You Never Said Goodbye by Luca Veste

Author:Luca Veste
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2022-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 25

For a second, we stared at each other. Grandmother and grandson. No history shared, no stories that could be remembered. Just blood.

“Come on in,” the woman said before I had a chance to explain any further. Her accent was softer than Quinn’s had been. She was older than anyone I’d seen before—a face so crinkled it looked like tin foil that had been scrunched up and then opened again. Short, almost translucent hair, thinned to the point I could see her scalp in places.

Still, in her eyes I could see the familiar spark of my mother.

The smell of pine hit me as I stepped into the doorway and almost made me gag.

“That’s it, just follow me, we’ll get you in here.”

I waited for her to move a little more before stepping into the house proper, taking short breaths to get used to the smell. For every few steps she could take, I took half of one. Then I closed the door behind me.

“Here we are,” the woman said, finally turning and letting go of her walker and lowering herself into a fancy chair that was on some sort of incline to make it easier to get into. She leaned back and then slowly brought it down until she was in a normal sitting position. “Please, come in, sit down, and take a load off.”

On the television in the corner some sort of talk show blared out. I watched as the woman lifted a delicate hand slowly to shut it off. I was staring at her, trying to feel something that would unlock a memory or two, but it wasn’t there. Still, I realized that I wasn’t alone after all—that there was a relative out here, even after my dad was gone. The thought was more calming than I’d expected it to be.

“I’d offer to get you something, but by the time I made my way into the kitchen it’d be time for dinner. And the woman only brings one meal, so I can’t offer too much.”

I hovered next to a chair opposite hers, wondering what on earth I’d walked into here. “That’s okay,” I said, watching the woman’s face carefully. She blinked back, expressionless. “You know who I am, right?”

“Of course, Sam,” Nell replied, as if it were a stupid question. Perhaps it was. “You think I’d invite a stranger into my home?”

“I guess not,” I said, finding it impossible not to smile. “I’m sorry for just showing up here.”

She looked back at me again; this time her face dropped a little. Serious. “You’re the eldest boy.”

I swallowed, giving myself a second to answer. “That’s right. Your daughter, Laurie, she was my mum.”

She smiled again. “I just love the way you people speak. Yes, dear, she was your mom.”

“I don’t know what to say,” I replied, moving around the chair and sitting down finally. I leaned back and tried to clear my head. “I haven’t been over here in twenty-five years. I didn’t even know you were still…you know, alive.

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