Down the Well, page 3
Mamó pursed her lips and shook her head. Her pale, moonlike hair fell bit by bit from the bun she had sitting atop her head. “Tell me,” her gray eyes fixed on Lore and held a sparkle, “what’s been new with you?”
“I got my first job.” She leaned closer to her grandma. “At that little bakery downtown.”
Her grandma’s eyes lit up. “Oh, so you can bring some of those teeny tiny chocolate chip cookies when you come to see me.” She playfully patted Lore’s leg.
“Whatever you want, Mamó.”
Her mom came out into the kitchen dumbfounded. “I can’t find the nightshirt you were talking about, but I found this purple one with cats on it.” Her voice cracked as if she were afraid of a reprimand for failing. She certainly would have gotten one from Lore’s dad.
But Mamó wasn’t like her son and just nodded. “That one is fine. Just lay it out on the bed.” Then she waved her off. Once her daughter-in-law was gone, she leaned closer. “I’m gonna have to come up with a long list of nonsense to keep her busy.”
Lore snorted with laughter. “It’s gonna have to be as long as those receipts you get from the pharmacy.”
Then the screen door creaked open.
“Ah, Andrew. Finally decide to join us?” her grandma mused.
Her dad silently sat in the matching floral rocker next to the couch. His eyes were stone cold and focused on the coffee table. “The doctors called me today, Mom.”
“Oh?” Mamó’s stark white eyebrows pulled tight. “And what did those loons have to say for themselves?” She stomped the walker on the carpet. Her thin, boney arms quivered as she did so.
Her father didn’t reply. Just interlocked his hands and fidgeted with his wedding band.
Lore’s mom was hovering silently back in the kitchen. “Anyone want water?” she asked.
Mamó got up with a huff and shuffled to the kitchen. “Get the kettle. I’m going to make some tea.”
Her dad shot up. “Mom, you really should sit down.” His voice was different from normal. Lore couldn’t quite place it.
Her grandma stopped and turned, shaking a wrinkled finger at him. “I didn’t spend years wiping your ass and cleaning your messes for you to tell me what to do.”
The air thickened with tension like a warm stew perfect to go over mashed potatoes. Her grandma hobbled around her dad’s tall figure and called out, “Moon Drop?”
Lore’s ears pricked up. Her Mamó has been calling her that as long as she could remember.
“Can you go out to my herb garden and grab some lemon balm and peppermint?”
She jumped to put on her shoes. “Sure thing.”
Her grandma’s white bun moved with her nodding head. “Good, good. I’m afraid your mom would bring back the wrong herbs.” She tried to laugh between coughs.
Lore didn’t think too much about it. Mom probably would have brought back lavender, or maybe even a dandelion. Lore walked around the cabin where a round garden bed spiraled upward. A distant memory floated to the forefront of her mind.
It was summer, Lore was eight, and it was prime early nineties. She cringed, remembering the vivid red overalls she wore. Her grandma’s forehead glistened in the July sun as they moved dirt to the bed. Lore was in charge of puzzle-piecing together the river rocks as a wall to keep the dirt in one place.
“Remember, Moon Drop, as I pile in the dirt, we will have to build a little mound in the center. And the stones will spiral up it.”
“Okay Mamó,” she’d called with a toothy smile.
Remembering the sound of her innocent child’s voice was like hearing a ghost. Lore ignored the shivers it gave her and knelt down to the herbs that looked like they were just planted yesterday. She picked a few of the largest, best-looking leaves.
Beyond the garden bed was the blue brick well they used to water the garden. Lore walked over with a handful of peppermint and lemon balm. She ran her free hand along the painted concrete slabs. The deep blue color was chipping off. Maybe I should paint it for her this summer.
A breeze whipped her braid. She picked up a flat stone and tossed it in. When she heard the water splash, she closed her eyes tightly.
“I wish for something new, something good to happen.” As she said the words, her mind drifted to the inked words on Mavi’s tricep: He who travels has stories to tell. What did I want my story to be? What stories do I want to share when I’m old and gray?
