Tip & Ty
by: E Walk

(Copyright 2007 by the Author)
 

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

 

Chapter 30

 What To Do Next?

This is Tip.

When I got home, everything was ready for dinner.  Mark had everything under control; he had even found time to take the children to the park even though he had volunteered at the school in Billy’s classroom and had gone to the grocery store.  I was beginning to think that he was superman.

It was 5:45 when Ty walked in.  Mark looked at the two us, “Go get changed into something more comfortable than the ties.  There isn’t any time to play around.  Bobby will answer the door when the guests arrive.  Now get moving.”

Ty and I quickly changed into casual clothes and just as we were going down the stairs, the five guests arrived, Ty made the introductions, since he was the only person who knew everyone. I only knew Mrs. Quinn and Mark had never met Pam Burns.  Mark fixed us cocktails and we were sitting, visiting while Mark pulled everything together in the kitchen.

It was precisely 6:30 when Mark announced, “Dinner is now being served in the dining room.”

Everyone moved to the dining room and Bobby helped Grandma Quinn get seated.  Mark had made a special cold soup that looked like it was a milk shake and nice jello aspic salad with carrots in orange jello.  Dinner was a pot roast that was so tender it fell apart and vegetables that had a wonderful texture and flavor.

Mr. Jenkins looked at Mark, “Mark, do you always do everything just right?  Do you ever go to bed?”

Bobby looked at Mr. Jenkins, “Sir, I am sure Nano doesn’t do everything perfectly, but he sure tries.  If no one is here, he goes to bed when we do after he reads to us and talks to Uncle Zack.”

Mark deflected any further talk.  “Come on, my young helpers,  we need to take care of the mess I made while your Dad talks business with our guests.”

I watched as the four children each had specific things that they were responsible for.  I was surprised when Mrs. Quinn got up to go help, so I thought that perhaps I should go also.  Ty looked at me, “Tip, please stay.”

Why did Ty want me to stay?  I am not a lawyer or at all into legal matters.  Ty began, “I have asked Mr. Jenkins to become an associate, and work when he can.  He has made it very clear that he chooses not to work full time, and that the decision was up to what Mrs. Jenkins thought.”

Mrs. Jenkins looked at Ty. “First, my name is Meg, and second, I think it would be good for Richard to get out of the house each day.  I just don’t want him working full time.  If we decide to take a trip, then I want him to be able to leave with no strings attached so that we can enjoy ourselves.”

“Mrs. Jenkins, I am sorry, I can’t call you Meg because of my upbringing.  Your husband made it very clear that he did not want to work full time.  I might, however, ask him to do things which he would be able he work on at home, if he has time.”

Ty turned his attention to Pam, “Pam, I would like for you to become a full time associate.  I am not prepared to discuss a compensation package just yet, since this is happening so fast.  Quite frankly people, I am overwhelmed by how fast everything is moving.  I need to take some time to analyze what has and is still happening.  As Philip knows, I have another big case coming  up shortly.  Pam, why don’t you meet me and Judge Jenkins in my office, at nine in the morning and we can discuss how to proceed.”

We could hear young voices in the kitchen.  Ty’s four children were dressed in their pajamas when they came in to say goodnight to everyone.  Mark took them to their bedrooms and tucked them in.  When he returned, he looked at Ty and me, “Tip and Ty, you need to go say good night to the children.”

When Ty and I returned, Mark was regaling the guests with his story of how he met Philip in the supermarket.  When we were all present, Mark spoke, “Would you all please adjourn to the dining room?  Dessert awaits.”

He had fixed a hot apple cobbler and served it with vanilla ice cream.

Philip looked at Mark, “Nano Mark, we’ll be here every night for dinner.  You have got to be one of the most organized people I know.

The discussion was interrupted by the phone.  Mark went to answer it.  Mark brought the phone and switched it speaker.  “Philip and Pam, this is the third brother of the this group, he is the bright one.  He hasn’t even finished his master’s degree, and already has a job.”

Mrs. Quinn and the Jenkins said, “Good evening, Zack.”

Mark didn’t waste any time, “Grandma Quinn, now that the boss has decided to buy your house, how fast can you be out?”

Everyone was a little taken back by what Mark had done, except for Mrs. Quinn.  She just rolled with the punches, “I suppose I could be out by tomorrow afternoon, but if you could give me until Thursday afternoon, it would be easier.”

Mark got up and hugged Mrs. Quinn, “Grandma, take as much time as you like, but could we have the Bensons stay at the house this weekend?  They are going to be Zack’s employers.  Now, if you will excuse me, I need to talk about some things with Zack.”

Mrs. Quinn needed to get the last word, “You just want to play kissy kissy on the phone.”

When Mark returned, he apologized, “Mrs. Quinn, I am sorry that I was so flip. That was totally inappropriate.”

