Cedar Woman (26 page)

Lena
us
e
d
a
slotted
s
p
o
o
n
to
lift
a
finish
e
d
p
o
rti
o
n
f
r
om t
h
e sim
m
ering
oil.
It
looked
p
e
rfect!
She placed
it
on
a
t
o
we
l
-cover
e
d plate a
n
d
i
n
s
p
ected
it
critically.
It
was
g
o
l
d
e
n
brown
all
over.
She
s
m
iled
at
h
erse
l
f
in
self-c
o
ngrat
u
lati
o
n.
I
d
id
n
o
t
b
u
rn
it!
W
a
ste!
¹⁶
s
h
e
th
o
ug
h
t
to
herse
l
f.

Smili
n
g
i
n
to
her
m
o
t
h
er’s
e
y
es,
Le
n
a
’s
h
eart
filled
with
pri
d
e.
At twelve,
s
h
e
was
old
e
n
ough
to
apprec
i
ate
her
m
o
ther
on
m
any
levels. S
h
e fou
n
d
h
e
r
p
atie
n
t
,
k
i
n
d
,
l
ov
i
n
g
an
d
, Le
n
a
tho
u
g
h
t,
still
b
ea
u
tif
u
l
, a
lt
ho
ug
h
s
h
e
w
as
o
l
d. C
h
a
!
S
h
e
was
4
8
!

M
ary g
a
ve her
da
ug
h
ter
a
sw
i
f
t
hu
g
.

“
Now,
L
e
na,
we
m
u
st
clean
up
our
m
ess.
If
you
cle
a
n
as
you
go, y
o
u
will
h
a
v
e
m
o
re
t
i
me
to
rest
in
t
h
e
e
v
e
n
i
n
g,”
Mary
a
d
m
on
is
h
ed
with
a smile.
S
h
e
t
u
r
n
ed
to
w
i
pe
d
o
wn
t
h
e
k
itc
h
en
ta
b
l
e,
w
h
en
Nell
i
e C
o
u
n
try
m
an
li
t
erally
b
u
rst thr
o
ugh
t
h
e do
o
r.

“
Mary! Peter
has
be
e
n
in an
accident!”

W
h
at did
he
sa
y
?
W
h
at d
i
d
t
h
e
d
o
ctor
s
a
y
?
Lena’s
b
rain cou
l
d
n
o
t seem
to
latch
o
n
t
o
t
h
e
i
n
formati
o
n
iss
u
ing
fr
o
m t
h
e
m
ou
th
of
t
h
e
scru
b
- clad
m
an
standing
b
ef
o
re her stricken
m
o
t
h
e
r
.
I
n
a
was n
od
d
i
n
g
d
u
m
b
l
y
, sign
i
ng so
m
e
p
aper
s
,
her e
y
es
bla
n
k
w
i
th s
ho
ck.

¹⁶
Wash-tday
–
Good

Lena
swa
ye
d
, her
m
ind
in
chao
s
,
as
see
m
ingly
fore
i
gn w
or
d
s p
ou
red
o
v
er
h
er
…
w
o
rds
s
h
e c
o
ul
d
n
’t gra
s
p
…
w
o
r
d
s wh
i
ch
c
h
a
n
g
e
d h
e
r w
o
rld
f
o
r
e
ver:

Tra
u
m
atic
b
rain
in
j
u
ry,
c
o
ma,
con
d
iti
o
n
critical,
Glasgow
C
o
m
a

Scale, progno
s
is uncertain,
C
T scan,
c
ran
i
o
to
m
y
.

Lena
l
o
ok
e
d at
her
m
o
t
h
er
with
ast
o
n
i
sh
m
ent.
She see
m
ed d
imi
n
i
she
d
,
s
m
al
l
er
t
h
an
Lena
re
m
e
m
b
ered
ever
see
i
ng
her.
Sh
e
l
o
o
k
s like
t
h
e
baby
b
ird
I
f
o
u
n
d
t
ha
t
fell
out
of
its
nest
,
L
e
na
t
h
o
u
g
h
t,
t
h
i
nk
i
ng