"Hi", she said. She noticed that although Richard was quick to his feet, his eyes avoided hers. The cowering demeanor of a scolded puppy. Tina went to the coffee pot and poured two cups and brought them to the table. Cora looked up and gave a slight smile. "Were you able to sleep?", Bette asked softly. Cora looked down and nodded. "Yeah", she said. "And then I wake up and find this goon outside my door", she smiled. Richard raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, I was just making sure you were ok", he defended. The mirth found at that table was a sweet reverse of the somber mood Bette had been dreading. She knew that they must soon talk about what was to come next. They must talk about Faye, but wanting to alter the mood was very low on the list of priorities right now. "Have you eaten yet?", Tina asked. Richard looked guiltily at his shoes. "I’m afraid I’m not a very good cook. I did find a bagel for her, but I think she could go for some of your famous banana pancakes", he winked at Cora. Cora smiled and nodded. Tina stood at once. "You got it", she smiled. Bette drank her coffee in silence and enjoyed the serenity while she could. Serenity that was quickly interrupted by her cell phone. The name displayed on the caller ID was sure to get the rest of her day off to a rough start. Jenkins. "Shit", Bette muttered. She looked at Cora apologetically, who cared not in the least that a curse word had been unleashed. "Sorry, I have to take this", she said and walked away from the table. Cora nodded her assent while drinking her coffee
Bette returned to the table ten minutes later, finding Cora thoroughly enjoying Tina’s pancakes. Such a simple thing, a homemade breakfast. Bette wondered when it was that Cora last enjoyed home cooking. She wondered if Cora would let them help her return to a life of normalcy, whatever that meant.
"Who was that, Bette?", Tina asked while fidgeting and glancing at her watch. Bette forced the dark look from her face. It was difficult for her to summon the tone of voice that would not have her next words conjure images of doom. "Um, that was Mr. Jenkins", she said.
Cora, not knowing the name, continued to eat. "Cora," Bette hesitated, " we should probably talk to you about a few things."
"Ok", Cora said slowly. "Like what?"
Bette cleared her throat and looked to Tina for help. Tina read Bette’s eyes, full of dread. "Well," Tina started slowly. "We haven’t had the funeral yet for Faye. Um, your mom. I’m sorry to bring this up right now but it’s something we have to deal with."
Cora let her fork drop to her plate.
