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TWENTY-NINE
Amethyst
“What’s got you down, sweetie?”
I jumped at the unexpected voice, then smiled as I saw Carol approaching. It was Saturday, and I was at my favorite coffee shop.
“Carol, what are you doing here?” I asked she approached the table.
“You know I love this place. Best coffee in the city,” she said.
“Yeah. The tea is pretty good too. Have a seat,” I said, smiling.
“Sure. If you don’t want to be alone…” She looked tentative, which was something I’d never seen from Carol. But then again, I guessed I hadn’t really been myself for a while, so I shouldn’t have been surprised.
“Of course.” I smiled, the expression genuine.
It had been six weeks since the attack, and I was grateful to have Carol here, needed some connection to who I’d been before Davit Petrosyan had crashed into my world.
My life was an entire shitshow, but being with her reminded me of before, when things had been simple.
To think that I had taken that for granted…
“What’s got you down, Ames?” she asked.
“Nothing. I’m just tired,” I said.
I wished that were the truth, and as I looked at Carol, I wondered if she believed it.
But after a moment, she nodded. “You work too hard,” she said.
“I’m just doing my part,” I responded automatically, the same words that I had said out loud and to myself for so long that they were second nature by now.
“Your part, and the parts of about four other people.”
“It’s fine,” I said.
“No, it’s not,” she responded.
Her voice was so serious that I looked at her, wondering where this was coming from.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean you give everything to James Industries, and you don’t get anything out of it,” she said.
“I do a great job, but that’s the least I can do to help maintain my family’s legacy.”
She shook her head. “It’s not fair. You deserve more.”
“I’m fine, Carol. But what has brought all this on?”
She sighed, then took a sip of her drink. “Nothing. It’s just…”
“I know,” I said, remembering the other thing that had brought me so much melancholy.
It was the anniversary of my mother’s death, a day that was that much more poignant this year.
“I just can’t believe all this time has passed,” she whispered.
