Uncle Bruno was a family embarrasment as far as Mary Frances was concerned, and she seldom saw him. But at the Thanksgiving after Travis' summer of discontent, he arrived for dinner unannounced, uninvited, and slightly drunk. George rose to the intrusion with his quotidian grace, and a place was set for Uncle Bruno between Travis and Mary Frances. He immediately began to regale the table with his plans for a machine that would let you smell a flower on Mars, and the skills he was developing to see millions of miles. Travis sat quietly transfixed, but during dessert she squeezed his hand.

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