14
“Mom, are you home?” Ellie shouted as she walked through the kitchen.
She paused, and silence answered her until she heard a muffled hiccup. Ellie went to the doorway of the semi-darkened living room and flipped the lights on. Cari sat with her feet tucked under her and a mug of cold tea forgotten on the side table.
Confused, Ellie walked over and put the back of her hand gently on Cari’s cheek. “Mom?”
She glanced at Ellie with tear-filled eyes and attempted to focus on the resting magazine in her lap. Ellie sank down on the arm of the chair and waited for her mother to speak. Mom was not someone who could be rushed. The toot of a car horn could be heard from the driveway. “That’s Kate with the takeout. I’m going to go help her, and I’ll be right back. Can I get you anything?”
Mom