The sound of a breaking branch made her open her eyes. Along the tree line, maybe a few hundred feet from her, she saw a large animal moving through the thicket. It appeared to be carrying a small forest of its own atop its head as a crown. Probably a moose or something. Lore slowly walked backward, her eyes following the colossal figure as it pushed past more low-hanging branches. When the rose bushes planted just at the start of her grandma’s porch kissed her hand, she turned to dart up the steps.
The screen door snapped shut behind her, drawing her attention back to the house. Her eyes landed on her grandma, who was sitting back on the couch. A handful of pill bottles sat on the coffee table.
Puzzlement crossed Lore’s face, but she didn’t comment on them. “Here’s the peppermint and lemon balm.” She gestured with the hand holding the herbs.
“I’ll take them,” her mom called from the kitchen, the kettle screaming in the background.
Lore hesitated but walked through the living room to the kitchen, and laid the leaves on the counter.
“Lore, you do it,” her grandma spoke up. “Your mom always botches it.”
Lore said nothing and blindly reached into the cabinet for Mamó’s snowflake mug. Her hands brushed against unfamiliar plastic. Her eyes looked up and narrowed at more pill bottles. She pushed them aside to get the mug.
Next, she poured in the hot water. She then stripped the leaves from the stems and put them in the metal mesh ball. She placed it in the steaming water and carefully stirred in some honey.
Her mom quickly took the cup and sat it on the coffee table.
The sinking sun cast an amber glow in the living room.
“Mom, you have to take your meds.” Her dad’s voice was low. “You aren’t going to get better if you refuse the medicine.”
Mamó crossed her arms. “I’m telling ya, those ain’t gonna do a damn thing.”
Her dad knelt on the floor beside the couch. “Mom, please.”
Lore held her breath, watching the unfamiliar softness in her father play out.
Her grandma looked up, and they locked eyes.
Was that confusion or fear on her face? Maybe her grandma didn’t feel like fighting with her son, but she ended up taking medicine from the handful of pill bottles.
She stood at the counter, gripping the countertop, and watched as her parents helped Mamó back to her bedroom. Then they left the cabin in a blur. Lore’s dad never liked to linger. The night air nipped at the apples of Lore’s cheeks as they loaded up in the truck. The drive back felt brief as Lore kept replaying when she pushed aside the pill bottles in the cabinet.
Her mind was racing about how quickly she could get over to her grandma’s house in case of an emergency. As Lore slid her shoes off at the door, her parents dispersed. Her dad got a beer from the kitchen and her mom raced up the stairwell, surely going to take a shower and use up all the available hot water.
Her work uniform stared back at her from the first step. Well, fuck. That puts a wrench in my plans. She picked up the clothes and bounced up the stairs. When she opened the door to her room, she wanted to rip her hair out. And there was therapy after work!
She found herself drawn to the window. She opened it and climbed out onto the angled roof. It had random patches missing in its shingling. She brought her knees to her chest and looked up at the clear night sky. Admiring the stars was one of the many things she and Maccon had done together. The year his mom got him a telescope was the best summer ever. She recalled all the comets they saw and the constellations they renamed. Their makeshift star log in a long-forgotten sketchbook sat on the back of Maccon’s mom’s bookshelf.
Then a quiet purr accompanied by a fluffy furred body pressed against her arm took Lore’s attention from the distant stars above her.
“Oh, hello.” She said, petting the calico cat. The stray mewed as if she understood her, and it brought a smile to her face. “Do you wanna star gaze with me?”
The cat slowly blinked as it stared at her with grass-green eyes.
Lore shrugged. “Kinda in the market for friends right now.”
The cat then curled up next to her, warming her side. “Do you ‘ave a name?” she whispered. The cat gave no response and Lore grinned. “I think I’ll call you Dinadrometa.”
The cat gave a judgmental, disapproving stare.
“Fine. Dina it is.” Lore mused, running her fingers through the cat’s colorful coat.
FOUR
Pounding on her door jolted her awake. The morning breeze made the room feel like an icebox, and her reluctant to leave the bed.
“Get up or you’ll be late!” her mom yelled through the wood.
