forty

I had meant to stop for a walk with Jay on my way back, but I’d flown right into town and found myself driving south on North Anthony. If I kept going another five or so miles, I would end up at Shadetree Retirement Home. Why not? Jay was clean, so we could pop in for a visit and see how the bride was doing. And we could still get a walk in on the St. Mary’s Rivergreenway if we didn’t stay too long with Mom.

Jay was thrilled to get out of his crate, and we took a little relief walk among the maples and oaks along the side of the building. When he was finished, I clipped Jay’s therapy dog ID tag to his collar and in we went. Jade Templeton’s office door was closed and the lobby was empty but for a quartet of rummy players at a table near the gas fireplace. I looked into the solarium, Mom’s favorite hangout, but she wasn’t there. My next stop was the reading room, a bright space with several comfy chairs and a long library-style table with desk lamps and a computer at one end. Harlan Overmeier, a bespectacled gentleman of indeterminate old age, hunched toward the screen. He wore earphones and worked a humongous game gadget with his right hand, apparently controlling the spaceship that careened around the screen.

Mom sat at a table near the windows, holding hands with Tony Marconi, her soon-to-be husband. Bill and his partner, Norm, were there as well. Bill is my brother by birth, Norm my brother by natural selection. I’m ever thankful that they have one of the most loving and stable relationships I know of, because if they ever broke up, I’d be hard pressed to choose between them. In the moment before anyone noticed me and Jay, Norm and my mom were smiling and chattering like kids with a new toy, Tony was finger-punching his e-tablet with his free hand, and brother Bill was leaning back in his chair and scowling. Norm and Mom were no doubt thinking of ways to spend Bill’s money.

Jay pulled me forward until he could lay his chin on Mom’s lap, raising a squeal from his favorite old lady. “Jay!” She didn’t bother with me until she’d finished smooching my dog. Tony saw me and began creaking to his feet, but I signaled him to stay sitting. Bill said hi, and Norm jumped up and hugged me silly.

“We’re just finalizing plans,” said Norm. “Can you help me decorate the Solarium Friday a week? I’ve ordered garlands, simple but beautiful. Jade offered to have her guys set up the seating, and …” He rattled on and I smiled to see everyone so happy. Everyone but Bill.

Conversation and laughter intermingled for another half hour, and even brother Bill lightened up and joined in. The best thing was that Mom was fully present, and I credited Tony with at least some of her cognitive improvement. Even if it lasted only a few months, it was good to have her mostly back.

Our noses eventually told us that lunchtime was almost upon us, and Bill, Norm, and I said our goodbyes and walked toward the lobby together. “I need to make a short stop,” I said when we reached the entrance to a small alcove off the hallway. “I’ll talk to you later, and Norm, I’d love to help decorate.”

When Jay and I emerged from the restroom and started to cross the main lobby, I heard the receptionist say, “Here’s a brochure with quite a bit of information. We can arrange a tour of the facilities if you like, too, and you’re welcome to talk to some of the residents to see how they like …” I glanced at the information counter and felt a shiver race up my spine. A heavy man in an ill-fitting gray suit had his back to me, but I knew the set of his shoulders. It was the fat thug. What the …?

I backtracked out of the lobby, my heart thumping as if I’d just run a 5K. “Come on,” I told Jay, “we’ll go out the side door.” I had put Jay in his crate and was about to climb into the driver’s seat when a voice said, “Heard this is the best nursing home in town. That right?”

I whirled and found myself face to face with Skinny.