Come Say Your Goodbyes

Two travelers set out West towards the lowering sun as they forged their journey to their homestead. Well, the homestead of one of them. Little Hollin Neason had started his journey back to his home town in Weston after receiving a letter from his mother the previous week. A raggedy piece of paper, undoubtedly affected by the unsettling weather that had visited the region, was delivered to him via courier as he lounged in his villa in Montog. A rugged man had knocked on his door alerting him out of his relaxation. As he peered out the window of his abode and noticed the sheer size of the courier, he had half a mind to hide thinking he may have run into trouble when he was out at the tavern the previous night. However, when the man saw him through the window, he knew hiding was not an option and decided to open the door.

Thank God he did, he thought or he may have missed the note. With curiosity, Hollin took the note from the man and thanked him with a slight nod. The courier only grunted and walked away, no doubt to continue his endeavors. As he first reviewed the envelope, he was surprised to learn it had been addressed from his mother. He had not spoken to her for what must have been 6 months due to a grueling argument that left them both simmering before he had left to go live in Montog. As he sat down on his green velvet chaise, he scanned the cover wondering what message would be found inside it. He brushed his calloused fingers over the writing on the envelope half smirking believing this must be a much deserved and detailed apology. If it was, he wanted to take every moment to savor it. He certainly loved his mother and didn’t want to learn of her suffering, but he knew as well as anyone that sometimes there's just no better feeling than being right.

He chuckled to himself as he reached for his letter opener and carved down the side of the packet, careful not to cause any additional tears. Hollin slipped the card out of the envelope and burrowed his eyebrows as he scanned the writing. The letter, like the envelope, was battered by the elements still drying from the rain that had likely soaked it the night prior. Written in sloppy cursive, the letter read:

Hollin,

Your sister, Audrey, hath taken a turn.

Please head home steadfast to see her before and state your goodbyes. Make haste.

Mom.

Hollin scoffed at the letter, half embarrassed that he expected an apology and half annoyed that he had expected more from his mother. “That’s just like her to hold a grudge” he mumbled under his breath. “Didn’t even bother to mention where Audrey is going.” With nothing to savor, he tossed the letter aside and shook his head. Hollin made it to his room to pack a light bag and settle in for the night, for he had a few days' journey ahead of him.

~

“Where do you think she’s going?” Annalise asked. She and Hollin had made their journey together over the past two days. Three days for Hollin as he had only met Annalise the other night at a tavern. The bar had neighbored the stodgy inn he checked into for the night. Hollin was quick to get seated and accommodate his grumbling stomach and itch for refreshments.

The barmaid had yet to fetch him his drink as Annalise skipped over to his table and took a seat beside him, grinning like a child. Hollin, having spent the entire day traveling, wanted nothing to do with the girl that now sat bedside him on the crooked barstool. Despite not giving her the time of day, she carried a conversation all by herself - initially discussing nothing of interest. She complained about the blandness of the Inn’s stew, the smell of sweat and odor among the patrons, the way her boots stuck to the floor as she traveled across the restaurant, and then how excited she was to be traveling to a new town for a possible posting she was to inquire about, in Weston.

Hollin’s eyes gaped at the information of her travels. One because this colorful woman was brave enough to announce her travel plans in the forthcoming days to a male stranger. And two because that is exactly where Hollin has set to travel as well. If they were to travel together, perhaps that would make for an easier journey. Perhaps this woman had food, a horse, perhaps more coins that could be exchanged for a place to sleep. He quickly changed his tone and relaxed his shoulders, softening to the conversation of Annalise. After finishing a few drinks and engaging in much conversation, they decided they would make the remainder of the journey together.

“I’m not so sure.” answered Hollin. “I remember in years past she had discussed going to school for nursing. Since she was young, she had dreams of becoming a midwife. Something about leading women through the toughest experiences of their life. She had to stay home though to help my mother with the homemaking and eventually put that idea aside. Who knows though? Perhaps she finally put her foot down against that old witch and decided to go. I guess I’ll find out.”

“Old witch?” Annalise replied. “That is no way to talk about the woman who raised you.”.

“You don’t know my mother. Also, how about we instead talk about anything else?”

Annalise smirked and shook her head. “For having an old witch as a mother, you seemed to turn out alright.”