Mrs. Quinn got up and hugged Mark who was a good eight inches taller than she was.  “Mark, I was not offended, but the visitation hours just got extended from two in the afternoon until two in the morning to make sure that nothing bad is happening to anyone.”

Mark was holding Mrs. Quinn laughing and those of us who were not in the loop had no idea what was happening.

Everyone left and Mark went to clean the kitchen and Ty and I went to help him.  As we were finishing, Ty asked, “What’s with the visitation rights?”

Mark explained what happened over the weekend.

I couldn’t help myself, “So you are saying we are going to be subjected to a Peeping Thomasina?”

Mark shook his head, “Whatever, Tip and Ty.  I need to go to bed.  Are we having more company tomorrow, or what?”

Both Ty and I hugged Mark before he departed.  We both assured him that we weren’t planning any more company.

This is Mark.

I took my shower and crawled into the bed.  It felt so lonely without Zack.  All I could think about was having Zack next to me, but, sadly, that was not to be.

I was just about asleep when Billy came into the room, “Nano Mark, I don’t feel good.”  I had no more than pulled him close to me than Billy started to throw up.  We were both covered with what was spewing from his mouth.

I took him into the bathroom, put him into the shower, got him cleaned up, went to get some new pajamas for him and put him on the chair, while I changed the bed linens.  I laid him down on the bed and went to take a shower and get the garbage off of me.  When I came out of the bathroom, Billy was curled up sound asleep.

I went to Tip and Ty’s room and knocked quietly on the door and was told to enter.  Tip and Ty were lying there with their torsos showing.  That was an interesting sight, but that was not the reason for my visit.  “Tip and Ty, Billy just threw up all over us and my bed.  He is sleeping now.  Tip, you are a doctor, what should we do?”

Before Tip could answer, Ty asked, “Mark, what was in the soup tonight?”

My mind was wheeling, ‘What was in soup?’  “Ty, I don’t understand why you are worrying about the soup, but I put some strawberries and yogurt in the blender and mixed them.”

“Mark, I should have told you that Billy is extremely allergic to strawberries.  It never entered my mind to tell you.”

I was a little uptight, “Ty, is there anything else that doesn’t seem important that I should know.”  I turned around and left to go check on Billy.  I guess that the best way to express how I felt would be to say that ‘I was pissed off,  because I hadn’t been forewarned.’

I was lying in bed, holding Billy just in case anything else happened.  There was a light knock on the door.  I gently pulled away from Billy and went to answer and Ty was standing there in just his briefs.  “Mark, I am so sorry, it never occurred to me to tell you about Billy’s allergy.  As far as I know, there is no one else who is allergic to anything.  Mark, I know you are angry with me, but please forgive me.”

I hugged Ty, “Ty, go back to bed.  I was angry, but I am over it.  It is not exactly like we have had much time to visit about the children’s special needs.  Now go make sure that Tip is okay.”

Ty hugged me and left.  ‘I’ll never be able to get up in the morning.’

This is Ty.

I hope that Mark won’t be so upset with us that he would consider leaving.  The children would be heart broken.  He is more a mother to them than their real mother ever was.  I was feeling a little remorseful because I was worrying about the business and my personal life more than I was about my children.  Mark was worrying enough for the two of us, and he still found time for Zack.

I guess I must have been tossing in bed because Tip tapped me, “Ty, what’s wrong.  Please just go to sleep.  We can fix what needs to be fixed in the morning.  Now get some sleep.”

This is Mark.

It seemed like I had just gone to sleep when I felt someone touching me, “Nano Mark, I’m hungry. I crawled out of bed and went to the bathroom and of course Billy joined me; I put on some sweat clothes and we went downstairs.  I gave him some cereal to hold him while I started to fix breakfast.  I sent him back to wake everyone, since no one had appeared.

Everyone finally surfaced and they were fully dressed.  I served everyone their breakfast and went to get dressed, since I was going be volunteering in Becky’s classroom after I delivered Barbie for her play group.

I announced, “I’ll take care of the cleanup after I get the children delivered.”

When I got home with Barbie, the kitchen had been cleaned and everything had been put away.  I took Barbie to the house where her play group would be meeting and went to the school to spend my time in Becky‘s room.  I stopped and picked Barbie up, and we had lunch then she took her nap.  I started the laundry and dinner before I finally sat down.

I was sitting there thinking of everything I needed to do before we moved.  I was startled when the phone rang.  I looked at the clock it was 2:30  I answered, “This is the Washington, Jefferson and Jackson house.  This is Mark speaking.  How may I help you?”

“Oh hi, Grandma Leavitt, what’s happening. … Oh, you are coming to Kansas City to spend the weekend.  Where are you planning to stay? … You are going to be staying with some old friends who say they know me and have eaten at our house twice in the last week. … That could only be the Jenkins or Grandma Quinn. … Oh you know them all.  … I’ll tell you what; we’ll have dinner on Friday, that way Zack can be here too as well as Beau and Becca.  I’ll call The Jenkins and Mrs. Quinn and make the arrangements. …  Love you and I am looking forward to visiting with you both this weekend.”

