Red at the Bone

Aubrey knew his mother was sick the first time she fell. They had been walking along the beaches together for years. She’d never once fallen before. She hit her face hard against the wooden planks but jumped up to quickly assure him she was fine. It was only the beginning of spring then, Aubrey thought later, wondering if they should have walked on the sand to make the fall softer—or to prevent it altogether. Cathy Marie is adamant that she is fine, then asks Aubrey to just slow down a bit and take her to the water. 

Melody remembers Iris packing for Oberlin, even though she was only 3 at the time. She is in her dad’s arms, feeling the pounding of his heart against her. Every now and then, Iris kisses them both on their cheeks. Melody remembers this as the happiest she’d ever seen her mother. In that moment, Melody doesn’t understand that she isn’t going with Iris and keeps asking where they’re all going. Now, in the present, the memory is confused. Melody only sees her mother’s back as she drags a suitcase; she feels the tears on her cheek, her father holding onto her.