The remains

Chapter 43

Turning on the hot water, I looked at my face in the mirror.

Looked into our faces, I should say.

Molly and me.

Sometimes when I saw my reflected self, I couldn’t help but wonder if Molly would have looked the same, if her ageing process would have mimicked my own. Of course it would have. I wondered about her features, if she would have acquired the same horizontal lines in the forehead, the same little bit of extra skin under the chin, the newly emerging crow’s feet framing the eyes, the subtle hint of grey in the otherwise dirty blonde hair.

In a word, I wondered if she would be me.

I felt the vibration against my thigh. Drying my hands, I pulled the cell phone from my jeans pocket and flipped it open.

Another text.

My heart raced and my mouth went dry.

I thumbed it open.

Cry, cry, cry you naughty kitten

Tears built up behind my eyeballs. I never bothered with checking the Caller ID. I knew who the caller was. I simply closed the phone and slipped it back into my jeans pocket. Breathing in and out, I turned off the water.

Then a loud bang, like someone closing a kitchen drawer. It registered through the bathroom door. It gave my heart a start. Following that, a slight commotion, muffled voices, my bedroom door slamming shut.

Michael.

I wanted to call out his name, but I couldn’t. My hand trembled as I opened the bathroom door and went out into the hall. It took forever to reach the bedroom. But when I did, a loud burst of thunder rattled my bones.

When I opened the bedroom door, I knew immediately that we would not be going to New York City.