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Milo began reading. Caleb had been completely silent all week, and both Milo and Wilda had chalked it up to the changes the move had brought. But now, it seemed Caleb was coming out of it and was ready to start talking again. Milo wished Wilda had been in the room to hear it.
Wilda joined them as Milo was finishing the second book. “Are we done? It’s time for bed.”
Milo raised an eyebrow at her terse tone. “Everything okay?”
“Yes. Come on, honey.”
Caleb slid off the couch and followed Wilda out of the room. Milo set the two books on the coffee table, now part of the living room furnishings, along with the two chairs she’d brought. He leaned back, put his feet up on the table, then sat up and set them down. It wasn’t his table.
He stood and went out the front door to the porch. The early spring weather had been pleasant, and tonight there was a slight breeze. It was a welcome contrast to the warm house. The frogs had begun their nightly courting ritual, but it was still spotty at this point. One frog called out and got no response. A few moments later, it tried again, and several frogs responded. In a few more weeks, the sound would fill the night for hours.
He’d been outside for half an hour when the door opened, and Wilda came out. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For being short with you. Mathias called. He won’t be home this weekend.”
“I’m sorry. I know you were looking forward to seeing him.”
“Not as much as Caleb was. I couldn’t bring myself to tell him.”
“Let him have a good night’s sleep.”
“Mathias feels terrible, of course, but they ran into some problems today, and they can’t leave it until Monday.”
“I guess those things happen. Have a seat and listen to the frogs.”
“They’re so loud.” She sat next to Milo.
“Do you want some good news?”
“Yes, please.”
“Caleb said a few words to me. Out loud. No whisper.”
She turned to him. “When?”
“While we were reading. He told me the titles of the books, sort of. He did whisper part of the time, but…he talked to me. Put a couple of words together.”
“Are we back on track?”
“It would seem so.”
“And tomorrow I get to break his heart and tell him his uncle isn’t coming home.”
“Maybe we can take him somewhere fun to distract him.”
“What do you suggest?”
Milo thought for a moment. “We could meet up with Gentry’s boys at Rocco’s and hit the game room. Does he like arcade games?”
“What boy doesn’t?”
“None, I guess. What do you think?”
“I think he might like that. But we’re going to finish the fireplace first.”
When Milo came into the kitchen Saturday morning, Caleb sat at the table, staring at a blank piece of paper with an unopened box of crayons next to it.
