"Meow," came the whisper.
He was going to have to walk her home. She wasn't his problem, but she was on his doorstep.
He was already exhausted. And he didn't want to face Jilly again when he was already off-kilter. He could still hear the soft gasp she'd tried to swallow when she'd flipped on the light and seen his face.
But it didn’t look like he had a choice.
"Is it okay if I walk with you?"
"Meow." Still resigned.
"I just made some tea. Do you want some hot chocolate to drink on the way?"
"Meow!"
"Stay here. Don't move."
He left her in the mudroom. He had enough hot water still in the kettle to make one cup of cocoa.
By touch, he found a small travel mug at the very back of the upper cabinet. Mom had forgotten it several visits ago.
The hot chocolate was harder to find. He knew he had a half of a box left, only because he hadn't wanted to throw it away...
He found it on the top shelf, labelled in Braille.
He quickly poured the hot water over the powdered mix and stirred it up. Smacked the lid on and returned to find Lindsey huddled on the floor where he'd left her.
"You can wear my coat for now," he told her. "Do you have shoes on?"
"Meow."
He ushered her outside, grabbing his cane before he closed the door behind them.
The cold air was bracing. When he took his daily walk, it was always in the opposite direction, following a cow path down to the pond. He'd become familiar with every tree and bump on the path.
But heading toward Jilly's house was setting off into the unknown.
"Can you show me the way?" he asked. "You'll have to hold onto my wrist.” Held it out. “Here."
"Meow." Yes.
Her hand wasn't big enough to curl around his wrist, and holding hands was too intimate—she didn't know him.
He improvised. "Can you grab the sleeve of my coat? That'll work."
It wasn't perfect, but it was enough.
He heard her slurp the hot chocolate as they began walking. Noah tapped his cane on the ground ahead of himself, on the opposite side of each step. His O & M—orientation and mobility—skills were excellent, but it gave him a sense of relief to have the girl attached to him. To know she wasn’t going to wander off in the darkness.
They followed the gravel driveway for several hundred yards. Instead of taking it all the way to the road, Lindsey tugged on his sleeve, asking him to turn off the driveway into the grass. Ah. It was only a few steps before his cane clanged against a metal... gate?
Lindsey let go of him and clambered over the metal structure. His coat rustled a lot, and her shoes squeaked on the metal.
By touch, he moved to one end of the gate. No latch. He crossed to the opposite end and found the chain and closure. No climbing for him. He latched it back carefully. He didn’t know whether Jilly had any farm animals in this pasture.
On the other side, Lindsey took hold of his sleeve again. The ground was different here. His shoes crunched over dirt, tilled in narrow rows. This must've been one of the fields Jilly had been plowing with her tractor.
The ground beneath his feet changed again. More grass. Another field. He got one whiff of sweet hay before he was hit with the stench of manure. Jilly must have horses on the property. There had to be a barn nearby.
