Greg:
We arrived at the Farmer’s market right when it opened at 10 am, but we hung out at the edges so that we didn’t run into Del prematurely. I really hadn’t thought through how we should present ourselves. It was a beautiful late September day, but the Green Mountains were showing splashes of color. This was the next-to-last market of the season.
A nudge from Cassandra. She was looking towards a gazebo at the other end of the market. A lone figure was setting up the microphone and doing the eternal roadie thing of tapping the mike, droning “test, one, two,” adjusting the volume, then repeating the drill. Even at a hundred yards, he was unmistakable. We hadn’t seen him in thirty years.
He began by calling for all kids to come to the stage, and he played a few funny songs just for them. Then he asked if there was anyone in the crowd who had a birthday and he performed what I’m guessing was the same song sung over the phone to me by the mystery kid on my thirtieth. Then, he launched into one that involved the audience. People from the crowd were invited to sing verses and singalong with the chorus. He kept it going for at least 15 minutes. Then he said he’d be back after a short break.
“What are you going to do?” asked Cassandra.
“I still don’t know. Wait until he finishes his gig, I guess.” Right before he started his second set I said “I bet he opens with Just Like I Know. As soon as I heard the opening chords, I knew the time had come.
Greg:
After the song finished, we hugged and we both cried. I came down from the gazebo, back to Cassandra, who was crying, too. “What did he say?” she asked.
Two words … “it’s over … it’s over … it’s over.”
Del:
I worked my way through that second set pretty fast. I brought them back to the carriage house to meet ‘Sythia, who knew all about the famous Greg and Cassandra. I spilled everything. For all I knew, as an Attorney General might have a legal or ethical obligation to turn me over to authorities, but Greg assured me that the bonds of friendship superceded the authority of the state. I knew that the jig was up in terms of my identity, but for now, it was just so good to see them both!
We talked through the rest of the day and well into the evening. I confided my fears of losing my freedom owing to my past indiscretions, but Greg just held up his hand and said “Let me look into a few things.”