"Why don't you go see yer cousin Sadie, t'day?" Gran said to Josie as they were washing breakfast dishes on her last day there. "Papa 'n me's got some bizness in Springfield, since the day's getting longer, might as well stay a while 'n visit yore cousins who never come down."
Some rain clouds were pulling off to the East, so the morning was cooler than most. Josie put the last dish away after drying it. "Sounds like a good idea, Gran. Been so busy with Papa haven't thought of of seeing her."
The older woman was wearing a nice, long sleeved floral dress and hose, but she hadn't put on her shoes yet. Giving her granddaughter a squeeze she whispered in the young woman's ear: "Glad yer learnin' the recipe from Papa. Somebody's gotta carry on the tradition." A loud horn sounded from the front yard, making them startle. "That'll be yer cousin Jake. He's gonna take us inta town."
"I thought Uncle Frank usually did that."
"Yeah, but Frankie's not here. He was off at Widow Jenkins' last night. They argue a lot, but when they make up they's in bed a coupla days, at least. Should act their age, those two." She walked into her bedroom a moment and returned wearing sensible brown shoes. "Old man, are you ready?" she shouted out the back door.
"I'm up front with Jakie," he shouted back. "Waitin' on you, honey bunch."
"All right, Josie. Jus' leave old Coot on the front porch so's he can sit in the sun. If he craps out there, won't matter. Be careful walkin' through the woods, tick's been bad over Sadie's drection. Where's my purse? Oh, there. We'll be back by nightfall. Don't worry."
They went out front and found two men talking by a 4x4 pickup with a bed full of firewood. Josie's grandfather was more dressed up than ever, wearing a long sleeved white shirt, striped tie, black trousers and shoes. His grandson Jake looked to be 19, and bore a strong family resemblance, muscular with short blond hair, green eyes, a strong build and short, brown hair. He was dressed in a short sleeved shirt and jeans, sneakers, a Springfield Cardinals hat perched on his head, and an iPhone at his belt. The old man pretended to be irritated. "Bout time you got here, woman. Thought you'd never come."
The young man rolled his eyes. "Just got here, Gran. Thought I'd take a load of wood over to the farmer's market, those rich folks still want to buy it pretty well. Can I help you with anything?"
"I'd like ya ta meet yer cousin Josie. She ain't been here for a while, least not since ya moved back here. Josie, this is Jake."
He offered her a strong handshake, nodding to her. "Nice to meet you, Josie. Papa's been telling me how much he's enjoyed your visit."
Josie looked him up and down. "You look like your dad. Sorry Uncle Henry's not here, but he's in a better place. Good to meet you, Jake. Thanks for taking them into town."
"Aw, it's nothing. Uncle Frank blows off his taxi job about half the time anyway, and I like spending time with Gran and Papa."
"What are you doing right now?"
"Well, I'm on break from school. Going to Missouri State, business major, then getting an MBA. Helping out Mom over at the old place down in the valley. Not far from big sister Sadie."
The old man put his hand on his grandson's shoulder with a loud slap, making him wince. "This boy's way too modest. He's 'round here a lot, workin' hard with me, hittin' the books real hard, 'n setting hisself up for a good life. All he needs is find hisself a good lady..."
The old woman pointed her finger at her husband. "Stop right there, Nathan Bedford Lee. Josie's not lookin' 'n cousins ain't getting married much these days. All those jokes floatin' 'round 'bout us going to family reunions to finds dates is yesterday's news. We gotta git movin' old man, we're wastin' time." She gave Josie a quick hug and peck on the cheek goodbye before hustling into the pickup and sliding into the back seat; Jake and his grandfather shook their heads and followed her in. The truck roared to life and all three of them gave her a big wave before turning around and spitting gravel as they left.
Josie went back into the house and dressed carefully. She put on a long sleeved, silk blouse and jeans, traded her flip-flops for a pair of hiking boots, and put a yellow bandana on her head. Filling her drinking bottle from the well, she took a knife from her Papa's shed, remembering over the past few days that having a knife on you in the woods was a good idea, and started off around her family's mountain.
The day was starting to get humming: the insects were busy with their spring agendas, and a couple rabbits gave her a close look before scampering away. She picked up a fair sized stick when she was a snake sunning itself on a log, but her path took her around the serpent's lounging place, so she didn't bother it. In the distance she heard a swift brook gurgle as it raced down the slope, which brought back memories of her childhood: she and her cousin Sadie used to play and skinny dip in that creek just about a set of rapids. "Used to know a lot about this mountain," she said to herself out loud, "gonna have to learn it again. Don't remember worrying about ticks and snakes or anything that lives here." A breeze stirred the trees, seeming to answer her, and she felt another layer of mountain peace settle in her heart.
As she approached her cousin's cabin, there was noise. "Damn...yeah, like that...Ooooie, shit...Sadie, yer a gift from God, dammit...yeah, a God-damn true as life gift from God!." Rounding a turn, she saw a small log cabin: about 50 feet by 25, with modern shingles, a front porch with a swing, some well tended flowers and lace curtains in the windows. Parked in front was her Uncle Frank's pickup truck, which answered one mystery of the morning and raised two more. Josie had heard Sadie had two children, preschool age, and wondered where they would be. What happened with Widow Jenkins seemed less of a mystery, but Josie decided she could wait for the details.
She decided not to call from the front yard or knock at the door, so she slipped around the side of the house to the back. Her Uncle Frank's voice was still active, but unintelligible, it was clear he was having a good time. The sound of scraping of furniture against the floor was coming from the kitchen, where a huge double window with a planter gave her a good view. Her cousin Sadie was splayed face down on the table, her dress up above her waist, a glass of clear liquid in her left hand while her right was underneath her, manipulating something in her crotch. Her Uncle Frank was directly behind her, thrusting roughly into her backside, where a smear of white indicated some lubrication. Sadie was using a carrot as a dildo while her uncle sodomized her.
Sadie turned and saw her cousin out of the corner of her eye. A wink and a gesture told Josie to stay out of Frank's sight until he was gone. "C'mon Uncle Frankie, fill up my butt. Cain't wait no longer, give it to me!" she demanded.
