David noticed.
“No.”
I turned around.
“What?”
“Take it with you.”
“It belongs to you.”
“I wrote it for you.”
So I packed the letter in my purse.
The morning of the move, I stood alone in our bedroom and cried.
I had cried more in one week than I had in the previous year.
When I went downstairs, David was already dressed.
Janet had helped him.
Seeing that made me feel strangely unnecessary.
Then I felt guilty for feeling unnecessary.
Then I became angry at myself for feeling guilty.
David saw all of it on my face.
“Linda.”
“What?”
“Come here.”
I walked toward him.
He reached out and took my hand.
“I’m not dying today.”
“I know.”
“You look like we’re heading toward an execution.”
“I know.”
“I’ll be twenty minutes away.”
“I know.”
“By the end of the week, you’ll probably be tired of visiting me.”
“I know.”
He squeezed my hand.
“Good.”
Meadow Ridge looked exactly as it had on my tour.
Clean hallways.
Large windows.
Plants.
Bright paintings.
People trying very hard to make a difficult place feel cheerful.
A nurse named Teresa introduced herself.
David looked at her badge, then at me.
“So, are you the stranger with strong arms and a degree?”
I wanted the floor to swallow me.
Teresa blinked.
Then burst out laughing.
“Depends on who’s asking.”
“My wife.”
I shook my head.
“He wrote that phrase in a letter years ago.”
Teresa grinned.
“That makes it worse.”
I liked her immediately.
Part 5 — The Hardest Part Was Walking Out the Door
Nothing terrible happened that first day.
That was almost the problem.
We unpacked.
Teresa showed us where everything was.
David complained mildly about the mattress.
I rearranged his photographs three times.
At 4:30, dinner was scheduled.
Later, staff would help him prepare for bed.
At five o’clock, I stood beside his chair holding my purse.
“I can stay longer.”
David looked at me.
“No.”
“I don’t mind.”
“I do.”
“David—”
“Go home.”
My throat tightened.
He pointed one finger at me.
“Read the letter.”
“I already read it.”
“Read it again.”
I bent down and kissed him.
His voice softened.
“Go sleep, Linda.”
I nodded.
Then I walked away.
I managed to reach the parking lot before I cried.
Afterward, I drove home to a house that sounded wrong.
Silence had once been peaceful.