Lore searched her room for Dina, but the animal was nowhere to be found. Maybe she’ll come back tonight. Lore closed her window but left a cat-sized gap. In case she wants a warm place while I’m gone.
“I’m coming!” she called. She quickly slid the peppy pink shirt on and tucked her braid through the hole of the baseball cap. Once dressed, she burst through her door past her mom, ran down the stairs, and raced out the door without a second thought—right into some heavy rain. You gotta be kidding me! As she sped walked along the narrow sidewalk, she untied the green flannel from around her waist and quickly put it on. Spring rains were always a bit chilly.
The streets were emptier than yesterday, so she managed to slip into Priscilla’s Place in a heart-pounding, fifteen-minute speed walk. The air-conditioned draft of the café chilled Lore to her bones. Getting caught in the downpour only made her colder.
“Well, don’t you just look like a little mouse who’s been caught in the rain?” Mavi called out.
Lore didn’t see her until she popped out from behind a donut rack. “Sorry. I didn’t know what time I needed to show up or anything because after the interview, I kinda just left in a tizzy.” Lore’s face reddened as she shuffled behind the counter.
Mavi glanced at the clock. “Eh, it’s eight. Most of the early birds have already come and gone.” A brief pause filled the shop as the manager eyed the empty sidewalks. “Come on. I’ll show you where to punch your card.”
Lore followed her through the swinging door to the back. There were so many more people working and packaging food than she thought could fit into the building.
Mavi laughed. “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to all this chaos.” She handed Lore a sheet and a pen. “Just write your name down and today’s date all the way through next Saturday.” She tilted her head to a calendar on the wall beside them.
Lore scribbled down the dates.
“And you just punch it in this.” Mavi pointed to the time clock the same way a game show girl points to a prize.
It made Lore laugh, and the machine made a clicking sound as it stamped her card. She put her card in the manilla folder that sat in a holder above the time clock.
The front bell rang, barely audible in the back.
“Ope, c’mon, we have a customer!” Mavi raced back up to the front and Lore followed her, giving shy smiles to the other workers she almost ran into.
When Lore pushed past the wooden door, she froze in place.
It was the old man with rings on every finger from before. A ridiculous number of bangle bracelets adorned both wrists. He smiled at her. “Well, nice to see you again,” he purred.
She moved closer to Mavi. “Hi,” she squeaked.
“Lore, this is Mr. Dempsey.” Mavi swiped a paper bag and put a donut in it, leaving it on the glass counter, and then she left Lore’s side to go to the coffee machine.
Lore stayed where she was, looking at Mavi awkwardly.
“So, I have something to tell you,” Mr. Dempsey said, leaning on the counter, his swirled mustache twitching as he spoke.
Before she could ask what, he continued.
“Meet the shadow at the wishing well, for he has secrets to tell.” He leaned even closer, stopping just an inch away from her face. “Secrets of time undone and spells that were spun,” he continued.
She could now smell the caramel candy he was tossing around his mouth.
His voice dropped even lower, his gaze boring into her. “Meet that shadow, not the shell, after the last farewell.”
Lore stood there, trying to process the cryptic message. Before she could ask him to elaborate, Mavi was back at her side.
“That’ll be the usual, Mr. Dempsey.”
The man nodded and slid Mavi a twenty-dollar bill. “Keep the change, darling!” He then turned to leave, humming a tune. His choice caught Lore off guard.
It was the same song her Mamó would sing to her as a child.
Mavi’s voice interrupted Lore’s thoughts. “And that’s that. You’ll have your usuals who come in. They’re pretty easy and lax with newbies. Nothing to stress over.”
Lore looked at the rows of pastries and inhaled the smell of fresh coffee filling the air. “What about a full lobby?” she asked, taking in the picturesque little café.
Mavi laughed and started wiping down the counters. She handed Lore a rag. “Don’t worry about the crowd. Focus on one customer at a time. It makes the whole thing less intimidating.”
