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CHAPTER ONE
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Two Months Later…
After a particularly grueling day of sketches and research on multiple cases, I was finally on my way home from what I refer to as “the office,” but is officially the North Carolina Crime Research Lab in Charlotte, when my phone, which was on mute, vibrated from its magnetic stand on my dash.
I saw my mother’s number, and immediately, I feared the worst. My memaw’s health had been deteriorating rapidly, and I’d spent the last several evenings with her, at her bedside, holding her hand, while she slipped in and out of consciousness.
She had understood that I had to work, but I still hated it; I wanted to be there.
I picked up, “Hey, Mama,” I said, through dread and exhaustion.
“Hey, honey,” she said, and I could hear it in her voice, “I hated to call you, but,”
I cut her off, “She’s gone, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she passed about ten minutes ago. I’m sorry that you weren’t able to be here beside her. It was calm and peaceful.” She paused, “Are you even home yet?”
I could hear the exhaustion in her voice, too. “No, I’m in the car,” I said, and I could feel the heat of tears start to well up. “I just got through at the office; I was on my way. Let me jump off and call Rachel; she had a late night tonight, too.”
“I know, she works hard, just like you do,” Mom replied. “We can meet up here, or whatever works best for you. Your dad and I have a bunch of things to do and arrangements to start making,” I heard her sigh heavily. “Mom was meticulous with her planning; she knew exactly what she wanted.”
I told her I would do whatever she needed me to do. We hung up, and I asked the personal assistant on my phone to dial ‘my love’, and she answered on the second ring.
“Hey, babe, I’m almost home. How is everything?”
“Memaw’s gone,” I said, wiping a single tear from my cheek.
“Awe, baby, I’m so sorry.”
“We knew it was coming, but damnit, it’s still so hard,” I said, sniffling shamelessly. My wife knows I’m a cryer.
“I know it is,” she said in that comforting voice; that’s one of so many things I love about her.
“I’ll be there in about ten minutes. I love you more than you know.”