Mrs. Benson - 4. Chapter 4

4

The spring had seen Alice turn forty-six, while the autumn had brought Mrs. Benson’s ninety-seventh birthday. My own wasn’t until December. The only mar on each year was the annual remembrance of the fire that had cost Mrs. Benson her family. Mrs. Benson blamed herself, and it seemed to be more survivor guilt than anything else to me. While there were occasionally guests and small affairs at the house, or ones that Mrs. Benson attended, she never went with anyone but me. She never dated anyone since I had been hired. I asked her once why this was when I was driving her home from a party held by Mr. and Mrs. Parker.

“Mrs. Benson, why haven’t you found someone else?”

Mrs. Benson had been looking out the window, but she turned and stared into the rearview mirror. “I’d had the greatest man in the world, James. He gave me two beautiful children. I lost them and have no desire to try and replace them.”

I never asked her again why she remained single.

Whenever Alice or I went into town we always heard the gossip about her. Most of it still dealt with the fire that had claimed her family when she was in her forties. When she was released from the hospital, she had her home rebuilt. Many said she had lost her mind in the grief, citing the cost of rebuilding her home again, but she ended up in charge of her husband’s business and the mining company her mother had inherited, as well. It seemed Mrs. Benson’s life was one of loss. Her own parents died in a plane crash while on a trip to Italy. The rumors swirled how, with every death, she became richer. She turned a million dollar business into a billion dollar one. It seemed life hadn’t been very fair to Mrs. Benson.

After everything else her life had dealt her, Mrs. Benson was now lying unconscious in a hospital bed, with no one but her two employees left to care about her. We weren’t allowed up to see her last evening, so we had come home and fallen into our own beds late last night.

Now, Alice and I sat across the table from each other in the dull morning light, trying to decide what to do. About all either of us wanted was a cup of coffee. The whole house felt off.

“I can’t believe someone desecrated their graves.” Alice’s face looked drawn and she sighed before taking a sip of the coffee.

“I can. I saw the mess. I just wish I knew what the hell they did with the bodies.”

Alice shook her head and wiped at her eyes.

“I wish they would tell us how she is.” Alice was silent for a moment. “Do you think they will find the bodies?”

“I don’t know. I wish I knew why her family’s area wasn’t kept up. I mean, the rest of the cemetery is immaculate. Then, you get to the private Benson Family burial crypt and forget it. Half the time it looks like it hasn’t been mowed in years.” I shook my head and watched Alice wiping at her face. “I just think the damn thing is a disgrace. I think I am going to go down there later and get the whole thing cleaned up.”

“I need to get her sheets changed and the bedroom aired out. It is Friday, after all. What time do you want to head up to the hospital?” Alice picked up her cup and carried it to the sink. “I hope they will let us in to see her.”

“The hospital visiting hours for ICU are at seven a.m. to nine a.m. or six p.m. to seven p.m.. Not a whole lot of choice, considering we missed the morning hours.”

“They don’t give you much time to see someone, do they?”

“Well, it is ICU. I expect they don’t want people around if there is an emergency.”

Alice nodded, and I headed over to the sink with my cup.

“The hell with it. I am going to grab the lawnmower and a few other tools and head down to the cemetery. I want to have the thing cleaned up for her. It should never have been allowed to get that bad.”

Alice looked at me for a moment.

“I’m going with you. I can rake as well as you can. Besides, I don’t really want to be left here alone.”

I looked at her and would have been happy for the company, but one thing bothered me.

“I think you should stay.”

“Why? Truthfully …”

I cut her off. “No, Alice, listen to me. If the hospital calls, someone needs to be here. You have my cell number, and can call me if there is any sort of change. Besides, Mrs. Cardigan is going to call later. We need to know who Mrs. Benson set up to make her medical decisions.”

Alice nodded slowly. “You’re right. I just don’t want to be alone.”

I gave Alice a rare hug and headed out to get the cemetery cleaned up. You could tell the police had been there. There was still police tape all across the doors of the mausoleum. I cut the grass, trimmed the bushes and trees, removed large weeds, and cleaned the place up. I found a few rose bushes that had been planted, but were nearly choked by the plants around them. I worked hard to give them room. I’d been at it for nearly three hours when Alice called.

“Did you hear from the hospital?”

“No.” There was a pause, and when Alice spoke again her voice trembled. ”James, just come home.”

“What’s wrong? You sound scared.”

“Just come home. I don’t know what is going on, but I don’t want to be here alone.”

“Alright. I’ll pack up and head home.”

“Hurry.”

The next sound was a dial tone. I gathered up the tools and the lawn mower, packed everything back into the car, and headed back to Mrs. Benson’s residence. I pulled into the back and found Alice waiting in the driveway for me.

“What’s wrong?”

“You have to go into the house. I need you to see and hear this. I think I am losing my mind.”

I stood dumbfounded for a moment. I’d known Alice for over twenty years and nothing had ever really upset her. She was a mountain of strength to lean on when my mother died. In fact, I found I could rely on both Alice and Mrs. Benson over the years. I never knew how carefully Mrs. Benson kept on eye on the two of us, but I was completely surprised when my father and I had gone down to find out the final costs for my mother’s funeral, only to discover that Mrs. Benson had covered the cost of not only the funeral, but purchased a plot for my parents. Alice had taken time to come over and cook for my father and my youngest sister, who was still at home. She cleaned up the house and helped to keep things running. The rest of the family had been in and out trying to help where they could. The truth be told, no one knew what to do without my mom being there. She had always been a quiet pillar of strength for everyone. Alice did her best to make sure everyone was fed; the dirty clothes were cleaned, and she helped my father organize my mother’s belongings. No matter what seemed to happen, Alice always had a cool head on her shoulders, and nothing seemed to bother her.

Now I was facing an Alice I had never seen before. She shifted from foot to foot, and even as I approached her, I could see her shaking. She actually stood shivering in the blazing heat of the autumn weather. My own tee shirt was clinging to me like a second skin, soaked with my sweat, but Alice pulled her sweater tighter around her.

“I don’t understand what is going on, James. I keep hearing things, but when I go looking I can’t find anyone.”

“Stay here, then. I will go check the place out.”

I’d learned from working in the house that the original home had been completely torn down, but Mrs. Benson rebuilt the house in the same spot, and it was nearly identical.

“Did Mrs. Cardigan show up yet?”

Alice seemed to shake herself. She focused on me and it took a moment, as she processed what I had asked her.

“Um … no… no, Mrs. Cardigan has shown up yet.” Her eyes darted nervously toward the house again.

I patted her arm. “Okay, you wait here for her and I’ll go check out the house.”