Discovery

The room was immaculate. Everything was in its place. The north wall was filled with pictures of us throughout the years. We each had our own quarter of the available square footage of white space. I hadn’t looked at these pictures in years. He had started a similar shrine of photographs for his five grandchildren on the east wall. On the south wall above his bed were pictures of family friends. I chuckled as I stared at the family portrait of five years ago that had been the subject of much controversy. There the five of us stood, my three sisters, me, and Roberta. The beaming face of Renee’s best friend wore the only natural smile in the photograph. Roberta would be so thrilled to know that her photo hung above my daddy’s bed. She’d never even consider that the photos that hung on the other two walls could be viewed as Daddy drifted off to sleep and greet him as he woke each morning. Unlike Collette, I wouldn’t bring that to her attention. Edward Naylor had been a man who truly loved his family and friends.

The king-size bed was perfectly made with a gorgeous velvet patchwork-patterned spread that brought out the natural beauty of the mahogany four-poster bed. The matching burgundy patchwork rugs on each side of the bed had been Christmas gifts from Anthony and me two years before. The gray carpeting, which had been installed at least fifteen years ago, was spotless. The massive walk-in closet and bathroom shared the east wall with the grandchildren’s pictures.

I sat in his burgundy leather La-Z-Boy recliner, which had been a gift from Collette the same Christmas he received the rugs, and looked at the dresser top filled with several fragrance sets. Anyone looking at this room would have sworn a woman had been in residence, but that was just Eddie’s way. The leather felt cool on my bare arms and somehow soothing. This was where my daddy had slipped away from me. Why did you have to go and leave me like this? You never even heard my first court case. Tears began to fall. Silent tears, the kind I used to not understand as a child.

I was certain Sister Greene had cleaned up the mess left by the paramedics. She had spent the hours at the house while the repairman fixed the front door. I was confident the laundry folded neatly on the dryer in the room off the kitchen had also been her handiwork. The thought of the kitchen made me realize I hadn’t eaten in almost twenty-four hours. The thought of food also reminded me that Estelle was on her way over. For sure I needed to be out with my sisters when she arrived, if only to run interference.

I felt so tired and heavy. What was with this heaviness? Maybe if I just washed my face I would feel better.

The track lighting Daddy had installed a few months before cast beautiful prisms on the walls of the small bathroom. Daddy had coordinated the bathroom with his bedroom and all of the rugs and towels were burgundy and gray. A huge fern hung from a ceiling hook and unburned candles were everywhere. Renee had for sure inherited her decorating talent from Daddy.

I opened the closet that was recessed in the wall opposite the bowl to find a face towel. The closet, like everything else in the room, was neat and perfectly organized. Much to my surprise, the top shelf was lined with over-the-counter remedies for everything from athlete’s foot to diarrhea, several bottles of herbs and vitamins, and three prescription bottles. I had never known Daddy to need prescription medication for anything more than an occasional bronchial infection. As I took the bottles down to read the labels, I felt my palms start to sweat. Had my daddy been sick and never told us? Did Uncle Thomas know something he had not shared? I felt a constriction in my throat and chest at the thought of Daddy suffering in silence. Tears began to fill my eyes, blurring my vision.

I spoke out loud to myself. “Gurl, get yourself together. This is medication for the flu.” The first label confirmed my suspicions. It was a simple antibiotic that had long ago expired. The second bottle was an anti-inflammatory that he had taken for years when arthritis flared up in his hands. I began to relax. There were no surprises here. As I turned over the last bottle to read the label, I thought my vision had once again betrayed me. I surely could not be holding a bottle of the popular sexual performance enhancer in my hand with the name Edward Z. Naylor on the label. I thought my legs were going to abandon me, so I quickly sat on the well-cushioned toilet seat. I continued to stare at the bottle.

My daddy was a strong, handsome man with the body of someone twenty years his junior. The idea that he would have sexual performance issues was unthinkable. He and Estelle seemed so happy. Upon further examination of the label I saw the prescription was three weeks old. Was this his first prescription? The label stated zero refills. Oh my God; we had all heard stories about men who had taken the medication dying of heart attacks. Had this medicine killed my daddy? I had to show this to my sisters. I couldn’t stand. I tried calling their names, but I couldn’t speak.

I’m not sure how long I had been sitting in a trancelike state when I heard a faint knock on the bedroom door. When I didn’t answer, Dawn slowly entered the bedroom calling my name.

“I’m in here,” I managed in a voice that seemed to belong to someone else.

