Touch of Hellfire (Original Version)

☕️2☕️

Mom rang the doorbell and a scared maid answered the door. "Yes?"

"Uh, hi," Mom muttered. "Hello," the maid said in a low voice. "You're new, I take it," Mom assumed. "Yes, I started yesterday," she told us. "What's your name?" Mom asked her.

"I'm Liezl," she murmured. "Okay, well Emily and Richard are expecting us," Mom told her. "Oh, I'm sorry," she stuttered. "Please, come in."

"Can I...get you a drink?" Liezl asked us. "That's okay, why don't you go hide in the kitchen?" Mom told her. "Really?" Liezl asked. "Thank you."

She dashed off. "Uh, what's going on?" I asked Mom. "George and Martha are joining us for dinner," Mom told me.

"I have been the co-chair of the starlight foundation for the last eight years!" Grandma exclaimed. "I know, Emily," Grandpa sighed.

"And the black and white ball is the main fundraising event of the season!" Grandma argued. "It's one year," Grandpa shot back. "The co-chair cannot miss the main fundraising event," Grandma stated.

"Why? Won't the chair be there?" Grandpa grumbled. "Is this a joke to you?!" she snapped. "Emily, I have too many things to care of at work, I don't have time for frivolous parties," he stated.

"Frivolous parties?!" Grandma was starting to get angry and stormed upstairs. "Where are you going? Come back here!" Grandpa went after her.

"This is bad," Rory noted. "There should be popcorn," I quipped. "Heather!" Rory scolded me. "They're coming back," Mom warned us.

"This is the fourth event you've taken upon yourself to turn down on our behalf and I am on the board of those foundations, how do you think that makes me look?" Grandma ranted. "Like your husband is busy and has a great deal of responsibility," Grandpa clapped back.

"Well, I have responsibilities too!" Grandma snapped. "I understand that your social engagements..." Grandpa started to say but Grandma cut him off.

"They're not social engagements!"

"Anything at which you serve tea is a social engagement!"

"That's it! I'm getting a tape recorder, so you can listen to how pompous and condescending you are," she grumbled. "You can't take my word for it, I may be delirious from all that tea I've been drinking!"

They started going back upstairs. "I think we should leave," Rory muttered. "But we have dinner theatre," Mom told her. "But Grandma and Grandpa are fighting," Rory pointed out. "They are," I agreed.

"They probably wouldn't want us to see it," Rory argued. "In my eyes, we came in innocently for dinner and had no idea what we were walking into," I said.

"Get that out of my face!" Grandpa ordered. "Say the tea thing again," Grandma grumbled. "You're behaving like a child," he sighed. "Turn around when you talk to me, I'm not sure how good this microphone is," she muttered.

"Oh," Grandpa mumbled. And that was the moment they finally realised that we were here. Mom started clapping "Encore, encore!"

***

"It sucks, doesn't it?" Rory asked me. "It doesn't suck, Ror," I told her. "It's an A plus in fact," Mom added.

"Please don't lie," Rory sighed. "Rory, it's really good," I told her. "I wouldn't lie about this."

"Thanks, Heather," she mumbled. "Coffee," Luke murmured as he poured some into our cups. "Okay, what do you guys want..eggs, toast, combo?"

"Why the rush?" Mom wondered. "Well, I was supposed to have help, but I don't, so I'm swamped, either order or I'm bringing you an egg white omelet with steamed spinach," Luke grumbled.