Ghost Granny by Carol Colbert Page B

from
sliding into the side of rocks by the exit ramp. We stayed at the
hotel for a couple of nights, made sure Max was fed and had warm
clothes. After that, we met Luna and she offered me a job of
caretaker for her property and things just fell into place. I do
think of Max as my son, but he really isn’t related to us. Isabel
was offered a job at the school working with the kids doing crafts
and art, and then when Luna found out she could bake and use her
artistic side with chocolates, she was asked to do the candy for
the Chocolate shop as well.”
    “What does Max say about who he is and where
he is from?” Catherine wondered out loud.
    “Never said much. He seems well adjusted in
every way and physically he is fine, but Isabel and I can’t help
but wonder too why he shows no interest in finding out where he
belongs.” Sebastian said.
    “Maybe he belongs here, with you.”
    “May be, truth is, I wanted to stick around
to make sure he was O.K. and to wait with him for his mother to
come back looking for him. He has never mentioned a father or any
brothers or sisters. He does not play well with others, so I was
glad to see him and Cody getting along together as well as they
do.”
     
    “I am glad too. Cody, being an only child,
has been alone too much in his life.”
    “Catherine, I don’t want to pry.” Sebastian
started to say.
    “I know, truth is, Cody’s father, my husband
David, was killed in Iran. Cody was very young at the time and
really has no memories of his dad, none that he has talked about at
least.”
    “I’m sorry. Isabel and I have been pretty
much alone in our lives as well. We had an abusive father and our
mother died several years ago. We have always stuck together. Our
father died and we were actually looking for a new place to settle
in when the snow storm caught us. Now, I can’t imagine wanting to
live anywhere else.” Sebastian said, handing Catherine a cup of hot
chocolate that he got at a booth near the barn.
    Catherine was thinking that there was
something she wanted to ask Sebastian about something he said
earlier, but she could not remember quite what it was now. Cody and
Max ran up to them and Cody was telling them that the pig he picked
to win was named Pepper and the one Max picked was Salt. There were
a couple of other pigs in the race named Sugar and Spice. They all
stood at the fence cheering the piglets on. It was a lot of fun
watching them squeal and run around the pen. Afterwards, Sebastian
led the little group to the big smoke grills.
    “Time to get busy cooking.”
    “There are so many people here.” Catherine
said. “Can I help you, or do you know where Isabel is and if she is
working on something I could help her out with?”
    “No, haven’t seen her since we got here. She
might be in the barn. The doors don’t open there until it gets
dark. Strict orders from Luna.”
    “That is what I wanted to ask you,
Sebastian. You said that you were hired to be care keeper for
Luna’s property. I thought that her sister Thelma owned the houses
and land over the hill.”
    “Far as I know, Luna hired me.” Sebastian
said, filling the inside of the grill with hamburgers and hot
dogs.
    “Luna hired me for the Chocolate Shop and to
house sit Twinkle as well.”
    “House sit Twinkle?”
    “I know, it sounded kinda strange to me as
well. I mean, you, Isabel or even Max are certainly capable of
feeding the cat and seeing to its care, so why me and Cody?”
    “I don’t really know, I just assumed you
were looking for a house to rent and that was it. I remember
teasing you about Twinkle being the reason you two were there, but
I honestly was just fooling around. I am glad you two are there.”
Sebastian winked at her just as a couple of teenagers walked up
with their arms full of buns and plastic plates.
    Cody and Max had run off again somewhere, so
she walked towards the Rec Center building. Along the way people
stopped her to chat. She stopped to say hello to Lynn from