“Gurl, what’re you doing sitting in here? The bed doesn’t look like you’ve laid down at all. Estelle is here.” Dawn stood close to me stroking my braids.

“How long have I been in here?”

“About forty-five minutes. What’s that?” Dawn was pointing at my hand.

I passed her the three bottles and waited for her reaction.

“Oh my God! Daddy was taking Viagra?”

“It certainly appears to be that way.” I looked at my baby sister with tear-filled eyes.

Dawn looked as though she needed to sit, but I occupied the only seat in the room. “Daddy?”

“I never even thought about him having sex, though I’m sure that he and Estelle must have. They’ve been together forever. They’ve been away together several times. Maybe she told him he wasn’t satisfying her. She must have made him get these pills. Do you think they killed him?” I was praying for Estelle’s sake that this was not the cause of his death. Even I, who was her strongest ally, couldn’t fathom that Daddy’s trying to please her would take him from me.

“Oh Sissy, so many men have died either directly or indirectly from taking sexual enhancers! They put a lot of strain on the heart and the blood pressure. Daddy didn’t have any history of problems with either, so a doctor would have no reason not to prescribe this.”

“We shouldn’t jump to any conclusions. We’ll have to wait for the autopsy report.” Dawn seemed to get strength back in her legs as she stopped leaning against the face bowl and extended her hand. “Estelle is waiting to see you.”

“I really love Estelle, but if this is the cause of Daddy’s death, I just don’t know … I just don’t know what to think!” I took the small bottle of pills and began to shake them in Dawn’s face.

“Look, Glynda, I don’t like the idea of these being the cause of Daddy’s death either. But Daddy was a man. He was a man before he was our daddy. He was a good man, not unlike Anthony. And you know Anthony loves your stubborn butt so much that if you want a hamburger, somewhere there’s going to be a cow dead. The doctor told Daddy all of the risks involved, and he was willing to take them. That is no one’s fault. That is just the kind of man Eddie Naylor was. Hell, if there was a pill to make him a better father, he would have taken that too!” Dawn had turned me to face her and had her hands on my forearms.

“I know you’re right! How did you get so wise?” I was smiling through tears.

“Gurl, I ain’t wise, I just been doing this kinda counseling too long. I have to talk to the parents of sick and dying children all the time. But now you know Collette and Renee aren’t going to take this news so well. Should we say anything or just wait until the autopsy report comes in?” Dawn said, putting her arm around my shoulder and nudging me toward the door.

“Oh my God. I hadn’t even thought of how they would react to this news. I don’t want to withhold information, but I just don’t want to cause a scene with Estelle. That poor woman has been through as much as we have and at least we have each other. She has no one who feels the way she does. We can tell them in the morning. Are you ready for their outrage when they find out we knew and didn’t say anything?” I was wiping my face preparing to greet Estelle.

“It won’t be anything I haven’t been on the receiving end of before. Remember, I live here with them. They’re on their best behavior when you come to town.”

“Best behavior! Damn! You could’ve fooled me!” We laughed and hugged each other. We held on tight as though we were all we had to cling to. Perhaps we were.

“Well, let’s go see Estelle. We’ve left her alone way too long with those two. Hopefully Uncle Thomas has them in check. But you know he has never been able to handle Collette.” I was feeling a little better. I can’t explain why, but Dawn had renewed my strength.

“Gurl, Daddy could barely handle Collette!” Dawn and I slapped high five.

As I entered the dining room, Estelle leapt to her feet and ran to hug me. Her face was still red and her eyes swollen. There was such a desperate look in her eyes that pleaded for me to rescue her. She held on to me so tight I felt as though she was going to wrench my back. But I fully understood and hugged her in return.

“I’m so glad you came, Estelle. We need you here with us,” I managed, breaking our embrace. My mind momentarily slipped back to the prescription bottle I had left on the counter in my daddy’s bathroom.

“We’ve been asking Estelle if she knows anything about this Nina Blackford. She tells us she has never heard Daddy mention anyone named Nina.” There was a hint of cynicism in Renee’s voice.

“Well, I don’t know, Renee, I didn’t think Eddie and I had any secrets.” There was clearly hurt in her face.

“This is all very suspect, that neither you nor Uncle Thomas knows about this Nina person. I guess we’ll just have to wait for the lawyer to call back.” Collette didn’t look up from the documents she was reading.

“Can I get anyone something to eat?” Roberta called from the doorway of the kitchen.

