Snapshot

Author:[email protected]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Harper Collins
Published: 2013-05-05T16:00:00+00:00

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

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13

Adam waited as Marti inserted her key into her grandma’s front door. He knew this must be difficult for her, not having Grandma there to greet her, or even her cat, Kahlúa. Marti had told him that the neighbor was watching the cat. This time, only silence would greet her. Marti let out a breath and a wave of dread washed over him. He couldn’t imagine coming back to an empty home after a family member died.

He gently squeezed her shoulder in support. She tried to convince him to say good-bye outside, but he refused. He understood she might want privacy, but he couldn’t bear for her to enter alone.

Marti turned the key and nudged the door open. Inside, the kitchen light burned bright, illuminating cream-colored walls and a dining room table covered with a floral tablecloth. He wondered if her grandma forgot to turn off the light before her trip to the hospital. Maybe her friend Ruth left a light on for Marti.

She stepped into the apartment first. He followed, carrying in her luggage. He didn’t know what to expect, but this sure wasn’t it. An acrid smell of stale cigarette smoke assaulted his senses. The place looked a mess. Drawers to the desk were partially open, with papers scattered on the floor. A pile of ripped-open mail littered the kitchen. An open closet revealed boxes and empty tubs lying on their sides, their contents dumped in heaps.

Marti glanced at him, her face showing confusion. So, apparently, this wasn’t normal. Had they been robbed?

A glance into the kitchen revealed dirty dishes and empty take-out containers. Empty diet soda cans cluttered the counter.

Adam wanted to grab Marti’s hand and stop her when she moved to the entry of the small living room. Her body tensed and she stopped. Adam followed and discovered a sleeping woman draped limply across the sofa.

He glanced at the coffee table and saw more empty soda cans, a lighter, a hypodermic needle, a teaspoon, and a small square of paper containing a dusty, white substance. What the hell is going on here?

Marti closed her eyes and, with a clenched jaw, approached the rail-thin woman.

“Mom! Wake up,” she said in a biting tone to the slack-jawed woman with dark circles under her eyes.

Adam tried to hide his shock. This nearly comatose woman was Marti’s mother?

“Mom! Tami!” She hollered this time, but her mother didn’t budge.

Adam inched a little closer and touched her arm. “Marti, she doesn’t look so good. Maybe we should call 911.” He wanted to help, but this was far beyond anything he’d ever dealt with.

“She’s fine. I’ve seen her like this too many times to keep count. This is her preferred state.” This was a new side to Marti that he’d never seen. She stood rigid, her eyes piercing and her mouth in a pinched line. She returned to the passed-out woman. “Mom!” This time Marti reached down and slapped her mother’s cheek, quick and firm. “Wake up!”

The skeletal frame stirred and moaned.

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