"I mean... is she holding up? How are you? Does the room seem okay? Is she talking, or is she just doing that silent thing she does?"
Roy words washed over Sarah. She let a long moment pass before replying. "Everything's okay. Everything's going to be okay. Mom's resting." There was silence on the other end.
"Okay," Roy managed. "Tell her I love her." His voice quavered slightly. "And I'll check on her tomorrow after work." Pause. "God, it's so fucking beautiful out here," Roy sputtered. "How could I forget that."
"You okay, Roy?"
"Yeah. Sure. I guess so."
"I need to tidy things up here. We'll talk later?"
"Right. Yeah. Talk later. Bye." Roy hung up before Sarah could say goodbye.
It's just as well, Sarah thought as she folded her phone back into her purse. He had sounded a bit drunk, morose. Sarah had never liked talking with her brother when he got in his dark little moods.
She turned to her mother, now breathing slowly with occasional sighs, and gently pushed a few stray hairs back from her forehead. Looking down on the her mother's strangely serene face, Sarah thought of the good years they had. When things were normal. When Poppas was still around. Before her mother found God. -- RJ