Lore nodded in agreement as she swiped her wet rag in circular motions over the countertop. “There is something that I didn’t find out until last night. I have to go to therapy, and my first appointment is today.” Lore hugged herself as her nerves ratcheted up. She looked up, expecting to see anger and annoyance across Mavi’s face.
Instead, her manager regarded her with a warmth that made her uncomfortable. She didn’t know what to do with gentleness and almost would have preferred a scolding.
Then Mavi nodded and sprayed the counter. “What time is it?”
“Two.”
Her manager smiled. “Oh, sweetheart, your shift today is only til about one-thirty.”
Is my luck finally beginning to turn ‘round?
“Really?” Lore gasped. “Do you know where Raven’s Ridge Behavioral Therapy is?”
Mavi smiled. “Sure do.”
The door opened, ringing the bell, and Mavi gestured to her. “You got this!”
Lore still had nerves floating in her stomach, but more so from doing something new. She never thought she’d be able to say she was excited about interacting with strangers.
“Hi! What can I get you today?” Lore beamed, hardly believing the chipper voice that came from her lips was hers as she spoke to a mother and her young child.
“Hi, honey.” The woman gave a gentle tap on her toddler’s shoulder. “Go on. You can tell the nice ladies what you want.”
The child stepped forward, standing on their tippy toes. “Uh, can I have a pumpkin muffin?”
Lore looked at the rows of muffins in front of her.
“Pumpkin isn’t there, baby,” the mom cooed.
Mavi winked at Lore. “You know what, little one? We may not have pumpkin in season right now, but if orange is what you’re after,” she bent down and reached into the case, “then might I suggest this orange zest surprise!”
“Oh, it’s so perfect!” the child shouted. Their toothy grin gave Lore a joyful buzz. She put the plump treat in a paper bag for them and Mavi rang it up.
“Alright. That’ll be a buck, twenty-five!”
The woman went to pay, but her child tugged on her raincoat. The mother leaned down and listened to some whispered instruction before hoisting the little one up and handed the child the money. With a smile as wide as the first quarter moon, the child handed over the cash and reached for the bag Lore was holding.
She gave it over, and the two thanked them.
“Haves a nice day!” the child called as they left out the door.
“See?” Mavi mused. “Easy.”
And the rest of the morning was easy.
Lore’s mind would still drift back to the words Mr. Dempsey said—and the eerie way he hummed her grandma’s song. Maybe they knew each other? Regardless, she made it a point to make a note on her hand to ask her Mamó about him when she went to see her tonight.
The lobby of about five people cleared and Mavi looked at Lore as she got a water bottle from the cooler that was also lined with pops, lemonades, and teas. “Looks like it’s time for you to go, Miss Lore.” She pointed to the clock above the door leading to the back of the café.
“Already?” Lore turned to see for herself. “Wow, it went by so quickly.”
Mavi laughed. “Time flies when you’re havin’ fun.”
Lore went to clock out, but the manager waved her off.
“Don’t worry about it. I can get it!”
She stopped and looked at Mavi, who was scribbling on the back of a piece of scrap paper.
“Here, this is a little map to get to Raven’s Ridge from here. You’ll have to leave now though if you wanna make it by two.”
Lore took the paper from her. “Thank you.”
“Not a problem.”
Lore felt a sense of relief wash over her. “No, really, thank you.” She then looked at the makeshift map and headed out the door. Trying to let her smile cover the dread that was eating away at her when she laid eyes on Mavi’s faint pencil-drawn mess.
“See ya same time tomorrow!” Mavi called behind her.
“See ya tomorrow!” Lore waved as she walked out the door and down the dreary gray street.
Large droplets made the black ink spread like thin little roots across the page, making the map even more illegible. Lore sighed and looked around the square. All the buildings looked the same to her, and she didn’t see any sign of Raven’s Ridge. She slowly turned in a circle. The courthouse clock showed she only had ten minutes before her appointment. Lore’s hands started trembling. No, no, I can’t be late. The heavy gray clouds didn’t show any signs of letting up, so she took shelter under a tree that had a cute bench sitting below it. If it weren’t for the gusts of wind, it wouldn’t be too terrible right now.
