Lined With Silver (20 page)

She took a deep breath, then walked over to
the curtains. She pulled them wide. The city below was a mix of old
and new. Ultramodern buildings towered above the carefully
decorated colonials. Asphalt ran into cobbled streets. The mix of
old and new reminded her of the Constitution. The inspired document
could embrace the old and the new while retaining its power to
guide the nation.

As a lawyer, she had studied the document
more than most Americans. Being here where it had been created and
signed gave power to the books she had studied.

The next morning, Sondra was up and ready
before Zack knocked. The butterflies in her stomach wouldn’t
settle, and she picked at her breakfast.

“Nauseated?” Zack asked.

She shook her head. “No. I just don’t feel
like eating.” She pushed the French toast and strawberries away and
re-covered them with the metal lid. She didn’t want to admit it,
but the prospect of meeting his grandmother was the cause of her
unease. As much as she thought she wanted to meet her, the
continuation of their lie seemed wrong. “Should we be doing
this?”

“What are you talking about?” Zack drew his
brows in a frown.

“You know. Meeting your grandmother.”

“It was your idea.”

“I know, but I was pregnant then. Blame my
pregnant brain. I wasn’t thinking clearly.” She bit her lip and
then continued, “Do you really want to introduce me as your wife
when it’s just a temporary arrangement?”

“I’m sure Jade has filled her in by now.
Besides, Granny is 83 years old. She is healthy, but there are no
guarantees. She might die before I ever see her again. Meeting you
would make her happy.” Zack reached for her bejeweled wrist.
“Besides, I want her to meet you. There hasn’t been anyone else
I’ve wanted to introduce her to. Not even Hannah.”

“Are you sure?”

He nodded and stepped through to her room to
grab her coat. “Let’s go.”

They drove for a few minutes until they had
reached the outskirts of the city. They turned down a lane lined
with skeleton trees. Large homes were set back from the road, each
completely individual. A long driveway met the road in front of a
gray two story house.

As they parked, Sondra stared at the
structure. When Zack had said his grandparents had built it
themselves, she had pictured a much smaller home.

A porch wrapped around the bottom story.
Furniture was placed randomly around the porch. White legs of
chairs and tables peeked out from under winter covers. A large
stone-lined flue divided the front of the house in half. The gray
stone matched the gray siding. “Is this your grandmother’s
house?”

Zack nodded.

“Did she pick the paint to match the stones
or the other way around?”

“The house was originally white. She switched
colors after Grandpa died, so I would imagine she chose the color
to match the stones.”

“She did a good job with the color
coordination.” Sondra said.

“It’s the artist in her. She and Mom might
not have been blood relatives, but they were certainly spiritual
ones.”

Zack walked around the car to open the door.
She trembled at his touch. He quirked his brows in a question and
she shook her head. She doubted he would understand her sudden fear
of his grandmother.
What if she doesn’t like me?
She took a
calming breath.
Why am I so worried?
A picture of the
determined woman at the funeral flashed up.
She’s not afraid to
speak her mind, that’s for sure.

She peeked through her lashes at Zack while
they walked up the curved sidewalk. Eager anticipation showed in
his expression.

A large ornate knocker decorated the oak
door. Zack used the knocker and waited patiently. After a minute,
he knocked again.

“I’m coming. I’m coming.” Could be heard
through the door. Sondra recognized the voice.

Sondra looked at Zack. “Is that your
grandmother?”

He nodded.

Just then the door opened to reveal a five
foot tall woman with short dark curls framing her face. She wore
zebra-striped leggings topped with a red button up shirt splattered
with large orange, yellow, and blue flowers. Thick wool stockings
went up to her knees over the leggings. Combat boots finished the
ensemble.

Sondra stared a moment and then met Zack’s
eyes. His eyes twinkled.

The woman standing in front of her no way
looked like she was eighty-three. Sixty-five maybe.

“Granny, this is Sondra. We were married a
couple of weeks ago.” Zack hugged her while he was making
introductions.

“Come on in. I’ve been anxious to meet you. I
was disappointed to have missed you at the funeral dinner. Jade
said you’d be coming down to visit.” As she stepped back, she
glared at Zack. “And why you wouldn’t invite me to the wedding, I
have no idea.”