This is Ty.

When I walked into the office, Shawn, Colleen and Clarisse stood and bowed.  Shawn spoke for the group, “Good morning, Your Royal Highness.  Your coffee and your paper await on your desk.”

I couldn’t believe what was happening.  They must know something that I don’t know.  “Okay people, what’s going on, and why are you acting like this?”

Clarisse shook her head, “Ty, go in and see for yourself.”

I went into my office and the front page of the Local News section was laying there.  I glanced at the headlines. ‘Young Lawyer Making A Name For Himself’.

I quickly read, the opening paragraph,  Mr. Tyler Jefferson is making as big a name for himself in the court room as he did on the football field with the Kansas City Chiefs.  I have watched him operate in the courtroom three times in the last two weeks, with three very different kinds of cases.  He won all three cases for his client.  The one I had the opportunity to witness yesterday was a true work of art.  Mr. Jefferson not only acted as the defense attorney, but was the only witness for the defense and was making everyone tired as he was running in and out of the witness stand. I am warning you readers.  Don’t mess with Mr. Tyler Jefferson. 

Shawn was standing there laughing, “Yeah, don’t mess with Tyler Jefferson.  Ty, Mr. Jenkins and Mrs. Pam Burns are here to see you.  They said you were expecting them.”

“Thank you Shawn.  Please show them in and ask Clarisse and Colleen to join us.”

Shawn brought Mr. Jenkins and Pam in and started to leave.  I saw him turn to go, “Shawn, I want you to stay also, please.  Just leave the door open, so we can see if anyone comes in.”

When everyone was seated, I started, “Mr. Jenkins and Pam Burns have agreed to become associates. They will be starting to work tomorrow.  I know it will be a little crowded here, but I already have made arrangements to look for a larger space this weekend.  We are looking into perhaps being collocated with the Benson Consulting Agency, which my brother Zack will be managing when he finishes his master’s degree.”

I held up the paper, “This article could perhaps bring us some additional business, but it could also bring us some cases that we might not want to deal with.  Clarisse and Shawn, I want you to be the screening points for all perspective new clients.  I realize that this is not exactly what you were hired to do; but if you have any questions, contact Pam’s husband, Philip Burns and ask for his help.  I want to remind everyone that we are in this business to make enough money to live comfortably.  I would also like to remind everyone that we are not in this business to take advantage of the clients.”

I looked at Pam, “Pam, I apologize, but I have not had time to think about the compensation packages for everyone.  Billy became ill during the night because he was allergic to the strawberries that were in the soup, so it was a short night.  I’ll work on it today.

The phones were ringing and Clarisse, Shawn and Colleen left to answer them.  I hugged Pam and Mr. Jenkins, “I’m so glad that you will be joining me.  I think I am going to need all of the help I can get.”

It was indeed a busy day.  I was just about to leave when Philip walked right in and threw his hat on the desk, “Ty, the Lansing case is turning into a bucket of worms.  Did you know about all of the relationships between the parties?”

“Philip, yes I know about the relationships of the parties, and I have met them all, except for the former Mrs. Lansing and her husband.  Philip, if you like Mark, then you would love Lance and Lane.  They are beautiful young men.  That is why we have to do our best in this case.  I would like to involve as few people’s names as possible, otherwise the press would have a field day. I want what is best for the boys, and they really want to stay in Colorado with their father.”

Philip looked at me, “Ty, I don’t know why you need our help, it sounds like you know what you want, and will get it.  I guess I will need to hire some more operatives after the article in the newspaper this morning.”

This is Tip.

When I got home, there was a newspaper article taped to the door with some big letters above it, ‘WELCOME HOME STAR LAWYER’ .

I was reading the article when Ty pulled in, “Oh no, not here too.”

Ty took down the paper and we entered the house.  Bobby ran to his Dad, “Way to go Daddy.  First Uncle Tip makes the headlines, now you are a hero.  Who do you suppose is next?”

Mark looked at us, “You two heroes go change.  Dinner will be ready in 20 minutes.”

Ty and I went to change.  We had stripped to our shorts and I embraced him and started to rub the package in the front of his shorts.   I have an itch that will need to be taken care of tonight, after we figure out who is going to be the next  hero.” 

To be continued... 
 

Feedback always welcome:     

Editor's Notes:

Well, I think Uncle Ed is the hero.  He constantly brings us new adventures and happenings. The people he introduces us to in each story and chapter are completely believable and real. They have entered our lives and become part of our families.  As is always the case, I can hardly wait for the next chapter, to find out what will happen next.

Darryl AKA The Radio Rancher

Posted: 02/15/08