Mari & Ilna—what can I say. You guys are the best and you make every day in the REAL World a joy and a pleasure. Thanks for everything.

Sandy—There are no words for how much I appreciate your support and friendship.

REAL Worlders—you guys are simply the best. Like a deep margarita at the end of a very long week. Thanks for all the reviews, the emails, the tweets and the messages. Every word is appreciated more than you could possibly know. Thanks for taking this ride with us.

It Runs in the Family (1/1)

"Mom," Elizabeth Rollins slipped into her mother's bedroom and called her name in a loud whisper. She didn't want to alarm the older woman any more than necessary. "Mom."

"Elizabeth … what's going on …" Grandma Ang raised her head and asked groggily, glancing at her bedside clock. "Is everything ok? It's after midnight."

"There's a gas leak,' Elizabeth replied as calmly as she could. "They're evacuating the neighborhood. We need to get out right away. Just put on a robe and slippers. Joseph is warming up the car."

Grandma Ang swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Sonya is by herself tonight. Her daughter is working nights this week." She slipped her arms into the robe Elizabeth was holding up for her. "We have to stop by and make sure she knows what's going on and help her get out. She doesn't drive and she's new in town so she hasn't had time to make many other friends."

"We'll stop at her house on the way to the evacuation center," Elizabeth said. She'd met Sonya briefly at the local senior center. "Do you know where her daughter works so I can call and let her know what's happening?"

"She works at Children's Hospital. She's a nurse." Grandma Ang slid her feet into her slippers. "Her name is Kristy Wagner. We'll call her from the car."

Joseph dropped the women off at the front door of the Faith Baptist Church which was serving as the local evacuation center then went to park the car. By the time he made it back Elizabeth was busy setting up a small play area for the children with items borrowed from the church's daycare and preschool to help them feel more comfortable in their new surroundings.

Meanwhile Grandma Ang and Sonya Marone sat behind a makeshift check-in table and did their best to make sure each new arriving family received the latest information on what was happening. They also handed out pillows and blankets and fielded questions from their harried neighbors. If they didn't know the answer they made it their mission to find someone who did. No matter how anxious people were when they came through the door they always seemed better after a few minutes talking to Ang and Sonya.

"Your mother is something else," Joseph smiled as he came up behind Elizabeth. "Wake her up in the middle of the night, drag her out into sub-zero temperatures and plop her down into the middle of a noisy, chaotic evacuation center and she still hits the ground running."

"She's been like that as long as I can remember," Elizabeth smiled. "You know as well as anyone … if she sees something that needs done she doesn't wait around for someone else to do it. She handles it herself."

"Just like her daughter." Joseph nodded towards the circle of chairs Elizabeth had assembled along with every available stuffed animal and children's book she could lay her hands on. "Apparently it runs in the family."

Elizabeth smiled softly. "Let's just keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't try to do too much."

"Okay," Joseph shrugged good-naturedly. "But you know as well as I do she's not about to sit in a corner and sip coffee while everyone else takes care of things."

"I do know that."

"Your mom has a way with people," Joseph pointed out. "She makes them feel comfortable. And at a time like this that's probably the most valuable service anyone can offer."

"You're right," Elizabeth nodded. "I just worry about her. She isn't as young as she used to be but try telling her that."

"I will tell her no such thing," Joseph chuckled. "But I get it."

Suddenly there was a burst of group laughter from across the room and Joseph and Elizabeth turned to find that to the surprise of no one who knew her Grandma Ang was right in the middle of it.

"Joseph, could you please help us," she called. "We need to push some of these tables together so people can actually talk to each other. It's unsettling being rousted out of bed in the middle of the night. We need to come together and support each other."

"Just tell me what you need me to do," Joseph called back before turning to Elizabeth and winking. "I'll keep an eye on her but something tells me she's gonna be just fine."

"We're all okay, Catherine," Joseph assured his daughter. He had skyped her so she could see for herself that everyone was safe but still he could see concern creasing her brow. "From what we're hearing there are no serious injuries. They're working on the leak now and we should all be able to go back home by afternoon at the latest."