“I brought baked chicken and mashed potatoes and green beans. Marilyn brought the cake, coffee, and tea. She didn’t want me to drive myself, so she came with me. I told her I was okay to drive. But she knew that wasn’t true when I didn’t know that my credit card was supposed to go back in my wallet after I bought gas.” Estelle managed a weak smile.

At least Roberta is making herself useful, I thought to myself, but instead I said, “I’ll have a little something with tea, please.”

“Let me help you, Roberta. I think all of you could probably use a little something to eat.” Marilyn made her way to the kitchen. She had blended into the background from the moment she arrived. She had hugged each of my sisters and Uncle Thomas, expressed her sympathy, and took a seat in the den pretending to watch television. Roberta could have taken a lesson from Marilyn.

Marilyn was Estelle’s oldest daughter, whom I had met a few times over the years. She was a strong sister who was really in touch with her African heritage. She had spent two years in Kenya while working on her doctorate degree in Pan-African studies. She now taught at the University of Maryland. With her mother’s down-to-earth demeanor and warmth, she was quite easy to like. Marilyn was her mother’s double. She was petite, with an almond complexion and light-brown eyes. Her natural good looks were always highlighted by the slightest hint of makeup. Like her mother, Marilyn’s ample body was always impeccably clothed. Her designer business suit fit her like it had been custom tailored. As she removed her jacket to help Roberta in the kitchen, it revealed a bosom that you could lose a small child inside.

Estelle had three children. Jimmy was a dancer with a local dance troupe that had received international recognition. Jimmy was so far out of the closet that the door’s hinges had been removed. Daddy had been the first one to defend Jimmy as a teenager. When his sexuality was the subject of more than a few round-table discussions, he had simply said, “The boy is doing well in school, never gives his mama any trouble, and unless one of y’all want to date him, it ain’t none of your business.” But it never stopped us from whispering when Daddy wasn’t around. As we grew up and I realized there wasn’t a kinder and more sincere person on the planet than Jimmy, or Jamaica, as he liked to be called, I began to love him like he was my own brother. We were in constant contact by phone or e-mail. I wondered if he would fly home from Paris for the funeral.

Maxine was the youngest and lived in Los Angeles. She worked for one of the sound stages and none of us really knew what she did. Though she and I lived in the same city, we had virtually no contact. She’d been caught up in the Hollywood crowd and didn’t associate with anyone who wasn’t in the business. I was sure she couldn’t break away from her get-us-some-more-donuts duties to make it to her near stepfather’s funeral.

“Did you git a nap, Sissy?” Uncle Thomas looked very old to me at that moment.

“No, I was just looking at all the pictures and remembering the times when they were taken. The time just slipped away.” I shot a glance at Dawn, who looked away.

“Back to the business at hand.” Collette really knew how to step on my last good nerve.

“Can’t we at least eat first, Lette? Damn!” Much to my surprise, Renee was the one to shut her down.

“Yeah, I guess. But we have to deal with this. We have to settle what we’ll spend and how the fifty-thousand-dollar policy will be divided. We have to agree on what to spend because what is left is to be split between us equally.” How was this woman the product of the same parents as the rest of us?

“We will not, and I mean will not, cut a corner. We’ll pick out the casket Daddy wanted, get the flowers we want, have limos for all the family and near family. The programs will be professionally printed. The food will be catered. Are you feelin’ me?” I felt like slapping Collette.

“Why do we have to cater the food, you know the church will provide the food!” Collette said, throwing her hands in the air.

“Because I said we will.” I moved closer to Collette.

“Girls, girls!” Estelle was trying to keep the peace.

“Well, I’m glad to hear that near family will get to ride in a limo, too!” Roberta had a plate of food in each hand.

“Shut up, Roberta!” Collette and I said at the same moment.

“Well, I was just saying.”

“For the record, near family are Estelle and her children. They would have been our stepbrother and -sisters.” At least Roberta had diverted my attention from Collette and the impending stomp-a-hole-in-her-ass she was sure to get before this was all over.

While we’d been arguing, Marilyn and Roberta had brought in from the kitchen food-filled dishes for the group. We took our places at the table.

“The food looks wonderful, Estelle. Let’s say grace.” Dawn took my hand and then Estelle’s.

