A few minutes later I heard him on the phone.

I knew exactly who he was calling.

Still, I told myself he would complain and get over it.

That was my mistake.

Sunday morning, I visited Mom.

Her pain had improved considerably.

The pancreatitis markers were heading in the right direction, and the doctors believed surgery might happen later that week once the inflammation settled.

She was irritated because the television remote had disappeared beneath her blanket.