Chapter 11

"Oh, hi mom."

"Don't you 'hi mom' me young man. When were you going to tell me about this? You called me last week and didn't say a goddamn thing about any of this."

"I was going to have to tell you before the TV interview I guess. I didn't want to worry you mom. I was in no danger and I didn't do anything special."

"What the fuck do you mean you were in no danger? They had guns Kenny, and the story said that you had a girlfriend. What about that?"

"Oh mom, one of the guns was loaded with blanks, and the reporter was exaggerating about the girlfriend. Connie works at the lodge here with me, she is a friend, but not a girlfriend mom."

Just then Mallory made her presence known by crying out for more food. When she was being fed you delayed in the feeding at the peril of your hearing. She required your total attention until she was full, not a little bit here and there, your total attention and nothing less.

"Ken, what was that, do you have a damn child there?"

"Yes mom, I went to Boise and..." Suddenly Ken realized that he had never told his mother about Mallory. He had meant to when she was born, but he was so uncertain about Belinda that the time had never seemed right. She didn't even know about the divorce or exactly why he had gotten married.

"Uhh mom, it's kind of a long story, but Marta and I went to Boise last week after all of the hassle and picked up my daughter from Belinda."

"Your daughter? I'm a fuckin' grandmother? And why was Belinda in Boise? What happened to her? What in hell else haven't you been telling me Ken?"

"Well..."

"Wait damn a minute; the paper said that you were injured. How the shit are you taking care of a baby when you are injured?"

"It's just my left arm mom; and everyone here at the lodge helps out."

"Never effin' mind; you make plans to pick me up. I'm coming out there and see my granddaughter. I should have come out long ago and met Belinda. I'm not waiting for you to visit any longer. I'm coming out on the first goddamn plane I can get on."

"Yes mom. Let me know the flight when you can. I'll be there."

"And you bring my granddaughter with you. You hear me young man, I don't want to wait one pus bedamned minute longer than I have to to see her."

"Yes mom, she'll be with me."

"Why in hell is she yelling?"

This whole last part of the conversation was done over the protestations of Mallory who didn't think that Ken was feeding her fast enough. He was trying to feed her with his damaged left arm while holding the phone with his right. He had some movement of his arm by now, but he couldn't get it up to his ear yet.

"Your phone call interrupted me feeding her mom."

"Well fuckin' a get back to it!"

"Yes mom."

Ken quickly finished feeding the boisterous child and hurried over to the main house to get his own breakfast and to tell everyone the news.

"Your mother? Your mother is coming here?" Connie asked. "How much does she know about your life here?"

"Uhm, I kind of glossed over some things a bit."

"How much does she know about you and Belinda then?" Marta questioned.

"Uhm, I told her that we got married, but not until the marriage was almost over. She didn't know that Belinda was pregnant or about Mallory or anything like that. She knows that I got a better job than the mall guard, and that Marcia was my old teacher, but not too much about the other parts of my life."

"Ken, why have you hidden so much from your mother; don't you think that she has a right to know what is going on in your life?" Marcia expressed her opinion.

"I didn't want to worry her and maybe make her come out here or try to get me to move there. She and dad don't need that kind of trouble; they are trying to retire and take it easy. I probably wouldn't have told her about Belinda at all if the insurance company hadn't sent something to our old address and it got forwarded to mom. I told her that it was a marriage of convenience and would probably be over soon. I think I already saw the writing on the wall by then."

Ken was being whipsawed by all three women. They had surrounded him and were asking questions in order around the circle. The only saving grace was that Selena was busy in the kitchen. Now it was Connie's turn again.

"So when is she going to be here?"

Ken's phone rang and he looked at the caller ID, "Rosemary Jacobs". "I guess that I am about to find out Connie. Hi mom, what do you have for me?"

"Kenneth Jacobs, you cut the bullshit young man. I will be at San Francisco at 11:30 PM tonight on Southwestern flight 870. You be damn sure to be there with my granddaughter, and anyone else you think maybe I should meet. Your father has some meetings he has to attend so I will be alone, but if you think that you are going to hide your daughter from him for long, you had better think again. When I told him what you had done he switched between being proud of you for protecting people, and pissed that he has missed so much of being a grampa."

"I'm sorry mom. I'll be there, with whoever wants to go. You'll understand when you hear the whole story, so please calm down till then. Okay?"

"We'll see Ken, we'll fuckin' well see."

Cell phones don't give you that satisfying 'click' when you hang up that the old dial sets did. They just become silent and display 'call ended'.

"Anyone want to meet my mom at the airport with me tonight? She insists that I bring Mallory, any takers?"

"I was going to suggest that you take Barb out tonight Ken. She would like some alone time with you." Connie said, "I guess that is out of the question, so I'll go with you if you'd like me to."

"What do you mean, some alone time?"

"Don't worry about it; we'll talk on the way to the airport. Now tell us about your mother and what kind of trouble we can expect."

"What makes you think that you can expect trouble?"

"Think about it Ken. You have been hiding your life from your mother; of course there will be trouble. Our concern is whether or not she is likely to extend the blame to us." Marta explained.

So Ken described his mother Rose. She is 5'2" and about 200 lbs. Rolly-polly would be a good description, with short brown hair tending to grey. Rose was intelligent and not willing to suffer fools lightly. Her temper was legend and Ken had felt it often as a teenager. He did not doubt that she loved him, but he hesitated to tempt her anger. He knew that he would get a piece if her mind, but he also knew that he deserved it. She would not be cruel, but he would know what she meant.