Travel with the Aunts by Barbara Linsley

Author:Barbara Linsley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Koehler Books
Published: 2021-10-12T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

Pool Shark

Rosie rooted through the nearly empty snack bag. While Allison hauled the last suitcase out to the car, staggering as she held the case out of the flooded parking lot, Rosie squeezed the last tube of yogurt into her mouth. Gray clouds wrung out the last drops of moisture. Iridescent circles formed in the parking lot puddles.

“We need to make a grocery run,” Daisy said, plucking out the detritus, including a desiccated banana peel, which was all that was left in their depleted snacks bag.

Allison pulled the motel door closed at three minutes after the official 11a.m. checkout time. Daisy and Rosie stood on the sidewalk, trying to judge how far they’d have to jump to avoid wet feet. Josie walked down the way to find a place where the puddles were less deep and wide. “Wait,” Allison called. Sighing, she scanned both directions. Deep puddles everywhere. “Wait,” she repeated, holding her hand up before hopping and tiptoeing through puddles to the car. Allison backed away from the sidewalk, angled sideways, and pulled the car up so the passenger side tires scraped against the curb. She hopped out into the yards-wide puddle, came around, and held the door for Daisy to climb in the front. Rosie opened the back door and scooted to the far side. Josie waited for her to get settled, smiled her approval at Allison, then slid in, pulling the door shut behind her.

Thunder rumbled as they left the motel parking lot. Daisy leaned forward, peering up at fast approaching black clouds. “Oh my,” she breathed, “that looks bad.”

Rosie leaned sideways, craning around to see the sky above them. “Quick, find a place to eat! We need to eat first, then shop for snacks.”

Josie glared at her baby sister. “Why do we need to hurry to eat?”

Daisy snorted as Rosie looked pointedly at Josie and started singing, “Raindrops keep falling on my head.” Daisy laughed and responded with, “Dancing in the Rain.”

Frowning up at the gathering dark, Josie nodded. “Understood. If we don’t find a place soon, we get drive-thru.”

“Golden Corral!” Rosie shouted, pointing down a cross street. “Turn left . . . right here, turn left.” She waved excitedly.

Pulling into the left-turn lane, Allison glanced down the road, finally spotting the red sign for Golden Corral well down the way, more than a block away. Waiting for the light to change, she glanced back at Rosie. “How did you see that?”

Rosie giggled. “You can eat as much as you want. There are all kinds of food.”

Daisy took over. “They have a chocolate fountain.” She said, which prompted Rosie to make yummy sounds. “And watching the people there is nearly as entertaining as a visit to Walmart.”

Navigating the busy streets, Allison pulled up to the Golden Corral entrance, letting the ladies off just yards from the door. The first huge plops of rain splatted against the windshield. The ladies dashed for the safety of the doors. Daisy turned back when they were safely under an overhang.

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