My mother-in-law made me sleep on the floor of the garage after my husband’s death – she didn’t expect to beg me to help her a month later
But Judith’s face was marked by regret. And at that point, I saw her not as my personal executioner, but as a woman who had finally realized the weight of her own cruelty.
A woman holding a stack of administrative documents – Source: Midjourney
I came in.
“Come inside,” I said.
His breathing stopped.
“Oh, it’s cold here,” she said.
“I know, but we get used to it,” I replied.
For the first time, the woman who had looked at me as if I had nothing started crying.
A woman standing inside a garage – Source: Midjourney
The guest room was still not his. I could see it well. The way she moved there, like a stranger, making sure that everything was in exactly the same place.
Judith sat stiffly on the edge of the bed, with his hands crossed on his knees, fixing the cup of tea that I had placed on the night table.
The gentle glow of the bedside lamp cast shadows over her face, making her look very small.
The interior of a guest room – Source: Midjourney
It was the first night since I returned to the house, Judith having settled in the guest room. Everything seemed to me… strange.
And I wasn’t sure how I felt I was in the same room that James and I had shared for so long. But I was just grateful to be back inside.
I was now sitting in front of Judith, raising my legs on the chair and holding my own cup in my hands.
An Old Woman Sitting on a Bed Source: Midjourney
The silence spread, thick and difficult, but not hostile.
It was she who broke it.
“I have cancer,” she said softly. “In the third stage. ”
I expired slowly. We both knew it was serious, but hearing these words still made me feel a strange feeling of collapse in my chest.
A woman sitting in an armchair – Source: Midjourney
“I don’t know what’s going to happen next,” she admitted.
Her hands shook slightly as she traced the edge of her cup.
“I’m afraid, April. ”
“I know,” I said, nodding. “You’re not alone, though, Judith. I’m here. The twins are there for hugs and laughter. ”
“I don’t deserve you… after all…”
A woman sitting on a bed Source: Midjourney
‘Probably not,’ I said, cutting it before it can sink into the spiral of guilt. “But Grace and Ella love you.” And whether you like it or not, you’re part of this family. ”
Her throat knotted, and she let out a trembling blast.
“James would like to be cared for from each other.”
“Yes,” I replied. “He would do it. ”
A woman sitting on a couch – Source: Midjourney