Iris was woken the next morning by someone banging on the car window. Frightened, she sat up, but on seeing Mort's bemused face staring in at her, she relaxed. Winding down the window, she said; "Morning honey."
"Did you do this?" He said, pointing at the garden.
"Do you like it?" Iris said. "I worked really hard on it."
"Why?" He said shaking his head.
"Because it needed doing," Iris shrugged her shoulders.
"You had no right to do this," Mort said. "You had no business noising around!"
"What do you mean 'noising around'," Iris said, confused.
Mort lean in through the window and, in a low voice, said; "You shouldn't have been digging up my garden."
"I was just trying to make it nice for you," Iris said, she could feel the upset rising inside her.
"If I want my lawn mowed, or a tree planted, or anything on my property made 'nice'," Mort said with a twisted smile. "I'll do it myself. Thank-you."
"I'm sorry," Iris said, and she began to cry.
Climbing into the front seat, she started the engine and drove away.
Once she was out of the drive and down the road, she screeched the car to a haut, folded her arms on the steering wheel, lay her head against them, and wept.
She did not understand why he had reacted like that. Didn't he love her? She didn't know what to do; if Mort didn't want her, life wasn't worth living. She let out a tortured scream, and cried harder, squeezing her eyes, her head beginning to throb.
Suddenly, Mort was there at the window again, rapping softly on the glass this time. She hesitated before winding down the window.
"Look," he said, calmer now; more tender. "I didn't mean to upset you."
"I was just trying to help," Iris wailed.
"Okay, okay," he said quickly, then he made a 'ssshhhh' sound. Reaching through the window, he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Please stop crying."
"I can't! You're mad with me," Iris chocked on the words, her breathing coming in hurried, sharp gasps.
"No, no I'm not," Mort said, and he made the 'ssshhhh' sound again and he rubbed her shoulder. "Look," he said again. "I'm very grateful that you enjoyed my book and I'm sure that this… gesture," he pointed back towards his house. "Makes some kind of sense in you're own head, but I just wanna be left alone. Please, please don't get upset, but please, please stay out of my garden." He turned to go.
As he was walking away, Iris climbed out and called after him; "I don't believe any of the things there saying… about Amy!"
Mort stopped, turned around; "I asked you politely to leave me alone," he snapped.
"You don't mean that!" Iris said. "I know you don't. I can see you're hurting, why won't you let me help you?"
"I don't need any help, and I don't want to have to call the cops; so please." He walked away.
"Mort! Please, don't shut me out!"
He kept walking.