Lillian did not beat at his chest; she did not raise her voice; what she did was stand in the doorway and look over her husband’s shoulder into the darkness of the hall.
Kaddish craned his neck, looking with her. Again he pointed. “Come,” he said. “Come see.”
Lillian did not move and Kaddish did not try to lead her. The only noise was the broken exhalation as she let out, in a thousand steps, her breath.
“A mother knows,” Lillian said. “A mother knows her own son and when he is near. I’ve no idea what you’ve got out there, Kaddish, but I’ll swear on my life that they’re not Pato’s bones. If they’re another man’s, God help you. Take them and do what you need to set yourself right.”
Kaddish nodded. Kaddish understood.
He backed away from his wife, keeping his eyes on her as long as he could, and then the door closed in front of him. Kaddish picked up the sack from where he’d left it and started down those stairs, two bodies descending. He didn’t bother with the hallway light. He knew every step.
This was indeed the best time for the cemetery, and the plot next to his mother’s belonged to One-Eye. There was a lovely stone on it and Kaddish had already chipped away the name. A chisel works both ways, he figured. He could add another just the same. As for the bones, there’d be plenty of space alongside One-Eye’s. The old man always was a good sport. Kaddish was sure he wouldn’t mind.
In the house, Lillian stood with her back to the door. She let out a long slow wail and, for the first time in a long time, she let herself cry. She cried about Kaddish and the bones, about the fortune she’d never muster, and about the priest’s call she knew would never come. When she was done, she wiped her face on her sleeve and made her way to the chair by the window. She sat down and settled in. She set her gaze on the corner Pato would come around. And as she did every night, Lillian thought, He will turn.
EOF
Table of Contents
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[ Seven j
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[ Eleven ]
[ Twelve ]
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[ Fourteen ]
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[ Sixteen ]
[ Seventeen ]
[ Eighteen ]
[ Nineteen ]
[ Twenty ]
[ Twenty-one ]
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[ Twenty-three ]
[ Twenty-four ]
[ Twenty-five ]
[ Twenty-six ]
[ Twenty-seven ]
[ Twenty-eight ]
[ Twenty-nine ]
[ Thirty ]
[ Thirty-one ]
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[ Thirty-five ]
[ Thirty-six ]
[ Thirty-seven ]
[ Thirty-eight ]
[ Thirty-nine ]
[ Forty ]
[ Forty-one ]
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[ Forty-three ]
[ Forty-four ]
[ Forty-five ]
[ Forty-six ]
[ Forty-seven ]
[ Forty-eight ]
[ Forty-nine ]
2007 - The Ministry of Special Cases Page 35
