“Lawks,” Miss Pearl commented. “His poor mother, carrying that much weight around.”
“How much did I weigh when I was born?” Charm asked, obviously intrigued.
“Seven pounds, three ounces,” Mina said, before Kiah could even think back that far.
“How do you know that, Auntie?”
Mina smiled, and the fondness in the way she looked at Charm was almost his undoing.
“I was there,” she said. “It was me who coached your mom, and I got to cut your umbilical cord, too.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Kiah thought that would be the end of the conversation. Even though Mina had warned him that Charm was asking about her mother, he expected her to retreat from any further discussion.
But instead, she asked, “How come?”
“Well, your daddy was in the army, and your mom was alone when you decided you were ready to be born, so I went to the hospital and was there when you popped out.”
“Where were you, Uncle Kiah?”
Taking a deep breath, and trying to sound as though talking about it didn’t hurt almost more than he could bear, he replied, “I was here, with Granny. You weren’t supposed to come for another two weeks, so I didn’t get there in time.”
“Huh,” she said and, thankfully, turned her attention back to the TV.
But later that night, when he went to tuck her into bed, he realized it really had been just the beginning.
“Uncle, do you have any pictures of me with Mommy and Daddy?”
“I do,” he said, his heart aching all over again. “Do you want me to find them for you?”
“Yes, please. And...and can you tell me more about them? Not tonight,” she added quickly. “But sometime soon?”
“I can, and I will, sweetheart. Whatever you want to know.”
Making his way back to the living room, Kiah felt as though the world, which just a few weeks ago had felt so stable, now wobbled like quicksand under his feet.
“Charm was asking about her parents,” he said without preamble, waiting to hear Mina say she’d warned him, and he was amazed when she remained uncharacteristically quiet.
“It’s not surprising,” Granny said, with a sigh tacked on. “I was wondering when she would.”
“Do you remember where we put the pictures, after I came back with her from Canada?”
“Yes. They’re in a box on top of my wardrobe. We can get them down tomorrow.”
“And I have some I can send back from Canada,” Mina added. “I think Charm would get a kick out of some pictures of you in high school and college, Kiah, as well as the ones I have of her parents.”
“Lawks,” he said, unable to stop himself smiling across at her, even as he shuddered to think how Charm would react to his past fashion sense and hair styles. “You’d do that to me?”
“I sure would. And with pleasure,” she added for good measure.
Those were the moments he would miss most when she was gone, he thought. The easy banter. The shared history that came out in stories and jokes.
He was already sure which job she’d take. St. Eustace couldn’t hold her, not when compared to the prestige and excitement of the job on offer in Toronto.
He’d miss his best friend, just like he missed having her as his lover, but her going back was for the best. For all of them.
When everyone else had gone to bed, Kiah stretched out on the couch and turned on a documentary, with the volume down low. He knew from past experience he was too keyed up to sleep, and could only hope the murmur of the commentator and the flicking screen would have a soporific effect.
The sound of a door opening down the corridor had him lifting his head, and when he saw Mina come into the room, his heart hammered in reaction.
“Hey,” he said. “Everything okay?”
“Fine,” she replied as she went by into the kitchen.
After a couple of minutes, she came back with a glass of water in her hand, and paused at the entrance to the hallway back to her room.
“Kiah, can you give me the name of the acupuncturist you mentioned a while back, please?”
He swung his feet down off the couch, instantly concerned.
“The pains have come back?”
She nodded, and he couldn’t help remembering how their lovemaking had seemingly stopped them the last time. He knew she wasn’t angling for more of the same. That was one choice that had already been settled, although he wished it hadn’t. Then he could scoop her up, carry her to his room, and love on her until her missing hand was the last thing on her mind.
But that wasn’t feasible, or advisable, so he thought back to all the research he’d done after she’d had the accident, and patted the couch beside him.
“I’ll give it to you in the morning,” he said. “In the meantime, come here. I want to try something.”
She shifted from one foot to the other, as though torn. “I’m just going to take a pain pill and try to get some sleep.”
“Come on,” he said, giving the cushion another couple of pats. “I read about a technique that’s supposed to work kind of like a mirror box. There’s no harm in trying it, and you might get some relief. At least enough to fall asleep.”
Seemingly still reluctant, she slowly made her way over and sat beside him on the couch. At his direction, she turned sideways, with her knee up on the cushions, so she was facing him.
“Okay. Now close your eyes and give me your hands.”
“You mean hand, don’t you?” she asked, cracking an eye open just as he shook his head.
“No. Keep your eyes closed and give me both hands.”
Hopefully, she understood what he was trying to achieve, and could trick her brain into thinking he was holding both her hands in his.
As she closed her eyes again, he started a gentle massage on her right hand.
When he felt her fingers tense up, as though she was going to pull her hand away, he
