Chapter Six

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're saying," Grace stated that afternoon as she sat in the Principal's office of Cadence's school and crossed her legs.

"It's not complicated, Miss Collins," Mr. Franks stated with disdain. He was an older man and a man who believed in the sanctity of marriage and therefore looked down on Grace for being an unwed mother. Grace could remind him that it was his nephew who had gotten her pregnant and then run for the hills but she didn't think that would make things any better.

"I beg to differ, Mr. Franks," Grace countered sharply, causing Cadence's teacher, Mrs. Avery, to push her glasses up on her nose. "Cadence has never been a behavior problem before so if she is becoming one now, then there has to be a reason for it."

Mr. Franks shook his head. "We understand that Cadence has special needs but we simply cannot allow any student to hit other students or act out in class. It is your responsibility as her parent to find out what is causing this stress in her life and address it."

Grace stood and clenched her fists at her sides. "I do not need you to tell me what my responsibilities are, Mr. Franks. As a single mother I am very much aware of all my responsibilities!" she hissed angrily. "I have been her mother for nine years and so I am very much aware of my daughters emotions and moods. If there is something stressful in her life I can promise it is not happening at home which must mean it is happening at your school, which makes it your responsibility if I'm not mistaken!"

"I promise that nothing is happening in my class to Cadence. I love that girl," Mrs. Avery promised quietly.

Grace nodded at her. "I know you do, Mrs. Avery, and Cadence loves you as well. Perhaps something is happening in the hall or the cafeteria but I can assure you it's not happening at home. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to the pharmacy before school lets out."

Without another word of goodbye, Grace stormed from the office and quickly left the school. She stood in the sunlight outside, taking several deep breaths and attempting to calm herself.

Apparently Cadence had been hitting other students in class and throwing temper tantrums that even Mrs. Avery had been unable to calm. Grace was truly at a loss as to what was causing her daughter to misbehave at school and she hadn't had any problems out of Cadence at home.

She decided that after she picked Cadence up from school this afternoon, she would take her out for ice cream and try to get her to tell her what was going on. It certainly wasn't easy to get a child with the mind of a five year old to open up to you, especially if they thought they were going to get in trouble.

Grace made her way into Mavis' Pharmacy and up to the counter. "Well hello, Grace! How are you doing today?" Mavis asked brightly and Grace smiled at the short, heavyset lady.

"I'm doing just fine, Mavis. How are you?"

Mavis reached under the counter and grabbed a white bag full of medicine for both Cadence and Ester. "I'm doing just fine myself," Mavis replied and then she leaned forward. "Have you seen that handsome new stranger in town?" she whispered.

"I've seen the stranger in town but I'm not sure he's what I'd call handsome," Grace lied.

"Sexy then? Is that what you young girls call good looking men these days?"

Grace couldn't help but laugh. "I'm not exactly a young girl, Mavis, but I think the young girls are saying hot these days."

Mavis nodded and Grace could tell the woman was storing that knowledge away for another day. She prided herself on staying current with the young people in town. "Yes, well Martin is very curious as to why that stranger is suddenly in our town. He seems to think he comes from money and yet this stranger is claiming to be on vacation. How many people do you know who are fighting to come to Clifton on vacation?" Mavis demanded.

"Sheriff Martin could just ask him what he's doing here," Grace replied, knowing that Mavis had a thing for the sheriff who was a few years younger than she was.

"I'm sure he will," Mavis agreed. "Martin isn't the type to let grass grow beneath him."

"And to answer your question, I don't know anyone who is wanting to come to Clifton for vacation but they should. We have a lot of beautiful things to offer," Grace added.

"I agree. What we need is some money to spruce this town up."

"I don't see us getting that anytime soon," Grace replied sadly. "Not with all the coal mines shutting down and the sawmill struggling. Pretty soon the whole town will disappear."

The two women shared a moment of silence before Mavis spoke, "Well they won't run me off. There's been a good three generations of my family born and raised here before me and I won't leave."

"I'd like to say I have the same sense of loyalty but I'd have to go where I could find a job," Grace admitted.

Mavis smiled and patted her hand. "Let's not worry about those things until they happen," she said comfortingly. Grace nodded, handed Mavis the money for the medicine and bid her goodbye.

***

"Mommy!" Cadence exclaimed as she ran from the school and threw her arms around Grace's waist. Grace buried her face in her blond hair and breathed in her scent. Nothing in the world felt any better than a hug from a child, especially a child so innocent and loving as Cadence.

"How was your day, gremlin?" Grace asked as she pulled away and took Cadence's lunchbox in one hand and held Cadence's hand with the other.

"I don't want to talk about it," Cadence replied quickly. "Let's go," she added, glancing to the left. Grace followed her gaze and saw a group of boys, around eleven or twelve, snickering behind their hands as they walked past them.

