Chapter 25: Progress

Ashley fidgeted with the envelope that Ms. Ford had given her. She had not yet had a chance to give it to her father, because he had been busy every night. Her history of bad letters from school made her nervous, but she realized that she had put it off long enough. It was time to show her father the letter, so as Cade sat on the couch relaxing after dinner, she slowly approached him and nervously stood before him.

Cade was enjoying a cigarette, tired from his long day of working. He noticed the envelope in Ashley's hand. "What's that?" His voice came out gruff, and Ashley became nervous. She swallowed and handed him the envelope, unable to speak.

Cade stuck his finger beneath the seal of the envelope, ripping it open, and taking out the letter. He examined it carefully, and did not show any reaction. Finally, he looked up at her. "Do you know what this letter says?" He asked.

Ashley blushed, "N-no," She thought it was a positive report, but from the look on her father's face she wondered if she had been misinformed.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" He asked with raised eyebrows.

Ashley's eyes welled up with tears. "Should I g-go g-get the strap?"

Cade's ice-cold look melted into a smile and wrinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes. He looked at her with pride. "You want a spanking for a good report?"

Ashley breathed a sigh of relief. "No sir."

"Come here," Cade put down the letter, extinguished his cigarette, and pulled her close, giving her a tight squeeze. She held onto him with all of her might. He pulled away from her and looked down into her tear-filled eyes, brushing her hair back from her eyes, and kissing her gently on the forehead. "I'm very proud of you Ash," he said softly and then he hesitated, "and I love you."

Ashley began to sob at his words and threw her arms around his neck with all of her might, "I love you too dad."

Cade had almost lost sight of why he was doing all he was doing, but the letter about Ashley's progress brought it all back to him. He was doing this for his family. As he held his daughter, he realized how far she had come since his release from prison. All of the sudden, it all seemed worthwhile. He recalled seeing Ashley for the first time standing on the porch of Seth and Annie's house, skinny as a rail, and dressed in filthy rags. Her hair was scraggly and dirty and she smelled bad. She had come a long way since then and he felt his heart swell as he thought of the difference in her.

Callie was watching from the kitchen and after awhile she wanted to know what the letter said. She walked into the room and casually picked up the letter. "What does it say?" She asked, beginning to read. "Oh my God!" she exclaimed.

Ashley looked up at Callie, unable to tell if she was happy or upset.

"Ashley," Callie's eyes filled with tears, "This letter says you no longer need resource classes." She grabbed Ashley and gave her a firm hug. In her experience, kids seldom worked their way out of resource classes and this was nothing short of impossible.

Ashley blushed with pride. "Ms. Ford said I was 'a miracle'," she mumbled softly.

Cade laughed. "You are," and he patted her on the back, "but you still need to keep up with your reading over the summer, so when you go to junior high next year, you don't fall behind again."

Ashley nodded. "I will."

Harley felt proud of his sister. "What's resource class?" Jess asked.

Cade grabbed Jessie and pulled her onto his lap, "Resource class is for kids who get behind in school, to help them get caught up."

Jess was puzzled, "If Ashley was behind, how come she didn't get a whuppin' for being in those classes?"

Cade stroked Jessica's back, "Because it wasn't Ashley's fault. Grandpa Seth and Grandma Annie didn't help her with her schooling the way they should have."

"Oh," Jessica's brow furrowed. "I hate Grandpa Seth."

Cade touched her lightly on the nose, "Don't talk that way about your grandpa."

"Well I do," Jessie said stubbornly.

Callie laughed and smiled at Cade, "She's definitely your daughter; stubborn as hell."

Harley elbowed Jessica, "Even though you hate Grandpa Seth, you're not supposed to say it out loud. I hate him too, but I don't say it dummy."

Cade roared with laughter, he couldn't help it. "Neither of you should talk about your grandpa like that."

"He's not my grandpa," Harley said boldly, "Dusty Harrison was my grandpa."

Cade paused at his words and looked affectionately at his son, "Indeed he was." He reached out and put his hand on Harley's shoulder. "Dusty was a grandpa you could be proud of son, but Grandpa Seth is married to my mother, and she is your grandma, so I want you to respect that."

There was silence for a time as they absorbed Cade's words. Then Callie scooted the children out of the room, "C'mon let's get ready for bed, there's only a couple of more weeks of school left before summer vacation, and we all need to get up early."

Cade lit a cigarette as he watched the children leave the room. He didn't want his children to be full of hate the way he was, so he thought it was best to try teaching them to let go of their hate at a young age, and learn to tolerate and respect their grandpa despite his cruelty. The world was a harsh place, and something had made Seth into the monster he was. Cade had begun to understand Seth a little better, ever since he began caring for his family. Fatherhood wasn't easy.

Cade's birthday was at the end of May, but it came and went without anyone noticing. It was a reflection of how life was going. He was busy from dawn to dusk, working with Lonnie all day, then coming home at night and working with the members of the farmer's co-op all evening to get farms planted so that they wouldn't have to pay taxes. Cade's children saw less of him, and it made them unruly and irritable. They wanted Cade around because his presence in their lives represented stability.

Callie realized as the end of the school year arrived, that she would need to arrange for a babysitter for the kids while she was at work. She talked it over with her coworker Rhonelle, who suggested a few teenage girls living nearby, who might be interested in earning some summer money by babysitting. When Callie got the nerve to tell Cade about her babysitting plans, she knew he would be upset, so she braced herself.

"You want to leave the kids with a babysitter?"

"There are several responsible teens around, and I've already talked to one named Nicole who lives about a mile from here, and she's willing to watch them while I work." Callie explained.

Cade was growing weary of Callie's insistence about keeping her job no matter what. "I don't want some teenager babysitting the kids all day long, you're their mother; you should watch them." He recalled the various babysitters from his childhood, and cringed. "Kids needed a lot more supervision than a teenager can provide."

"I can't quit my job right now Cade," Callie said, "We need the money."

"You don't have to work," Cade was irritated. "I make enough money to support us and the kids need you here."

"I won't be working every day Cade," Callie said, "I'll be here most of the time, but I need to get out sometimes too, or I'll go stir crazy."

Cade wondered where he should draw the line with her. After some inner debate, he decided to try the teenage babysitter, even though he didn't like the idea.

After school was out for summer, the new routine began. The first day the babysitter came over, Cade happened to come home earlier than usual to find a complete disaster. The kids were acting up, and jumping on the furniture, giving the babysitter all sorts of grief. The babysitter was beside herself, and Cade's blood boiled. After she left, Cade sat the kids down on the couch.

All three of them stared at the floor. "When you have a babysitter here, you will behave and respect her the same way you do me and your mother." Cade said sternly.

Harley swallowed, "Sorry dad."

Cade shook his head in frustration because he knew if Callie didn't insist on keeping her job, that this wouldn't be an issue. His blood continued to boil. "I have a good mind to give you all a good spanking," he said angrily. "Now get this house cleaned up, and if you act up again for the babysitter, I'll come home, and tan your backsides good and hard, do you hear me?"

They nodded and rushed to clean up the house.

Callie loved the time she spent at work. The customers were growing fond of her and the men constantly flirted with her. She never told Cade about the flirting, because she knew he wouldn't like it. Peter Marchbanks, their neighbor, continued to be a frequent customer at the diner and things began heating up between him and Callie.

"Your husband is quite the guy," Peter said sarcastically as he sat up at the counter and eyed Callie with appreciation. "He thinks he can save the poor working farmers from a fate worse than death."

Callie hated when Peter got on a rampage about Cade, but part of her shared his views. Cade was so involved in saving the farmers from the tax increase, that in Callie's mind, it was becoming an obsession. Now that she and Cade could pay their bills, she didn't see what the big deal was. Callie poured Peter more coffee, "Care for another piece of pie?"

Peter patted his belly, "No thank you darlin', I better not. I've gained a few pounds since I started this habit of afternoon pie and coffee," he winked at her.

Callie eyed his tight stomach with raised eyebrows, "You look pretty fit to me," she grinned appreciatively.

Peter leaned over the counter close to her face. "You should see me without my shirt on," he whispered.

Callie blushed. Peter was an attractive man, but both of them were married. She wondered how long she could hold out because he made it clear he wanted her and she wanted him as well, even just for one afternoon. Cade was so tired lately, and Callie reasoned that it would be nice to be with a man who worshipped her as Peter did. Cade had never been like that a day in his life, it simply wasn't his style. Callie began wearing her hair the way she knew Peter liked it, and she looked forward to his visits.

Peter backed away from Callie after laying his money on the counter, "Have a good afternoon Cal," he called as he turned and left the diner.

Rhonelle laughed, "Why don't the two of you just get a room and get it over with?"

Callie sighed, "Because Cade would kill me."

Rhonelle looked sideways at her, "I don't see why you would ever want to cheat on a man like Cade."

"I don't want to cheat" Callie lamented.

"You could have fooled me," Rhonelle shook her head, "Honey, if you keep playing with fire, you're gonna get burned."

Callie snickered, "It's so tempting though. Why is it so tempting?"

Rhonelle changed the subject, "How is the babysitter working out?"

Callie cleared away the last of Peter's dishes. Her shift was over. "Cade hates having a babysitter. He came home the other day and threatened the kids within an inch of their lives to behave better while she is there. Ever since then, it's been going fine."

"Sweetie, are you sure this job is worth it?" Rhonelle's tone was serious. Callie seldom saw Rhonelle serious about anything. The truth was that Rhonelle saw in Callie's life something she had longed to have in her own life. Rhonelle had been with man after man, and for better or worse had never born any children. The happily ever after that Rhonelle had dreamed of as a girl had never quite materialized. When she saw the dynamic in Callie's life, it bothered her to see Callie take it for granted the way she did. Rhonelle knew it was only a matter of time before Callie and Peter stopped flirting and moved to the next level because she had seen it happen many times before with others, including herself.

Callie frowned, "I better get going so I can send the babysitter home before Cade gets home from work." Callie removed her apron and headed for the door.