SIX:
Inside the house the judge was kneeling next to Aunt Sara who was lying on the floor. May was standing nearby looking confused. When Holly came in behind us she went to May and put her arm around her. May smiled up at her gratefully.
"MA!" Cary cried, racing to her, and dropping to the floor next to her. "What happened?"
"I just twisted my ankle and fell Cary, no big deal." Aunt Sara said. I noticed that her ankle was rather swollen and she had beads of perspiration on her forehead from the pain.
"Is it very painful? We'll take you to the hospital." Cary said.
Aunt Sara smiled at him. "No, no it's not that bad." She assured him. "If you help me up I think I can walk-or hobble at least."
The judge stood up, groaning as he straightened his back. "Melody, can I speak to you for a moment?" He asked me softly. The words startled me; I'd simply been standing back watching the scene. Whilst I was concerned for Aunt Sara something in Holly's words had implied that there was something worse wrong!
I nodded, and we went into the kitchen.
"Are you enjoying your party?" The judge asked me.
"Very much, but Aunt Sara-" I began, but the judge interrupted me.
"I offered to help Kenneth and Holly with the monetary side of things, but they refused. At first I thought it was just my son being stubborn as usual, but Holly assured me that it was just that they wanted to do this something for you." He explained.
"Jud-Grandfather, "I corrected myself. "Please, is there something you're not telling us about Aunt Sara?"
The judge sighed. "Well she did fall over and hurt her ankle as you saw." He said. "But that's not it, no. She was inside here talking, muttering to herself when Holly came in. Holly said she couldn't hear much of what she said, but it seemed like Sara was talking to Laura, or at least imagining she was speaking to Laura. And then when Holly spoke to her, Sara called you Laura about three times. Holly got the impression that Sara seemed to think that she was at the engagement party of Laura and Robert.."
I gasped, my hand flying to cover my mouth. "How terrible!" I managed.
"I know. And Holly came to tell me, and when I came back in I suggested to Sara that maybe she was tired and I could drive her home if you and Cary didn't want to leave yet. And she stared at me and said "I can't leave yet, this is my daughter's engagement party and she would want her mother here." I said to her, gently of course, that it was Cary's and yours, and then she turned around in circles a few times, almost as if she were looking for something, and started to run out of the room before falling and hurting her ankle."
I felt sick. I didn't know what to say, or what to do.
"Tell me Melody, has she acted strangely at home?" The judge asked.
I thought about what Cary, May and I'd been talking about before the party. And in my mind I saw the protective, proud look on Cary's face when he said we'd just have to keep an eye on her, that she was just grieving for his father. And so I shook my head at the judge's question.
He looked relieved at that. "Well I guess that's something then." He said with a sigh. "But I still think we need to make sure she gets help."
"Cary wont like that!" I said.
"I'm sure he won't. But if he cares about his mother than he would realise that it's the right thing to do. Now, do you tell him this, or do I?" The judge asked.
I sighed. "I guess I should. It will be better coming from me."
"I'm sure it's nothing major Melody." The judge assured me.
"No." I agreed. "She's still upset about Uncle Jacob's death, that's all."
*****
Later that night we had Aunt Sara settled in her bed, with her ankle up on a pillow. "I'll be right dears, go to bed. You're both tired, and you've had a big night." She assured us. Cary had hesitated, but she had been firm. May had gone to bed also, and now Cary and I'd taken a brief walk down to the beach.
Cary was talking about the party, and how impressed he had been by it all. "And that's not all Melody!" He told me, his eyes shining in the moonlight. "I had a few discussions with people about my building a boat for them!"
I smiled proudly. "That's great Cary." I said. "But listen, there's something I've got to tell you. I wanted to tell you earlier as soon as I heard, but it wasn't really the right time!"
Cary smiled. "Sure, what is it?" He asked.
