All She Can Take

F O U R

Their apartment was still packed up and ready for a life that would never be. Family members that had come and gone in a steady stream over the last few weeks helped to move the boxes out of the center of each room and relocated them neatly to the corners. They even unpacked a few plates for them to shovel baked macaroni and cheese and barbecue chicken onto from dinners delivered to them in disposable aluminum pans. Sid watched her mother and sister pick at the food and then throw most of it into the garbage. But she inhaled it all, couldn't get enough of it. Couldn't get it to fill the hollow place in the pit of her gut.

As she put her key in the door she expected much of the same. Lots of quiet, followed by eating until her stomach hurt, and then more silence. But instead, she entered the apartment to quiet chatter. The voices led her to the living room. Her mother and a man were seated on the couch. 

Two boxes had been moved from the corner and placed side by side on the floor where a coffee table would be. Papers were fanned out over the top. Her mother caught sight of her in the entrance of the room a moment later and popped up onto her feet. She was fully dressed. Loose-fitting blue jeans and an orange sleeveless blouse buttoned down the front. The last time she saw her mom fully dressed was one week and four days ago during the funeral. As Sid was trying to process this her mother launched into a flurry of words. Something about helping with a case.

"Huh?" Sid said, her eyes darting between her mother and unknown yet smartly dresses figure. He finally stood and extended a hand to Sid which she shook apprehensively. He took over the explanation. Speaking much more calmly and slowly that her mother.

"I'm Regis Hollins. I'll be representing your family in the lawsuit against the MTA for your father's death." He seemed pleased with himself for being there. Said it plain out like it was nothing.

"What lawsuit?" Sid turned confused eyes onto her mother.

"That gap between the train and platform. They don't have any signage there and the station gets too crowded. That's how...it happened."

Sid shook her head in dissent as her mother's words left her mouth. Mr. Hollins stood there looking pleased with himself. Waiting for her praise?  Like he was waiting for Sid to thank him for wielding a sword against the big bad metropolitan transit authority.

The conversation needed to be had now. The longer she waited the bigger this thing was becoming.

"Can we talk for a second?" Sid asked. Her mother looked at the lawyer, ready to put her off, but Hollins spoke up.

"We're all done here pretty much. I'll get started on filing and call you with updates later this week?" He asked, to which her mother nodded.

It seemed like it took forever for him to gather his papers and leave. As soon as the door closed, Tanya Berry whirled around to Sidney.

"That was rude." She fumed at her.

"Mom, we can't sue the MTA."

"Why the hell not? My husband is gone because of them. The district has been asking for years to get proper signage or something put in that damn station and they haven't done anything. It was only a matter of time before some lost their life." Her mother's flats squeaked against the tile as she bounced her knee and held herself, arms wrapped around her like she was still wearing the robe she rarely shed over the last few days.

"But he didn't. Mom, when it happened there was a guy there. He was talking to some guy...with a scar," Sid ran her hand from temple to her chin tracing the path of scar, "...and then the guy pushed him."

She kept her eyes trained on her sneakers. Afraid of what the look on her mother's face might tell her. Terrified that it may confirm that she did screw up in some way. Worried that she would see the confident look that her mother always had on her face fade. But the silence stretched on for so long that she had to look up and survey the situation. She thought that maybe her mother had left the room silently. Lifting her head toward her mother she saw that she was still there, her feet glued to the same spot and her eyes fixed on Sidney.