Grace felt anger fill her. Were these boys the reason that Cadence was suddenly acting out? Was someone teasing her little girl? While Grace knew that kids would be kids, it was still hard to take when someone said means things about Cadence because her daughter was unable to defend herself.

Cadence lacked the intellectual ability to fight back with words and so she fought back by hitting, biting and throwing tantrums.

Grace was sure she knew what was happening to her daughter but she didn't say a word about it as she helped Cadence into the car. "Would you like to go to the diner and get some ice cream?" Grace asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.

"But won't that ruin our supper?" Cadence asked, picking at a hole in her jeans. Grace made a mental note to plan a trip to Lexington to buy her daughter some new additions to her wardrobe. That was something that Grace hadn't done before school started because she hadn't had the money but judging by the threadbare quality of those jeans, it was going to have to be done anyhow.

"It'll be okay this one time," Grace replied with a wink. Cadence giggled as she turned up the radio. Her favorite song came on and Cadence filled the car with her singing until they reached the diner. Grace's heart grew lighter as she listened to her daughter being so carefree.

Over vanilla cones with sprinkles, Grace was able to get Cadence to open up a little and she learned that there was indeed a group of boys teasing Cadence every day in the hallways, cafeteria and gym. Grace made another mental note, this one reminding her to call Mr. Franks on Monday and make sure he and Mrs. Avery were aware of the situation.

"Can we take ice cream to grandma?" Cadence asked as they rose from their booth.

"It would melt before we got home," Grace warned. "But I'll tell you what. When we get home we'll make some cookies for you and grandma to eat together."

"Chocolate chip?!" Cadence exclaimed happily.

"Chocolate chip sounds good to me," Grace agreed. She smiled with warmth and happiness as she watched Cadence bouncing happily toward the car.

"Grace?" A voice called out from behind her.

Grace groaned but plastered a friendly smile to her face as she turned to see Grant Caudill jogging up the sidewalk toward her in his black uniform. "Good afternoon, officer Caudill," Grace replied as she wiped the sweat from her brow with her shirt sleeve.

Grant ran his hand through his thinning brown hair and his blue eyes were warm as he smiled at her. "Don't call me that," he snorted with a wave of his hand. "I'm always Grant to you unless the Sheriff is around. He's a stickler for the rules."

"And he doesn't like me," Grace added with a laugh as Cadence began to skip in circles around the adults.

Grant winked. "Well you did cause quite a bit of trouble as a teenager."

"As I recall, I had a lot of help," Grace reminded him as she thought back to all the times that she, Grant and their misfit group of friends had terrorized Old Man Tippler's fields.

"Yes," Grant agreed. "But I was never caught."

"Mama, can we go home now and make cookies?" Cadence asked as she tugged on Grace's hand.

Grant turned his gaze to Cadence. "What kind of cookies?"

Cadence moved behind Grace's legs as if to hide. For reasons that Grace had never understood, Cadence had never liked Grant. "Chocolate chip," Grace filled Grant in when it became clear Cadence wasn't going to speak to him.

"I make a pretty good chocolate chip cookie," Grant informed them. "Can I join you? Maybe show you how it's done?"

"Mommy doesn't need your help," Cadence stated firmly.

Grace crouched down and pulled her daughter around her so she could look in her eyes. "Cadence, you don't speak to grown ups that way," she scolded. "You need to apologize to Officer Caudill right now."

"Sowwy," Cadence whispered, her eyes locked on the sideway.

"That's okay." Grant shifted his feet and rubbed his neck. "I'll help you out some other time."

Grace stood and offered him an apologetic smile. "She's been having some trouble with bullies at school," Grace admitted. "It's causing her to act out some."

"I'm at the school a couple days a week just to keep an eye on things. If you want, I can keep a special eye on her while I'm there," Grant offered.

Grace smiled with relief. "Would you do that?"

Grant nodded before reaching out and smoothing a strand of hair from her face. "Of course I would," he replied. She saw him searching her eyes for something that Grace knew he wouldn't find there. She didn't have the time nor the energy to waste on the opposite sex and especially not on a man like Grant who she considered to be a friend.

"Thank you." Grace pulled away from him. "We really do have to be going. I'll see you around, Grant." Grace turned quickly so she wouldn't have to see his disappointment as she loaded Cadence into the car.

***

Vince was searching the supermarkets very limited selection of wine for the bottle he'd take to dinner at Grace's when his cell phone rang. He pulled the phone from his pocket and sighed when he saw mother on the screen.

"Hello mother," he said with a sigh and then his head instantly began to pound when Beverly Griffin's shrill angry voice came over the other end of the line.

