| General Fiction posted October 19, 2025 | Chapters: |
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The Labor Day Party
A chapter in the book Beating the Devil
Beating the Devil - Chapter 25
by Jim Wile
Recap of Chapter 24: Marie calls Cedric in New York to inform him she can’t be his violin teacher anymore. She tells him about the accident on the escalator and the diagnosis of cancer that has returned after a 7-year remission. Cedric reminisces about their relationship and growing friendship and vows he will come down to visit her before the end.
The scene switches to Letitia (Lettie) Roberts, Mal’s mother and Sammy’s grandmother, dropping Sammy off at the Kendrick’s for a playdate with Lindsay. Julia invites her in to meet Marie. They have a nice chat, and later, at the door, Julia tells Lettie her mother has cancer, but Earl has been a great comfort to her.
Chapter 25
September 2033
Three months later
Three months later
For the past three months, despite their best efforts to reassure her that she wasn’t a burden, Marie knew she was a drain on the lives of her family.
Julia spent a significant portion of her day tending to her needs, always without complaint, though, as she gradually required more and more help.
Too often when Johnny or Lindsay wanted to engage her in a game or have her read to them, she had to beg off. ‘Sorry, kids, Grandma’s just too tired right now.’ She hated being such a wet blanket and seeing the hurt look on their faces, but it was often too much effort to engage with them now that she spent most of her time in bed.
Once, she overheard Lindsay asking Julia, “Why won’t Grandma play with me anymore?”
Julia had replied, “I’m sure she would if she could, but she just doesn’t have the energy. She’s very sick, you know?”
“Is she going to die, Momma?”
“We’re all going to die someday, Sweetie. Grandma’s time is getting close, but she loves you very much, and if she could play with you, she would. You understand that, don’t you?”
“Yes, Momma. I wish she wouldn’t die soon.”
“I wish she wouldn’t either, but it isn’t something we get to choose.”
One afternoon, Marie awoke from a nap in the recliner in the Florida room. As she regained consciousness, she thought she was still dreaming when she heard the slow, haunting melody of “The Swan” by Saint-Saëns gently playing. She lay there with her eyes closed, enjoying the familiar, beautiful song. When she realized it wasn’t a dream, she opened her eyes to find Cedric standing before her and smiling while he played. She said not a word and let him finish the piece.
“Cedric, that was exquisite. How did you learn to play so well?”
“I had an amazing teacher.”
She reached her arms up. He laid his violin and bow down, leaned over, and gave her a gentle hug.
Julia, Brian, and the kids came into the room and stood by Cedric. Marie smiled gently and gave her head a slight shake. “You all… excuse me; I’m in the South now. Y’all surprised me. How long have you rascals been planning this?”
“For a little while,” said Cedric. “Then Julia called and invited me down for Labor Day, and here I am.”
“I’m so glad you’re here.”
The following day, a party was in full swing in the Kendrick backyard. It was Labor Day and a beautiful, late summer afternoon with the temperature a pleasant 82 degrees.
A friendly game of pool volleyball saw Brian, Bertie, Tanya, and Johnny trying desperately to win against Mal, Julia, and Cedric. Even though they had four against the other team’s three, they were receiving a sound drubbing at the hands of Mal and Cedric, who had perfected their setups and spikes.
Despite having Lindsay and Sammy sitting on their side of the pool, cheering them on, it did nothing to lessen the beating. Brian’s side tried to send the majority of their shots at Julia, the other team’s weakest link, but she did a creditable job of keeping the ball in play so that Mal and Cedric could perform their magic.
Earl had been interfering with the game, swimming back and forth beneath the net, so he was banished to stay with the grandmas under a shady umbrella to watch the game. Marie was in a wheelchair while Lettie was sitting in a vinyl-strapped pool chair.
“Earl, lie down,” said Marie, and Earl lay down between them.
“He listen better than the chil’ren,” said Lettie, and Marie laughed.
“Julia has trained him well. He has to be doing well to be in the therapy dog program. They’ve just started going to places on their own without supervision.”
“He still sleep with you, Marie?”
“Almost every night now. I really miss him on the few nights he doesn’t.”
“He mus’ be a comfort to you.”
“He truly is.” She said this while patting his head and scratching his neck.
Every so often, Earl would get up and sniff around, and more than once they found him sniffing at Lettie’s back through the slats of the chair. Once or twice, Lettie jumped as she felt his cold nose against her skin. She was wearing a one-piece bathing suit that covered only part of her back.
“Whatchu doin’ back there, Earl?”
Marie said, “Earl, come.”
He would stop what he was doing and return to his spot between the chairs.
“Lie down,” and when he did, Marie said, “Good boy, Earl.”
On the third time this happened, Marie said, “I don’t know what’s gotten into him. He must enjoy the way you smell.”
“They like the smell of other dogs’ butts too, so I don’ know if tha’s a good thing or not,” and the two ladies cracked up.
