Last of the Summer Tomatoes (4 page)

After washing his face, brushing his teeth and doing a half-assed job shaving, he considered himself presentable. Wearing jeans, a t-shirt, socks, sneakers, and with a hoodie over his shoulder, he bounded down the stairs, more energy in him than he thought possible. “Must’ve been the huge meal last night,” he muttered to himself.

Glenda had bacon and toast on the table and what smelled like biscuits in the oven. She was cracking open a few eggs when he entered.

“Glad to see you’re up and at ’em. How do you like your eggs?”

Kyle shrugged. “Never had any that weren’t scrambled. My mom, she’s not into much cooking. She works a lot.”

“Well, we’ll start with scrambled. Maybe for Sunday brunch we’ll have you try something different. Go ahead, have a seat. You drink coffee?”

“No, ma’am… uh, Glenda. Coffee is for adults, stunts the growth my mom says.”

Glenda looked over at him. “I don’t think she had to worry about that. You’re not that much shorter than my son, and he’s almost six-one.” She smiled. “You’re what, almost six feet?”

“Not quite. I… I think I topped out at little more than five nine. Maybe I look taller because I’m so skinny?”

Glenda laughed. “Yeah, maybe. But I sincerely don’t think the coffee will stunt your growth. You want to try some? Or I have a couple different juices, some tea, milk?”

Kyle squirmed in his seat. He wasn’t used to having choices. He was to eat or drink whatever was put in front of him. “Whatever isn’t any trouble. I can help.”

“This kitchen is barely big enough for me, so no, please just stay seated.” She placed a mug in front of him and pointed to the pitcher. “That’s orange juice. If you want coffee, it’s brewing on the counter by the doorway. Cream’s in the small container, next to the sugar. Your choice.”

Kyle felt like letting his mouth drop. This kitchen was bigger than his own kitchen and dining room combined and then some. And to be made to make a choice? This was going to take some getting used to. He cautiously made his way to the coffee maker. It had always smelled good, but as expensive as it was, he was never allowed to have any at home. Hank always kept a tight fist on all the food, at one point even measuring the milk and juice levels. Kyle poured some coffee into his mug and settled back down in his chair. He took a sip and made a face.

“Too strong?” Glenda put some scrambled eggs on his plate.

“I… no, maybe?” Kyle wanted to hide. The warm liquid, while smelling great, tasted like hot bitter water.

“Here.” Glenda took his mug, poured some cream in, added some sugar. “If you’re not used to black coffee, it can be quite bitter. Try this.”

Kyle took a cautious sip. With the added cream and sugar, it wasn’t all that bad. He nodded. “This tastes better.”

“I should have warned you.” She placed a small glass next to his plate. “Have some juice as well. Get some vitamin C in ya.”

“Juice too?”

“Kyle, we aren’t going to starve you. Eat up. Drink up. You’ll need it to face the day. Walt wants you out in the milking barn as soon as you eat.” Glenda pulled the biscuits out of the oven and plopped two down on his plate.

“Walt’s not eating?”

“He eats after the milking is done.”

“Maybe I should help him first?”

“Not on your first day. I told him you were getting a good breakfast first. You probably aren’t used to being up so early and having to do something so physical first thing. Plus I think we need to talk.”

Kyle put down the bacon he’d been chewing on. “Talk?”

“I need you to know that I… and Walt… consider you something of family while you’re here. Yes, we expect you to work, just like Sam does when he’s home, but you’re not exactly hired help. You’re not eighteen yet, right?”

“Not until August.”

Glenda put her hand over his. “We signed up for this program because we wanted to make a difference in someone’s life. Now, we didn’t get the particulars of why you’re in the program, only that it was a nonviolent crime. I can tell from talking to you that you are a very conscientious young man, with great manners. I don’t want you to have to tiptoe around us. You need something, you let me know. You want seconds, or even thirds of food, that’s okay. You want coffee, juice
and
milk? Fine. We’ve got plenty. I… I can tell you come from a more… restrained family.”

Kyle let out a little snort. Restrained wasn’t what he’d call Hank. “It might take a little getting used to.”

Glenda gave him a big smile. “That’s quite all right. Just try your best; that’s all we ask. Now, eat up.”

