The streetlamps ended as soon as the road turned into highway and snaked around and over the evergreen dense mountains.  Alan gripped the steering wheel of the old Ford sedan with two hands and drove at a pace adequate enough to keep up with the luminescent road signs, which slipped past his headlights one after the other.

He wiped his thick, gray mustache and stubby chin with one hand and looked at the passenger seat, where Simon slept with his mouth open.  He had a blanket curled snugly around his fists and a closed bottle of arthritic medication in his lap.

The car approached the top of a steep mountain and on that horizon the sky glowed faintly.  Alan wiped his mouth and mustache again.  The old Ford sedan rocked suddenly and the front tire blew out jerking the front end of the car to the right.  Meanwhile the glow over the mountain road intensified and formed into a definite concentration of light. Read more…

George pushed his glasses firmly to the bridge of his nose.  He hunched over the freestanding wooden chopping block in the center of the kitchen.  The morning paper lay open in front of him and his cup of coffee produced a thin, dissipating vapor.  Outside birds sang to each other in the violet half light of the early sky.

He woke up before everyone else on Saturdays because it took him a day to adapt to the weekend schedule and because this was the only time he got to himself.  Margaret would be up later, than the kids: Kaily and John.  George scratched his face and sat on a stool.  The coffee, evoking almonds and chocolate, tasted exceptional this morning. Read more…

They came tumbling into the living room, the three of them.  George, the oldest, was on top of Simon and they were on the floor, rolling around each other at Michelle’s feet.  She cheered them on and held a stopwatch.  It was a game.  The two boys rolled into the television room and rolled under the coffee table.  Michelle yelled, “One more minute!” and the coffee table rattled and rocked on its four legs.

Rocco, the French bulldog, pranced into the room and stood next to Michelle.  He watched the boys roll.  He wagged his tail and dropped his front legs.  He barked.  Michelle called, “Twenty more seconds!” and Rocco barked more at the boys.

“Time!” she said.  The boys stood up.  Simon panted and George bent forward and leaned over his knees. Read more…