Julia heard them cackling together, and it lightened her heart to hear it. It wasn’t often her mother expressed much joy anymore. Although Marie wasn’t quite ready for hospice care yet, it wouldn’t be too much longer. Her pain was well controlled with steadily increasing doses of Glyptophan, and there was some time before she would reach the maximum safe dosage. But a number of other symptoms, in particular a lack of energy and light-headedness, were beginning to become the norm. The walker was no longer an option, and Marie had graduated to using a wheelchair.
When the volleyball game ended with the lopsided score of 15-4, everyone except Johnny exited the pool and dried off. This was Lindsay, Sammy, and Earl’s cue to jump back in the pool and join him.
The kids had a rubber ball they would throw, and Earl would fetch it in his mouth and bring it back. They had to wrestle it away from him while he mock-growled, but he would eventually release it, for he enjoyed the chase as much as the tug-of-war.
Mal’s wife, Tanya, helped Julia bring out the rest of the food, which included various salads, baked potatoes, and baked beans, which they laid out on a table for everyone to serve themselves buffet style.
When the meat was cooked, they all loaded their plates and sat down at a large picnic table to eat.
Before digging in, Marie said in a soft but steady voice, “I would like to propose a toast.”
Everyone quieted down to hear these unexpected words from Marie.
“Since this is Labor Day, it seems only right to toast all the labors of my family and friends who have worked so hard all year.
“First of all, to Brian, Malcolm, and Bertie for the labor you have been putting into your wonderful creation—an early cancer detection system. I only wish you’d started working on it 10 years ago!” she said mock-scoldingly. A few chuckles greeted this.
“To Johnny, Lindsay, and Cedric, who have worked very hard on their music this past year and who have shown such remarkable improvement. I fully expect to hear a concert later on to demonstrate it.
“To the entire Roberts family for their hard work in helping Sammy receive and adjust to her new heart and especially to Sammy for being so brave about it.
“And finally, to Julia and Earl, who have worked incredibly hard together to be able to provide comfort to people in need. Julia, you’ve done a fine job training him, and Earl,” she said loudly to get his attention, “come.”
When he came and sat by her side, she petted his head and continued her toast, “Earl, you have no idea how much comfort you have brought me, young fellow. Having you by my side while I… “ She began to choke up and had to pause for a few seconds. The table was silent and patiently waited while she regained control.
“Well, it must be a labor to hang around an old crab like me,” she said, giving his head a scratch.
She raised her glass. “To Labor Day,” and they all repeated, “To Labor Day,” as they clinked glasses.
The conversation was lively, and everyone seemed to be enjoying the meal. It was followed by dishes of blueberry cobbler and ice cream.
As they were finishing up, Johnny, sitting across from Julia, said, “Momma, can we play our concert now?”
“Absolutely. Grandma’s expecting it. Let’s go get our instruments. Lindsay and Cedric, that means you too.”
They soon returned, and Julia was carrying both her violin and banjo cases.
First up were Julia and Johnny playing two banjo pieces: “Dueling Banjos” from the movie Deliverance and Earl Scruggs’s classic “Foggy Mountain Breakdown,” which the two of them played at an impressive speed together. It was met with wild applause from the audience, which whooped and hollered their approval.
Johnny then played the banjo version of Bach’s “Cello Suite No. 1” that he’d promised his grandma, and Marie clapped especially loudly.
Next were three duets: Lindsay and Cedric playing Pleyel’s “Duet for Two Violins,” Julia and Lindsay playing Bach’s “Invention No. 1 in C Major,” and finally Julia and Cedric playing the difficult Halvorsen’s “Passacaglia for Two Violins.”
They finished the concert with all four musicians playing “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” with Lindsay and Cedric alternating on the part played by the song’s protagonist named Johnny (Johnny Kendrick’s namesake), while Julia played the devil’s part. Johnny played his banjo, and even Brian joined them and did the vocals. This proved to be the hit of the concert, met by riotous applause (by the musicians too), and everyone finished the evening on a high note.
It had been a wonderful party, but it would also prove to be the last good time for Marie. The final countdown was now underway.
 Recognized |
Brian Kendrick: A 43-year-old neuroscientist and cancer researcher
Julia Kendrick: Brian's 43-year-old wife. She is also a world-class violinist.
Johnny Kendrick: Their 8-year-old son
Lindsay Kendrick: Their 6-year-old daughter
Earl Kendrick: The Kendrick's chocolate Labrador Retriever
Dr. Marie Schmidt: Julia's mother
Abby Payne: Brian's partner on the project. She is 67 and a brilliant mathematician
Malcolm Roberts (Mal): One of Brian's two lab technicians
Tanya Roberts: Mal's wife
Samantha (Sammy) Roberts: Mal's 6-year-old daughter
Letitia Roberts (Lettie): Mal's mother
Larry Posner: One of Brian's two lab technicians
Vivian Delacroix: An oncology professor at Wake Forest University also doing early cancer detection work
Roberta (Bertie) Chen: Brian's new lab technician
Cedric (aka Cecil) Washington: Marie's premier violin student and friend
Maddy McPhail: Owner of Bo
Bo McPhail: Maddy McPhail's cancer-sniffing therapy dog
Dr. Renee Houlihan: Marie's oncologist
Picture courtesy of GPT-Image-1
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© Copyright 2025. Jim Wile All rights reserved.
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