The Memory Keeper of Kyiv (2)

“Mom, what are you talking about?”

“It’s about Bobby.”

“Bobby?” Cassie pictured her wrinkled ninety-two-year-old grandmother, long ago christened Bobby when a young Cassie had butchered the Ukrainian word for grandma, babusya, and refused to use the traditional nickname, baba.

“There’s been an accident.”

Cassie’s heart skipped a beat. Maybe two. She drew in a ragged breath and tried not to let panic overtake her, but the words were the same ones she’d heard last year, right before her world fell apart.

Cassie let her mother guide her into a chair at the table. Anna leaned over and kissed Birdie on the top of the head. “Hello, my darling.”

Birdie smiled silently up at her grandmother while sopping the yolk off her plate with her toast.

“It happened Friday, but I didn’t want to worry you until I knew more.” Anna sat next to Birdie.

Cassie counted the days back in her head. “Mom, that was two days ago! Bobby’s been hurt for two days and you couldn’t call?”

“Like I said, I needed to speak to you in person. When I found out she wasn’t in danger of dying, I decided it would be best for me to drive here and tell you. I couldn’t leave her side until today.”

“Tell me everything now,” Cassie ordered, her voice quaking.

Anna glanced at Birdie and rested a hand on her shoulder. “Birdie, Grammy and Mommy are going to talk. Do you want to go watch TV?”

Birdie picked up her plate and put it in the sink, then walked past the piles of mail and newspapers toward the living room. When the sound of cartoon music filled the air, Cassie turned back toward her mom expectantly.

“Last week, she went for one of her walks.” Anna said. “She went further than she normally does, and I don’t know if she got turned around or what, but a car struck her as she crossed a busy street.”

Cassie jolted upright. “She got hit by a car? Are you kidding me?”

Anna held up her hand. “She’s fine. She had a mild concussion and a few stitches. No broken bones. It’s amazing she walked away so unscathed.”

“Where is she now? Is she home yet?”

“No, and that’s why I’m here. She should be able to go home this afternoon, but she needs company. Just someone to be there and to help her with things.”

Cassie nodded. “Do you want her to come here? Stay with me?”

Anna looked around the kitchen with a skeptical expression. “I don’t think this would be the best place for her. Her doctors aren’t nearby; she’s not familiar with anything here. Look, what I’m thinking is that this is an opportunity for you to make a change. Leave this town, this house, these memories behind, and come back home.”

Cassie laughed, and the bitterness that echoed through the room surprised even her. “You think I can just leave my memories behind? You think I can close the doors here and it will be like Henry never existed?”

“No, honey, of course that’s not what I meant.” Anna cradled Cassie’s cheek. “You’ll never forget him. I thought maybe it was time for a fresh start, in a new place, where the memories aren’t so overwhelming. And since Bobby shouldn’t be on her own, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for you to go stay with her for a while. Just lock this place up and walk away.”

“Just walk away? From my life? My home?’ Cassie shrugged off her mother’s touch as the dull ache that always preceded a crying jag throbbed in her throat.

“Cassie, let’s be real.” Anna gripped Cassie’s hand and stared her down. Apparently, the niceties were over. “I want you to tell me truthfully that you’re happy here, right now. Tell me that you are making this a welcoming, safe home for Birdie. Tell me that you even have a life outside this mess!”

Cassie’s mouth dropped open in surprise. Her mom usually kept this beast-mode side of her personality wrapped under a layer of not-so-subtle suggestions and passive-aggressive jabs. This attack was definitely not her typical mode of action.

“I’m at my wits’ end with both of you, if you want to know the truth,” she continued. “Bobby is stubborn. She’s refusing to consider even looking at any type of assisted living homes. And you? Well, I spend so many sleepless hours worrying myself to death over how you are coping with everything down here. When a woman loses her husband, no matter what the circumstances, she needs to be around family to heal. I want to help you, but you never let me. Now, here is the perfect opportunity to get you and Bobby together to help each other, and I want to make it work.”

“Basically, you want both of your problems tucked away together so you don’t have to worry about them as much. That’s why you really came here, isn’t it?” Cassie stood up so fast her chair clattered to the floor behind her. She was being unfair to her mother, but she couldn’t help it. Her emotions these days vacillated between apathy and anger and left no room for anything else. “I need to get some air, and Harvey needs a walk. I’m sure Birdie would love to spend some time with you while I’m gone.”

She stomped over to the back door and, even though the spring weather was balmy, she put on the long winter coat that covered up the fact that she was still wearing her robe. She shoved her feet into boots, grabbed Harvey’s leash, and slammed the back door behind her.