Spiced Molasses

Chapter 1

It was summer. The air was sticky with humidity and the sweetness of fresh fruit. It was Beth's favourite time of year. Her blond hair brightened in the consistent sunshine and her lean limbs took on a golden hue. It was all about barbeques and swimming and long rides through the countryside. Best of all, she wasn't the only child in the house. Her older siblings Shawn and Maggie had come back home from college. Her father was a kind, gentle soul and her step mother was the only mother she had ever known, coming into Beth's life when she was only a young child. Beth loved them dearly but she missed the hum and energy of the house when it was full.

"Beth, you lazy thing, quit texting and get down here and help with dinner." Maggie's voice rang up the stairs and Beth made a face at the wall even though Maggie couldn't see her. She stashed her phone which she had been using to text and ran down the stairs.

Maggie shot her a cheeky grin from the kitchen. Not seeing each other for most of the year, she managed to pack a lot of teasing into a few short months.

"You can't give me a hard time when Shawn has barely looked up from his phone," Beth griped good naturedly.

"Probably a girl," Maggie cooed.

A hand appeared on top of the couch and then a head popper up. "What'ya saying?" Shawn demanded, brown hair sticking up in different directions.

"Children, behave." The instruction drifted out of the kitchen along with the smells of a delicious roast meal.

"Yes, ma," the three of them chorused.

"I'm gonna go help before you two get me in trouble," Beth sniffed.

Maggie snorted and draped an arm around Beth's shoulder. "That's what we're supposed to do."

Shawn's cell beeped from the coffee table. The two girls laughed and Shawn blushed.

"Bethy, come take this to the table," Annette called. Beth poked her tongue out at her siblings before darting out of the room.

"How's that to behave now that you're eighteen?" Shawn questioned as she disappeared.

Annette brushed Beth's cheek as she entered the steamy kitchen. Beth inhaled the familiar scent of her home and moved easily around her mother. It was like a dance they had performed so often that they could do it blind folded. Even without looking they knew where the other one would be.

Beth heard the front door go and the heavy footsteps of her father. She heard mumbled conversation as he greeted the other two. Then he was in the kitchen.

"Hi daddy," Beth said.

"How are two of my favourite girls?" he asked, pressing a quick kiss to Beth's forehead before turning to embrace Annette.

"How did things got with Otis and Patricia?" Annette asked.

"Scarlet did just fine. They have a lovely, healthy foal."

Beth grinned at the idea of one more baby animal in the world. Her father tried to reach over Annette to pinch some of the potatoes but his hand was playfully slapped away.

"Alright," Annette called, "all hands on deck."

Everyone grabbed a plate and took it to the dining table.

They all held hands across the table for grace. "For what we're about to receive, may the Lord makes us truly grateful," Hershel said and then he looked around at his children. "And bless my family."

Shawn had his plate half loaded before Maggie and Beth had even dropped hands.

"Even if patience isn't one of their virtues," Hershel said dryly.