Kyle dug into the scrambled eggs. Again he was shocked at the flavors he tasted. It was like all the food he’d ever eaten before had been bland porridge. This stuff didn’t even need salt or pepper. Before he knew it, he’d cleaned his plate and actually reached for another biscuit.

“You want some jam with that one? I’ve got some raspberry left over from last year’s harvest. I’ll be making some fresh real soon, so need to get rid of the old.”

Kyle nodded, his mouth watering even after all he’d eaten. She placed a jar in front of him, and he dug into the sticky preserves like a man who hadn’t eaten in years. The moment the fruit hit his palate, he thought he’d moan with the pleasure. He’d never understood those gourmet people on the food channels before, how they ooohed and ahhhed over food. Now he understood. Now he knew he was going to be spoiled for life.

Bright rays of sunshine leaked through the kitchen curtains once Kyle was done. Glenda opened up the curtains and the window, allowing the cool morning air to rush into the warmed kitchen. “You want any more?”

Kyle shook his head. “No, I think I’m very full. It tasted… awesome.”

Glenda laughed. Kyle knew he’d never get tired of the sound. It was almost magical.

“I’ll take awesome. Reminds me of how Sam speaks. You kids these days.” She winked at him as she took his plate away.

“Does Sam visit very often?” He was quite curious about this son they talked up so much.

“I’d say. During the school year, he comes home about once a month. Pretty much on schedule for me to do his laundry. He’ll be home in a couple of days for the summer; Walt’s going to have him show you most of the small tasks that need to get done.” Glenda placed all the dishes in the sink, then wrapped up the remainders and put them in the oven to keep warm. “About time you went out to help Walt. He’ll show you what to do, and don’t worry, he may seem gruff, but he likes you. You remind him of his brother. Now, go, shoo. See ya in a couple of hours.”

Kyle nodded, grabbed his hoodie and had the sudden urge to kiss Glenda on the cheek, but he refrained. He waved as he headed out the door.

T
HE
barn was surprisingly warm. Kyle expected drafts, lots of hay, a couple of lanterns illuminating bits and pieces, leaving dark shadows. But this was no barn from a Hollywood horror flick. It was clean, well lit, with some hay and sawdust, but mainly a lot of equipment, most of it hanging from the ceiling. Walt was wrangling some cows into a line and down into individual stalls.

“Walt, I… I’m here. I’m sorry I took so long to eat.”

Walt waved at him. “I’d be surprised if you had gotten here earlier. Glenda makes a feast for breakfast. Glad you enjoyed it.”

“She’s a great cook. Everything tastes so much… more?” Kyle wasn’t sure how to express himself.

“I understand. City food is too far removed from the source to retain much flavor. I thought I’d starve when I went off to school. Sam feels the same way; you should see the way he eats when he’s home. You’d think he was being starved at that college of his.” Walt hooked up the first cow to what looked like steel tentacles and hit a button.

“What exactly does this do?” Kyle pointed to the machine attached to the cow.

“That’s the milking machine.”

“Milking machine? I thought this stuff was done by hand.”

Walt laughed and gave Kyle a gentle slap on the back. “Maybe a hundred years ago. But if I had to milk all the cows by hand, I’d either have to hire more help or have more kids. No, the machine does it for me. I just have to hook them up. Watch me.” Walt gently touched the next cow’s hindquarters, then attached the “tentacles” to the cow’s udder. He pushed a button. “Fairly easy. You want to try it?”

Kyle swallowed. And again. Those cows were huge.

“It’s okay, son, they won’t hurt you. They’re all females, very docile. They actually like it in here; it’s warmer than outside, and they have to be milked.”

“Have to?”

“Dairy cows these days are bred to pretty much give milk 24/7. If they aren’t milked, it does get quite painful for them. Now, come on, try it.”

Kyle cautiously walked to the next cow and started to reach for the “tentacles” and udder. The cow stamped her foot.

“Hold on there. Tell her you’re there. They can get spooked quite easily. Just touch her back like I did. You can even talk to them. Not sure if they understand, but sometimes the talking can help.”

Kyle reached up and touched the cow’s back. It felt very coarse, a few stiff hairs clung to his palm. “Hey there, girl. I’m… Kyle.” He felt very funny talking to a cow. She turned her head and looked at him, still slowly chewing on her grass. He looked over at Walt. “Do they actually you know, um, know you?”

