“And this one?” I passed him another sweet. “This one makes me hungry enough to eat both sides of a horse and still not get full.”
“Very good, grandpa, you got them all right.” I turned to Lily and Nia to clap their hands along with me.
“Grandpa, do you remember cousin Gia?”
“Of course, sweet girl. She reminds me of you and your grandmother. Why do you ask about her?”
“No reason. Didn’t you go with daddy to pick her up?”
“Oh yeah, a nice little cabin in Alaska.” Nia walked over to her computer and started typing.
“Where in Alaska? Do you remember?”
“No, somewhere in the outback. Say, this is really good. I don’t remember this one. Which one is this?”
“Oh, it’s a new strain I’m working on. You like it?”
“Yeah, feels like I’m floating.” I nodded to Lily, who went over and helped grandpa find his seat.
I knew it could be done. Truth serum can so be added to the plant before it dries, and voila. I might have to work on this one a little, though, because grandpa was already passed out. “Anything?” I asked Nia.
“Yeah, these are the coordinates for the last month and a half. Two of our jets went to Alaska in that time. One was about the time they went to get Gia. And guess where the second one came from.”
“Sicily!”
“You got it.”
“You know what to do.”
“Mengele!” Oh geez, I almost fell off my stool.
“Hi daddy, what’s the matter?”
“What’s wrong with your grandfather?”
“Oh, he got too much sun on the beach. Daddy guess what?”
“What?”
“I saw this thing, where they have an away camp for triplets.”
“Mengele, I’m not sending your sisters away.” He walked away, mumbling something about not sending me away, so why would he? I didn’t hear the rest because he was already out the door. My friends and I shared a thumbs up and went back to work.
“Oh, I forgot, what’re you working on down here?” Shoot almost got caught.
“Oh, nothing really, just my new strains.”
“Is that what happened to him? He been trying out your stash again?”
“Boy, lower your voice. Don’t you see these kids are working?”
“Where’s your wife, old man?”
“Hell if I…hey what time is it?” Grandpa looked at his watch and jumped up. “Margaritas on the beach. You done with me, Catalina baby, your old grandpa has a date with your nana.”
“Have fun, grandpa.”
“Here, daddy, try a brownie.”
“Not if your life depended on it. You better not be eating none of that, or it’ll be your butt, all three of you.”
“We know, daddy; we’re not druggies; we’re scientists.”
“So’s your grandfather.” He started to walk towards the computers, and I cut him off.
“Daddy, guess what. I need you to get me this plant.”
“What plant is that?”
“Water hemlock.”
“You….” He stormed off again, and we tried not to laugh.
“Bye, daddy!” It’s getting harder to come up with ways to thwart daddy because I’m getting too old for my cute little girl tricks. It does help that I’m still tiny; at least that’s what mommy says.
“Nia, did you send it?”
“Yeah, I did. Do you think he suspects something?”
“Probably. That’s why he came down here. You blocked them right.”
“Sure did, but Track and Jason would find it if they go looking.”
“That’s okay; it’ll be too late by then.”
GABRIEL
“Gianna, baby, where are you?”
“I’m in here!” I played with the ring box in my pocket as I made my way towards the bathroom, where the sound of her voice came from. I still get a little choked up these days when I walk into the house, and they’re here. It had taken at least three or four days before the pit in my stomach disappeared. That feeling of dread that they’ll all be taken from me again.
Maybe that’s why I’ve been rushing to do things, trying to bring us up to speed and correct what was wrong in the last almost two years. She doesn’t know it, or maybe she does and just hasn’t said anything, but everything is new to me too. When she was no longer here, there were things I didn’t let myself enjoy or even participate in; now, I have a hankering for all those things.
My sisters, in their bid to keep her here with me, keep giving me advice on dating. They seem to think that their brother is a colossal screw-up in that department, and there’s no guessing who they hold responsible for the time lost with their friend and their niece and nephews. They don’t know I have plans, lots and lots of plans.
It's a different feeling when you have a new lease on life. It’s as if the whole world has been opened up to you, or as they say, it’s your oyster. Things I didn’t pay much attention to before now have new meaning, and I’ve found a new joy in even the simplest of things, while some things have been harder to traverse.