Once in a Blue Moon

by Sharon Sala

  “We read the story. I must say it gave our whole family a bad name,” he said.

  “Well, your father has given his tenants many years of a living hell.”

  “My father has been in a nursing home for the past seven years. He has Alzheimer’s.”

  “I’m sorry to hear this, but surely someone has been taking care of his business?”

  “My brother and I, but we were unaware of any of this. We don’t know how he even came to own property in Georgia, and the messages you’ve been leaving weren’t taken seriously. We thought it was some kind of scam, because we were unaware that the property was even in the family. It wasn’t until the story ran that we realized the calls were valid.”

  “Okay, so now you know,” Cathy said. “What are you going to do about it?”

  “We have no interest in being long-distance landlords like this. And we had our lawyer check the property taxes and assess the value of the land, because it’s obvious from the story that the houses are of no value.”

  “They are to the people living in them,” Cathy snapped.

  “Yes, yes, I’m sorry. That didn’t come out right. What I meant was that there was no way to put a fair price on their value that would increase our asking price, and the rent doesn’t even cover the property taxes that have been coming out of our father’s accounts.”

  “Well, in the eyes of God, sir…your family owes the tenants a refund for paying rent all these years for something they didn’t have, which was livable housing. So there’s that.”

  Cathy heard a sigh, and then a slight chuckle.

  “You are a sharp businesswoman.”

  “I just want to right a terrible wrong. That’s all,” Cathy said. “So before you throw out an asking price, remember this is all going to be part of a follow-up story regarding your family. So if you want to clear that good name you are worried about, don’t try to pad your pockets on the backs of poor people and my good intentions.”

  Obviously, the knowledge that a second story would be forthcoming horrified him.

  “Of course, we intend to do the right thing. Our lawyer advised us to ask a million five.”

  Cathy laughed. “The land is on the downslope of an old railroad crossing. I’ve been told they can’t even grow gardens there because the soil is littered with the remnants of gravel and coal…and yes, Blessings is that old, and if this property hadn’t been neglected for so many years, it might be worth about two-thirds of what you asked. But you let it go to ruin. So you reap what you sow, Mr. Meiner. I will give you half of your asking price and not a penny more. Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”

  “And we’ll get our family name and all of the misunderstandings cleared in the follow-up story?”

  “Yes.”

  “Done. We’ll have our lawyer contact you.”

  “No. Have your lawyer contact my lawyer. His name is P. Nutt Butterman. He practices here in Blessings.”

  Meiner laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “Do you hear me laughing?”

  “No, ma’am.”

  “I will expect the paperwork to begin this process within the week. And you will be responsible for all closing costs. You have lax business practices, sir,” Cathy said.

  “But we didn’t know,” Meiner said.

  “You do now. Have your lawyer contact my lawyer, and no dawdling. Christmas is upon us, and I’d like for these people to have a blessed one this year.”

  “Yes, ma’am. We’ll be in touch.”

  Cathy hung up, and then called the Tribune.

  Mavis Webb answered, and then heard Cathy’s squealing.

  “Oh my God, Mavis…we did it. We did it! And wait until you hear the end of this story about the Bottoms.”

  “Then come on over,” Mavis said.

  “Can’t but I’ll give you the lowdown while I’m waiting on my sweetie to take me to lunch.”

  And so Cathy told the story once again, right down to them agreeing to sell her the land and the houses on it.

  Mavis crowed. “Holy crap. I hope your sweetie is ready for you, because you are one hell of a woman.”

  Cathy grinned. “Oh…he’s fine. He has my number and the line it comes in on.”

  Mavis sighed. She’d seen Duke Talbot. He was fine, in so many ways.

  “Okay, and congrats. Once the deal goes through, I will run a follow-up.”

  “Thank you,” Cathy said.

  Chapter 19

  She met Duke at the door with a smile and a kiss that took away his appetite for anything other than making love to her.

  “I don’t know what that’s for, but I’ll take seconds,” he said, and did.

  “I finally heard back from Meiner. It’s quite the revelation. The owner has Alzheimer’s. That’s why no response. And his sons, who are taking care of his business properties, had no idea he owned anything in Georgia. It was Mavis’s story about New York slumlords in the South that got their attention.”

  Duke laughed and hugged her. “Way to go. So what did they say?”

  “They’re selling it to me for a steal in the hopes that the follow-up story paints a better image of the Meiner family.”

  Duke shook his head. Like Mavis, he was realizing what a shrewd businesswoman she was turning out to be.

  “Where are you with the renos?”

  “About a half dozen more to go…most of it roofing and paint and replacing appliances and furniture, although a couple have floors that are in horrible shape. But it doesn’t matter right now who owns it. I just want it done.”

  “I am in awe,” Duke said. “Let’s get some food, and then I’d love a tour…and to meet some of the people you’ve made friends with down there.”

  “Deal,” Cathy said. “Let’s get something from the Dairy Freeze and then drive to the park. We can sit in the truck to eat if it’s too cold, but I like to look at all the Christmas decorations.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Duke said, and after a sweep through the drive-through, they headed to the park with burgers, onion rings, and drinks.