I told him, and I saw his face drain of color. "Are they sure?" He asked. "I mean, they didn't really hear what she was saying, she could have been muttering about wishing that Laura were there to share it all."
"She specifically said to both the judge and Holly that she thought it was Laura's engagement party." I said, shaking my head.
Cary put his face in his hands. "God.what do we do?" He moaned. "She's not crazy you know. She just doesn't know how to cope with Dad's death."
"I know she's not crazy. And the judge seemed to think it wasn't too serious. We've got to get her to the doctor though-to make sure it's nothing serious, and so we can start helping her to get better. If we leave it, then maybe it'll get worse. And what if she speaks to people in town, and then they all know that she's having problems?" I added.
Cary removed his hands from his face to glare at me. "You sounded like Grandma Olivia then-all concerned about the family reputation. We wouldn't want anyone to think that the Logan's have a crazy gene in them would we? Maybe we should just lock Ma up like they did for Belinda?" He practically yelled.
I was shocked that he had misinterpreted my words, and meaning, so badly. "That's not what I meant at all!" I yelled back. "My god Cary Logan I would have thought you would have known me better than that. What I was actually thinking about was Aunt Sara's feelings. How awful it would be for her to be the topic of conversation of the town!"
Cary calmed down. "I'm sorry, it's just I'm kind of sensitive when it comes to Ma. Especially considering Dad told me to look after her before he died." He said.
I smiled weakly, but I was still a little upset about Cary thinking I'd meant that I didn't want to air the dirty linen in public rather than being concerned about the feelings of Aunt Sara. "Grandfather said he would get a doctor he knows to come over tomorrow?"
"Sure." Cary agreed unhappily.
"We don't really have any choice Cary!" I told him. "You know that!"
"I know!" He replied, a little angrily. "I know that perfectly well. It just upsets me, that's all. Fine job I'm doing of looking after the family."
"Cary." I said, putting my arms around him. "You're doing a great job. It's not your fault that Aunt Sara thinks she can cope with Uncle Jacob's death better by pretending that Laura's still alive!"
"Can you imagine if we'd told her about what really happened?" Cary said, instead of responding to my comment directly.
I shook my head. "It would have been bad."
"Worse." Cary muttered, and I sighed, and squeezed his hand, which had come to take one of mine.
"Everything's going to be alright Cary. Before you know it Aunt Sara will be feeling better, and won't need to pretend Laura's still alive to make her feel happier." I said.
*****
The next afternoon the judge and the doctor arrived. I'd sent Cary off to town earlier with May, who I reasoned, didn't need to worry about what was going on with her mother until we knew for sure. Whilst the doctor examined Aunt Sara, who was still up in her room with her sore ankle, the judge and I spoke about it.
"Sara always worshipped Jacob." The judge said. "So it's no wonder that his death has hit her so hard."
"But why wouldn't she pretend he was still alive instead of Laura?" I asked, confused. "And for that matter, why does she only do it sometimes?"
The judge laughed. "I went to law school Melody, not medical school."
I smiled weakly, and he sighed and took my hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm sure everything's going to be alright." He said, unconsciously echoing my comments to Cary the night before.
The doctor came out then. I jumped up. "How is she? What's wrong with her?"
"She seems alright at the moment. The consecutive losses of her daughter and her husband have hurt her. I don't think she realises that she is speaking out loud when she speaks of Laura as if she is alive. See, in Sara's mind Laura is alive. It's almost as if she's acting out her fantasy of Laura still being here. Anyway, I'm going to give her some medication which I want you to make sure she takes." I nodded. "And the other thing is, see whether you can occupy her time a bit more. I understand you're getting married soon?" I nodded again. "Well how about giving her something to do with organising the wedding? Spend time with her. Most importantly-if she speaks as if Laura is still alive make sure to remind her that she's not, as gently as you can of course."
"So, she's alright then?" I asked, relieved.
"She will be soon enough." The doctor replied, and I let out a deep breath. Thank god for that!
