Swept Away (The Swept Away Saga, Book One)

Chapter Three

Staring at the urn on the mantel, I ate cereal for breakfast the next morning while Dad ran to the store for something. It'd been so comforting to have Mom with me, even if it was in this form. Now that it was time to spread the ashes, the air seemed to hold a heavy sadness. I wasn't ready to say goodbye.

"Hi, Mom." My food finished, I set the bowl down and rose from the couch, moving to stand next to her. "I'm sure you already know, but I love you so much. I don't know if I'll really have time to tell you goodbye later. Having Dad there will be great, I'm sure, but I wanted to have one last minute with you by myself." The urn remained silent, of course, but I easily recalled how her smile looked, the way her teeth always seemed so much bigger when she was grinning. Smiling myself, I continued. "Speaking of Dad, I think we could get along fine. When I was on my way here, all I could think about was how you'd always said he wasn't ever concerned with anything that wasn't his treasure hunt. I thought I was coming to meet up with the man who abandoned his wife and child . . . but he doesn't seem like that at all. I guess people can change, right? Maybe it was best to push me to spend more time with him."

A car drove by on the street outside and I paused to make sure it wasn't Dad. When I felt I could go on undisturbed, I took a deep breath, hating that she would be completely gone after today. "You don't need to feel bad for keeping us apart. I wasn't angry with you for it before, not really. And I'm not angry now. All that time was time I got to spend with you, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I wish I had more of that time." Choked up, I hesitated, clearing my throat and blinking back tears.

A car door slammed outside and I quickly stepped away, grabbing my dish from where I'd left it and hurrying into the kitchen.

"Sam?" The front door opened and closed, disturbing the silence of the house.

"I'm in here," I called, checking my face in the blurry mirrored finish of a spoon. As far as I could tell, I looked fine. "Did you get what you needed?"

"Yeah." Appearing in the doorway, I immediately noticed a bouquet of flowers in his hand. "They're tulips," he explained unnecessarily.

"Mom's favorite." I smiled, surprised at his sentiment.

"I thought we could leave them with her, kind of like a going away present. Is that okay?"

"I think that would be wonderful. I don't have a place in mind, though. Somewhere pretty, of course, so she can enjoy the scenery."

"I know just the place," he replied. "It's the perfect spot."

"Okay. I'll just go freshen up real quick and then we can go." The words sounded wooden, like I wasn't the one actually saying them. This was it. It was really happening.

Leaving the kitchen, I went into the bathroom in the hall, hoping to at least pass as presentable for the occasion. I was wearing a black, long sleeve shirt and jeans, which I'd originally thought was too casual, but it then occurred to me that spreading ashes in a dress might not be the best idea. I wanted the ability to move freely and over a large area if I could. My brown hair was curled and I'd donned light makeup. The earlier conversation with the urn seemed to have left my nose a bit pink, but it would do. Sighing, I really studied my reflection. There were things from Mom I could definitely recognize in my face, like the way my nose wrinkled when I laughed. I hoped that would always be visible to me, a part of her I could keep forever.

"You ready, Sammy?"

"Yeah," I stated, stepping away from the counter. "I think I am."

When I came into the living room, Dad had pulled the urn off the shelf and was cradling it in one arm, the flowers in the other. "You okay?"