Spirals of steam curled up into the air. This was what he missed—the chicory flavor of good, strong brew like only his Memaw could make. He needed the eye-opening caffeine after his run-in with Silacious. She almost drove over his foot as she backed her car up when he dropped his bag in the trunk. Then she put the vehicle in drive as he was opening the passenger door. He had to jog and jump in the seat before the automobile picked up speed. It was a tense ride to his grandmother’s house. There was so much he wanted to say but couldn’t find a way to start a conversation. Instead, he stole glances at her profile. Silacious was still a beautiful woman. Home, she’d stopped long enough for him to exit the car. He didn’t get a chance to claim his overnight bag from her trunk before she revved the engine and sent the tires spinning, spraying the tiny pebbles that made up the driveway. Memaw hadn’t been home to witness his unceremonious drop-off or he would have never heard the end of it.
