“Yeah, good idea,” he says and collapses onto the wooden bench outside the cottage. “I need to pull myself together a little before I talk to Henry.”
“Do you want to speak to him alone?”
“I think it might be best. Would you mind?”
“Not at all. But if there’s anything I can do, just let me know.”
“Thanks. I’m sure he’ll need comforting over the next few days.”
“We’ll go back to the city for the service, right?”
“Uh, doesn’t look that way. According to Dad, my mom made it clear over the years that she wanted a very private memorial service out here—for family, mostly.” He snorts, sadly. “Oh, and get this. She told him she wanted one of those natural burials, where they put you in some kind of shroud and drop you in a hole in the ground.”
“Well, it’s not what we’re used to, but it’s fitting for someone who loved nature as much as she did.... So they think it was definitely a heart attack?”
“Yeah, looks like it.”
“Had she ever had any heart issues?”
“Not that I knew of, but Blake told them in the ER thatshe’d been on medication for high blood pressure—a diuretic and something called a calcium channel blocker. A couple of years ago, my mom had asked for his professional opinion about taking them.”
“But those drugs didn’t do their job?”
“It’s not clear exactly what happened. Maybe she didn’t take her meds religiously. The ER doctor said that she might have actually developed a pulmonary embolism that caused her heart to stop—or even had a stroke.”
Gabe drops his head into his hands.
“Oh honey,” I say, rubbing the back of his neck.
“It just doesn’t make any sense. She looked so great over the weekend. Like she was in perfect health.”
I don’t want to upset Gabe any more than necessary but I decide it’s best to mention what I’d noticed earlier. I bring up his mother’s lack of interest in eating, the indication of fatigue, ordinary details that only with hindsight appear to be warning signs.
“And she told you she was going up to take a nap? What time was that?”
“Around two thirty.”
“My mothernevertakes naps, so yeah, that clearly meant something.” He shakes his head in despair. “If only she told one of us she wasn’t feeling right.”
“Maybe it didn’t seem that significant at first.”
Gabe releases a gust of breath.
“What?” I ask. I sense words on the tip of his tongue, perhaps a thought or emotion he wishes he could convey.
“I... I guess I’d better get to Henry.”
“Just so you know, I didn’t let on to him how serious the situation was, only that Gee was feeling unwell. But he seems to have picked up on the sadness in the air.”
Gabe nods solemnly. “Why don’t we meet you over at the house,” he suggests as he rises from the bench. “My dad and Blake ended up leaving right after us.”
When I enter the main house through the side door, it’s Ash whom I spot first, standing at the end of the corridor that leads to the main hall. I care a lot for my father-in-law, but I’ve never been as close to him as Claire, and our typical friendly banter hasn’t exactly prepared me for this moment. I gird myself, though, and rush forward.
“Ash, I’m so sorry,” I say, tears springing into my eyes as I embrace him.
“Oh, sweetheart, I know you are.” He holds me tightly. “Claire was crazy about you, you realize that, of course.”
“Yes, I know. And the feeling was so mutual.”