Inside the house the judge was kneeling next to Aunt Sara who was lying on the floor. May was standing nearby looking confused. When Holly came in behind us she went to May and put her arm around her. May smiled up at her gratefully.
"MA!" Cary cried, racing to her, and dropping to the floor next to her. "What happened?"
"I just twisted my ankle and fell Cary, no big deal." Aunt Sara said. I noticed that her ankle was rather swollen and she had beads of perspiration on her forehead from the pain.
"Is it very painful? We'll take you to the hospital." Cary said.
Aunt Sara smiled at him. "No, no it's not that bad." She assured him. "If you help me up I think I can walk-or hobble at least."
The judge stood up, groaning as he straightened his back. "Melody, can I speak to you for a moment?" He asked me softly. The words startled me; I'd simply been standing back watching the scene. Whilst I was concerned for Aunt Sara something in Holly's words had implied that there was something worse wrong!
I nodded, and we went into the kitchen.
"Are you enjoying your party?" The judge asked me.
"Very much, but Aunt Sara-" I began, but the judge interrupted me.
"I offered to help Kenneth and Holly with the monetary side of things, but they refused. At first I thought it was just my son being stubborn as usual, but Holly assured me that it was just that they wanted to do this something for you." He explained.
"Jud-Grandfather, "I corrected myself. "Please, is there something you're not telling us about Aunt Sara?"
The judge sighed. "Well she did fall over and hurt her ankle as you saw." He said. "But that's not it, no. She was inside here talking, muttering to herself when Holly came in. Holly said she couldn't hear much of what she said, but it seemed like Sara was talking to Laura, or at least imagining she was speaking to Laura. And then when Holly spoke to her, Sara called you Laura about three times. Holly got the impression that Sara seemed to think that she was at the engagement party of Laura and Robert.."
I gasped, my hand flying to cover my mouth. "How terrible!" I managed.
"I know. And Holly came to tell me, and when I came back in I suggested to Sara that maybe she was tired and I could drive her home if you and Cary didn't want to leave yet. And she stared at me and said "I can't leave yet, this is my daughter's engagement party and she would want her mother here." I said to her, gently of course, that it was Cary's and yours, and then she turned around in circles a few times, almost as if she were looking for something, and started to run out of the room before falling and hurting her ankle."
I felt sick. I didn't know what to say, or what to do.
"Tell me Melody, has she acted strangely at home?" The judge asked.
I thought about what Cary, May and I'd been talking about before the party. And in my mind I saw the protective, proud look on Cary's face when he said we'd just have to keep an eye on her, that she was just grieving for his father. And so I shook my head at the judge's question.
He looked relieved at that. "Well I guess that's something then." He said with a sigh. "But I still think we need to make sure she gets help."
"Cary wont like that!" I said.
"I'm sure he won't. But if he cares about his mother than he would realise that it's the right thing to do. Now, do you tell him this, or do I?" The judge asked.
I sighed. "I guess I should. It will be better coming from me."
"I'm sure it's nothing major Melody." The judge assured me.
"No." I agreed. "She's still upset about Uncle Jacob's death, that's all."
*****
Later that night we had Aunt Sara settled in her bed, with her ankle up on a pillow. "I'll be right dears, go to bed. You're both tired, and you've had a big night." She assured us. Cary had hesitated, but she had been firm. May had gone to bed also, and now Cary and I'd taken a brief walk down to the beach.
Cary was talking about the party, and how impressed he had been by it all. "And that's not all Melody!" He told me, his eyes shining in the moonlight. "I had a few discussions with people about my building a boat for them!"
I smiled proudly. "That's great Cary." I said. "But listen, there's something I've got to tell you. I wanted to tell you earlier as soon as I heard, but it wasn't really the right time!"
Cary smiled. "Sure, what is it?" He asked.
