Christian drove as fast as he dared on the two-lane Cape roads. When we arrived at the apartment, Joey was standing outside, still crying. An ambulance was in the parking lot.
“Stay there,” I said, as Christian and I went into the apartment.
Grandma was seated in her chair, looking like she was asleep. The EMTs were checking her out.
Tears were flooding my eyes. This can’t be happening, I thought. We can’t lose her.
The men examined Grandma for a few minutes and one of them finally said, “I’m sorry. There’s nothing we can do. She’s gone.”
By then Joey was wrapped around me and squeezing hard. He sobbed. I sobbed. Christian put his arms around the two of us joining the hug.
“We’ll call and arrange for a hearse,” the other EMT said. He got some information from Christian, told him something, and then returned to the ambulance, which turned and drove out of the parking lot.
Soon after it left, a hearse pulled up and two men unloaded a gurney. They came into the apartment, lifted Grandma gently onto the gurney, covered her with a sheet, took her out to the hearse, and drove away.
“What’s going to happen now?” I asked.
“Where’s your older brother?” Christian asked.
Oh gosh, I thought, in our hurry I’d forgotten all about Tim. I called his phone, but he didn’t answer. I left a message for him to call me as soon as he could.
Christian told Joey and me to pack the things we would need for overnight and then led us to his car.
The ride back to the men’s house in Osterville was a lot slower than the one we had taken earlier.
When we arrived at the house, Christian told Peter what had happened. They talked quietly for a few minutes and then Christian told me and Joey to follow him. He took us upstairs, where neither of us had ever been before.
Stopping outside a door he asked, “Do you boys want separate rooms or do you want to share a room?”
I looked at Joey, who nodded, and I said, “We’d like to share.” I knew he didn’t want to be alone, and neither did I.
Christian opened the door and led us into a large bedroom with two beds, dressers, and some chairs. Christian showed us the bathroom that was attached to the room. It was also attached to the next room on the hall, like a passage between the two.
“If Tim comes, we have another room for him,” said Christian. “Why don’t you take a little time to get settled here and then come down for some supper?” With that he stepped out of the room, quietly closing the door.
Joey and I looked at each other. Both our faces were damp from the tears we’d been shedding.
I held him in a firm hug, wanting him to know that he wasn’t alone.
“What’s gonna happen to us?” stammered Joey.
“I don’t know, but we’ll work it out.”
“But we can’t stay in the apartment. We don’t have any money.”
“Tim’s working now,” I replied, “so maybe he can figure out a way.”
When we returned downstairs, the men had prepared a light supper for us. I don’t think Joey was hungry and I was sure I wasn’t, but it was a kind thing for them to do so we did our best to eat.
As we ate, Christian said, “Tell us about Tim. We’ve barely met him.”
I told him that our brother had graduated from high school and had a job at a garage. He had saved enough to buy a truck with a plow attachment, so he planned to plow driveways in the winter.
During the meal, my phone beeped. Looking at the caller ID, I saw it was Tim. I excused myself, left the table, and went to the living room, where I answered the phone.
“What’s going on?” asked Tim.
I told him what had happened and where Joey and I were, and then I told him that the men wanted him to come to their house, at least for the night.
Half an hour later, Tim drove up in his pickup truck. The men fed him and then Christian showed him to his room.
The next day was given to councils of war. We three brothers met in the bedroom Joey and I shared, where we talked both about Grandma’s funeral and what would happen to us. Meanwhile, Christian, Peter, and the Russells met to talk about how they might help us.
Tim said that he was making barely enough money to keep the apartment but not enough to meet expenses for me and Joey. That would mean that, even if we stayed in the apartment, he couldn’t feed us or clothe us. Joey looked panic-stricken, and I tried to soothe him, although I had no idea what we would do.
When Christian showed up at our door, we followed him down to the living room, where the four adults were gathered.
“We have a possible plan for Joey and Richard,” said Peter, “but we don’t want to force you boys to do anything you don’t want to do. At this point, we don’t have a plan for Tim.
