Jodie was face down on her bed, her shoulders heaving in silence.
Leah sat beside her and lightly brushed her long soft hair.
“I can’t stop crying over her, Leah. I just can’t stop.”
“Me either.”
“Your eyes aren’t red.”
Leah thought about that for a minute. Would it help to just let it out? “My heart’s in tatters, Jodie. I can’t imagine how I’ll survive.”
“But you’ve always loved her, and she knows that. I’ve just figured out how, and now it’s too late.”
“It’s not too late.”
Jodie rolled over and stared up at Leah. “I can’t hug a corpse, Leah!”
Despite herself, Leah laughed. “Brooke will never be a corpse.” She’d said it impulsively but suddenly realized the truth of her statement. In all of Brooke’s recent comatose conditions, she’d never ceased to be. Her spirit was always alive and present regardless of her unresponsive body. And the fact that that would continue to be the case indefinitely into the future was both consoling and frightening.
“I need to see her with her eyes open. I need to have her understand.”
“You will,” Leah said, hoping it was the truth.
The first part of Jodie’s request was granted later that evening. After sharing a quiet meal of Dave’s butternut squash soup and home-made bread (he’d taught himself bread-making during his days at home caring for Brooke), Dave went into their bedroom and emerged five minutes later saying with a cautious expression that Brooke was awake but “a little disoriented” by her medication.
“Should we let her rest?” Penni asked.
“Rest is all she’s had lately.”
“I mean, will we confuse her more?”
“I don’t know, Peanut. You came all this way to see her and she wants to see you. So give it a shot.” He stepped aside into the kitchen. “I’ll call you when the chocolate soufflés are ready.”
The women made no response. They were already trudging single file down the hall toward the bedroom, the youngest in the lead.
When Penni stepped through the doorway Brooke looked startled. “Penni!”
“Hi, Mom.”
“I didn’t know you were here.”
“I arrived this afternoon.” She went up to the side of the bed and bent over stiffly to give her mother a hug.
“That’s good,” Brooke said, ignoring the hug. “Now you can help me find Davey.”
Penni stood up. “Davey?”
“He’s supposed to be practicing for his recital.” Davey took piano lessons into high school then stopped.
Penni looked back at the others.
“Jodie!” Brooke exclaimed.
Jodie tried to smile but said nothing. She stood next to her sister, her eyes fixed on her mother’s intent stare.
“I thought you were at school.”
“I’m not at school, Mom. I’m here with you.”
“Well good. You can check the arcade. I think he’s off with that girl.”
“What girl, Mom?” Jodie asked.
“The blonde floozy. I can’t ever remember her name.”
Jodie looked at Penni.
Penni said, “Rebecca”—the name of Davey’s first serious love.
“That’s the one!” Brooke exclaimed. “She’ll do him no good.”
Jodie tilted her head. She had somehow managed to miss that entire family episode. But she said, “He’s just in love, Mom.”
“I know!” Brooke said. “That’s the problem.”
“It’ll be O.K.” Penni said quietly.
“But he won’t be ready for the recital.”
Penni was standing beside the chair kept next to the bed. Leah brought another chair for Jodie and urged them both to sit.
“Leah!” Brooke said. “You too?”
“Well, three actually,” Leah laughed. She pulled the room’s last chair over from beside the dresser to the foot of the bed, in line with the other two and in full sight of the patient on the bed.
“How long?” Brooke asked.
“I’ve been here all week,” Leah said as she sat down.
“Until I die.”
Leah gazed steadily at her sister. “I don’t know, Brooke.”
“If you don’t, who does?”
Leah glanced at her nieces and saw something akin to terror in their eyes. She looked back to Brooke. Her face had sunk back into the pillow and she was staring at the ceiling. “Only God,” Leah said. “And he’ll be there waiting.”
“I sure hope so,” Brooke said quietly to the ceiling. Her eyes closed.
The three women looked from the face on the pillow to each other. No one dared speak as Brooke’s easy sleeping breaths slowly filled the room.