Once the top was off, they hooked a ladder onto the side and let the kids climb up and over. Standing on the ladder, Dawn let them splash around for a minute before directing them to startcollecting leaves and other debris that had worked its way in from the roof.
Oakley left them to it.
Anne was waiting on the back porch with a pitcher of ginger lemonade.
“How’s business?” Oakley asked, sitting down next to her.
“Busy.” Anne’s smile was tired, but genuine.
“You look good.”
“I feel good.” Anne poured her a glass of lemonade. “How are you?”
“Great!” Oakley chirped. “Just another day in paradise.”
Anne gave her the side-eye but refrained from commenting.
“Hey Mom!” Pete shouted, peering at them from over the side of the catchment tank.
“What’s up?” she called back.
“We’re making a vacuum!”
“It’s not a vacuum!” Hayden popped up next to him. “It’s a siphon.”
“You’re both right,” Dawn said patiently. “We’re making a siphon-powered vacuum to get all that gunk at the bottom. Here, you take this end.”
Oakley stood and peered at the tank, wondering where Harper was.
“I promise you,” Anne said wryly, “Mom didn’t let her drown.”
“I know that,” she grumbled. But she didn’t quite relax until she heard Harper’s voice coming from the tank. “I can’t believe she’s letting them use it as a pool.”
“It’s basically an above-ground swimming pool. Look at it.”
“That’s yourdrinking water.”
Anne shrugged. “It goes through a filter.”
“Right. I’m sure that’ll be a huge comfort to your guests tomorrow morning when you tell them that their coffee was made with pool water.”
“Just like your lemonade.”
Oakley did a spit-take, and Anne cackled with laughter.
They kicked back on the porch and let Dawn direct her grandkids.
“She seems better,” Oakley said after a while.
“More like herself,” Anne agreed.
“I miss him so much,” she said as a sudden wave of grief washed over her. “I miss his voice and his laugh and the way everybody seemed to get along when he was around.”
“It feels weird. Finding any kind of normal with Dad gone.”
“Yeah. It does.”
Anne squeezed her hand.