Hollin tilted his head back and chuckled in response. “Yeah, I guess so.”

“We should only have a day left of travel. The next Inn is another few miles ahead.”

By this day Hollin was exhausted. The woman didn’t have a horse as he had hoped she did and they had been making their travels to Weston on foot. Though the weather was mainly tame, the terrain was hilly and full of twists and turns. Hollin hadn’t exercised often the past few months as he spent the majority of his time in his new home lazing about, frequenting the tavern and attempting to meet the young beautiful women of the town. He failed though, hard and often. Times like this though he reconsidered his activities. What kind of man lost his breath over a simple travel home? Good lord he had wasted his months posturing around the town with little to no real goals in mind. He shook the thought out of his head and looked forward. Forward was the only way. He certainly wasn’t going to camp out all night and was too proud to ask for a break in front of Annalise. So he went forward, and didn’t complain about it even after they had reached the Inn.

Hollin was starving upon arrival, but even more tired. Without many words, the two ate dinner, another tasteless stew made out of who knows what, and unloaded in their respective rooms. As soon as the door closed behind him, Hollin hit the bed and slumbered for the remainder of the night.

~

He startled at the sound of a knock at his door. “Who is it?” he asked, his voice cracking as he awoke from sleep.

“It’s Annalise, get your ass up it’s time to go”. Still laying in the bed, he turned his head and squinted his eyes to see the sun shining bright through his window. “I’ll be out in a moment.” he yelled. He sighed as he rolled out of bed and fitted himself in the last pair of clean clothes he had packed. They should arrive today as long as they didn’t face any inclement weather. With his belongings in his hands he struggled to open the door and saw Annalise standing outside, arms crossed and foot tapping with a nasty look on her face.

“I’m ready, I'm ready” he mocked. He only received a low snarl in response. And so they made their way out. A few hours later than anticipated he guessed, but at least they were on the road.

~

Annalise and Hollin arrived sooner than they had expected, only about five hours of travel on foot. He knew when they had arrived when they climbed atop one of the last hills and the city scape finally came into view. Most notably, Hollin saw the tall pointed spire of the town’s church peaking above the rest of the buildings. The church, built with a light grey limestone and laced with gold trimming, was beloved by the town not only because it was a place of worship, but because of its unique architectural structure and the ancient art pieces that remained within. “Guess the extra hour of sleep didn’t hurt that much” said Hollin with a wide white smile and a wink. Annalise rolled her eyes and continued the walk.

“I guess our time together is going to be shorter than anticipated” Annalise stated.

Looking here up and down, Hollin replies “Well you can’t possibly show up to your potential employer looking and uh, smelling like that.”

Annalise stopped and looked down at her clothes just now noticing the layers of dirt, dust, and sweat that had collected since they started their expedition. “I suppose you’re right,” she said under her breath. Hollin could’ve sworn he saw a hint of embarrassment in her eyes that made his heart sink a little. “Well then, you must visit my house where you can take a proper bath. I’m sure my mother or sister would be happy to get your clothes cleaned up for you. I’m sure they’d be happy just to see me in the presence of another woman.”. Annalise faked a smile and solemnly accepted the offer. She was hopeful that they would invite her to stay for dinner as well as she was running low on coins to trade for food. She decided not to mention it though. Her grumbling stomach made her wishes apparent enough.

They didn’t speak the rest of the way as they finished their trek up to Hollin’s home. Either because of their exhaustion or their inability to find something to talk about, they didn’t know. All that they knew was they were excited at the opportunity to sit down and bathe.

As Hollin led them through the village, they finally strided up to the steps of a quaint wooden cabin. While worn, the house had lots of life to it. A dainty wooden porch was laid in front of the fort that had just enough room for a blue wooden chair that had paint chips falling off of it from years of use. Two windows surrounded each side of the door where you could see the kitchen on the left and someone busy in the living room on the right. Green vines rested on the side and front of the cabin, which contrasted against the dark wood stain of the exterior. A beautiful, well lived-in, home big enough for roughly four or five people.

