Chapter 25: Herbert's Last Hoorah

The brisk spring breeze skirted around Laura Dell as she emerged onto the sidewalk outside her apartment complex.
“It’s about time we had some nice weather,” she thought to herself. It had been a long winter, and Laura Dell could only hope that the changing seasons would bring about better circumstances, but somehow she couldn’t convince herself of that fact, not with Herbert slowly fading in front of her very eyes. As she walked down the narrow sidewalk, she considered what spring would look like without him.
“He must make it through the spring,” she said out loud, oblivious to the little boy that shot her a funny glance as she passed him and his mother.
She had almost made it to the museum, not to beg for Feinman’s forgiveness, but only to meet Mr. Dresden out front. She thought taking the sparrow with her to Herbert’s apartment would surely brighten his day.
“Oh Mr. Dresden, over here,” Laura Dell called when she was a few feet from the front entrance. She wanted to avoid seeing Feinman at all costs. “Thanks so much for taking care of the little guy.”
“It was no problem, really. He’s actually on the mend. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was ready to be released within a week or two.”
“We’ll see about that. You know we spent a lot of time together at the museum, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he couldn’t bring himself to leave me at all.”
“Well, let me know if you have any questions.”
Laura Dell assured him that she wouldn’t hesitate to call if anything arose. Continuing her walk, she held the small wire cage up to eye level and peered inside at the little sparrow.
“What a trouble maker you’ve been,” she sighed to herself, but couldn’t help smiling at his small pointed face. “I hope Herbert won’t mind your company. Just don’t leave any surprises on his furniture, and I promise not to pull out the nets again.”
When Herbert opened the door, he beamed with excitement.
“I always welcome aviary visitors! Malynne and I used to have a parrot you know. Winslow was his name. She came up with that one---don’t ask me how,” he said with a chuckle. It seemed to Laura Dell that with every day she knew Herbert she continued to find out more and more about him. His life stories never ceased; they came one after the other, like the colorful segments of a magician’s handkerchief. She wondered if she would ever know them all.
“Your apartment, or home I should say, is just beautiful. I don’t feel like I’m in the city at all.” The walls were all painted a light blue, like the color of a robin’s egg without the faint speckling. