Page 99 of Red Mountain Burning
Women Rule the World
Emilia stopped by her vines on the short walk home. She could see over the remaining canopies down to her house, where a potential battle with her parents would be had at lunch. Her dad had always been the wise one of her two parents, and like Brooks, he’d always encouraged her to make her own decisions. Look at her dad now. He was one of the happiest people she’d ever met. Why was her mom the one playing puppeteer?
Leaving all that behind, she strolled down one of the rows, inspecting each vine from trunk to berry. The sheep had recently mowed, and the cover crops were low. Kneeling down, she reached for a handful of soil near the trunk and rolled it in her fingers. There was just the right amount of moisture. She was pleased to see the grape clusters looking healthier than ever. She’d learned that tight clusters like she might see in a grocery store were harbingers for mildew and rot. She wanted looser bunches that allowed air to pass through, keeping the berries dry.
She took one of the green clusters in her hand and lifted it up gently. How amazing that this fruit had been filling vessels and accompanying meals for thousands of years. An entire industry had formed around the fermentation of grapes, and people around the world had dedicated their lives to it.
Twisting the cluster, she saw a few of the berries had turned purple. “No way.”
Pulling out her phone, she snapped a shot and sent it to Brooks.Veraison?
A minute later, he texted back,Looks like it!
She felt silly being so excited, but everyone at the winery talked aboutveraisonas the point of no return, the change in colors marking the downhill run to harvest. It was only a matter of time until these little berries would demand eighty- and ninety-hour-weeks from the entire crew until every last one of the grapes had been picked and ushered toward fermentation.
What an incredible way to spend the fall, and no one, not even her mother, would take this opportunity away from her. Red Mountain was on the brink of an explosion, the next Napa Valley as some said, and Emilia wanted to be right in the middle of it.
* * *
She foundher dad at the dining room table. As he did almost every day, he’d prepared lunch and was waiting for his two ladies to join him. His bare feet were propped up on the chair beside him, and he held a Kindle in his hands. Though he was no stranger to the vines, Jasper had clearly lit a fire under him musically, and Jake was spending his mornings in the studio with his guitar in his hand.
“Daddy, my grapes are turning purple.”
“You’re kidding. This early?”
She showed him the pictures with her phone.
“Incredible,” he said. “It’s going to be an early harvest. Can we take a peek after lunch?”
“Yeah, I’d love to.”
He looked at her and shook his head, like he was thinking,I should have known.
“What?” she asked, putting her phone on the table and sitting down next to him.
A slight grin rose on his face. “Oh, boy, do you have the bug.”
Emilia held out her hands. “You created this.”
“I did, didn’t I?”
She glanced at his Kindle. “What are you reading?”
“Shakespeare.All’s Well that Ends Well.”
“No, you’re not.”
He looked offended. “I am indeed. Thou shall not doubt my interest in the great bard. What did you expect me to say?”
Emilia rolled her eyes. “I don’t know. John Grisham or something. Stuff old dads read.”
“I should have you thrown in jail for saying such a thing. I haven’t even reached my peak yet.”
“You might want to get started then. Sixty is around the corner.”
He brushed the idea off. “Sixty is the new thirty.”
They smiled at each other, and for a few moments, she forgot that she was about to drop a pretty big bomb. Through the window, she saw her mom pull up in her new SUV, and Emilia was brought right back to the dread of sharing her decision. She was so proud of her mother for being sober, but sometimes she wanted drunk Carmen, the one who wasn’t quite as bitter and was more easily swayed.