Catherine sighed with relief and leaned against Steve who was sitting next to her on the couch. They had barely made it in the door from work before Joseph called to fill them in on what was happening. "Thanks for letting us know what's going on, Dad. You guys stay safe. Is there anything you need, anything we can help you with from here?"

"No, I think we're good," Joseph said confidently. "See for yourself."

He moved across the room where he could get a good shot of Elizabeth reading to a group of children while their exhausted parents stood nearby then panned over to Grandma Ang right in the center of things, introducing neighbors who had never met, pointing out common interests and helping the evacuees make connections.

"You're right," Catherine smiled. "Looks like you have everything under control. Call us when you get back home or before then if you need anything."

"Will do, sweetheart. I'll talk to you later."

They disconnected the call and Catherine placed her tablet on the coffee table.

"Grandma Ang looks like she's in her element," Steve said.

"I'm sure she is," Catherine laughed. "Most of these people probably haven't heard her Hawaii stories yet."

"What do you suppose she's telling them about first?" Steve wrapped his arm around Catherine's shoulders and pulled her against him.

"Oh she's showing them the surfboard pictures," Catherine laughed. "No question."

"I'm not so sure," Steve teased. "I think she's probably showing them the pictures of the new kitchen and regaling them with tales of her brilliant granddaughter who had a stellar naval career and is now helping keep the streets of Hawaii safe."

Catherine grinned. "Some of those people have lived in that neighborhood since my folks moved there. I'm sure they've all heard the brilliant granddaughter stories. As well as the tales of my dashing Navy SEAL boyfriend. They might be tired of them by now."

"Nah. Your Grandma has a way of making a story interesting no matter how many times the listener has heard it." He kissed her temple.

"She does, doesn't she?"

"Yes, she does. Strong, loving compassionate women run in your family. Seeing Grandma Ang and your mom there, jumping in and helping people, doing what needs done … I see a lot of both of them in you."

Catherine smiled at him. "Thank you. That's maybe the nicest compliment I could ever get."

Kristy Wagner rushed in to the evacuation center at Faith Baptist Church and looked around worriedly until she finally spotted her mother sitting at a large round table, smiling from ear to ear, acting as dealer in a neighborhood poker tournament where the buy in appeared to be pretzel sticks.

Taking note of her somewhat harried look and her hospital scrubs Joseph approached her.

"Kristy?"

"Yes," she said as she breathed a sigh of relief at seeing her mother safe and sound and apparently having the time of her life.

"I'm Joseph Rollins." He extended his hand. "My wife Elizabeth called you. We stopped and picked your mom up on the way here."

"Thank you so much," Kristy said gratefully. "I'm so sorry I wasn't home. I don't usually work nights but I'm covering a vacation this week."

"My mother-in-law knew you were working tonight and she was quite insistent we stop and pick up Sonya," Joseph said. "It was no trouble at all. I'm just glad we could help."

"Ang is your mother-in-law, right?"

"Yes," Joseph nodded.

"She's really great. I love that my mom has someone her own age she can spend time with." Kristy leaned against the wall and continued to watch both her mother and Grandma Ang. "Truth is … before she met Ang I was really worried about her. She was becoming withdrawn and losing interest in … well everything. We moved here for my new job and my mom was missing our old place but then all of the sudden Ang came along like a breath of fresh air and breathed life right back into my mom."

"She has that effect on people," Joseph smiled. "She's never met a stranger."

"I've been meaning to stop by your house and introduce myself but what with getting settled into a new job … "

"Perfectly understandable," Joseph assured her.

"My mother also can't say enough about your wife. Apparently they talked a few times at the senior center when your wife was there picking up Ang and they realized they share a love of cross-stitch. She even loaned my mom a few patterns. I wanted a chance to meet her and say thank you."

"That's her over there." Joseph pointed to the far end of the room where Elizabeth was now reading a chapter book to some of the older children. "I'm sure she'd love to meet you too."

"Apparently jumping in and taking care of things is a family trait," Kristy smiled knowingly.

"It definitely runs in the family," Joseph agreed. "Someday you'll have to meet my daughter."

THE END

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