“Well, of course. All of the animals do. Once they get used to seeing you around, they’ll probably swarm you a bit, wanting to see if you have a treat or two in your pocket. Let me warn ya, the horses will almost expect at least a carrot or sugar cube. Keep ’em stocked in your jacket if you know what’s good for ya.”

Kyle gave him a little smile, then slid his hand from the cow’s back to her udder. Walt helped him wrangle the “tentacles” and within a couple of minutes, he had them attached. Walt turned the machine on.

“Not too bad for your first try. Of course, you’ll need to speed it up to keep on time. You do it correctly, you’ll have harnessed the last stall when the first is done. The first cow knows to walk down to the other end, you herd the next one in line. As we have about a hundred head to milk and ten stalls, it’s about ten cycles to go through.”

“And they all just stand there chewing their grass?”

“It’s called ‘cud’, and yes, that’s what they do. Every morning. During the summer they just head on out to the field to chew and contemplate for the rest of the day. With the exception of the ones due to give birth soon; we keep them in a separate field.”

“Why?”

“We keep them separated in case we need to tend to them. Cows can get panicky very quickly, and you don’t want a whole herd of them around if you have to administer medicine or… well, in extreme cases euthanize one.”

Kyle looked down. “That’s probably one of the hardest things, huh? They all look like, um, well, peaceful, serene creatures.”

Walt nodded as he went on to the next stall. “You’re right. We will try everything we can to save a cow, not just because of the money involved in buying and caring for one, but because I, as a farmer, decided to take these creatures on, house them, take care of them. I take that responsibility very seriously, not like some of those large corporations that would put a cow down and just mark it on a balance sheet somewhere. Small family-run dairies are an endangered species, I’m afraid.”

“I’d like to bring my friend Billy out here; he’s like me, having no clue where food actually comes from.”

“It’s a reason Glenda talked me into this program you’re in. I met quite a few city slickers during my college days that didn’t have a clue either. Figured if we could open the eyes of just one of you citified young’uns, might just clue a whole bunch in.”

“Yeah, I’d like to e-mail him tonight… um, that is if you guys have access to the web out here.”

Walt started laughing so hard he had to stop working for a moment. “Son, we have the Internet, satellite TV, even cell phones. I promise, you aren’t in the middle of nowhere, no matter how far apart the farms are.”

Kyle felt his ears get a little red. “I’m sorry, I… I tried to read up on farms before I came.”

“Probably articles written by other city dwellers. Don’t you worry. We’ll get your laptop set up this evening, and you can be in contact with the real world soon enough. Here, try another cow. We need to get this line going.”

Kyle moved in to the next stall, placing his hand on the cow and giving her a “hello there” before attaching the machine. He looked over at Walt at the next stall. “What exactly is this machine and its parts called? I keep thinking ‘tentacles’ in my brain.”

“Those ‘tentacles’, as you put it, are just transflow vacuum tubes. They attach to a pulser, then the milk goes into a filtration and processing tank. We take out what we want for personal use, the rest is carted off to a factory for further processing into various types of milk, butter, and cheese. If we happen to get an abundance over what our contract calls for, we have a local co-op where we can sell the excess or barter.”

“Barter?”

“If we want steaks or roasts, we can exchange with the Circle H farm down the road. They’re beef farmers. Or we can barter with the local orchards for fruit. I don’t have the land for more than a few apple trees.”

“I never thought about that. Milk and meat comes from the local grocery store, where cold hard cash is king.” Kyle finished up with his cow, noting he was just about a minute off Walt’s time.

“You’re getting the hang of things, real good.” Walt finished up with the last cow and trotted back to the end of the barn to start the cycle over again. Kyle followed him, working right alongside during the next round of ten cows. The third cycle began.

“You think you got the hang of things here? I’d like to go grab a quick bite, if you don’t mind.”

Kyle looked up at him with wide eyes. Walt was going to leave him alone with these one-ton mammoths? He nodded. “Okay, I… I think I can do this.”

Walt put his hand on Kyle’s shoulder and pointed to the phone on the wall with his other hand. “Push zero one on that phone, and it’ll dial directly into the kitchen. I promise you, I can be here in under forty-five seconds. If you think something has gone wrong, hit the big red button at the end of the stalls. That stops everything. Don’t worry, no loud sirens will go off, and the cows won’t know a difference. They aren’t going to stampede, I promise.” Walt gave him a smile.