"Please ease my temper and tell me that this horrid, ridiculous gift that we received for your father with your name attached to it, is nothing but some wretched mistake!"

Vince pinched the bridge of his nose. What could possibly be wrong with a pair of cufflinks? Unless....

"Father doesn't like his gift?" Vince asked cautiously.

Beverly snorted. "The horrible wretched thing has already urinated twice on my Persian rug and put gnaw marks all over your fathers best pair of loafers!"

Vince made a mental note to strangle Patricia as he picked a bottle of wine and headed for the checkout. "What exactly did I get for father?" he inquired, grabbing a bouquet of white and yellow daisies and tossing them on the belt as well.

"How typical of you, Vince! You don't even know, do you? You probably asked that horrid secretary of yours to pick your father's birthday gift for you because you couldn't be bothered! I'll have you know that we raised you better than that and she got him a dog! A dog! A teacup Chihuahua is what the note says. The horrid, ugly thing is so tiny it fits in the palm of his hand!"

Vince paid for his purchases, giving a forced smile to the cashier who was staring at his phone with wide eyes as she heard every word his mother screamed. Hell as loud as Beverly was yelling, Vince was certain that all of Clifton could probably hear her.

With a pounding head, Vince walked out into the heat of the evening and slid his sunglasses off his head and over his eyes. "Just think of it as a surrogate grandchild," Vince offered before pulling the phone away from his ear as his mother began bellowing a ran that Vince was certain he'd be able to hear even without the phone.

"I have to go, mother," he stated when she paused to take a breath.

"Where are you? Are you in the office? If you are then you need to get over here and see your father. It's his birthday."

"Give him my well wishes," Vince offered. "I'm out of town on business and won't be able to make it."

"Where are you?" Beverly demanded yet again.

Vince glanced up and down the quiet street. He saw several children playing and an old man was sitting outside the courthouse wearing overalls and playing the banjo. "It's either Mayberry or Deliverance. I'm not real sure yet."

"Well you should be here with your father," Beverly sniffed. "He may not have many birthdays left."

Vince chuckled. "The man is in better shape than I am and will outlive us all. I'll call and check in in a day or two, mother. Goodbye." Vince hung up the phone before she could say another word and he pinched his nose again to combat the pain in his head.

He had been told by several doctors that it was stress that caused his headaches and he needed to learn to relax but how was he supposed to do that when had a mother like Beverly Griffin?

By having a night with Grace, that's how. Vince was actually quite nervous. He had never had much confidence with women and didn't have much experience with them either. He couldn't believe he'd gone into the garage and said what he'd said. Hell, he'd deserved to be smacked and instead she had accepted his offer.

Something inside of him still didn't feel right about her quick acceptance. She had seemed to pure, so real, so natural and good that to realize she was just like all the other women he'd had shoved at him just didn't' sit right. But Vince was determined to do as Patricia had told him and just enjoy himself. Hell, maybe it would help with the headaches.

As Vince walked back to the inn he dialed the office. "Griffin Real Estate, how may I help you?"

"A teacup Chihuahua? Really?" he demanded with exasperation.

"It's really quite cute, sir," Patricia replied behind a stifled laugh.

"Just so you know I have a headache now after a rather loud phone call from my irate mother. I think you should call and apologize to them. Get someone to go pick that dog back up and have my father sent the cufflinks that you told me you got for him."

"The dog was a pound rescue so I can't simply return him," Patricia replied stubbornly. "And your father has a million cufflinks, what on earth would he do with another pair? Just look on the bright side, maybe your mother will fall in love with the dog and begin setting him up on dates with marriageable women, forgetting all about her only son."

"Wouldn't that be nice?" Vince sighed wistfully.

"Have you gotten laid yet, sir?"

"No and you shouldn't be talking that way in the office," Vince scolded.

"When the boss is away we are much more relaxed around here."

"Don't tell the boss that," Vince grumbled, jabbing his finger into his throbbing temple. "I do have a date tonight so that should make you happy."

A loud bang sounded on the other end before Patricia spoke. "Sorry sir, I think I lost consciousness for a moment. Did you say a date? With who?"

"A mechanic."

"Are you gay, sir?" Patricia inquired thoughtfully. "That would certainly explain why you turned down Amy from legal..."

"No!" Vince snapped. "She's a female mechanic."

"They make those?"

Vince chuckled. "Apparently."

"Well let's go ahead and tell your mother that your dating a poor mechanic from the mountains and she'll forget all about being mad over the puppy."

"I'm not dating her," Vince countered. "I have a date with her."

"Ahh, the joys of meaningless sex with virtual strangers. I've been telling you for years to loosen up! I just wish you'd chosen to start here where I could see my newborn butterfly spread his wings."

"Goodbye Patricia."

"Goodbye boss."