A Song for the Season

Ready to Go

The next few weeks blur past in school, rehearsals, and tour meetings, leaving Tenney too worn out to do much of anything else, let alone shop online or brainstorm ideas for Logan’s gift. She decides she’ll find one somewhere along the road instead.

On the morning the tour begins, Tenney lugs her suitcase downstairs to find Dad cracking eggs alongside toast and sausage, and Mason still sleepy. Dad rumples her hair, observing that Tenney is already ready to go, and adds that Zane won’t arrive for another half hour, so they might as well eat first. Aubrey joins them for one last family breakfast, while Waylon naps in a patch of sunlight by the sliding patio door, and Mom guesses he’s dreaming about the Howl-iday Ramble.

That gets Tenney thinking about the yearly neighborhood parade where everyone walks their costumed pets around the park. Last year she dressed Waylon as Ebenezer Scrooge, complete with a doggy top hat and ascot. She and Mason have walked him in it every year since he was a puppy. This will be the first year that Tenney won’t be here. Aubrey and Mason promise to cover for her, easing the melancholy ache just as tires sound on the driveway.

Zane arrives in a plain white van marked “Mockingbird Records,” not the tour bus Tenney had pictured. Its back doors are packed with microphones, cables, an amp, and a box of CDs stamped with the band’s name, Tenney & Logan. Zane greets her as his favorite showstopper and explains that with a small label like Mockingbird behind them, families can keep a few copies, but the rest need to sell, roughly thirty per show, to fund a full album. Logan is disappointed this tour has no road crew, unlike Belle Starr’s, so the two of them will handle their own gear.

The family trades hugs and goodbyes. Dad squeezes Mason, and Mom asks for constant calls and photos, promising she’ll be with Tenney in spirit. Aubrey reminds Tenney she’d already packed every necklace, earring, and hat she owns. Mason tells her to just rock every show, and Tenney agrees before talking Zane into letting her keep one CD.

Their next stop is Logan’s house, where his mom, Mrs. Everett, and his brother, Jude, wait with drum cases and a guitar. Zane jokes that Logan will get to help unload it all, too. Once the gear is loaded, Jude clings to Logan, begging to come along or help decorate the tree as planned. Logan promises to call every day, but his brother’s lip trembles as Mrs. Everett gathers him in. Logan waves with a determined smile until the house disappears, then the smile slips.

As Zane drives, Logan checks his phone and asks how long until the first show. Dad tells him Franklin is just over half an hour away, and they’ll head straight to Kingsport the next night. Tenney tells Logan she’s excited, too. “Yeah,” he says, but something in his voice makes her wonder if he means it.