The blaring ambulance sirens were followed by hushed hallway whispers and stares. I overheard Louise De Costa and Doris Lu speculating about it on my way to fetch the newspaper the next morning. When I passed them again they were still talking — debating whether it had been an aneurysm or a massive heart attack. I discounted both theories. Charles returned after a two-night stay in hospital and avoided eye contact with me, and everyone else in the building. He kept to himself, even after his office, Coast Tyee Insurance, published his retirement notice in the Courier-Islander. I understood it was a forced retirement, as a result of his illness. Not an event to be celebrated. I watched and waited for days, then finally cornered him in the mailroom. I wanted to find out if he was all right — from him, not the neighbours.
I clutched three envelopes. All bills. I watched as Charles stuck his hand searchingly into his empty mailbox then locked it back up, turning the key with a sigh.
“Congratulations on your retirement, Charles.” I enunciated each syllable. When nervous, I still have a tendency to speak as though I’m making an announcement over my school’s P.A. system. “We’ll be seeing more of you around here, I expect.” A rare patch of sun shone through the lobby windows and glinted off mailbox steel. I surveyed the carpet pattern. Charles fussed with his new cane. Then he cleared his throat.
“I had a diabetic attack last week, Hélène,” he said, in his slow, steady business voice. He stared past me, making his admission to the mailboxes. Then his voice softened. “Thank you for helping me.”
“You’re welcome. I was glad to.” I hesitated, not sure what else to say, and took two small steps towards the hall.
“I’ve had to make some changes, and now the doctor says I have to start walking every day to control this condition,” Charles continued. “But no hills and no stairs.” I looked back just as Charles lowered his chin and cast his eyes to meet mine, his white eyebrows pinched. The way this facial expression revealed exactly what he was thinking reminded me of my grandson.
“Sounds boring,” he said.
“I’ll walk with you,” I volunteered. “I start to fidget when I stay inside too much.”
I did not add that my son Geoff had taken my driver’s licence away. It was humiliating. Geoff said my hands shook too much on the wheel, even though I could still turn it — quite capably, I thought.
I began meeting Charles in the lobby downstairs at ten every morning. We chose the sea walk as our route, a long path following the Georgia Strait from one end of town to the other. The narrow old island highway stretched beside the paved path, but the sound of the tide somehow drowned out the buzzing traffic. We rarely talked anyway. There was no need to comment on the view of the Pacific, the mainland mountains, the bobbing fishing boats, and the occasional sleek cruise ship. At times, our silences felt weighted. With history, memories, things we did not wish to talk about. But over the days, weeks, then months that followed, the marine ephemera — even the odd seal or heron — became routine. At first I slowed and stopped with Charles when he needed to rest. But, in time, as Charles grew stronger, he set the pace, until finally I realized he was slowing and pausing for me. I was startled the first time Charles reached for my arm to help guide me around a puddle. After that, I took note whenever Charles accidentally brushed his shoulder against me, or put his hand on my back to signal it was time to cross the street. It was simultaneously comforting and comfortable.
I remember now, with embarrassment, how I kept telling Charles that my grandson would be visiting on spring reading break from his studies at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver. I must have mentioned it when we were walking one day, then repeated it the next. I know I blurted it out again one especially rainy Friday. I didn’t realize I’d mentioned it more than once until Charles said, “Yes, you must really be looking forward to it, Hélène.” He gave me a patient look, but I made a note for myself on my mountain scenes calendar: Nikky’s visit. Charles informed. For a few days I even stopped adding as much Baileys to my morning coffee, even though I relied on it for steadiness. I sacrificed a measure of control for a clearer mind. I don’t want Charles to think I’m muddled.
Nikky is going to arrive in town today. I add a little brandy to my tea, rock gently, and wait. I expect the phone call in the evening. The visit tomorrow morning. But the phone rings at three in the afternoon, startling me. Nikky is at the bus station.
“Mom’s got a dog show tonight and when Dad saw me with metal in my face, he turned around and got back into his truck,” Nikky says. “Can I stay with you?”
“Of course, dear.” I feel a quivery thrill to hear Nikky’s young voice. I put on a warm cardigan, grab my keys and wallet, and make my way downstairs to the lobby so I can pay the cab driver when Nikky arrives. I wait and wait. I finally take a seat on the hard, decorative wooden bench by the stairs. Maybe Nikky couldn’t find a cab. Maybe I’d misheard and he’s not coming right away. I stand and gaze out the glass lobby doors. In the distance I see a tall, dark figure walking in the shallow ditch beside the highway, a couple of large transport trucks, no bright orange and green cab. I adjust my glasses. Watch the shadows grow. It begins to rain. The figure turns towards the condo. Nikky? No. Yes. He’s walking.
I stand up and push the door open. Nikky drops his overstuffed, dirty duffel bag to give me a hug. I let him envelop me with too-thin arms, cold cheeks and chin, the sharp smell of unwashed clothes. When I look into his face I see the smoothness of youth before noticing the little spike he’s added to his eyebrow and the ring in his nose. It seems impossible my son could think Nikky’s two pieces of silver are so offensive. I don’t think it’s any worse than the snake tattoo Geoff came home with at Nikky’s age, back in the early eighties. And Geoff had been returning from a logging camp, not school. I squeeze Nikky’s hand and remember being upset at my son. My ex-husband Tibor had been furious. It’s a circular moment. A kind of loop only grandparents can see.
“Let’s get you something to eat.” I reach up and tug at Nikky’s ear. “You’re too skinny.” Nikky shoulders his bag and follows me. When I look back he smiles, but there’s a raw look in his eyes. I choose to interpret it as hunger.
“Let’s stop in at my storage unit first,” I say, rattling my keys. “You can help me get some things from the deep freeze. I’ve been saving them for you.”
Upstairs Nikky falls asleep on the sofa as I cook. A proper roast beef dinner with horseradish, baked potatoes, and dill pickles. A big bottle of red wine, the fine silverware, real china, and proper white linen napkins. Nikky eats two helpings of beef and three Yorkshire puddings, even though the meat is dry and the puff peaks of the Yorkshires fall. I sip wine, nibble a Yorkshire and a small potato. It’s more satisfying to watch Nikky eat. I wish I could still cook for him the way I used to. It’s been a long time since I’ve managed a soufflé or a tourtière. After dinner is done and the dishes are all washed I bring out a couple of bottles of my finest bourbon, setting them down on the coffee table with two crystal glasses. Nikky lounges on the sofa, I sit in my chair and we watch television. He changes the channels so quickly I don’t know what we’re watching. It doesn’t matter.
I feel warm and hazy. My eyelids are heavy. I awake, hoping I’ve only nodded off for a few minutes. I smile at Nikky and push myself out of my chair. I trace my finger along the smooth hallway wall, but I don’t wobble. I’m as steady as bourbon. I open the linen closet door and rummage for the spare pillows. Nikky begins talking softly on the phone. I set the vinyl storage bags down and try to hear, but Nikky’s voice is too quiet, almost monosyllabic. Not a friend or a parent. Perhaps a girl. I pick up the bedding and head for the guest room. Nikky’s other room. I made up the sofa bed for my grandson many times when Nikky was small