Win
proceeded with his idea. “What if we
waited until they all leave, and then…”
With
that the front door opened, and the garrulous group rumbled out the door. Uncle Floyd was still wearing a neck brace
and Sister Anuncia sported a wire jaw halo until the bones healed. When all were slamming their car doors,
Great-grandmother Alice hobbled out on her cane.
Flo
jumped to her aid. “Grammy, won’t you
stay home and leave all this to the rest of the family?”
Alice
harrumphed and shook her head. “Why,
certainly not! Your pa needs me and this
here cane. Why, we can clear a room if
need be. Gotta make myself heard…stupid
girl…” and Alice muttered all the way to her Dodge Ram pick-up.
 |
| Grammy's truck per Wikipedia |
Then
there was quiet in the house and along the street. Residents had followed the two clans to watch
what would happen when the two tried to decide on the venue for the
reception. Some had packed up lawn
chairs and picnic baskets.
Win
laid out his plan for her. “Your
trousseau—is it packed and ready?”
“Mama
packed it the day you proposed at the church picnic, nearly two months ago…it’s
in the garage, along with a trunk of cutlery, pots and pans…”
“Listen,
Flo. I can’t take any more of this and
neither can you. What if we…” and Win
explained his idea. Flo hugged him
tightly. While she changed into a nice
church dress, Win lugged the trunks and boxes into the truck bed.
That
was when the neighbor Joe Hicks sauntered from his back yard. Win started at this unexpected
complication. Before Win could sputter a
word, Joe raised his hand. “Heck, Win,
that’s about the first smart thing I ever seen you do. You and Win Flo get outta here, leave these nuts
to figure out what happened. That’ll
take ‘em about three days ‘fore they notice you two’d gone.” He paused to spit. “After Floyd took out the nun, I d’cided you
two deserved better.”
 |
| Winthrop's truck per Wikipedia |
With
that, Joe helped Floyd load up as Flo stepped out onto the porch, a vision to
behold. Flo climbed up into Ford F-250
as Joe shook Win’s hand. They roared out
of town, taking the back roads across two state’s lines.
 |
| Sample marriage license per Wikipedia |
They
found a justice of the peace, got married and moved into a hotel where they
didn’t emerge for a good solid week. During
intervals from unbridled sex, Win found a good job from the classifieds and Flo
rented an apartment. The trousseau
contained all the money the family had planned to spend on the wedding, which was a
goodly amount. Her dad had been saving
up for her wedding her entire life.
Once
they were settled, Win drove over to a third state and sent a telegram to the
families, which basically told them that Win and Flo were married, gainfully
employed, and would contact them once they were settled.
Which
took about three years.
