That Reckless Night

“Does it smell like fish? Fish stink. Mamu’s kitchen always smells gross when she makes her fish stew.”

Miranda laughed. “I don’t know what it will smell like but it likely won’t smell good. But try to think of it as an adventure. A smelly adventure.”

Talen nodded. “Okay, Mom. Maybe we’ll find buried treasure.”

Hopefully we don’t find a buried body, Miranda thought with a mild shudder. There was no telling what they’d find in that mess.

They pulled up to the house and Miranda shot a quick look at the shop before heading to the front door and letting herself in. As before, the front door was nearly blocked by junk and she had to push to gain entrance. “Mom? Are you here? It’s me and Talen. We’ve come to visit.”

Her mother appeared from what used to be Simone’s room and quickly shut the door behind her, a startled expression on her face. “You should have called. I didn’t know you were coming.”

“We wanted to surprise you.”

“I’m surprised.” Jennelle’s eyes lit up with genuine joy when she saw Talen. “There’s my beautiful grandson. Come and give your grandma a hug.”

Talen walked tentatively over the mounds of stuff to his grandmother and gave her a good squeeze. “We’ve come to help you clean your house. It’s a real mess.”

Miranda winced when Jennelle arched her brow and shot Miranda a dark look over the top of Talen’s head. “Oh, is that so? And here I hoped it would just be a visit for a visit’s sake.”

“It’s going to be an adventure, Grandma. We might find buried treasure!”

Miranda smiled wanly and shrugged, and before her mother could shoot her down, Miranda jumped in quickly. “I thought about what you said and thought maybe I could be more helpful rather than critical,” she added. “So, here I am with Talen, hoping we can help you get a little more organized. What did you used to say? Many hands make for light work,” she reminded her mother.

Jennelle’s gaze softened and she nodded. “Yes, I did used to say that.” She glanced around, distress in her eyes as she struggled with her own issues, and Miranda held her breath until Jennelle reluctantly agreed to some help. “I suppose I could use some help organizing some of these things.”

“Maybe we should start in the kitchen?” Miranda suggested, even though she had a sinking suspicion it was probably a hazmat zone.

“No, I’d rather stay in this room,” Jennelle said. “Besides, I rarely cook any longer, so it’s not imperative that it be in tip-top shape.”

Yes, but shouldn’t you be able to at least reach the stove without fear of toppling something over? Miranda bit her tongue and smiled instead. “Okay, we can tackle the kitchen another time,” she said, trying for compromise.

Armed with trash bags and plenty of patience, Miranda, Jennelle and Talen worked all day to clear a spot in the living room but it was painfully slow going as Jennelle was being an obstacle to their overall success.

“That’s not trash,” Jennelle said stridently just as Miranda was about to toss a magazine that was at least five years old and had water damage.

“Mom? Are you kidding me?” Miranda asked, losing her patience. “It’s ruined and it’s outdated. What could you possibly want with this magazine?”

“I haven’t read it yet.”

Miranda turned it over and glanced at the cover. “News flash—none of this is relevant any longer. In fact, it’s so outdated that some of these people aren’t even alive anymore!”

“Maybe I was going to clip recipes or coupons.”

“Come on. You can’t be serious.”

“I am serious. Put it down.”

“Where?” Miranda asked. “I don’t have a pile for outdated, useless trash. Oh, wait, yes I do. It’s called the living room!”

“And there it is. I knew your offer to help came with hidden agendas. You can’t just listen to me when I say I don’t want people telling me how to live my life. I think we’re done tidying up for today,” she announced.

“We still have hours’ worth of cleaning to do,” Miranda said, irritated. “We should keep going.”

“I don’t want to keep going. I want to rest. Being with you and your constant criticism is exhausting.”

“I didn’t say a word today until just now,” Miranda pointed out. “And I thought you said you wanted to spend more time with Talen? Well, if that’s what you want, then you have to clean up this mess because it’s unsanitary.”

Jennelle looked offended and her bottom lip trembled. Talen stood off to the side, his trash bag in his hand as he waited with a worried expression. Miranda drew a deep breath and knew if she didn’t end things right now, a fight was going to happen. She backed down with a choked apology. “I’m sorry, Mom. I’m just trying to help.”