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“Don’t worry. Dad will get to the bottom of all this.”
Max came skipping into the room. “Mom! Look what Mr. Dunbar taught me!” He proudly held up a tangled fishing fly.
“He’s getting the hang of it,” Clive said, as he walked into the kitchen behind him. “My word. Something in here smells delicious!”
Colette smiled. “I hope you like what I prepared.”
“If it tastes anything like it smells, I think we have a winner.”
Colette wiped her hands on a dish towel. “I realized I need to charge my phone.”
“Not that it will do you much good up here. As I mentioned, we have terrible service.”
“I understand, but it’s in the red zone now. I’ll be right back. Don’t anyone touch anything!” Colette climbed the stairs to the second floor and into the guest room she was occupying. She dug out her phone and plugged in the charger. She frowned.No bars. They’re right.It wasn’t as if she didn’t trust them. Some carriers can provide better service than others, but it seemed clear they were in a cell-phone dead zone. She understood the need for a landline here. She let her phone charge up. She would need it when she headed back to Buffalo. She had a charger in the car, but she always felt more comfortable if the phone was fully charged.
Colette went back to the kitchen. The others were setting the table. Max was in charge of folding the napkins. Colette was quite pleased at how well he was getting along with Clive and Logan. The timer on the oven rang. Dinner was about to be served.
Clive pulled out a bottle of Flowers chardonnay, popped the cork, and began to pour. He hesitated for a moment. “Do you like chardonnay?”
“Oh yes. And it will go well with the pork.” Colette was familiar with good wine. Mr. Randolph had enjoyed teaching her the nuances of different varietals. She sighed. She deeply missed her former boss.
Logan rigged a chair with a large book and a pillow for Max, so could be at a comfortable height at the dinner table. “How’s that, buddy?”
Max gave him a tight smile and a couple of nods.
Logan went back into the kitchen to carve the meat. Colette was tossing the salad. Clive brought the green beans to the table. Once everything was in place, they each took their seats. Colette was the first to speak. “Do you mind if we say grace?”
Clive beamed. “Not at all. Please, go ahead.”
Colette reached for Clive’s hand, then Logan’s. Both of them took Max’s. Colette began. “Bless us, oh Lord, for these Thy gifts which we are about to receive. Thank You for the kindness of Clive and Logan. May they be blessed. Amen.”
“Amen” went around the table.
Lots of chatter as the plates were being passed around. “So, Max, you want to try fishing tomorrow?” Logan asked.
“Yes, sir!” Max’s enthusiasm was over the top.
“Excellent. We have to get up early, though. Think you can manage that?” Logan asked.
Another “Yes, sir!”
“Great. Soon as the sun comes up.”
“Yippee!” Max was genuinely excited. He had only been fishing once with his uncle and hadn’t been allowed to do much more than hold the pole. He would be happy if they simply sat together and dangled their legs off the dock and fed the ducks. There were a bunch of them. Probably because they threw breadcrumbs in the water. He loved being by the lake.
The lights flickered as they were enjoying their meal. A brisk wind had picked up. “Here we go,” Logan said matter-of-factly.
“What?” Colette asked.
“Not only do we have lousy cell service, but the telephone and power lines are hanging by a thread. When the wind picks up, we get intermittent service. Outages usually only last for a few hours. Then they send the trucks out to fix it. Fortunately, we have a generator for the whole house,” Clive explained. “You would think they’d fix the issue permanently, but they haven’t. We’ve learned to live with it.”
It occurred to Colette she should get in touch with her sister and let her know she and Max were OK. “I should try to call my sister.”
Logan got up. “I’ll go check the phone line.” He pushed out his chair and walked to Clive’s den. He called out. “Sorry. We’re incommunicado for now.”
Clive asked, “What about the Internet?”
“That’s down, too,” Logan replied.