“I’m sorry Granny. We kind of decided to
elope.” Zack looked like he’d been caught with his hand in a
jar.

Granny reached out and patted Sondra’s
stomach. “I heard about that, too. I can’t wait to meet my new
great grandbabies.”

Sondra inhaled deeply. This was touching too
many nerves.

Zack hugged his grandmother while sending a
concerned look at Sondra. “We have a lot to talk about, but what I
really wanted to see is that painting you were working on the last
time I was here.”

“That was eight months ago. I finished that
right after you left. I thought I showed that to you during one of
our skype visits. I’m working on another one.” Thoroughly
distracted, Granny led them through the entryway and up the stairs
to her studio. She had several unfinished canvases stacked around
the room as well as some sculptures and a few pieces of
pottery.

Sondra looked around the room, her eyes wide.
She stepped over to a familiar face. “You do beautiful work.”
Sondra admired a portrait of Mitchell. “Is this one you finished
recently?”

Granny nodded. “I finished that just a couple
of days before he died. I was working on this one last time Zack
came to visit.” It was another portrait. This one was of a
woman.

“That’s Mom.” Zack offered.

“She’s beautiful.” Sondra moved closer to
admire the painting.

“She is.” Zack agreed and then hugged Granny
again. “You did a fantastic job of portraying her.”

“If I can’t leave anything else behind, I
want to leave a piece of myself through my art.” She sounded
matter-of-fact, ignoring all the praise, like this was just
something you
do
.

“These are truly masterpieces. The only
problem is that Jade and I will be fighting over these.” Zack
frowned at his mother’s image.

“Oh. Posh. Stuff and nonsense. With today’s
technology, you just take a pic and have it blown up on a canvas.
Problem solved. You both have your own.”

Zack laughed. “I think you know too much
about technology for your own good.”

Granny joined in his laughter. “It’s a good
thing I’ve figured things out. I wouldn’t be able to stay in touch
with you if I didn’t.”

“That’s true. Our weekly skype visits have
been a lot of fun.”

“They have.” She reached over and patted his
back, then she turned to Sondra. “Would you like to see the rest of
the house?”

Sondra nodded and thought,
Granny. That
name undoubtedly suits her
. As they followed her down the hall,
Sondra noticed Granny’s hair was slightly askew. The vibrant,
dark-haired woman marching ahead of her was wearing artificial
hair. Somehow, it felt natural. Sondra smiled. Granny probably
wouldn’t be caught dead without it.

The perfume trailing out behind her was a
nationally-known label, if Sondra’s nose was working properly. It
was one of her favorites.

They walked the length of the second story,
which held five other bedrooms and three bathrooms, one attached to
the master bedroom at the end of the hall. The room was dominated
by a cherry queen-sized bed. The posts at each corner were
elaborately carved and towered over Granny. A cheery patchwork
quilt seemed to warm the room. An oak rocking chair in the corner
was adorned with a sheepskin. Sondra indicated the skin with her
chin. “Was that a family pet?”

Zack chuckled. “That was grandpa’s favorite
addition to the room.”

“You would think it had decorated the Taj
Majal.” Granny joined in his laughter. “I didn’t have the heart to
get rid of it when Ibraham died.” She stepped over to the closet
and opened the door. “I haven’t thrown out his clothes,
either.”

The closet floor was lined with men’s shoes
and worn cowboy boots. Pants, shirts, and suits hung in the closet.
Dust puffed out as Granny touched the material.

“He’s been gone a dozen years. What are you
waiting for?” Zack asked.

Granny smiled and shut the door. “There isn’t
anyone here but me. It’s not hurting anything.”

They headed back to the main floor where
Granny was off on a different tangent. “When I get old, I’m going
to stay down here.” She walked through a room that was currently
being used as a study. “This will be my bedroom, and the laundry is
down the hall.”

Sondra had to bite her lip on a giggle.
When is she going to be old?
Sondra wondered.

As they walked into another room, Granny
said, “I’d offer to let you play pool, but I’m making
potpourri.”

