Patty Revere Pt. 4

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Patty has a clock. It stopped ticking at 3:27 p.m. years ago and she never took it off the wall. It still hangs over her kitchen sink and now she misses its steady rhythm for the way it seemed to fill the silence.

Silence is an uncomfortable rarity in Patty's life, but she felt she should turn the TV off when entertaining a guest. When there is silence just before Final Jeopardy, music starts playing to pass the time.

Alex looks across the small, sticky aluminum table at his hostess. Before him is a fruity-smelling bowl of creamer. His stomach growls and he thinks that perhaps he is hungry. Patty starts singing.

The cheetah, invited into the den of the antelope, is momentarily paralyzed with confusion.

Alex is tempted but wary. The singing only serves to put him more on edge.

Abruptly the singing stops.

"Are you hurt?" asks Patty.

The bowl of spoiled creamer is a pale pink hue. Another drop of red falls in as Alex looks down. The scab on his forehead is pinched between two fingers in his right hand. He hadn't noticed.

"Do you have medicine?" asks Alex.