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Authors: Jodi McIsaac
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girlfriend, but we’re waiting for each other.”
“Waiting . . . to have sex?”
“Nah, man, we’ve done that! But the problem is that she’s married, and she doesn’t believe in divorce. And I’m not a home wrecker. So we can’t be together in the physical realm. But we’re still together in spirit.”
“Um . . .” I was beginning to wish I hadn’t asked . . . but I also had a morbid sense of curiosity. “So how does that work?”
“Well, you know I’m telepathic, right?”
“Uh, right.”
“So is she. So we can talk to each other without being together. She loves me and I love her, but we have to wait until it’s the right time to be together.”
“But what if she doesn’t ever get divorced? What if she grows old with her husband?”
He shrugged. “It’s all in God’s plan. He’ll take care of it.”
I sincerely hoped God’s plan didn’t involve this woman’s husband dying mysteriously anytime soon.
“You want a book? I brought some over with me from my room.” Wes held out a stack of paperbacks. I took them and examined the titles. Most of them were thrillers and mysteries, a genre I’d never really read. But I still had an hour to kill before the family meeting, and there wouldn’t be much point in leaving and then coming back.
“Thanks,” I said, picking one at random and giving the rest back to Wes. “I’m just going to call Uncle Rob first and let him know what’s going on.”
I stepped outside the room and dialed Rob’s cell.
“Hello?”
“Hey, it’s Clare.”
“Hey, Clare, I was starting to worry about you. Everything go okay?”
I filled him in on the change of plans, which he seemed to take in stride. “Ah, bureaucracy. Everything takes longer than it needs to, and we have the pleasure of paying twice as much for it. Speaking of which, you’ll want to talk to your parents’ insurance providers sooner or later.”
“Let’s add it to the list,” I said. “Everything okay on your end?”
“As okay as it can be. You want to head back here after your meeting? Don’t suppose you’ve had a chance to think more about the obituary?”
“Not yet. I’ll come by later and work on it.”
“I’ll see you later then. You remember how to get here?”
“Yeah. See you later.”
I went back into Wes’s room and sat in the unoccupied chair. I opened up the book I’d chosen at random— Terminal Man by Michael Crichton. But I couldn’t get further than the title page. I kept glancing up at Wes every few seconds, as though I couldn’t quite believe he was really sitting here in the same room, calmly reading. In less than an hour, I’d be in a meeting with his social worker and psychiatrist. I knew they’d have questions for me. But I had no answers.
I didn’t want to disturb him, so I sat there pretending to read, but all the while my mind was jumping from my parents to Wes to Kenneth and back again. I started composing an obituary in my head, but it all got jumbled up and I didn’t want to get emotional, not now, when there were so many decisions still to be made.
Finally I could take it no longer and stood up. “I have to go to that meeting now.”
Wes grunted. “Tell them to let me the fuck out of here.”
I tried to look encouraging. “I’ll do my best. I’m going to go to Uncle Rob’s afterward . . . so I’ll see you in the morning, okay? Everything should be clear for you to leave then.”
“Yeah, whatever.” Wes shifted his chair so that his back was to me and returned to his book.
As I stepped into the hallway, I heard his voice. “Clare.”
I stuck my head back inside. “Yeah?”
He turned in his chair to face me. His light-blue eyes were wide and earnest—and afraid.
“Don’t leave me here.”
I nodded at the security guard, who locked the door.
CHAPTER FIVE
I was the first to arrive. A harried nurse ushered me into the conference room and told me to have a seat at the oval table. I pulled a pen and a
“Waiting . . . to have sex?”
“Nah, man, we’ve done that! But the problem is that she’s married, and she doesn’t believe in divorce. And I’m not a home wrecker. So we can’t be together in the physical realm. But we’re still together in spirit.”
“Um . . .” I was beginning to wish I hadn’t asked . . . but I also had a morbid sense of curiosity. “So how does that work?”
“Well, you know I’m telepathic, right?”
“Uh, right.”
“So is she. So we can talk to each other without being together. She loves me and I love her, but we have to wait until it’s the right time to be together.”
“But what if she doesn’t ever get divorced? What if she grows old with her husband?”
He shrugged. “It’s all in God’s plan. He’ll take care of it.”
I sincerely hoped God’s plan didn’t involve this woman’s husband dying mysteriously anytime soon.
“You want a book? I brought some over with me from my room.” Wes held out a stack of paperbacks. I took them and examined the titles. Most of them were thrillers and mysteries, a genre I’d never really read. But I still had an hour to kill before the family meeting, and there wouldn’t be much point in leaving and then coming back.
“Thanks,” I said, picking one at random and giving the rest back to Wes. “I’m just going to call Uncle Rob first and let him know what’s going on.”
I stepped outside the room and dialed Rob’s cell.
“Hello?”
“Hey, it’s Clare.”
“Hey, Clare, I was starting to worry about you. Everything go okay?”
I filled him in on the change of plans, which he seemed to take in stride. “Ah, bureaucracy. Everything takes longer than it needs to, and we have the pleasure of paying twice as much for it. Speaking of which, you’ll want to talk to your parents’ insurance providers sooner or later.”
“Let’s add it to the list,” I said. “Everything okay on your end?”
“As okay as it can be. You want to head back here after your meeting? Don’t suppose you’ve had a chance to think more about the obituary?”
“Not yet. I’ll come by later and work on it.”
“I’ll see you later then. You remember how to get here?”
“Yeah. See you later.”
I went back into Wes’s room and sat in the unoccupied chair. I opened up the book I’d chosen at random— Terminal Man by Michael Crichton. But I couldn’t get further than the title page. I kept glancing up at Wes every few seconds, as though I couldn’t quite believe he was really sitting here in the same room, calmly reading. In less than an hour, I’d be in a meeting with his social worker and psychiatrist. I knew they’d have questions for me. But I had no answers.
I didn’t want to disturb him, so I sat there pretending to read, but all the while my mind was jumping from my parents to Wes to Kenneth and back again. I started composing an obituary in my head, but it all got jumbled up and I didn’t want to get emotional, not now, when there were so many decisions still to be made.
Finally I could take it no longer and stood up. “I have to go to that meeting now.”
Wes grunted. “Tell them to let me the fuck out of here.”
I tried to look encouraging. “I’ll do my best. I’m going to go to Uncle Rob’s afterward . . . so I’ll see you in the morning, okay? Everything should be clear for you to leave then.”
“Yeah, whatever.” Wes shifted his chair so that his back was to me and returned to his book.
As I stepped into the hallway, I heard his voice. “Clare.”
I stuck my head back inside. “Yeah?”
He turned in his chair to face me. His light-blue eyes were wide and earnest—and afraid.
“Don’t leave me here.”
I nodded at the security guard, who locked the door.
CHAPTER FIVE
I was the first to arrive. A harried nurse ushered me into the conference room and told me to have a seat at the oval table. I pulled a pen and a
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