I told him, and I saw his face drain of color. "Are they sure?" He asked. "I mean, they didn't really hear what she was saying, she could have been muttering about wishing that Laura were there to share it all."
"She specifically said to both the judge and Holly that she thought it was Laura's engagement party." I said, shaking my head.
Cary put his face in his hands. "God.what do we do?" He moaned. "She's not crazy you know. She just doesn't know how to cope with Dad's death."
"I know she's not crazy. And the judge seemed to think it wasn't too serious. We've got to get her to the doctor though-to make sure it's nothing serious, and so we can start helping her to get better. If we leave it, then maybe it'll get worse. And what if she speaks to people in town, and then they all know that she's having problems?" I added.
Cary removed his hands from his face to glare at me. "You sounded like Grandma Olivia then-all concerned about the family reputation. We wouldn't want anyone to think that the Logan's have a crazy gene in them would we? Maybe we should just lock Ma up like they did for Belinda?" He practically yelled.
I was shocked that he had misinterpreted my words, and meaning, so badly. "That's not what I meant at all!" I yelled back. "My god Cary Logan I would have thought you would have known me better than that. What I was actually thinking about was Aunt Sara's feelings. How awful it would be for her to be the topic of conversation of the town!"
Cary calmed down. "I'm sorry, it's just I'm kind of sensitive when it comes to Ma. Especially considering Dad told me to look after her before he died." He said.
I smiled weakly, but I was still a little upset about Cary thinking I'd meant that I didn't want to air the dirty linen in public rather than being concerned about the feelings of Aunt Sara. "Grandfather said he would get a doctor he knows to come over tomorrow?"
"Sure." Cary agreed unhappily.
"We don't really have any choice Cary!" I told him. "You know that!"
"I know!" He replied, a little angrily. "I know that perfectly well. It just upsets me, that's all. Fine job I'm doing of looking after the family."
"Cary." I said, putting my arms around him. "You're doing a great job. It's not your fault that Aunt Sara thinks she can cope with Uncle Jacob's death better by pretending that Laura's still alive!"
"Can you imagine if we'd told her about what really happened?" Cary said, instead of responding to my comment directly.
I shook my head. "It would have been bad."
"Worse." Cary muttered, and I sighed, and squeezed his hand, which had come to take one of mine.
"Everything's going to be alright Cary. Before you know it Aunt Sara will be feeling better, and won't need to pretend Laura's still alive to make her feel happier." I said.
*****
The next afternoon the judge and the doctor arrived. I'd sent Cary off to town earlier with May, who I reasoned, didn't need to worry about what was going on with her mother until we knew for sure. Whilst the doctor examined Aunt Sara, who was still up in her room with her sore ankle, the judge and I spoke about it.
"Sara always worshipped Jacob." The judge said. "So it's no wonder that his death has hit her so hard."
"But why wouldn't she pretend he was still alive instead of Laura?" I asked, confused. "And for that matter, why does she only do it sometimes?"
The judge laughed. "I went to law school Melody, not medical school."
I smiled weakly, and he sighed and took my hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm sure everything's going to be alright." He said, unconsciously echoing my comments to Cary the night before.
The doctor came out then. I jumped up. "How is she? What's wrong with her?"
"She seems alright at the moment. The consecutive losses of her daughter and her husband have hurt her. I don't think she realises that she is speaking out loud when she speaks of Laura as if she is alive. See, in Sara's mind Laura is alive. It's almost as if she's acting out her fantasy of Laura still being here. Anyway, I'm going to give her some medication which I want you to make sure she takes." I nodded. "And the other thing is, see whether you can occupy her time a bit more. I understand you're getting married soon?" I nodded again. "Well how about giving her something to do with organising the wedding? Spend time with her. Most importantly-if she speaks as if Laura is still alive make sure to remind her that she's not, as gently as you can of course."
"So, she's alright then?" I asked, relieved.
"She will be soon enough." The doctor replied, and I let out a deep breath. Thank god for that!