Suddenly the old house in the alley no longer feels forgotten. It feels targeted.
The siblings stay two days. They speak softly in corners, ask pointed questions about medications, checkbooks, utility bills, and “long-term viability.” Gail suggests memory care. Thomas mentions that the house could become unsafe quickly if left unmanaged. Not once do either of them ask what their mother has been eating or whether she has been lonely or who took her to appointments when they did not answer.
Mrs. Mercer watches them the way people watch actors overplaying a part.
On the third morning, she asks for Harold Greer.
The lawyer comes that afternoon. He is about seventy, built like an old tree, and carries a leather folder that looks older than most interns. He speaks with Mrs. Mercer alone first. Then he asks for you.
You step into the room uncertainly, aware of Gail and Thomas watching from the hallway with frank irritation.
