The girls cleared the table afterward and loaded everything in the dishwasher, then headed into the family room to watch TV.The girls cleared the table afterward and loaded everything in the dishwasher, then headed into the family room to watch TV. Janet and I nursed our iced tea and talked quietly about inconsequential things. I noticed that the subject of my brother never entered the conversation, but I said nothing about it. And so to bed. The mattress in the guest room was newer and firmer than mine at home and I stretched out in my boxer shorts with a comfortable crackle in my joints and fell asleep within minutes. I'm a notoriously light sleeper, however. If the noise of the air conditioner changes pitch, I'll waken, quickly and completely. So, when my door opened silently an hour or two later, my internal alarm system began prodding me to pay attention. I opened one eye halfway and saw a slender figure standing uncertainly in the gray darkness just inside the door. Then it started to leave again so I whispered "Janet...?" She paused, then came back in and closed the door quietly behind her. She came and sat slowly on the side of my bed, near the foot. I could see now that she was wearing a short, crocheted nightgown. Her head was down, her face hidden by a curtain of hair, and her hands clasped and unclasped in her lap. I heard a sniffle. I slipped out from beneath the sheet and moved down to sit silently beside her. She seemed to shudder and I realized she had been crying and was trying hard not to resume. |