We placed my mother’s old bed beneath the window where she used to watch the trees.
I no longer had to worry about paying rent in Columbia.
And every morning, I woke to the sight of land my family had once owned.
A month later, Carlton visited.
He knocked on the screen door.
I opened it.
All the way.
“Come in, Mr. Carlton.”
He shook his head.
“Just Carlton, please.”
I made coffee and biscuits.
We sat at my mother’s old kitchen table.
He looked uncomfortable.
“Elnora, I owe you an apology.”
I waited.
“For the way I dismissed you. I was trying to keep my brothers from confronting you before Rosella could explain everything.”
I nodded.
“But I didn’t have to treat you like that,” he continued.
“I should have spoken to you privately. I should have trusted you with the truth.”
Sus ojos se llenaron.
“En cambio, te entregué un cheque a través de una puerta de pantalla después de veintiséis años de servicio”.
