket and slid out of Cathy’s lap, but Duke was looking at Cathy. She was soaked to the skin, and her ankle was bound to be throbbing. Her curls were even tighter and clinging to her head and down the back of her neck. But it was obvious her concern was solely focused on the little boy.

  Duke handed the sack to Melvin Lee and picked her up and carried her into the house, then into the kitchen.

  “You are something else,” he said softly. He put her down in a chair, then proceeded to get out plates and glasses and start dividing up the food.

  He poured half of his chocolate malt in a glass for the little boy, then put one of the chili dogs and some fries on a plate and scooted it toward him.

  “Dig in,” Duke said.

  Melvin Lee didn’t have to be told twice. He was chin deep in his chili dog, and talking a blue streak.

  As soon as he paused to take a breath and another bite, Cathy asked, “Want ketchup on your fries?”

  “No, ma’am,” Melvin Lee said, talking around the bite he was chewing.

  “So where’s your daddy working these days?” Duke asked, and dunked his fry into a well of ketchup on his plate.

  “Somewhere up in the Pennavanna.”

  “In Pennsylvania?” Duke asked.

  Melvin Lee nodded. “Yeah. That. He ain’t never home long. He says he has to keep a-workin’ to feed us all. I wished he could find work closer to home so when Mama is having one of her bad days, he could stay home and take care of the young’uns, and I could stay in school.”

  Cathy glanced at Duke. “His mama made an announcement this morning that kind of rocked his world,” she said softly.

  Melvin Lee nodded. “Yep. I heard her talkin’ to Daddy on the phone. She told him she was preggers again, and I decided it was time to move out. I ain’t takin’ care of no more babies. I gotta learn to read good and do my numbers. I don’t wanna be the dumb kid in the class no more.” Then he took another bite of the chili dog. “This here chili dog sure is good.”

  Duke smiled. “I agree,” he said, and then poured a little more of his chocolate malt into Melvin Lee’s glass.

  Cathy was smitten with both of them. The little guy’s view of the world was old far beyond his years, and Duke’s calm acceptance of what made little boys tick was endearing.

  And then she heard a knock at the door.

  “I’ll get it,” she said, and jumped up and rolled out of the room before Duke could do it for her.

  * * *

  Chief Pittman was standing on the threshold when she opened the door.

  “Hello, Chief. Melvin Lee doesn’t know I called you, so…”

  “I understand. That’s Duke’s truck in the drive, right?”

  She nodded.

  “Good. Just lead the way and let me do the talking,” Lon said, leaving his raincoat on the porch swing.

  Cathy went back into the kitchen with Lon right behind her.

  “Something smells good,” Lon said as he walked in. “Hey, Duke. Did you get one for me?”

  Duke grinned. “I ate it,” he said.

  “I’ll remember that next time Mercy invites all of you to dinner,” Lon said, and sat down in the chair beside Melvin Lee. “Hello, son. You’re sure wet. I’ll bet you’re cold, too, huh?”

  “A little,” Melvin Lee said, and stuffed a french fry in his mouth.

  “I’m Chief Pittman. You’re Melvin Lee Wilson, aren’t you? I know your mama and daddy.”

  Melvin nodded, and kept chewing.

  “Your mama just called the police station in a panic. She was crying. She doesn’t know where you are, and she’s scared for your safety,” Lon said.

  “She just wants me to watch the babies,” Melvin Lee said.

  Lon looked a little startled, and then glanced up at Duke and Cathy.

  “Melvin Lee is a little overwhelmed with life,” Duke said.

  “His mama’s having another baby,” Cathy added.

  “She makes me stay home from school and babysit. I done been held back one year already. The kids call me stupid. I’m not stupid. I’m just a little behind,” Melvin Lee said, and then stared down at his plate.

  Cathy’s heart hurt just looking at him. He was so little to have such a big burden.

  Lon laid a hand on the little boy’s shoulder. “If you’ll let me take you home, I’ll have a talk with your mama about school.”

  Melvin Lee looked up. “You will? You’ll tell her she can’t keep me home to babysit no more?”

  “Yes, I will,” Lon said.

  “I reckon I’ll go on home, then,” he said.

  “Not before I get a hug,” Cathy said.

  The little boy sighed as he got up and went to where Cathy was sitting.

  “Thank you for being my friend,” he said.

  Cathy took her napkin and wiped the chili off of Melvin Lee’s chin, and then off the corners of his mouth.

  “It was my pleasure,” she said, but when she hugged him, she was not prepared for the surge of emotion she felt when his arms slid around her neck, or when he buried his face against her shoulder.

  “You tell your daddy I said hello, okay?” Duke said.

  “Yes, sir. I will next time I see him,” Melvin Lee said. “Is my bag still out on the porch?”

  “Yes, it is,” Cathy said.

  “I’ll be needing to take it with me,” he said, and then walked out with the police chief as if he was going to jail and not back home.

  After they were gone, Cathy got up to start clearing the table, and burst into tears instead.

  “He’s too little to feel that defeated.”

  Duke groaned. “Now you’ve gone and done it. I can’t stand to see a woman cry,” he said, and put his arms around her.

  “I’ll get your clothes all wet,” she sobbed.

  “It’s okay. Just don’t cry, honey. Lon will get him all sorted out. You’ll see. Now will you do something for me?” Duke asked.

  “What?” Cathy asked as she pulled away and began fumbling for a tissue.

  “Take a hot shower, put on some dry clothes, and lie down for a while. Rest yourself and your ankle, too.”

  Cathy wiped her eyes and then turned around and just looked at him.

  “Yes, I will, and thank you for caring, for hel
ping me with Melvin Lee, and for being the thoughtful man you are.”

  It was all Duke could do not to take her in his arms and kiss her senseless, but that’s not what she needed. Yes, Cathy Terry had a sore ankle, but she was already one of the walking wounded when she showed up in Blessings, and she needed to heal from the damage one man had done to her life before Duke dared broach the subject of wanting more.

  “I have a request,” he said. “If I had your phone number, I wouldn’t be intruding into your life without prior warning.”

  “Does this mean your visits aren’t going to come to an end, even after my ankle is well?”

  He grinned. “That’s the plan, unless you change it for me.”

  “Then you can absolutely have my number,” Cathy said.

  “Wait a sec,” Duke said, and pulled up his contact list to add her name. “Okay, I’m ready,” he said.

  Cathy gave him the number, and felt a sense of something imminent as he hit Save. They were connected now. She had his number in her phone, but had only felt the freedom to use it should she need help, because that was the offer when he left it.

  “Got it,” Duke said, and then dropped the phone back in his pocket. “I guess I’d better get those batteries for the game cameras and get back to the farm. Today is Hope’s day off, and I usually find something to do so that they have some time at home together.”

  “So you’ve all always lived together,” Cathy said.

  “Yes, but I’ve always thought that if they ever decided to start a family, I would move out. I should probably do that now, but the convenience of Jack and me being in the same place tending the farm is too easy to give up. Maybe I’ll just build a house of my own somewhere on the property…or they might want the new house, in which case I’d happily stay with the family home. Even if it’s too big for one person, it’s still home.”

  “I’ll bet it’s lovely out there,” Cathy said.

  Duke looked at her, trying not to drown in those deep-blue eyes.

  “I’d love to show you sometime…when you’re up to a trip and a little walking, of course.”

  “Oh, I would love that,” Cathy said.

  “Awesome,” Duke said. “Thanksgiving will be here before we know it. If you don’t already have other plans, I am officially inviting you to dinner with the family, and just know that will also include Mercy and Lon, and whoever else Hope and Jack might invite.”