meant something.
I didn’t think to ask why.
Another afternoon, I asked if she had family nearby.
Looking back, there were clues. Once, after asking about my mother, Eleanor studied me for a few seconds and said, “You have her eyes.” I assumed she meant my mother, and when I asked what she meant, she only smiled and told me to keep reading. I forgot about it until Martin mentioned Rose.
Another afternoon, I asked if she had family nearby.
She looked toward the window.
“No husband. No children. No siblings left.”
One rainy afternoon, she was weaker than usual.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I had a life.”
Then she smiled.
“It was just a quiet one.”
I believed her.
One rainy afternoon, she was weaker than usual.
Weeks passed.
One rainy afternoon, she was weaker than usual.
I was reading when she interrupted me.
“Can I tell you something
