Hop Sing’s Coffee
by
JRosemary
Joe sighed contentedly as he sipped his coffee. He usually avoided coffee
at night—no point in waking himself up just before bed. But this batch of
Hop Sing’s finest had a soothing tang to it. It seemed to take the edge
off of all the aches and pains he had garnered from riding fence.
It was so soothing, in fact, that he was feeling almost numb by the time the front door opened and Adam stepped inside. It took an effort to greet him.
“Hey, older brother,” he called out from his spot by the fire. “Where have you been all day? Why weren’t you helping with the fence?”
Adam glared at him. “Why wasn’t I helping with the fence?” he repeated as he walked over to him and took a seat on the settee. “It just so happens, Little Joe, that I spent the day standing on line at St. Mary’s.”
Joe furrowed his brow at that. “St. Mary’s? What’s a nice Protestant boy like you doing there? No wait—let me guess,” he continued with a teasing grin. “Are you coming over to the true faith?”
Adam returned his smile. “Your Ma would have liked that,” he said. “But I was only there because they opened up the books today.”
“Opened up the books?” Joe repeated, frowning. “What does that mean?”
“What—a nice Catholic boy like you doesn’t know?” Adam retorted.
Joe laughed. “I’m only marginally Catholic—you know that. I blame Pa for dragging me to his church every Sunday.”
“Well, St. Mary’s wasn’t built yet,” Adam pointed out. “There were no Catholic churches in the area.”
“Yeah, I know,” Joe said. “What do you mean by ‘opened up the books?’”
His words seemed to slur as he spoke. In fact, he almost tripped over that last sentence. Fortunately, Adam didn’t seem to notice.
“They opened up the books for the memorial Masses,” Adam explained.
Joe cringed as comprehension dawned on him. “Oh—that was today?”
Adam nodded.
He sighed. “I’m sorry, older brother. I should have been the one standing on line. I was so eager to get that fencing over with that I forgot all about it. Did you sign up my Ma for a Mass?”
“Yeah—I got the closest Sunday to her birthday.”
“Good—that’s real good. I owe you one,” Joe said. But his words were slurring even more now—and this time Adam noticed.
Joe could see the concern on his face as he looked him over. “Joe, have you been drinking?” he asked.
He shook his head. “Only Hop Sing’s coffee.”
“Did Hop Sing make it for you?”
“No,” Joe answered, struggling to keep his words even. “I just took it from the kitchen. He went to bed a while ago, but there was more than half a pot left. I didn’t think he’d mind if I finished it.”
Adam got off the settee and knelt by Joe’s side. He even took hold of Joe’s chin and forced him to look toward the fireplace. Joe didn’t object, but he wondered what his brother was up to.
“Your eyes are dilating,” Adam said.
He released Joe and picked up his coffee mug. Joe watched him take a sip and test it in his mouth.
Adam sighed as he put the mug down. “You should have asked Hop Sing first. His leg has been bothering him since that fall—I’ll bet he put laudanum in here.”
Joe cringed again. “That would explain the numb feeling.”
“How much did you drink?”
He made a face. “I finished off the pot.”
Adam rolled his eyes. “Great. Can you walk?”
Joe shrugged. “I can try.”
He let Adam help him to his feet and took a few stumbling steps forward.
“I’ll take that as a no,” Adam said dryly.
The next thing Joe knew, Adam was slinging him up over his shoulder and carrying him upstairs. Joe didn’t bother objecting. He just promised himself not to drink Hop Sing’s coffee again—at least not without asking.
“Thanks, older brother,” he managed as Adam set him down on his bed. “That’s two I owe you.”