Down Home and Deadly

stood and pulled Carly to her feet then put his arm around her and pulled her close. He whispered something in her ear.
    The twins came running in, followed by Zac.
    “Mom, can we go now?” Hayley’s query was more of a command.
    “Yeah,” Rachel chimed in. “You said as soon as lunch was over we could go get ready for the basketball game.”
    “Pipe down, kiddos.” Zac spoiled his big - brother attitude by adding, “But everyone’s goin’ down to the courts soon, right, Mom? I want to practice my jump shot before the game starts.” He turned to Elliott. “Can’t you make her hurry?”
    “Hurry a woman? Son, you’ve got lots to learn” — Elliott winked at Zac —“ but I’ll do what I can.”
    “Out!” I made shooing motions at the kids. Then I stopped. “On second thought , why don’t you take these dirty dishes in the kitchen and tell your g randma that y’all will load the dishwasher? When you finish, we’ll show you who the athletes really are.”
    “I’ll show them how to hold down a lawn chair,” Carly muttered.
    The kids obediently took all the dishes and exited the dining room, but they were so busy laughing about our supposed athletic ability that Hayley bumped into the door facing. Served her right.
    Forty - five minutes later, we were waiting for a few stragglers on the concrete basketball court just past the playground. One of the benefits of being raised at a resort—plenty of room for friendly games. And plenty of extra players. Just as Dad finished going over the rules, the honeymooners in cabin five came running up. “Are we too late?”
    Dad shook his head. “The cops are just now getting here.” He motioned to where the black - and - white patrol car had pulled into a parking place.
    The man stopped in his tracks and put a protective arm around his new wife. “Excuse me?”
    Dad laughed and pointed at John, Ricky, and Seth, who were walking across the gravel parking lot toward us. “Don’t worry, son. The chief of police has a mean three - pointer, but he isn’t worth a dime on defense. And that tall cop gets all the rebounds, but when he shoots, you don’t need to worry. He can’t hit the broad side of the barn. And Seth? Well, he’s just Seth. You’ll see.”
    Everyone laughed, even the newcomers.
    A new hybrid vehicle pulled in and bypassed the parking lot, driving across the gravel directly to the basketball court. Before I could guess who the driver might be, Tiffany Stanton emerged. She waved and smiled then walked around the car and opened the passenger door. John’s wife, Denise, climbed out, her usually slender frame struggling to hold the extra twenty - five pounds she had gained in the first eight months of her pregnancy. They already had two children, but this was Denise’s first pregnancy since turning thirty. John had apparently read that with age came danger. He’d been treating Denise as if she were made of spun gold for the last several months.
    The cops had almost reached us when John heard us greet Tiffany and Denise behind him. He spun around to look. “What is she doing here? I told her she needed to rest.”
    He hurried over to Denise and cupped her elbow with his hand. I would be annoyed by the constant attention, but Denise seemed to be coping very well. Then again , looks could be deceiving. Even though she smiled as she struggled to gain her balance, there was a hint of gritted teeth in the smile. She waved and began walking toward us with John scampering around her like an overgrown puppy.
    “I’m okay, John. I needed to get out of the house , and your mom volunteered to babysit.” Denise’s words floated to us , her exasperation clear in her tone . “I can walk by myself. Why don’t you get my chair out of the car?”
    Tiffany had opened the trunk , and she stepped back to let John take the red lawn chair. Ricky waved her over to be on his team , and she jogged toward him.
    I’d never have thought of her as athletic, but then again she was the opposite of her mother, and I sure couldn’t imagine Amelia enjoying a pick - up basketball game or hanging out at the Stafford Cabins play area on a Sunday afternoon, for that matter.
    We all stood there gawking at the John and Denise show as they reached us and he got her settled into her chair. By the time he had her situated to suit him, she almost needed binoculars to keep up with the action. He handed her his phone and his portable radio and turned toward us.
    As soon as he