The others did the same, and we were standing in a small circle when Uncle Thomas began to speak. “Heavenly Fatha, we thanks Ya tonigh’ fo’ Yo’ savin’ grace. Fo’ Yo’ mercy ’n’ power ta heal even da heart dat seems brok’n beyon’ repair. While we don’t undastan’ why Ya took mah brotha, we accepts Yo’ will. We ask dat You brang peace to dis here house and undastandin’ and tol’rince. Thank You fo’ Yo’ travelin’ grace fo’ Sissy. We thanks Ya fo’ dis here food prepared fo’ our bodies by da lovin’ hands of Estelle. We ask Yo’ blessin’ on da food, da cook, and da eaters. Amen.”

“Amen,” we sang in unison.

There was little conversation as we ate. The food was excellent. I had forgotten how Estelle could throw down in the kitchen. The red-skin mashed potatoes with garlic were the best I had ever eaten. And the green beans made me want to slap Collette … no wait, I already wanted to do that.

“Thank you, Estelle. I didn’t even know I was hungry until I started eating.” Renee smiled genuinely at the matriarch.

“Chile, I just had to do something today. I can’t believe my Eddie is gone!” Estelle put her napkin to her face, as if she could possibly hide her tears.

Marilyn put her arms around her mother, patting her gently. It was all the reason we needed to start our own personal pity parties. Within seconds everyone around the table was crying, but, of course, Roberta was the loudest.

“Let’s clear the table. Someone start a shopping list. We need paper plates.” As she got up from the table, Collette barked out the order as though we were her employees.

“Jimmy’s flying home tomorrow. He is so broken up, poor thing. You know he always said Eddie loved him more than his own father. As soon as you set the day for the funeral I’ll let Maxine know and she’ll fly in the day before. They’re in production. At first she wasn’t coming, but I had a come-to-Jesus meeting with her, and she saw things a little differently when I was done. Do you ever get together with her, Glynda?” Estelle cleared plates as she talked.

“No, Estelle, we have never even spoken on the phone since she moved to L.A. I thought she would have come to my law school graduation party, but … oh well.”

“I don’t know what that chile’s problem is. I sure raised her better. She got out there in Hollywood and just lost her mind.” Estelle shook her head.

“When can we expect to hear from the coroner’s office?” Collette said, wiping her hands on a burgundy dishtowel.

“Probably tomorrow afternoon. They will at least have a preliminary cause of death. They’ll have to wait for the toxicology report for a day or so,” Dawn said very matter-of-factly, walking to the kitchen with an armful of dishes.

“So the funeral home can pick up the body then?” Estelle’s eyes filled with tears as the room filled with her words.

“Yes, that’s the way it works. Daddy wanted Brown’s on North Avenue. He wrote it all out, Estelle.” I was fighting back tears of my own this time.

“He told me when he did that. He said that he didn’t want there to be any trouble between y’all and me. He said he didn’t want y’all to have to worry about the little details or try to overrule my wishes. He said he knew y’all would never agree on anything. So he was just going to make it easy on everybody. But I never thought we’d be dealing with all of this so soon. He only drew up his will and wrote out his last wishes a few months ago. He said since we were getting married he wanted everything to be right. All the details handled. That was my Eddie. Look at this house. Not a paper clip out of place.” Estelle buried her face in her hands and started sobbing.

“I guess we need to decide what day the funeral will be. Do we do a night funeral and morning burial or all together?” Renee picked up the files that held all of the insurance and will information.

“I think we should have it in three days. Just get it over with.” It didn’t come out at all like I meant it. I braced myself for their wrath.

“What in the hell do you mean get it over with? We’re sorry that this has interrupted the big-time lawyer’s schedule.” Renee spat the words at me. “Gotta get back to those billable hours? But we’re not rushing my daddy into the ground to please your time-is-money schedule.”

“Renee, I didn’t mean it like it sounded. I just don’t want to have to wait five or six days, putting off the inevitable. It is so hard on everyone.”

“Well, maybe that is the way you black folks do it in California, but we black people here in Baltimore believe in a decent grieving period. Besides, Daddy’s aunt Ida Mae is coming from Alabama, and she is not going to fly. She is taking the Greyhound tomorrow, so three days is out. It means the funeral would be the day she got here.” Collette surprised me by siding with Renee on this issue.

“Why is Aunt Ida Mae taking the bus? Lawdhamurcy, ain’t she like ninety-two?” Dawn had returned with the coffeepot in her hand, along with three coffee mugs.

“She refuses to fly. Junior wants to rent a car and drive up here with her. But she said, and I quote, ‘I am not going to get in a car with his alcohol-drinking butt to end up dead before I get there.’ I recommended she at least take the train. She said the bus has been good enough for her all these years, and she don’t see any reason it can’t do now. I hushed.” Renee was slicing cake.

