Reflections in a Mirror

Diana moaned softly as she once more turned on her side in the big, empty bed. A California king they called it. Huge. Bill wanted it, he said, so it could be their playground and it was. She smiled to herself, remembering their play dates, wishing he was here instead of in Dallas on business. Dallas. Oil. Money. His career. She opened one eye and checked the clock. 3:42 a.m. Damn! She had to pee. Badly. She slowly unwound herself from the bedclothes and stumbled into the bathroom, grateful for the soft, yellow nightlight. Bill always threatened to change the bulb to red for special nights. The big dope! How she missed him.

Ah, relief. She hesitated long enough to wash her hands with antiseptic soap. Can’t be too careful. Flu season and all that. She didn’t believe for a moment the flu scare was past. Bill would laugh at her taking precautions like this. Oh, well. It was her way. That old saw about changing spots on the leopard flashed through her mind and she smiled. She gazed at her reflection in the mirror. Not bad looking for her age. She still had some good years left. She felt a sudden chill. It was cold in the bathroom. She realized that she seemed to be in a vacuum. There was no sound. The water was gushing out of the faucet but the room was silent. She looked into the mirror to be sure this wasn’t a dream, panicking. To her horror, hers wasn’t the only face she saw. In the upper right-hand corner of the mirror was her mother’s face, pale, sad, and drawn. Diana, she thought, you’ve gone mad! As she stared into her dead mother’s eyes, she heard the words come from somewhere. He’s dead! He’s dead! He’s dead!

She cried out, “Bill…no!” Reality returned in a flash. Her trembling hands turned off the noisy water and a check of the mirror revealed only her reflection. She was relieved but shaking badly. What should she do? She returned to the bed just as the phone began ringing insistently. More panic. She was afraid to answer but she knew she had to. She picked up the receiver and murmured, “Hello.”

“Diana, honey? It’s me. I’m at the airport. Can you pick me up? Mom called me on my cell. Dad's taken a turn for the worse and we need to fly home as soon as possible.” She was so flooded with relief she began to cry.

“Don’t cry, baby. We’ve known this was coming for a long time,” Bill said. “See you in a few minutes, okay? We'll get through this. Take it easy driving.”

“Okay, darling. I love you,” she whispered.

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