Love in the orchard , page 1

Darry Cowl, was a local Celebrity. His Ancient Cider mill stood next to a running creek in the middle of his Family Orchard for over 80 years. Everyone in town knew him as a successful hard worker but it was his HUGE handlebar mustache, that made his face so memorable .. Mary Cowl was his loving wife of 23 years, up until last summer when she passed away from Cancer. Yes, Darry Missed her every day, but there was plenty of work to do to keep him from showing his heartbreak.
Mary left him with a pristine home and a fully functional storefront, Both of which, Darry shared with Cleopatra, the Persian cat.. Her cat,, and nobody missed Mary as much, as Cleo, Darry felt … nobody .. Save himself, and having that cat in his lap, every evening, somehow made Mary just that much closer, for the both of them..

It was a fine yet rainy day and the customer flow had slowed down to a trickle, 4 minutes to closing time, when the First Loud Crackle of thunder exploded in the distance,, Frightening Cleo, who was outside doing Cat type things, to Scurry frantically in through the Exclusive “Cat-Door” Mary had installed in the front door. Darry twisted the Key in the Cash Register to the “Z” setting, hit the Cash button, and patiently waited for the printed tape record of the days transactions.. He smiled to himself. After Mary passed he found a modest satisfaction, of always doing things the way Mary Showed him..
Cleo, he noticed was perched on her favorite spot in the windowsill, looking out at the ever increasing Dark clouds.
45 minutes later, Darry, was in his kitchen cooking up some fishdicks in his oven, when the power went out, he was coming out of his back room with a flashlight in hand, when the loudest Thunder Crack he’d ever heard, shook his house and knocked off a small porcelain cat from the stone fireplace Mantle, only to break into one million pieces in the darkness.. the cat figurine reminded him that he hadn’t seen Cleo, since he closed up the store. So he went to the front door of his home and opened up the door to see the Horror of his wooden Store ON FIRE!
Darry Quickly ran through his home looking for Cleo.. and not finding her in the Favorite spots of her choice, he ran to the kitchen and pulled the 1978-installed Fire Extinguisher off the wall by the Rotary dial phone,, and ran outside into the wind, to face his fears..
Fire was Dancing and leaping like the Devil himself out of the upper Attic access door and he ran around to look into the window where he left Cleo on the windowsill.. She wasn’t right there but he HAD to make sure.. Death had been Cruel to him this last year, and he was Willing to Confront Hades,, if it meant Cheating the hand of death if only, this one time.

Darry Kicked in the front door of his shop much to his own surprise at how easily it yielded to his size 11 foot.. and ran inside only to be hit with a Blast of flame caused by the Additional oxygen of the suddenly open door.. it knocked him to the ground with a pain on his exposed skin. He crawled forward to the most likely spot Cleo might be hiding, in the basket under the Cash register used to put all the Credit card slips. And there she was! But she was not moving.. “Christ” Darry pleaded,, not her too!! He snatched the basket and ran outside as the tears started to flow.
Darry knelt down in the rain and muck and asked the universe to satisfy his only request, let Cleo live! He grabbed the lifeless cat and raised her to his lips, and kissed her and started to blow into her nose, hoping somehow his breath of love, would be the only thing, they BOTH needed to live..
Her whiskers felt strange against his upper lip but he kept blowing and squeezing just below her sternum, until he felt her move under his hands.. The Tears he never cried for his wife all came out in one long moan to the Either, as the whine of the Fire department’s Siren pulled into his 1000 foot long driveway..
Darry’s thoughts had only been upon saving Cleopatra, he gave no thought of his own personal pains until the tears hit his upper lip and cheeks.. The Blast of fire had Melted his long handlebar mustache onto his face, leaving only one side, “mostly” intact..
The very next day, the local news papers had, the Front page story, all about the Fire at the COWL Orchard, and how Darry lost his Famous Mustache saving his Wife’s Cat..
The Towns people All Gathered around for the First opening day after 2 weeks of Cleanup on the farm, and there was a Clean Shaven Darry, Standing proudly at an old 4 wheel Vender cart his Grandfather used back in 1945, with a Very calm looking Cleopatra, sitting right in the middle of the Baskets of fruit.
Darry thought it was Very nice of the Townsfolk to al come out for his Grand Reopening, but was Shocked, and then a little angry, and then PLEASED to notice how every person walking in and around his orchard,, man woman and child, was wearing a Dollar-store Fake handlebar Mustache.. And somebody even brought one for Cleo!

He may never grow another mustache , but Darry will Always love his cat.. “HIS CAT” he thought, with a smile..

Darrman 10-1-13