stress of having to deal with her new
child. Regardless, she seemed pleased to stop her labors and have a word with
the Wings when she saw him approach.
“What can I do you for?” she asked playfully, swatting at
him with her towel.
“Judy, what’s an orchid look like and where do I find them?”
“What a strange question to ask. Why do you need to know?”
“You already know I volunteered to supply the flowers for
Butterscotch’s wedding.”
“Yes, right. The floral displays. That was very kind of you.”
“Yeah, that’s them. The floral displays. Well I decided to feature orchids in my displays,” the Wings announced proudly.
The Flowers put a hand to her mouth as her eyes became damp.
He was sure that this was happy girl crying and it reassured him that he’d
chosen the right flower for the wedding.
“Orchids. They’re lovely, of
course,” the Flowers responded. “But why orchids?”
“Because the lady wants them and my
mama never had them.”
The Wings realized too late that his statement didn’t really
make much sense. The Flowers seemed to understand him perfectly all the same. She
burst out laughing and sniffing at the same time and pulled him into an
embrace. She even gave him a peck on the cheek.
“Yes, there should be orchids,” she declared. “But they’re
so expensive. You’ll need to start a drive immediately to raise the money for
one nice display.”
“That wouldn’t be a problem. I plan on gathering bunches of
orchids out of the forest and making my own floral displays, with a little
help.”
“But Danny, orchids don’t grow in our woods. Actually they
might, but only the ugly kind that smell like rotting meat and eat bugs. We
wouldn’t want any of those in our floral displays. We’d only want the
prettiest.”
“But I’ve never seen an orchid before. I didn’t know they
didn’t grow here,” the Wings said, beginning to feel uneasy.
“They’re beautiful. They’re just the right flower for the
wedding. Wait here while I go get a picture.”
The Wings waited and fretted the whole time the Flowers was
away. How was he going to pay for expensive flowers? He had no money except for
the airplane fund. Soon the Flowers came skipping back into the room. Skipping. The Wings felt crushed by the weight of her
delight.
“Look at these,” she said, holding an open book out to him.
The Wings looked and was astonished by what he saw. The flowers
in the book were beautiful. They were also one of the most exotic things he’d
ever seen. Everything about the orchid screamed money. Money that he did not have. Danny began to sweat.
“Judy, I’m no good at organizing fund raisers and shopping
for expensive flowers,” the Wings complained, handing back the book.
“Don’t you worry. You go see Misha.
Sasha tells me that Misha still has ties back into his former life.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just that he has connections in the market. You know. Yes,
you talk to Misha. Misha will take care of everything.”
“How do you know he’ll be willing to help?”
“He owes Butterscotch a favor. And if he refuses to help,
tell him that I will be round to have a talk with him. In fact, I’ll call him
now.”
“Alright,” the Wings said, fully acknowledging the woman’s
threat to talk to a man as sufficient
motivation.
* * *
Big John accepted a cup of coffee. I was doing the hard
stuff that morning, trying to work up the energy to tackle the last row of
tucks on the wedding dress, or else borrow about five progressively larger bras
and stuff the bodice full of padding.
I laid out my last two scones and set them on the table.
There should have been more, but Horace had woken without a hangover and with a
raging appetite that all but emptied my larder.
“So, I’ve been thinking that with the Flowers being busy
with Ricky—” The kid hadn’t earned a nickname yet, but it sounded odd to hear
him called by his actual name. “—that I should help
child. Regardless, she seemed pleased to stop her labors and have a word with
the Wings when she saw him approach.
“What can I do you for?” she asked playfully, swatting at
him with her towel.
“Judy, what’s an orchid look like and where do I find them?”
“What a strange question to ask. Why do you need to know?”
“You already know I volunteered to supply the flowers for
Butterscotch’s wedding.”
“Yes, right. The floral displays. That was very kind of you.”
“Yeah, that’s them. The floral displays. Well I decided to feature orchids in my displays,” the Wings announced proudly.
The Flowers put a hand to her mouth as her eyes became damp.
He was sure that this was happy girl crying and it reassured him that he’d
chosen the right flower for the wedding.
“Orchids. They’re lovely, of
course,” the Flowers responded. “But why orchids?”
“Because the lady wants them and my
mama never had them.”
The Wings realized too late that his statement didn’t really
make much sense. The Flowers seemed to understand him perfectly all the same. She
burst out laughing and sniffing at the same time and pulled him into an
embrace. She even gave him a peck on the cheek.
“Yes, there should be orchids,” she declared. “But they’re
so expensive. You’ll need to start a drive immediately to raise the money for
one nice display.”
“That wouldn’t be a problem. I plan on gathering bunches of
orchids out of the forest and making my own floral displays, with a little
help.”
“But Danny, orchids don’t grow in our woods. Actually they
might, but only the ugly kind that smell like rotting meat and eat bugs. We
wouldn’t want any of those in our floral displays. We’d only want the
prettiest.”
“But I’ve never seen an orchid before. I didn’t know they
didn’t grow here,” the Wings said, beginning to feel uneasy.
“They’re beautiful. They’re just the right flower for the
wedding. Wait here while I go get a picture.”
The Wings waited and fretted the whole time the Flowers was
away. How was he going to pay for expensive flowers? He had no money except for
the airplane fund. Soon the Flowers came skipping back into the room. Skipping. The Wings felt crushed by the weight of her
delight.
“Look at these,” she said, holding an open book out to him.
The Wings looked and was astonished by what he saw. The flowers
in the book were beautiful. They were also one of the most exotic things he’d
ever seen. Everything about the orchid screamed money. Money that he did not have. Danny began to sweat.
“Judy, I’m no good at organizing fund raisers and shopping
for expensive flowers,” the Wings complained, handing back the book.
“Don’t you worry. You go see Misha.
Sasha tells me that Misha still has ties back into his former life.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just that he has connections in the market. You know. Yes,
you talk to Misha. Misha will take care of everything.”
“How do you know he’ll be willing to help?”
“He owes Butterscotch a favor. And if he refuses to help,
tell him that I will be round to have a talk with him. In fact, I’ll call him
now.”
“Alright,” the Wings said, fully acknowledging the woman’s
threat to talk to a man as sufficient
motivation.
* * *
Big John accepted a cup of coffee. I was doing the hard
stuff that morning, trying to work up the energy to tackle the last row of
tucks on the wedding dress, or else borrow about five progressively larger bras
and stuff the bodice full of padding.
I laid out my last two scones and set them on the table.
There should have been more, but Horace had woken without a hangover and with a
raging appetite that all but emptied my larder.
“So, I’ve been thinking that with the Flowers being busy
with Ricky—” The kid hadn’t earned a nickname yet, but it sounded odd to hear
him called by his actual name. “—that I should help
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