Carry the Light by Delia Parr Read Free Book Online Page B

and up to having visitors,” Charlene interrupted. “I just came by to straighten up a bit for her.” She decided not to share more, for fear of adding to the gossip.
    The neighbor leaned forward a bit. “You need to move in. That’s what you need to do,” she whispered, as if someone might be lurking behind the overgrown bushes to overhear her. “Dorothy won’t admit it to anyone, not even her doctor, but the poor dear can’t see well enough these days to take her insulin right. Half the time I’m here, she either fills that needle with too much or too little, and I have to fix it for her. Sooner or later, if that heart of hers doesn’t give out first, she’s going to take an overdose or go into one of those diabetic comas, all because she can’t see to get her dose right.”
    â€œI hadn’t realized it was a problem,” Charlene admitted.
    â€œWell, it is a problem, but you can’t tell her I tattled. She’ll get mad at me, and I couldn’t bear losing my very best neighbor.”
    â€œI won’t say a word.”
    â€œAnd don’t mention I heard she was dead, either. She’d really get mad at that,” the woman added.
    â€œNo, I won’t,” Charlene promised, eager to send the woman on her way.
    Mrs. Withers apparently had other plans in mind, and took a step closer. “I’d be glad to help you straighten things up for Dorothy,” she offered.
    Charlene tightened her hold on the door frame. “That’s so kind of you, but I don’t want to impose. I’m sure I can take care of things here, but maybe you could do something else for me…and for Aunt Dorothy.”
    â€œOf course,” the woman replied, although disappointment laced her words.
    â€œConsidering the rumor that she had passed on, maybe you could call your friends to reassure them that she’s doing much better and that she’ll be coming home very soon.”
    â€œAbsolutely. I will. I’ll make the calls right away.” Good as her word, she turned and walked away.
    Relieved and convinced Agnes Withers would put the rumors to rest, Charlene went into the dining room, where more memories greeted her. Then she headed into the sun-drenched kitchen, where light poured onto the cracked red-and-green linoleum floor through a pair of windows facing the overgrown backyard. On the red Formica countertops that had faded to pink, Aunt Dorothy had new hypodermic needles and used ones. The room itself was orderly, but like all the other rooms, it needed a good cleaning.
    Charlene opened the refrigerator and found a few Styrofoam boxes of leftovers on the shelves, beside all sorts of single-serving condiments. The freezer was packed with more Styrofoam containers covered in ice crystals and frozen meats dating back as far as two years.
    She inspected the bedrooms on the other side of the house. She poked her head into Aunt Dorothy’s bedroom, where she detected the stale smell of Tabu, but instead of going inside to pull up the shades, she flipped on the light with the switch near the door. As she expected, the room was as tidy and as sadly worn as the others and just as needy of a cleaning.
    Sighing, she turned out the light and bypassed the bathroom to look in the spare bedroom, where she would be staying alone during the week and with Daniel on the weekends. When she flipped on the light, she gasped and stepped back. There had to be a bed in this room somewhere, but she couldn’t see past the three tall dressers and the dozen or so tall tin cabinets and wardrobes huddled together, leaving only a narrow aisle.
    Charlene groaned out loud.
    There was no way she could get all this stuff up into the attic as Aunt Dorothy suggested. Dismayed, she closed her eyes for a moment to concentrate on positive thoughts. Unfortunately, they were as thin as Aunt Dorothy’s bedspread.
    Charlene let out another groan and opened her eyes.