Chapter 875

chapter875

Her question sounded a bit blunt, but it was a fair point. Carlson Smith scratched his head awkwardly. "I... I don't have your numbers memorized, so..."

"Then what about Arkle? His phone couldn't have broken too, right?"

At the mention of Arkle, the light in Carlson Smith's eyes dimmed. "He's in the hospital. He's in a coma, so he can't use his phone..."

"A coma?!" The three of them exclaimed in unison. Roseanne asked, "What happened to him?"

"It's a long story, and it involves both our families. It's..." Suddenly, a coughing fit erupted from one of the bedrooms. Carlson Smith seemed to remember something and immediately turned toward the kitchen. As he walked, he called back to them, "Sorry, make yourselves comfortable for a minute. Gail, get our guests some water."

Gail dutifully fetched three rustic-looking bowls and poured hot water into them from a thermos. Mamie quickly waved her hands. "Oh, no, you don't have to! I'm not thirsty!"

Gail didn't listen and poured a bowl for each of them anyway. "Thank you," Roseanne said.

"You're welcome. You're my brother's friends." She pointed to a sofa in the corner. "Please, sit. I'm going to go check..." With that, she headed for the kitchen.

Roseanne had smelled a strong medicinal scent the moment she walked in. Sure enough, a clay pot was sizzling on the stove. Carlson Smith wrapped a cloth around it, lifted it with both hands, and carefully poured the scalding herbal brew into three separate bowls.

This was Ms. Smith's medicine for the entire day. He brewed it all at once to save firewood, and would just reheat the other two doses later.

Next, Carlson Smith emptied the dregs and cleaned the pot. Finally, he picked up one of the bowls of medicine, crossed the living area, and entered one of the bedrooms.

"Mom, your medicine is ready. Time to sit up and drink it."

"Okay."

Mamie couldn't help but stand up and follow, though she politely stopped at the doorway. Inside, an elderly woman lay in bed. She was frail, with graying hair, and covered by a thick quilt with a cover that had been washed so many times it was, faded. The bitter medicinal smell hung in the air, but even that couldn't mask the room's stagnant atmosphere of decay and impending death. It was hard to describe, but it felt suffocatingly grim.

But Carlson Smith seemed oblivious to it, carefully helping the old woman with her medicine and some food. He then wiped her mouth, cleaned her hands, and helped her lie back down, tucking the quilt around her.

Only after all that was done did he leave the room, closing the door behind him. He turned to face the three guests waiting in the living

area and his little sister, who was watching him with wide, expectant eyes in that moment, a wave of helplessness washed over him He had so much to say but didn't know where to begin.

Mamie and Scales had never witnessed anything like this. They were shocked and deeply unsettled, but they managed to control their reactions, making no strange noises or exaggerated faces.

"I really wanted to return to school on time," he began, "but something happened at home. You've seen the state my mom is in so, I might be delayed a while longer if call the dean's office to explain. You don't need to worry."

Roseanne sensed there was much more to the story than his brief explanation suggested. "What about Arkle? What's his situation?"

"Arkle..." Carlson Smith paused, a look of regret and pain flashing across his face. "He got dragged into my family's mess."

Dragged into it?

Meeting their concerned gazes, Carlson Smith took a deep breath and finally began to tell them the whole story.