Nita hurried into her gorgeous home. The glorious joy of homecoming could wait; the task at hand was too important. She rushed to her mother’s bedside.
“Mother!” she urged, shaking her gently.
“What? Eh? Who’s there?” the sleeping matriarch asked groggily.
“Nita? Is that you?” asked her father, awakened by the noise. “Where have you been? You can’t just go running off.”
“I know, Father, and I’m sorry. Mother, please, come with me.”
“You know your mother needs her rest,” Mr. Graus said.
“Mother, what do you know about the people of Rim?”
“Precious little, and I don’t care to learn more.”
“Well, I think that’s a mistake, and I’ll show you why.”
She went to her mother’s master bath and fetched a glass and a pitcher of cool water. She filled the glass, then revealed a small jar and dumped a carefully measured spoonful into it. She stirred until the powder dissolved.
“Drink this. It will make you well again.”
“How could it, dear?”
“Please, Mother. Just drink it.”
The matriarch looked into the pleading eyes of her daughter, then reached out with a shaking hand. Nita guided the cup to her mother’s lips and steadied her hands enough for her to finish the glass. She then struck a match and lit the bedside lamp.
“Show me your hands,” Nita said.
Mrs. Graus held out her delicate hands. They were shaking and unsteady.
“You shouldn’t get your mother’s hopes up like that, Amanita,” said Mr. Graus.
“I… I think…” Mrs. Graus began, tears forming in her eyes. The tremor in her fingers was subsiding. By the time a minute had passed, they were still. “How did you do it?” she asked, forcing the words past the lump in her throat.
“It is a treatment, from a group of terrible but brilliant people. This first dose should take away the symptoms. Two more should cure the disease.”
“Are we certain it is safe? Her hands have steadied before. How do we know the drug is actually working?”
“It is working, Caldwell. I can feel it. I can feel it in my hands. My fingers. My arms. My whole body. I haven’t felt so calm, so still, in years.”
“I’ve spent the last few weeks reading through the books I… acquired on the drug, Mother. I even tested a few doses on myself to be sure it wasn’t dangerous. You’ll be well again.” There were tears in her own eyes now. “In two days, after two more doses, you’ll be well.”
The mother and daughter embraced tightly, tears running down their faces. When they separated again the joy of the moment and of the reunion began to subside, and the questions asserted themselves.
“How did you get this medicine, dear? Did you go to Rim? How did you get there? And when did you last bathe, dear? You smell a bit off. You know hygiene is important to good health.”
Nita laughed and brushed her tears away. “It is a long, long story, Mother.”