She shook her head.
"Sometimes, he forget to pay the bill," she revealed,
"What? The bill. You mean it's not just the storm?" I asked. I thought about the man in the grocery store and what he had said. "Why doesn't he pay his bills?" I hung up before she could reply.
"He do what he has to when he has to," she replied casually as if the problems and worries of this world were not very important in her scheme of things. She probably makes her phone calls on spiritual wires and doesn't care. I thought. Angrily. I headed for the front door again. I had to find Harley now and tell him. I wasn't going to keep Mommy in limbo a moment longer.
It took me a while to make my way around the house. I heard them talking in the shed and called for Harley. I had to shout loud for him to hear me over his and his grandfather's voices and the noise they were making tinkering with the motorcycle engine. Finally, he peered out of the door.
"Hey, what's wrong?"
"The phone's still dead. Harley. Sue says they might not have paid the phone bill.
"Naw. I paid that bill." his grandfather asserted coming up beside him to look out at me. "It's just the aftermath of the storm. Hell, once it took two days to get the phones working in this town again."
"Maybe the pay phone at the grocery works now," I said.
"If it doesn't work here, it doesn't there. We're on the same line," his grandfather insisted. "Tell you what. After dinner. I'll drive you over to Hurleyville. They have a different system and theirs might be working."
"I need to call right away." I cried.
"Only be a few hours, the most, and maybe our line will be back on by then anyway." he added, raising his arms.
Suddenly another sprinkle of rain began, quickly growing harder.
"Another cloudburst." Harley's grandfather shouted. "Let's get inside before we all get soaked."
He charged out with Harley.
The two of them scooped me up and, laughing, carried me to the front of the house. We got under the porch not a second too soon because it did become another downpour.
"I hate this weather!" I screamed. His
grandfather laughed,
"Farmers need it," he said. "It's been dry up until now. C'mon, let's wash up for chow."
He opened the door and waited for us to follow. I glanced at Harley.
"I'm sorry. Summer," he said. "'but I promise I'll get you to a phone tonight."
"Sure. Don't worry about it," his grandfather commented. Upstairs. I thought. upstairs. I'll tell Harley everything I know.
.
Harley went directly up to shower and change. I followed and when I was positive we were out of earshot. I began.
"Harley, I had time today to do nothing but explore the house," I said.
"It's an amazing construction, isn't it?" he interrupted quickly.
"I'm surprised more modern-day builders don't use some of the innovations here," he said taking out a fresh shirt, underwear and socks from his bag. He was kneeling on the floor, his back to me.
"I'm not talking about the house. Harley. I'm talking about what's in it."
"Oh," he said standing. He nodded, thinking he knew exactly what was on my mind. "Well, he doesn't have much money. He's really laid back about material things. We talked about that today. He says at his age, he likes to do only what he has to and enjoy his relaxation."
"Did he talk about his age, explain how a man his age would have had your mother for a girlfriend?" I asked pointedly.