Hollin, staring at the front door heaved a large sigh before looking towards Annalise with a wrinkle of concern on his forehead. While he had talked to Annalise briefly about his family during their venture to town, he never mentioned how he felt about the idea of seeing his mom with their long-standing issues. Annalise looked back at him with a reassuring close lipped smile and gave him a slight nod. Hollin stepped forward and knocked on the door.

~

A stout grey-haired woman, no older than 50 opened the groaning door and looked up at the man standing in front of her. “Hollin,” she whispered, voice shaking. “I’m surprised you actually came.”. She averted her gaze from her son to see the slim red-haired woman standing beside him. “And who might you be?” she inquired coldly. “My name is Annalise,” the girl replies. “I have traveled here with your son. He has told me so much about you.”

“I’m sure he has.” she responded with a pointed stare back to her son. The mother stepped aside motioning them both to come in. They followed her as she slowly led them both into the kitchen, pulling out the chairs from under the round table for them to sit in. The mother sat in the seat of her own next to her son. Hollin noted her mood as different. She seemed quieter than usual. Tired, like she hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep. She wasn’t dressed well either. It had to be at least three o’clock and she was still wearing her nightgown and slippers. He veered his eyes around the room and listened for any indication of someone else in the house but didn’t hear anything. Only silence as they sat at the table.

In an attempt to relieve the awkwardness, Hollin started, “Well I received your letter, mother. It seems Audrey has some fun new journey to be made? What is she going to be up to?”.

Hollin’s mother remained quiet, her hands holding up her forehead as her elbows rested on the table. Annalise and Hollin gave each other a look of confusion, not understanding the situation in front of them.

“Mother, are you feeling alright? You don’t look well and you’re still in your pajamas.” He quietly sniffed and gave a look of disgust as he realized the overflowing bin of garbage that left the kitchen with a putrid smell. What is the matter?” Hollin then noticed the single tear drop fall from his mother’s eye onto the counter. His mother choked on the words. “She’s already gone.”

“What do you mean she’s already gone?” Hollin said, silent rage building up in his throat. He stood up and towered over his mother “You wrote me a letter asking me to come see her before she left. So I could say goodbye. You mean to tell me I walked here for days sleeping in shabby inns eating shit food to see her and she left without saying goodbye?”

Annalise’s eyes curved and filled with confusion, fear, and pain. She stood and reached for Hollin’s forearm as she soon realized the situation at hand. “Hollin” she whispered, voice cracking.

Hollin’s mother rose her head slowly with eyes of dread but a face of pure unfeathered anger. “You pompous idiot.” she muttered. Her voice grumbled. “Your sister was not leaving to go on a trip out of town. I should’ve known better that you couldn’t figure it out yourself. I should’ve spelled it out for you”. The words spit out of her mouth as if they were laced with venom. Each sentence causing a spiral of worry and confusion into Hollin.

“What are you trying to say mother?” Hollin responded in a low stern voice, eyes set intently on his mother. “Where is she then?”

His mother stared at him as if she were staring right into his soul. “Your sister caught the virus. I wrote to you so that you might see her before the lord took her away. She died yesterday morning.”

Silence. Hollin’s head began to spin and he felt like he was going to be sick. He couldn’t find words. He wanted to scream, to fight, to rip the walls down of the shabby cabin he spent his long dreaded childhood in and burn the remains with it. Why hadn’t his mother mentioned that in the letter? Why did she write with such vagueness? If he knew. If he had known. He would’ve. He didn’t know. He would’ve found a way to get back, to get home quicker. To see his sister and give her his last goodbyes. What was happening?

He stared at his mother shaking, unable to react and in pure shock. Annalise stood there staring at him, her hand still resting on his arm wondering what to do next. What could she do? She had only known the man for a few days. Who was she to provide comfort or insist her presence in the home of a mourning family? Hollin turned his head to look at Annalise, then to the hand she rested on him, then back to her eyes. Without a word, he walked out the door and into the town. Where to, Annalise couldn’t figure. She knew nothing of what this town was, where she would go or what she should do. She turned to the grieving mother still uniformed in a trance of rage and fury. “I am so sorry ma’am. I should be going now. My sincerest apologies.”. Annalise bowed her head and showed herself out of the house. On the steps of the cabin she looked around to figure where to go next. She listened for the sound of people and left to go follow, leaving the mother at home by herself in her puddle of grief.