Tales from WannaBea Farm

Joyce Stark Joyce Stark

Scratch The Conclusion

“Good morning, Officer Jones”, Dean greeted the official looking man, “our lunch is not quite ready but we are still serving breakfast if you like”.

“Get out of my way, Dean, you know exactly why I’m here”, he answered, and stepping around Dean he stopped at the cashier’s station where he bent and looked underneath. Not finding what he was looking for, he continued on and around the back of the counter where Ruby just smiled at him as she stepped out of the way. He continued down the counter, stopping every few feet to peer underneath, occasionally moving something out of the way to get a closer look.

“And what is this?” he demanded, standing upright and holding up a small feather as all eyes were trained on him.

“Looks like the feather from my hat”, Ruby replied, still smiling.

“I doubt it”, he snarled as he strode back down the counter and opened the side door. Stepping out onto the small porch, he looked in every direction before stepping back in and slamming the door behind him. Hitting the swinging door to the kitchen with the palm of his hand, he stormed into the kitchen, almost colliding with George who had snuck back in through the back door and was now pretending to have used the restroom that was located in the rear of the kitchen.

“Men’s room is right over there, Sir”, he smilingly told the officer.

“I’m not looking for the men’s room and you know it”, the officer sputtered angrily as he inspected the kitchen, the pantry and even the ladies room.

Coming back into the dining room, he looked around at everybody, sitting there smugly, smiling at him and he just lost it. He was so mad that he was sputtering and spitting. “Y’all think you’re so smart, but I know what’s going on here, the whole town knows it.” Turning to Dean, he shook his finger at him, “You better be saving your money, ‘cause I AM GOING TO GET YOU, and when I do it’s going to cost you!” And with that, he slammed out the front door, got in his shiny, black car and tore out of the parking lot. I’m sure he could hear the laughter from inside the café.

George paid his bill, went to his truck and retrieved the box, returning it to it’s place of honor underneath the counter.

Just in time too, as we heard a scratching and clucking noise from the side door and as Ruby opened it, a little red banty hen stepped into the café. Looking around as if to make sure that she had the full attention of her audience, “Scratch” fluffed her feathers and strutted down the aisle behind the counter until she reached the box containing her nest.

I don’t know how or why this got started, but Scratch DID come in every day to her nest under the counter and laid her egg before going back outside, never making a mess or wandering into any other part of the café, and at dusk she would be back clucking to come back in where she bedded down for the night instead of roosting with the other chickens. I’m not sure that she knew that she was a chicken. The whole town knew she was there and protected her from the Health Inspector, which just infuriated him as he felt like the whole town was laughing at him. Which they were.