by Dorlana Vann
Aiden and Lucy stood in the foyer staring out the window, watching as the little red car and white Neon spun up the driveway to the road.
"Did they just leave leave?" Aiden asked.
Lucy exhaled and let go of the heavy drapes, letting them fall back in place. "Looks like it."
"At least I don't have to worry about him murdering me in my sleep."
"What?"
"Never mind. What did he give you?"
She handed the piece of wrinkled and stained paper to Aiden. "Some sort of muffin recipe."
Aiden read it, "Silverweed Muffins. Give to Granny every evening before sunset."
"It really says sunset?"
"Yes. Yes, it does."
"Lucille!" They heard Granny calling from the dining room.
"Well," Lucy said. "Why don't you take her upstairs, and I'll make the muffins."
"Oh no! You… you take her upstairs, and I'll go make these."
"Lucille!"
"And do the dishes," he added with a high-browed smile. "Hey, while you have her alone, why don't you go ahead and ask her. I really want to leave in the morning."
Lucy scratched her head, frowned, and avoided eye contact.
Aiden grumbled. "What?"
"You know, we should probably make sure that Diesel isn't coming back. I mean, what if he changes his mind or only wanted to get away for a little while. I would hate for him to come back to an empty house."
"He's 18, old enough to be on his own. I imagine he's been old enough to be on his own for a long time."
"I don't want to abandon him or take Granny without him knowing. Especially since his mom just died." She shifted from one foot to the other.
"So, we call him."
She nodded. "Okay, I will. But… I think I should wait until the morning. If nothing else, I think he needs a little time and space. He probably wouldn't even answer his phone right now. I'll ask Granny for his number when I take her upstairs."
Aiden knew what she was doing: procrastinating. He figured they had to stay the night anyway, so what was the difference. "Right," he said, making sure his voice had plenty of angst. "I'll go make the muffins."
"Lucille!" Granny called.
"One more thing," his mom said sweetly. "All the cabinets and drawers are open in the kitchen."
Aiden waited on the explanation.
"You see, it helps the soul leave the house as soon as possible. You know, Rose's soul."
Aiden's head hurt. "O…kay, I'll leave them open. We wouldn't want her soul hanging around."
She smiled and scratched her head. "You know what? You should go ahead and close them. Diesel isn't here, and I'm taking Mom upstairs. It's silly. Go ahead. Really." They heard Granny call again.
"I'm coming, Mom," Lucy said as she headed back into the dining room.
Aiden read the recipe as he walked through the living room, instead of the dining room, to get to the kitchen. After his mom and Granny had cleared out of the dining room, he went in and gathered all of the dishes and took them to the kitchen.
He closed the cabinets, ready to run if Rose's ghost manifested and pointed a long finger at him while moaning, "It's your fault. Now I'm stuck here forever." The kitchen was still warm from dinner and even felt a little cozy. The cabinets matched the grayish-brown, large-planked wood floor. The sink held one large, white basin, and the countertop was well-worn butcher block. He actually felt more comfortable than he had since they had arrived.
He set all the dirty dishes on the drain board, looking for the dishwasher. "Oh man, you've got to be kidding me," he whined after realizing there wasn't one.
After Aiden had washed all the dishes by hand, he read the recipe again.
Silverweed Muffins
2 c flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp sugar
1 egg
1 c milk
¼ c Silverweed leaves
"Silverweed Leaves? What the hell is that?"
A large pantry, located by the kitchen doorway, was lined with jars of cucumbers, beans, jam, and okra, plus some other jam jars filled with flour-looking, powdery stuff. However, he didn't see anything that resembled leaves. He searched the cabinet, and the refrigerator, before checking the freezer.
He stared at the bags and bags of frozen leaves with the word "Silverweed" penned on them in black permanent marker. He grabbed one and opened it up. The leaves were long, thin, and green with a silvery white tint, and they smelled like fresh cut grass.
He read the handwritten directions. Boil leaves for 30 seconds. Dice and put with the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. Stir.
"All right." Aiden nodded then took the Silverweed over to the counter where he'd placed the other ingredients and got to work.
By the time he had poured the batter into the muffin pan, his mom walked into the kitchen. "How's it going?"
"I'm almost ready to put them in the oven."
"Good. She asked for them."
"Has the sun set?"
They both snickered.
"Not yet. Good thing I made a ridiculously early dinner."
"Right." He put the muffins into the oven and turned the knob, hearing it whoosh on and getting a brief whiff of gas.
Lucy leaned against the counter. "She's upset about Diesel leaving."
"I figured."
"She's worried he won't come back. I hope this doesn't cause her to get sick."
"She doesn't strike me as the type of person to melt easily."
"You're right about that." Lucy picked up the bag of leaves. "What's this?"
"Apparently, Silverweed leaves."
"What are they for?"
"They went into the muffins," Aiden said.
"Are you sure they go in there?"
After he handed her the recipe, she read over it. "Huh. Maybe it's like medicine. Rose is… was very holistic. This reminds me that I need to look for Mom's doctor's number and find out what medicine she takes and whatnot." Lucy put the recipe on the counter. "Hey. Why don't you go on to the guestroom and get settled in. It's on the other side of the foyer. I put your bag and some fresh sheets in there."
"Thanks."
"There is no central heat, but there's a radiator."
"Radiator?"
"A heater that runs on water. I already turned it on, so unless you get too hot, you should be fine. Now go on. I've got these." She nodded toward the oven.
To be continued…
Chapter 3 Episode 6 will be posted Dec. 10, 2010.
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