Judy Clemens: Embrace the Grim Reaper

Casey grinned. “Need an ice pack?”

“I’m going to have to ask Johnny to double-wrap the children’s forks and spoons. Come on, let’s see what he’s up to.”

They found him standing beside Loretta at the sink, a dishtowel in his hand as he lectured her about silverware and the best way to clean it. Together the two of them had already made quite a dent in the washing. Reassured that things were in hand, Eric led Casey back out to the dining room, where they cleared the tables, wiped down the tablecloths, and began picking up trash.

“Whoops,” Eric said, glancing at the clock. “I gotta go. Have something at seven, and I’ve got ten minutes to get there.”

Casey saw with surprise that time had, indeed, flown by. “I’ll finish up here.”

“You don’t have to. I usually do it the next day, like you helped with earlier.”

“I don’t mind. Really.” It’s not like she had anywhere to go.

“Oh. Well, all right. Thanks.” He jogged to the kitchen and came back out with a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. He paused at the front door, his hand on the latch. “Thanks for helping tonight. It was…fun.”

Casey regarded him. “You’re welcome. Thanks for letting me be a part of it.”

“Loretta can open the staff room for you to get your bag when you’re ready.” He looked out the front door, then back again. “If you’re around tomorrow…”

“I’ll try to come back. If I’m still in town.”

“Okay. Good.” He gave her another one of his blinding smiles, although this time Casey could see the events of the past two hours reflected in his eyes. “See you around, then, Casey Smith.”

She nodded. “Mr. Jones.”

And he was gone.

The door locked behind Casey with a snap, and she stood on the sidewalk, her backpack resting on the ground beside her.

When Casey had finished cleaning the dining room, Loretta (Hallelujah! Praise God!) had insisted on feeding her before letting her leave. Casey didn’t argue. There was just enough leftover soup for the three of them, and even a little fruit. Johnny cheerfully slurped his way through his bowl after bestowing Casey with a set of silverware. She had thanked him solemnly, and he sat next to her so closely she couldn’t move her left arm.

“Birthday cake for the nice lady,” Johnny said when she was done, handing her a corner piece with a wilted icing flower.

“Thank you. Who’s birthday was it? One of the children?”

“Oh, no, baby,” Loretta said. “It was Eric’s, the dear boy.”

“And how old is he?”

Johnny pursed his lips, and Loretta stared at Casey’s cake. “Somewhere in his twenties. Or is he thirty now? He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, but he’s such a precious child of God we didn’t want to miss it. Thank you Jesus!”

Casey ate her cake, but didn’t ask any more questions.

Now she stood outside after retrieving her bag from the locker room, and for the second time in one day she had a full belly. The air in the darkening evening had chilled, and Casey pulled a jacket from her pack, zipping it up to her chin. She looked back into the building, but the lights were off, and everything was quiet.

Time to find somewhere for the night.

She heaved her bag onto her back and started down the sidewalk. She should’ve asked the others where to stay, and wondered why she didn’t. Forgot. Or didn’t want to sound needy. Whichever it was, she was paying for it now as she cast an eye toward the starless sky. She hoped it wasn’t about to rain again.

A few blocks down the street she found an enclosed—and apparently unused—bus stop, and she stepped in to look at the map on the wall. An X designated where she stood, but no names, other than streets, gave her any information of which colored square might be a hotel. Giving up on that, she perused the information sheets taped to the wall. Advertisements for baby-sitting, with phone number tabs to pull off, an announcement of a church fish fry for the previous Friday, and a schedule of the local high school’s fall sports. There was also a call for garage sale items to benefit the family of a woman named Ellen Schneider, who “left us before her time.”

Casey sucked in her breath as she read the fine print below the announcement. Ellen, a resident of the town, had died suddenly the week before, leaving her two school-age children parentless, with no father in the picture. No details about her death. No explanations. Casey gritted her teeth. Death must’ve been especially bored. A young single mother? Sudden death? Casey’s breath came fast and hard, and she pulled her eyes from the poster, concentrating on her heartbeat. a-One. a-Two. a-Three.

She forced herself to look beyond the garage sale notice, and continued past a homemade sign depicting a lost cat named Snowball, to yet one more faded announcement, this time for play auditions, held almost two weeks earlier. Twelfth Night. A rather strange choice for a dying town. But then, maybe they needed all the humor they could get.

The paper fluttered in the breeze, two of the four corners ripped from the tape, and Casey held it down to read it. Open try-outs, it said. Anyone interested was to come by the Albion Theater one of the two nights. Rehearsals would begin the next week. Which would be last week, Casey thought. She found the theater on the map, its address plainly stated on the announcement. She looked at the sky. Wasn’t raining yet. And maybe they were rehearsing. It would give her something to do other than camp out in a hotel room, watching cable and being angry with Death.

It wasn’t hard to find the Albion. In fact, she’d already passed it when she first got to town, only she’d thought it was a movie theater. It probably had been, in its earlier days. Posters covered the front windows, with photos of past productions displayed prominently. The Foreigner, Little Women, Cheaper by the Dozen. Casey swallowed. Looked away. Found the front door, and went in.

The lobby was dark, with only emergency lights illuminating the open space. Benches lined the walls, and a display stand held an unfinished board showing a few of the play’s cast. A stack of loose photos lay on the floor, waiting for positioning on the sign. Community production, Casey thought, the visible headshots just missing the mark of professionals.

Voices seeped through the double doors from what Casey imagined was the theater space. She stood with her ear against the crack, listening for a moment before easing one side open and slipping in.

The musty smell hit her, almost a physical assault, and she closed her eyes, memories cascading through her mind as she stood in the aisle, her hands grasping one of the seats. The voices of the actors drifted over her, underscored by the quiet hum of the house lights, and slowly she regained her equilibrium. Opening her eyes, she slipped into the back row and lowered herself into one of the lumpy seats. Dust motes floated in the light from the instruments hanging on the catwalk, and the distant actors now stood quiet, looking down at the director, a silhouette in the front row.

Casey let the sounds, the smells, and the lights wash over her as she traveled back. Back to life before Omar. Before now. Her muscles tightened in response to her thoughts, remembering the feel of the stage, the thrill of a full house.

The sharp voice of the director snapped her out of her memories, and she broke out in an instant sweat. The director clearly wasn’t happy with what he’d seen. His words, plainly heard from where she sat, were clipped and harsh, and the actors stood hunchbacked as they listened.

“I am at a loss,” the director said. “I know we are without one of our leading ladies. I know Becca here is filling in, but…” He held his hands up, as in supplication. “Is this really the best you can do?”