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“None of your business.” She feels sorry for being so rude to Winifred, but she has no choice.
“Aiya! Look at you with blood pouring out of your head and me cleaning you up, literally cleaning up your mess, and you’re telling me it’s none of my business?”
Vera opens her mouth to argue, but just then, the door swings open and Tilly and Selena rush in.
“Oh my god, Ma!”
Selena takes one look at Vera and says, “We should get her to the hospital right now.”
They help Vera to her feet and lead her out of the teahouse. As Vera settles into the back seat of Selena’s car, she gazes out the window at her teahouse. Winifred stands at the door, wringing her hands.
“Don’t worry, I will lock up the shop,” Winifred calls out.
The shop, which has been Vera’s refuge for so long, no longer feels safe. She feels exposed, her every step watched. She sinks deeper into the seat, wondering if she’ll ever feel safe again.
•••
The wound requires five stitches. Not too bad, all in all.
“It’s not actually too deep,” the doctor who stitches her up says. “Head wounds tend to show a lot of blood, so I know it looked alarming, but I think you’re going to have minimal scarring.”
Vera thanks him and sits there quietly for a bit, trying to gather her thoughts. Tilly is holding her hand and looking at her with such concern that she feels like a little kid. They drive home in silence.
Winifred has kindly swept away all of the broken glass on the floor, but still the shop feels cold and soulless, as though whatever friendly spirits had been there before have been scared away.
“I’ll help you pack your things,” Tilly says, helping her up the stairs. Vera doesn’t bother arguing with him this time.
When they finally get back to Tilly and Selena’s house, Vera feels like she’s aged by a decade. She has always enjoyed telling people she is a helpless old woman, but it is only now that she realizes what being a helpless old woman really feels like. She sits at the dining table and stares at her hands while Tilly cooks dinner and Selena gets the guest bedroom ready. He puts a big bowl of beef noodle soup in front of her.
“Here you go, Ma.” He sits next to her, and Selena on her other side, and they dig into the food.
Vera takes a small bite, then a bigger one. “This is very good.”
Tilly smiles. “You taught me how to make it, remember?”
“He has pots of homemade broth in the freezer,” Selena says.
Pride blooms in Vera’s chest, then quickly deflates when she recalls the horrible thought:That bad man knows where Emma lives.
Seeing the change in Vera’s expression, Selena puts her chopsticks down. “Okay, Vera, you’ve got to tell us what happened. Winifred said it was a hate crime. Did you see who did it?”
“I think we should give her some space,” Tilly says.
Selena’s mouth turns into a thin line. “Sorry. I just—this feels targeted. Especially taking into account the vandalism only a short while ago.”
Vera shakes her head. “I don’t know who did it. I didn’t see.”
Selena gives her a sharp look, and Vera’s scalp tingles. Selena is way too good at sensing bullshit.
“Why do I feel like you’re hiding something from me?” Selena leans forward. “Vera, if you know why this happened, you need to tell me right away. You were just assaulted, and—”
“Hey, come on,” Tilly says, and now there’s an edge in his voice. “Give her a break, okay?”
“I’m trying to help her.”
“You’re badgering her, so back off.”
“Badgering?” Selena says. “Don’t use your lawyer speak on me.”