  “Want ketchup?” Cathy asked, as she dug a ketchup packet out of the sack.

  “No, thanks. I’m good with it just like this.”

  Cathy took a bite of an onion ring, and then used it for a pointer.

  “Do they decorate the park like this every Christmas?”

  Duke nodded. “You should see it during the Peachy Keen Festival.”

  Cathy grinned. “What’s that?”

  “Well…Georgia is famous for peaches, right? And lots of places in the state have their own celebrations of them during harvest. Every year, some young high school girl is chosen Miss Peachy Keen, and it’s the biggest freaking deal in town. You’d think they were vying for Miss America. LilyAnn who works at Phillips Pharmacy was the Peachy Keen queen once.”

  “That sounds like a lot of fun and a lot of tears. Competition against each other is brutal, and when it’s an all-female event based on looks and personality, and it takes place in a small town, there’s nowhere to get away from being the losers,” Cathy said.

  Duke nodded. “They used to have to bring a peach pie that they’d baked as part of their events, but when it became clear that most of the mamas were doing the baking, and two of them got into a squabble about one being a better baker than the other in front of the judges, it was phased out.”

  Cathy grinned. “Oh, my lord! Are you serious?”

  He nodded, and took another bite of his burger.

  “Is there ever a Peachy Keen king?” she asked.

  “Nope. It’s all about the queen.” They ate in silence for a few moments, and then he added, “There have been quite a few people who got married in that gazebo…Ruby and Peanut were the latest, I think.”

  Cathy looked at it with new interest.

 
“I’m assuming it was warm weather when that happened?”

  “Yes. The only thing threatening was rain, but it stayed clear for them. And…they invited the whole town. With both of them being in business in Blessings, they didn’t know where to start and where to stop on an invitation list, so they just told everyone they were invited, and to bring blankets and their own picnics and eat on the ground with them after the ceremony…and they furnished cake for everyone.”

  Cathy’s eyes widened, imagining how that would have looked.

  “That was such a unique and special way to include all of their friends,” she said.

  “Yeah…but that’s a little over the top for me.”

  “Ditto,” Cathy said. “And I don’t want to wait for warm weather to become your wife.”

  “Agreed,” Duke said, then took the last bite of his burger. “Are you finished?” he asked.

  She nodded, and sacked up all of their refuse. Duke got out, dumped it in a nearby trash bin, and then got back in the truck.

  “I’m ready to tour the Bottoms,” he said.

  “You know the way,” Cathy said.

  The closer they got, the more excited she became. It had already undergone a huge transformation from what it had been, and they weren’t finished. But coming over that rise of the old tracks and looking downhill at new roofs and houses bright and clean with fresh paint was uplifting, not to mention seeing the windows that had been replaced and the porches and steps that had been rebuilt.

  “It’s been a long time since I’ve had occasion to drive this way, but I remember it as being what my mother would have called tragic. This is amazing, and I am so proud of what you’re doing,” he said.

  Cathy sighed. “Thank you, honey. Sometimes I think I’m not paying enough attention to our renovation for all that’s going on here, but it matters so much that this wrong be righted.”

  “No, no! Never think that,” Duke said. “We’re not destitute. We’re blessed. This is where your attention is most needed now. We’ll have our house, and I’ll have you for the rest of our lives. This matters.”

  “Thanks for backing me. It means everything,” she said. “Drive down that way and turn right at the second street. Barrie’s house was the first one we worked on, and she’s really helped us get the rest of the people living here involved in the process. I want you to meet her.”

  “Will do,” Duke said. When he pulled up to the house Cathy pointed out and he saw the pale-yellow paint and white trim on the house, and a new porch, he smiled. “This is sunny, just like you.”

  She beamed. “Come on. Barrie’s here.”

  “How do you know?” he asked.

  She pointed. “I see her peeking out the window,” she said, and jumped out.

  The moment Barrie recognized it was Cathy, she came out to meet her.

  “Barrie, you’ve heard me talk nonstop about Duke. I wanted you to meet him,” Cathy said. “Duke, this is Barrie Lemons. Barrie, my fiancé, Duke Talbot.”

  Barrie smiled shyly. “It’s a pleasure, sir. Would you like to come inside and see what magic your lady has created?”

  “I would love it,” Duke said, and walked into a little house filled with warmth, and color, and a little baby crawling on a large magenta-and-blue area rug beneath the furniture.

  “I keep these here to remind me of the gift she’s given,” Barrie said and handed over the still photos Mavis Webb had taken of the interior of her home before the renovations began.

  Shock left Duke momentarily speechless. He looked up at Cathy, then at Barrie, and shook his head.

  “I am looking at two of the strongest women I think I’ve ever known. If you don’t mind me asking…how did you come to be living here?”

  “My man brought me to the Bottoms,” Barrie said. “We were gonna get married, but we just kept putting it off. His old truck quit on him, and we didn’t have the money to fix it. He got down on himself, got mixed up with meth, and died in a motel in Savannah. I had just found out I was pregnant with Freddie, my baby, and had nowhere else to go.”

  “I’m sorry,” Duke said. “I hope your life takes a happy turn one day soon.”

  “Oh, it already has,” Barrie said. “She did it. She cared about us. That’s more than we’ve ever had.”

  The baby had already crawled over to where Cathy was standing and pulled himself up by holding onto her leg.

  Cathy laughed. “Well, hello, little man,” she said, then swooped him up in her arms.

  When he laughed and patted her cheeks, Duke could tell she’d done this before. And seeing her with a baby in her arms made him aware of how much life he’d been missing.

  “Freddie likes you,” Duke said.

  “Down here, everyone loves Cathy,” Barrie said.

  “Well, I have good news,” Cathy said. “I finally heard back from your landlord. To his credit, the old fellow has been in a nursing home with Alzheimer’s for years. His sons didn’t know he owned property here and, I think, chose to ignore the messages he was getting. But they finally called, and we made a deal. I’m buying all of the property here, and I can promise you as long as I live, this will never happen to any of you again.”

  “Oh my God! That is wonderful news!” Barrie said. “Can I tell the others?”

  “Yes, ma’am, you sure can,” Cathy said, and then looked around for the little girl. “Is Lucy in school?”

  Barrie nodded. “Yes, now that she has clothes warm enough to go.”

  “I’ll bring cookies next time I come,” Cathy said. “I know snickerdoodles are her favorite.”

  “And mine,” Duke said.

  Cathy grinned. “Every cookie is your favorite.”

  “Guilty,” he said, which made Barrie smile. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been happy with a man.

  Cathy kissed Freddie’s little cheek, and then put him back down on the floor and handed him his toy.

  “We need to go. Thank you for letting us intrude, but I so wanted Duke to meet you and see what’s happening down here.”

  “Miracles are happening in the Bottoms because of our Christmas angel,” Barrie said.

  “Christmas angel?”

  “That’s what we all call her,” Barrie said.

  Duke slid his hand across her shoulder. “And I consider her my Christmas gift. Happy holidays to you and your family.”

  “Thank you,” Barrie said, then waved goodbye from the window as they drove away.

  They drove through the rest of the area, seeing the houses in different states of repair and stopping once to talk to some of the residents who were outside replacing chain-link fences.

  When they finally left the Bottoms, Duke was beyond impressed with what was being done and praised Cathy, but she shrugged it off.

  “You can do many good things if you have the money to do it,” she said.

  “Yes, but not everyone with money does good things. You chose to make a difference in other people’s lives. You have a loving heart, and I am most grateful that you’re spending part of that love on me.”

  Cathy sighed. “Oh honey…I’m spending all of my love on you. The other stuff is purpose with a passion. I need purpose to feel like I’m making a difference, and I need to make a difference. After all the wasted years I spent in Vegas—and all the wasted money spent on useless, frivolous things—this feels awesome…like I hit the jackpot.”

  Duke nodded. He understood purpose.

  * * *

  The day was brisk but the sun was shining, which was a good thing because Santa Claus was due to arrive at the park. The crowd was growing, and Santa’s elves were all waiting in their red and green suits.

  Junior Cooper was the official photographer for the day and all set up to take pictures of kids sitting in Santa’s lap.

  Santa’s big overstuffed armchair was
in the gazebo, in front of a potted pine with branches heavily laden in fake snow. The candy-filled stockings were stacked nearby in boxes, and the line was beginning to grow when two buses pulled up at the park. Everyone turned to watch as parents and children from the Bottoms began coming out of the buses. They were hesitant to join in until other people there waved them over, and soon they were standing in line with the rest of the crowd, waiting for Santa to arrive. For some of these kids it would be a first, while others were old pros at talking to Santa.

  And then all of a sudden they began hearing sleigh bells, and then a jolly Ho, ho, ho from a loudspeaker. They turned and looked again, and then everyone began to smile as the children went silent…staring in awe at Santa and Mrs. Claus’s arrival in an old farm wagon being pulled by a team of mules.

  It was a less-than-classic arrival, but no one seemed to care as a very tall Santa and a tiny Mrs. Claus stepped down from the wagon.

  There wasn’t enough padding in Blessings to make Peanut Butterman fat enough to have a belly that shook like a bowl full of jelly, but he was jolly enough as he swept through the crowd in his red and white suit, holding Mrs. Claus’s hand.

  Santa took his place in the chair, and Mrs. Claus stood at his side, ready to hand each child a candy-filled stocking as soon as they told Santa their wish.

  “Ho, ho, ho!” Santa said. “Welcome to all of the children. Let’s get this party started.”

  Mrs. Claus sighed and then whispered in Santa’s ear.

  “Santa doesn’t say ‘get this party started.’”

  Santa grinned beneath his beard. “This one does. Hang in there with me, honey. This is gonna be a long three hours, I can tell.”

  The first child up was a little boy of about three. His mother plopped him down on Santa’s lap. The toddler took one look at the bearded man and let out a shriek.

  Santa winced, and then glanced at the name tag on the little boy’s shirt.

  “Hello there, Raymond. What do you want for Christmas?” Santa asked.

  “Mama!” the little boy shrieked.

  The mother looked at Junior. “Did you get the picture?”