Purpose: Whisperer of Night

  ***

  “Hey Birthday girl,” Skylar said pocking her head into her mother’s room.

  “All of the people are almost gone, just a few stuck around to clean up—”

  “Skylar?” Brooke called.

  Skylar hurried and closed her mother’s door and turned to face Brooke.

  “What!” she asked as her heart pounded against her rib cage.

  “Is she awake now?”

  “No she’s not,” Skylar said swiping some of her hair out of her face.

  “Then who are you talking to and how come every time I ask to see your mother you say she’s either sleep or too sick for visitors? What’s going on Sky? She’s like a mother to me too you can’t keep keeping me away from her.”

  Skylar rolled her eyes. This was the Brooke Skylar don’t like, the nosy one who thinks she’s privileged to every aspect of her mother’s life.

  “Last time I checked Brooke your mother is on a trip with her boss, not behind this door I’m leaning on—”

  “Hey what’s going on?” Ryder asked.

  “Nothing!” Skylar yelled.

  By the looks of it Ryder looked like he wanted to wring her neck for yelling at him, he doesn’t do well with people who don’t show him the “respect” he deserves, but Skylar didn’t have time to baby his needs.

  “I think you’d better lower your voice Bēlua or you’ll wake your mother,” he said in a warning tone.

  “Oh she fed you that shit too,” Brooke said as she glared at Skylar.

  “Can yall just get out? Even if she was woke Brooke I wouldn’t want your face to be the first one she sees, so please both of you just get out!” Skylar yelled as she slipped into her mother’s room and locked it behind herself.

  “Skylar listen to me,” Brooke said from behind the closed door.

  “I know what you’re doing; I know that she’s—”

  “SHUT UP!” Skylar screamed covering her mother’s ears so her mother wouldn’t have to hear Brooke’s bull shit.

  “Skylar it’s her birthday, you can’t keep her hauled up in her room.”

  “Shhhh, there, there, you don’t have to listen to this,” Skylar said as she whipped the strands of her mother’s hair away from her face.

  Skylar looked over toward the dog who didn’t look very happy, she couldn’t blame him.

  “Don’t listen to them your as healthy as can be mama,” Skylar whispered.

  “She has cancer Skylar she shouldn’t be in that room all by herself.”

  “She had cancer Brooke not anymore,” Skylar yelled back as she stained her mother’s gown with her tears.

  “Look what she’s done, she made me cry mama I promised you I wouldn’t cry and she made me cry,” Skylar said as she grabbed her mothers’ hands and kissed her mothers’ knuckles.

  “I can’t come see you for a while, I have to go and let you be on your own, but promise me you’ll eat the soup…Oh crap I forgot your soup. I’ll be back but I won’t see you for about a couple more days ok?” Skylar said tracing the darkened circles around her mothers’ eyes. “I’mma dress you up so you look nice, and I’mma put some makeup on you so you look pretty mama I promise,” she said kissing her mothers’ forehead before stepping away from her mother’s bed.

  When Skylar stepped out of her mother’s room Brooke was no longer there but Ryder and that girl Sidney were.

  They paid Skylar no attention as they talked on her couch so she had no intentions to make her presence known. But something told her there was no way Ryder didn’t know that she was standing there.