William Abernathy, lying in his bed, looked out into the hallway and saw his mistress pass by. He called out to her but she didn't come back. Disappointed, he turned his head back to the left and looked out of the window at the streaks of rainwater falling down the pane.
"Yes, William, can I help you?" a voice asked from the hall. The man turned his head and saw Josephine, his mistress and caretaker, standing in the doorway. He mumbled something but Josephine couldn't hear him. She set the candle she was holding down on the bedside table and knelt down closer to William. "Speak up, William, I can't hear you."
"Kill me," he whispered into her ear.
She drew back, horrified by his request. "What did you just say?"
"Kill me, Josephine. Please. I am in so much pain," he said weakly. He held out his hand and closed his eyes. Josephine grabbed it and kissed it gently. "Josephine, please."
"But William, the doctor was just here, he says you're doing better."
"I grow weaker and more tired every day, Josephine. I can't even muster the strength to cough anymore it hurts so much. Please, do me this one last favor. End my suffering," the man said warmly, as to calm the woman. Josephine, still holding the man's hand, began to weep. "Think of it as euthanization."
"I can't do it, William. Please don't put me in this position."
"Who else is there, Josephine?"
Kneeling next to her best friend, both of them lit by candlelight, Josephine thought about the situation she'd been put in. "Give me a moment."
She walked out into the hall, dimly lit by several candle sconces mounted along the walls. In the corner of the hallway was a small side table with another tall candle in a holder next to a picture of William's late wife Stephanie. Josephine walked over to it and thought about how happy Stephanie would be to be reunited with her husband. But the doctor had said he was improving greatly and he was the only family she had anymore. The mistress took a deep breath and went back into William's bedroom.
"Have you decided?" He asked her, anticipating her answer.
Josephine walked over to the side of the bed and muttered one simple answer, "Yes."