Sondra stared at the ornate carved wooden
table. Green slate poked out occasionally around a cover of
newspapers. On top of the paper, rose petals―thousands of
them―perfumed the air. Her eyebrows went up. “Where did you get
them?”

Granny grinned. “Oh, my grandkids send me a
lot of flowers.” When Sondra glanced at Zack, she could tell by his
look that he was as shocked by the announcement as she was. After a
pause, Granny continued, “Kidding. I cut the dead flowers off my
rosebushes and most of the neighbors. I dump the petals here and
boil the rosehips for rosehip jelly.”

“Aren’t you supposed to wait until the first
frost to pick the rosehips?” Sondra asked.

“Yeah. That. It’s true I don’t really keep
the rosehips until they turn colors. I guess it’s after the frost.
I don’t always remember those things. It doesn’t seem to impact my
jelly much. I’ll get some for you.”

Sondra snuck a look at Zack, who was
valiantly biting back a laugh.

As they stepped into the dining room, Sondra
was astounded. The entire table was stacked. Papers, projects, and
an occasional unwashed dish shared the surface. Granny walked over
to the table and shoved some things aside to make room. “Make
yourself at home. I’ll go grab some toast so you can try that
rosehip jelly.”

Sondra’s eyes were wide with horror as she
caught Zack’s amused expression. In a theatrical whisper, he said,
“It’s really not that bad. I promise.”

He pulled up a chair and helped her settle
into a spot before he disappeared into the kitchen to help
Granny.

Her entrance almost required trumpets. She
carried a clear jar of what looked like golden red honey balanced
on a white cloth bordered with elaborate needlework. Zack followed
with three plates stacked under slices of toast.

As they were eating, Sondra said, “I confess
I didn’t know what to expect. I’ve heard of rosehip jelly, but I
haven’t ever tasted it. This is really good. Is it your own
recipe?”

“It came from my grandmother. It was a treat
saved for special occasions, but from what I’ve read, the rosehip
is an excellent source of Vitamin C. I prefer to get my vitamins
naturally, and this tastes a lot better than any vitamin I ever
tried.” Granny nibbled daintily on half a slice of toast.

“I have to agree with you there.” Sondra
dabbed at her mouth with a paper towel Zack had grabbed from
somewhere in the table stack.

“Thanks for the treat, Granny.” He stood up
to hug his grandmother. “We wanted to know if you’d like to go out
to lunch with us.”

“Goodness. Had I known you were gonna ask me
to lunch, I wouldn’t have served my jelly. Do you think you’d have
room for anything?”

“It was just a couple of pieces of toast.
That’s an appetizer. Where would you like to eat?”

“There’s a new steakhouse I’ve been wanting
to try.”

“How come you haven’t?”

“I’ve been too busy.”

As Sondra reflected on the amount of artwork
that filled the studio upstairs, she could see Granny wasn’t
exaggerating.

“Can you take time off today?” Zack’s brows
drew together in concern.

“Anytime my grandson comes out to see me is a
holiday. Of course I can take the day off. There’s always tomorrow.
Although I do have to say I’m at the age where I don’t like putting
things off. I never know how many tomorrows I have.”

“That’s probably a good idea for anyone. None
of us do.” Sondra agreed.

Granny grabbed a large red floppy hat with a
matching ostrich feather that waved in the breeze. She donned it
with majestic grace, despite her loud print blouse and non-matching
leggings. Even though her combat boots worked in her studio, Sondra
was surprised she didn’t take a moment to switch foot gear. She
tried to catch Zack’s eyes, but he was busy helping Granny into her
yellowing fur coat and didn’t seem to notice.

He helped her out the front door and to the
car. When he opened the front door, Granny protested. “Oh, no you
don’t. Your wife belongs here.” She moved to the back seat, where
Zack made sure she was comfortably settled and shut the door.

When they entered the restaurant, Sondra
tried to ignore Granny’s huge red hat, but the ostrich feather had
a way of settling right under her nose. When they sat down to wait
for a table, Sondra made sure she was on the non-feathered side of
the hat.

Much to Sondra’s surprise, when the waiter
came to pick up their orders, Granny said, “I’d like to see the
dessert menu, please.”