“I think I can take care of myself,” Tim said.
“Good,” responded Christian. “If you need help any time you can call on us.”
“Thank you,” he said. “I’ll try not to be a bother.”
“Joey,” Mrs. Russell said, “Mr. Russell and I want you to live with us. We’ll get appointed to be your guardians, but we may want to talk with you about adoption.”
Joey, who’d been very worried about what would happen, suddenly got a huge grin on his face. He raced over and hugged her.
Then a look of shock came over him. “Will that mean I won’t ever see Richard and Tim?”
“Let us finish with the plan and see if it works for you,” said Peter. Then, turning to me, he said, “Richard, Christian and I want you to live with us. We will probably have to become your guardians for a time, but we want you to consider us your parents.”
I was ecstatic. Joey and Tim both looked relieved.
“If it’s okay with you all, I’ll come and visit Joey and Richard as often as I can,” said Tim.
And so it was agreed, with hugs and tears all around.
After things settled down, we discussed Grandma’s funeral. We were certain she would want it to be in the Catholic church in Mashpee which she had attended.
Tim drove me and Joey to the apartment, where we loaded up our belongings in the truck. I made certain to take Mark’s computer, his swimming award, and his picture. They and some of his books were the only things I really valued.
On Monday, the men, my brothers, and I all went to an appointment with a priest at the church. He knew Grandma and said he would be happy to do the eulogy. Peter asked if they had an organ and, if they did, could he play it for the service. The priest was very willing for that to happen, so before we left, Peter went up to the rear balcony to look at the instrument.
As we rode home, Peter said that the organ wasn’t great but it “would do”.
In my prayers to Mark I had told him about Grandma. As we rode to the funeral, I felt his arms around me and silently thanked him for his support.
When we walked into the church for the funeral, I was surprised at how many people were there. They seemed to be a combination of people Grandma had worked for as well as friends of us three brothers.
Since Grandma had insisted, my brothers and I had all been to Sunday masses at the church, but we’d never been to a funeral there. As the mass proceeded, I found myself wishing that I had Grandma’s faith. Why, I wondered, were those who were dear to me dying?
We rode in a limo to the cemetery. I felt a shock as I saw Grandma’s coffin at the gravesite. It reminded me so much of Mark’s funeral, and when the coffin was lowered into the ground, I just lost it. Each of my brothers took one of my hands as I sobbed and sobbed. I was feeling so desolate and lost.
When the service was over, Tim remarked, “Well, they gave her a good sendoff.” Joey agreed, but I couldn’t say anything.
That night, my phone rang. It was Cormac.
Oh God, I thought, I was supposed to meet him and totally spaced it.
“I’m sorry, Cormac. My grandmother died and we’ve been totally occupied with her funeral and arranging our futures. I’ve moved out of Mashpee, and I don’t know yet where I’ll be going to school. Give me a couple of more days and I promise I’ll call you.”
After saying he was sorry about Grandma, he said he’d wait to hear from me.
The next day, I used my computer to find out what requirements an applicant for citizenship had to meet. I was surprised by the amount of knowledge that an applicant would need and realized that many of us who were born citizens wouldn’t be able to pass the test. I took some notes and fished out a couple of pamphlets I had which I thought might be helpful. One was about the structure of our government and the other was about our constitution.
At supper that night, I asked Peter and Christian where I would be going to school.
“Since you’re already started in your junior year,” Peter said, “we think you should continue in Mashpee if that can be arranged with the school system.”
“How would I get there?”
“Well, now that your brother has a truck your grandmother’s Chevy is available. We can get the registration changed to your name and we can talk about insuring it.”
I was relieved to know I wasn’t going to have to change schools. While I didn’t have a lot of close friends in school, I knew students and teachers and I knew my way around. It all sounded like the best solution.
I called Cormac and told him I would be back in school on Monday and I could meet with him after school on Tuesday.
He agreed.
Considering all the upheaval which had taken place in my life, things seemed to be settling down, although I was still feeling sad.