I looked at the bold figures on the paper, the numbers blurring under the bright overhead bulb. We were three hundred and fifty dollars short of the absolute minimum we needed just to clear the airport taxi and the medical deposits.
“We have to go,” I said, my voice barely a whisper.
Tony looked toward the hallway that led to Lily’s bedroom, his face tightening.
“We need to make this happen before she gets any weaker,” Tony said.
He stood up to clear the mugs, his shoulder brushing against the counter where my mother’s silver bracelet lay near the sink.
I remained at the table, my eyes fixed on the heavy silver links glistening under the harsh kitchen light.
I slid the silver links back into the velvet jewelry box and pushed it deep into the top drawer of our dresser, underneath my heavy winter sweaters.
It was six in the morning when the radiator in our Toledo apartment gave a loud hiss and went cold. Beside me, Tony shifted under the quilt, his breathing heavy and uneven as the room began to draft.
