Five Shadows

Chapter Twenty-Eight

The last time I looked at the postcards was when I moved to my current apartment. I stuffed them in a Christmas tin and into the back of my closet. I pulled them out. They were sent when almost nobody mailed postcards anymore. Texting was so much more efficient, or if your data package couldn't handle that, then most everyone emailed. But mom sent postcards from every port she and Tim visited on their six-month river cruise, celebrating his retirement.

I stared down the stack of mail, glossy, picturesque scenes daring me to look at their backsides. I wondered how I'd left them. Were they in chronological order? I picked one up. It occurred to me Barbara hadn't been out in a while. I set it back in the tin, and jogged out to the dog. "Let's go outside!" She was mercifully back to her old self, so I grabbed her leash and a couple bags and took her for a long walk. Ryan and Marnie both texted while we were out to check in on my little patient. I smiled stupidly at my phone. They were shaping up to be great friends. Even if they were trust fund kids.

I spent the rest of the afternoon procrastinating and was quite pleased when it was time to go to bed. "It's too late to read these now," I explained to Barbara, "I'd never sleep." She huffed at me and jumped into my spot on the bed. "That's cool. I've been meaning to switch sides anyway. It's good for the mattress."

As it turned out I couldn't sleep anyway. When I finally dozed off, shadows danced across my dreams, giving me impossible tasks to complete.