A Thousand Tombs by Molly Greene

wine.”
    “Pick whatever you want. I’ll join you and we can cut up the grilling stuff and wait for the coals.”
    They were sipping and slicing when Luca came back into the room. His hair was wet and slicked back and he was wearing a pair of clean Levis and one of Mack’s faded t-shirts.
    “Hey you,” Gen said.
    “Hey,” the kid replied. “I hope you didn’t get that because of me.”
    “Nah. I got it because I’m not very clever. Where’d you learn your way around a garden?”
    “My grandfather. My Mom’s Dad. He could grow anything. I spent a lot of time with him when I was a kid. Before we moved to Jersey.”
    “He’s Italian?” Mack asked.
    Luca nodded.
    “I bet you miss your Grandpa,” Mack said.
    Luca nodded again. When he turned to Gen and changed the subject, she figured he didn’t want to go into it. “So how’d you get the eye?”
    “I was dumb,” Gen replied. “I found the house, and I found the man in it. His name is Vincenzo Vitelli. He was tied up and I was stupid and got smacked because I didn’t check around to see if anybody stayed behind to keep an eye on him. So the argument you saw last night must have escalated.”
    “Tied up?” Luca’s frown deepened.
    “Duct taped to a chair. He’s fine, though.”
    “Damn.” Luca looked away. “That’s a bummer.” His eyes swung back to her and he licked his lips. “I’m sorry I got you messed up in this. I should have just kept quiet about the coin.”
    “Forget about it. It wasn’t your doing. Turns out Vitelli’s an importer of less-than-perfect reputation.” Gen pulled a juice glass from a shelf and poured a shot of wine into it, then handed it to the boy. “To the man who tamed Mackenzie Hackett’s wilderness,” she said, and raised her glass. “Cheers.”
    Their glasses clinked together.
    It turned out Mack grilled the best steak she’d ever eaten, and the home-grown vegetables he’d brushed with butter and grilled alongside them were the icing on the cake.
    Luca stood with the cook and watched, asking questions about how long the meat should stay on one side before he flipped it, and how to know when the vegies were done. Mack gave him the tongs and showed him when to turn the corn and how to test for doneness.
    After dinner Luca tried to slip into his room, but Mack wasn’t going for it. “Come on, don’t go in there and hide. We’re just going to chill and watch a flick.”
    He didn’t ask which movie, just came out with his hands in his pockets and slouched into a chair. Mack spread an old comforter on the floor in front of the big screen and piled extra blankets on top, then tossed down a half dozen pillows. “Try that,” he said. “Best seat in the house.”
    Luca stretched out. Five minutes later, he reached for the pillows and pulled a blanket over him and made himself comfortable. “What are we going to watch?” he asked.
    “ Under the Tuscan Sun ,” Mack replied. Gen knew he was teasing, but the kid stayed quiet.
    “Don’t tell me you’re okay with that,” she finally said.
    “My Mom taught me when you’re a guest in somebody’s house, you don’t complain.”
    Mack and Gen burst out laughing. “Mack was just kidding,” she said. “He’s more of a Terminator type of guy. Or Alien . How about you?”
    Luca tipped his head back and looked at them upside down. “I like old movies, myself.”
    “You mean like Gregory Peck?” Gen asked.
    “Especially in To Catch a Thief ,” Luca replied.
    Mack raised his eyebrows. “Want to watch it again?”
    “Sure.”
    So they did.
     
    * * *
     
    Luca was sound asleep long before the movie was over. Gen and Mack were spread out on the couch with their heads at opposite ends. When the credits rolled, Gen got up and went into the bedroom, then brushed her teeth in the attached bath and went back out to kiss Mack goodnight.
    He’d already nudged Luca awake and shooed him off to bed and was spreading a sheet and the comforter over the sofa.