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“No. I need to be involved in the conversation when Tyler’s doctor comes in this morning. He’s scheduled to be there in about forty minutes.” He sighs. “Mom and Vanessa are clueless as to what’s going on. They aren’t asking the right questions.”
“I totally understand. We aren’t going out to the burial site until noon, so take your time.” I walk up to him and give him a kiss on the lips. “Thanks for a wonderful night.”
“It was pretty great.” He curls the corner of his lip. “I’ll see you in a bit.”
“Bye, sexy.” I smile back at him before turning toward the door.
“By the way… Mom sends her condolences to you, Darla and Ray,” he adds in an afterthought. “She wishes she could be here.”
“Thanks. I’ll let them know.”
Walking down the hallway, everything seems quiet on the main floor. I left off my boots since they would be impossible to keep quiet on the creaky staircase. I know I’m a grown woman, but Peggy has the demeanor of a stern grade school teacher and I really don’t want to deal with her this morning. I scoot past the little registration desk undetected before stopping at the door to step back into my boots.
“Good morning, Amanda,” her voice startles me. Shit! “I noticed that your car hadn’t moved an inch, so I got that peach pie ready for you to take along.” She walks over to me with a big white box in hand.
“Thank you,” I tell her with a sigh. “I’ll let Dad know it’s from you.”
“You do that dear and I’m sure I will see you back here later tonight.”
“Most likely,” I agree, pushing my way past the screen door. I guess that wasn’t so bad after all.
Trey
After a lengthy conversation with Mom, Vanessa and Tyler’s primary care physician everyone is finally on the same page. The doctor explained why he hasn’t come out of his coma yet and that it is not because of a change in his prognosis. He simply wants him to remain sedated while his body works through the worst of the detoxification process.
Both Mom and Vanessa seemed more at ease after the call. It seems as if the doctors are primarily dealing with Tyler’s drug addiction and not just the overdose. I give Mandy a quick update as we drive to her mother’s memorial service.
“Do the doctors know that he might have been poisoned instead of overdosing?” Mandy asks as soon as I stop talking.
“I don’t think so. I didn’t get into any of that with them. They most likely have to treat it as a suicide attempt until some absolute facts come to light. Right now it’s all speculation,” I tell her with a queasy feeling in my gut. “Are we spreading your Mom’s ashes today?” I ask, simply to change the topic.
“No, they won’t be ready for a few days, so we’ll have to do it some other time. But at least we can say a few words and give everyone a little bit of closure this way,” she says as we turn the bend and head down toward the creek.
“This looks like a pretty nice spot to spend eternity,” I comment as we drive toward the clearing. The trees lining each side of the road make for a grand entrance and I can see the big oak tree that Mandy has mentioned in the center of the clearing.
“What are all the orange flags?” Mandy asks once we reach the clearing and turn toward the tree.
“It looks like they are surveying it or something,” I reply, giving her my best guess.
We are early because Mandy wants to show me the path where her and her mother used to go for walks. “Come here,” she nods her head toward the lazy creek that is trickling past the bottom of the hill.
“I can see why you would like this as a kid,” I tell her upon seeing the sandy creek bottom and the clear running stream. “This must have been a nice place to come on a hot, humid summer day.”
“Exactly,” she says, kicking off her shoes and holding up her dress while wading into the water. “Take off you shoes and roll up your pants!” She cocks her eyebrows to let me know that I really don’t have a choice in the matter.
“Okay.” I pull off my shoes and socks before following in her footsteps. “Good God! This is freezing!”
“It’s refreshing,” she corrects me with a broad smile. “Mom would never come in with me either, but she would sit right there on that mound and watch me play in the water.”
“Didn’t Darla come down here with you guys?”
“Not normally, she didn’t like the cold water either.” She smiles reflectively. “I guess I’m kind of weird that way. Feeling the cold water rushing over my feet makes me feel alive.”
