THE FIRST SOUND I HEAR upon regaining consciousness is the tapping of keys.
The second sound is a confused voice saying, “So, after he kissed you, and you kissed him back, you pushed him away? Why would you do that?”
Stretching, I say, “Because, Gladys, she’s an honorable woman.”
The talking and the tapping both stop.
At that, Helen soon scurries into my field of vision. “How are you feeling?”
“Other than a little groggy, fine. I could use some coffee.”
“I’ll get you some. You’re gonna want to be wide awake for what we found.”
I sit the recliner up, noticing my pain is much more tolerable than earlier. Gladys looks at me with a sheepish grin.
“So,” I say, smiling ruefully, “she told you about the cabin.”
“I kept after her,” she says. “I finally wore her down. So, why’d you kiss he
