Excerpt From: Red

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Taken from: Chapter Nine

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“I don’t understand how you can eat that,” Stacy said, turning up her nose. “That was a living thing once, you know.”

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“Stacy Elizabeth, you knock it off, right now!” her father practically shouted. “If you want to eat nothing but weeds, be my guest, but you keep your comments to yourself. Your mother works hard to put a nice meal on this table and I won’t have you ruining it.”

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“Wow, you did it now,” Lynn said. “Dad just called you Stacy Elizabeth. He must really be mad at you.”

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“That’s enough out of you, too, young lady,” Joseph said.

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Joseph looked over at Lowell and smiled. “Sorry for the outburst, Lowell. Lunch isn’t usually so lively.”

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“No problem.” He glanced over at Rosemary. “This meal is delicious, Rosemary. You are one lucky man, Joseph, to have a woman who can cook like this,” Lowell declared.

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"I taught her everything she knows," Tillie said proudly. "Didn’t I, Rosemary?”

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“What’s that, Mother?” Rosemary said.

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“I taught you how to cook, didn’t I?” Tillie looked at Lowell. “From the time she was old enough to stand on a stool in the kitchen, she watched me cook. As soon as she was old enough, she wanted to get her fat little hands in the dough and bake bread. All in all, I’d say she turned out pretty well in the kitchen department.”

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Rosemary smiled at the compliment. “Why, thank you, Mother. I appreciate that.”

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"Of course," Tillie continued, "there are a few other departments that she could use some help with." She stabbed a piece of pot roast with her fork and started to put it in her mouth. She glanced over at Lowell, who was watching her, and smiled. He gave her a slight nod and continued to eat.

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“What departments are you referring to?” Rosemary asked her, obviously a little upset.

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“Not important, Dear,” Tillie said. She looked at Junior and smiled.

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“What?” Junior asked, suddenly feeling ill at ease.

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“I was wondering if there is anything I need to do to Red before I put him in storage for the winter months?”

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“Well, I don’t. . .  I mean I’ve never. . . I’m not really sure.” Junior looked at his father. “Dad, this is more your area of expertise. Perhaps, you could tell grandma what she needs to do.”

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Lynn looked surprised. “I didn’t think you’d let Red out of your sight.”

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“Don’t you ever use it in the house?” Stacy commented.

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“Red, Stacy. His name is Red, not it,” Tillie told her.

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“Sorry, Grandma. I thought you used Red in the house, too. Not just outside.”

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“Well, I don’t. It seems I fall down more outside than inside, so I really don’t need to use him in here.” She ate a forkful of potatoes and stared at Joseph. “Well?” she said, as she swallowed.

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Joseph looked across the table at her and shrugged. “I have no idea. It’s an electric scooter, so I don’t think you have to do anything. You can put him in the shed out back, I guess.”

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“Oh, no,” Tillie said. “Lowell has room in his garage, which is attached to his house. Plus, his garage is heated, so Red will be nice and cozy this winter. I just wondered if there was anything special I had to do.”

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“I think you’re good,” Joseph said. “If you want, I’ll check the manual that came with it to be sure. However, if you are going to store him in Lowell’s heated garage, I’m pretty sure you don’t have to do anything.”

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“Thank you, Joseph,” Tillie said.