“Uncle Thomas, how old is Aunt Ida Mae?” Dawn asked

“She least eighty-five. I thank she ’bout three years olda than Mama woulda been. But she may be olda. Ya know ol’ folks don’t tell ya how ol’ dey really is.”

“Okay, so does that mean the funeral will be Monday? We can’t have a funeral on Sunday.” Roberta, with the cake and plates in her hands, spoke up for the first time since we told her to shut up.

“Oh please don’t make it that far away, that will be a week. That is too long. Can we do it Saturday?” I couldn’t stand to go through this madness for six more days.

“Well, Saturday would be good. Our shift is off, and I know everyone wants to come,” Estelle added.

“Don’t we have to pay premium at the cemetery on Saturdays?” Collette had no shame.

“So what?” Dawn screamed at Collette.

“Well, I don’t think we should spend money we don’t have to. I say Monday and we do it all in one day. It will cost less.”

“If you mention money one more time, I’m going to go stone projeckish on your ass. Do I make myself clear?” I was fed up with Collette’s money grubbing.

“Ladies, ladies, let’s not lose our cool. Can I make a suggestion?” Roberta was treading on thin ice and the sun was rising.

“Hell no, you can’t suggest anything. Does the concept ‘seen and not heard’ mean anything to you?” Collette spoke before I could.

“Wait a minute, let’s hear what she has to say. We can’t agree among ourselves.” Of course Renee would say that!

“Thank you, sis. I was going to suggest a Friday night service with a Saturday burial. That way all of the people from the plant who want to attend can make one or the other, if not both. Aunt Ida Mae will be here and by Saturday afternoon Papa Eddie will be laid to rest and everyone can get back to work or whatever they need to get back to by Monday, with a day to rest in between.”

“Da gurl makes sense.” Uncle Thomas smiled at me.

I rolled my eyes, despite thinking it was a good compromise. “Well, if the others agree, I think it’ll work for all the reasons you mentioned.”

You would have thought Roberta had won the lottery. She was grinning and prancing like a peacock around the dining room. “I’m just trying to help wherever I can.”

“I think it is a good idea, too. I know all the employees down at the plant will be happy. Most of them were afraid they wouldn’t be able to come to the services. Most of the people who work Friday nights are new and don’t really know Eddie that well. I heard that they are sending someone from the head office, too. The union is sending a representative. I’m telling you everybody loved and respected my Eddie.”

“All in favor of Friday night service and Saturday morning burial, say ‘Aye,’ ” Ms. Diplomacy said.

Everyone raised his or her hand and said, “Aye.”

“Don’t we have to see if the funeral home has that time available?” Even though it was the best idea, I just didn’t want Roberta to have the victory. And yes, I know that this wasn’t a good Christian attitude. I would repent later.

“I’m sure they’ll make it work. We’re going to be spending some tall dollars with them.” Collette cowered back as she realized she’d mentioned money again.

I was almost amused.

As I took my last bite of cake, exhaustion surrounded my body like a handmade quilt on a cold winter night. The adrenaline that had fueled all of my movement since that first phone call was suddenly gone. The heaviness once again took over my body to the point that I didn’t think I could stand. I wanted Eddie Naylor to hug me. I wanted him to lift me off the floor and spin me around the way he did every time he picked me up from the airport. No matter what the weight of my burden, I knew Eddie Naylor could lighten my load.

Like a lowly thief approaches his next victim, reality crept its ugly way back into my psyche. Eddie Naylor couldn’t lighten my heavy load. Eddie Naylor’s death was my burden to bear.

“Glynda, you look so tired all of a sudden. You need to get some rest.” Estelle rose from her seat at the table and started toward me.

“Sissy, you don’t look so good. Let me take you home,” Renee offered.

“Who said she was going home with you? You have so much activity at your house, how do you think she would get any rest?” Collette rose to take her dessert dishes to the kitchen. “I have the most room, and it is always quiet.”

“But we’re the closest, and I know she would be more comfortable with Devin and me,” Dawn added with confidence.

“What the hell you mean more comfortable with you? My house is twice as big as that roach motel you call home. Besides, it’s just me. Devin plays that rap music, too. You know how much Sissy hates anything that isn’t jazz!”

“See, that is your problem, Lette, My roach motel is a home. Your hacienda is a house.”

