Free The House of Roses by Holden Robinson

looked devastated, and he wished there was something that could have been done to save her. He couldn't save her, but maybe he could save Mia. He could open his heart and his life to the little girl. He wanted to call Rosario, to tell her what he'd decided. Instead he opened his laptop and penned a quick email to his friend Jim Hartwell, a prominent attorney. Colin needed legal advice. He knew Rosario didn't have much time, and therefore, neither did he. He had no idea how to care for a child, or console a child who'd just lost her mother, but he'd figure it out. Maybe he'd call his aunt. He hadn't talked to her in almost a year, and for a moment it made him sick. They'd been close when he was a boy, but life had taken him away from his hometown, and then fate had taken his parents, giving him little reason to return. He lived on one coast, and his Aunt Sadie lived on the other, with a little dog that had cost his parents their lives. He'd only returned once since the funeral, and he'd met Aunt Sadie in a cafe. He couldn't stand the sight of the dog. Maybe it was time to go back, to see her again, to lay old ghosts to rest, and maybe he'd even pet the damn dog. It really wasn't the dog's fault. Colin would think about forgiving the dog, but first he'd finish the email, then compile a list of the numerous things he'd need to do. His mind raced, as his fingers flew over the keyboard, and when he was satisfied with what he'd written, he saved it to his Draft folder. He'd send it immediately when they landed.
    “ How long before we land?” he asked, barely looking up.
    “ We just took off, sir,” the flight attendant said with a smile.
    “ So we're not almost there?” he said with a chuckle, feeling like a young boy.
    “ No, sir, we're not.”
    “ May I have some coffee, please?” Colin asked, flashing a smile at the young woman.
    “ I'll get that for you.”
    “ Thank you.”
    Colin Thomas closed his laptop and looked out the window into the clouds.

 
     
    Ten
     
     
    Caitlin Goodrich sat quietly in the chair by the window, watching another New York afternoon come to an end. She could hear the sounds of traffic from the street below, and noise from the hospital filtered into the room. Rita had left to smoke her umpteenth cigarette of the day, and Hannah dozed against her breast. The baby was supposed to be nursing, but seemed more content to nap snuggled against her mother. Caitlin fashioned herself a modern day woman. Perhaps the age-old art of breastfeeding wasn't within her capabilities. She'd sat for thirty minutes with her breast sticking out of the ugly gown, and the baby had simply stared at her. She knew her daughter wasn't really seeing her, and for a moment, she was glad. She didn't want this to be her child's earliest memory of her. She longed for a shower, and the glimpse she'd caught of herself in the bathroom mirror had been frightening. Giving birth wasn't fashionable, but as she looked at her twins, she realized it didn't matter. She didn't care if she looked like death. They were worth it.
    Caitlin laid the sleeping child in the tiny bed by the window, and eased herself onto her hospital bed. She looked at the laptop, and it seemed to return her stare. She wasn't sure she'd ever send the letter, but what was the harm in writing it?  She opened the laptop slowly, and the letter blinked back to life. She'd started it.
    “ Dear Colin,” she said out loud. It was a start.
    She couldn't imagine what to say. She'd seen him on the street. He'd looked peaceful, and at ease with the woman and her child. It was obvious they had a relationship, and Caitlin felt like an intruder. He'd moved on; he had something new in his life. How could she possibly tell him?
    She stared blankly out the window at the dull scenery. The scenery didn't matter. She saw nothing, only his face.
    “ Look what I found,” Rita said, coming through the door in her typical flurry. She held an enormous flower arrangement.
    “