“I want to stay here.” I thought I spoke aloud, but Collette and Dawn were still going at it as though I hadn’t spoken a word.

“Who the f—”

“Stop it! I’m staying here!” I screamed.

“Staying here?” Everyone in the room seemed to sing the same question.

“Yes, I want to sleep in Daddy’s bed. I want to smell his cologne. I want to feel his spirit.”

“See, your ass been living in California too long, talkin’ about feeling his spirit. Only spirit I ever wanna feel is the Holy Spirit,” Renee said, shaking her head.

“Are you sure this is something you want to do, Glynda?” Estelle moved in closer to embrace me. “After all, you would be here alone in the house where Eddie d …” The letter hung in the air like a foul stench from a dairy farm.

“I’m sure, Estelle.”

“Gurl, suppose Daddy forgot something. Needed to come back and have a little visit. You’re not scared?” Dawn surprised me with her superstitious nonsense.

“Daddy would never dream of hurting me when he was alive, and I know he would never hurt me now that he’s dead. Besides, being in his room gave me a sense of peace.”

“We’ll see how peaceful your ass is when we come back in the morning!” Collette had a mean streak, and no one clearly understood its origin.

“Baby, Uncle Thomas will stay wit’ chu. I feel some peace mahself here.”

“Uncle Thomas, there’s nothing I’d like more.” I ran over to hug his neck.

“Well, y’all just peace on. And as for me and mine—we’ll peace out.” Renee laughed at her own attempt at humor.

“We’ll help you clean up the kitchen and put the food away. Promise y’all will have breakfast before all of this funeral-planning business starts.” Estelle and Marilyn cleared the remaining cake plates and coffee mugs.

“I think I’ll stay with you, Renee,” Roberta said. “After all, sisters need to be together. Since everyone seems to be staying in separate places tonight, I think it’s best if I stay with you. We need each other more than ever now.”

“Roberta, you’re not Renee’s sister. Don’t make me hurt your feelings. I resent your implication!” Collette’s nostrils flared. She was pissed.

“Come on nah, y’all don’t start dis agin.” Uncle Thomas seemed genuinely agitated with us.

“Uncle Thomas, I don’t mean any disrespect, but Roberta has stepped out of bounds for the last time. She’s implying that she needs to stay with Renee because we aren’t. We’ve been away from our homes all day, and there are a few things that need to be taken care of. Renee has her family. She needs to be with her husband and children tonight. This woman needs to check herself before I stomp a sinkhole in her ass.” Collette pulled a cigarette from her jacket pocket, placed it between her lips, but thought twice before lighting it.

“We all need to get some rest. Glyn, are you sure you want to stay here?” Dawn said, touching my arm.

“Yes, I’m sure, and if Renee wants Roberta to spend the night at her place, that is none of our concern. But please, let’s stop this bickering. It’s making me so much more tired than I already am.”

“I just want to be here for Renee, and all of you, for that matter. I don’t want to cause any confusion. I’m just going to miss Daddy so much.” Roberta began to cry.

My eyes rolled to the back of my head.

“Well, let’s get the kitchen cleaned and the food put away so we can all get some much needed rest. Roberta, will you come help Marilyn and me in the kitchen?” Estelle had taken charge of the situation. I was surely glad. I wanted to ask her if she wanted to spend the night here with me and Uncle Thomas, but thought better of it because the sparks would surely start to fly again.

The cleanup seemed to take hours. I just wanted everyone gone so that I could be alone in Daddy’s room. Uncle Thomas had the same look in his eyes. Eventually everyone gathered their things and headed for the door. Hugs and kisses abounded, and once again it was hard to imagine how much we’d disagreed over the past several hours.

“We’ll be over first thing in the morning. I want to be here before the lawyer calls. I probably won’t be able to sleep wondering who this Nina Blackford is and what she meant to Daddy.” Collette looked pleased, knowing she was causing pain to Estelle.

Estelle’s face revealed the agony of a thousand torturous years as she spoke. “I’m sure my Eddie had a very special relationship with this woman that had nothing to do with his fidelity to me.” If only she believed her own words.

“I’m sure you’re right, Mom.” Marilyn was doing whatever she could to comfort her mother.

Like pulling a stopper from an old bathtub, the last exchange had drained us of all remaining energy. We could only manage to exchange farewells and I love you’s.

Closing the door gave me more comfort than I could have ever imagined. The house was finally quiet. I relished the quiet, embraced it. Within seconds, my haven of silence was shattered by a blaring sound from the guest bathroom.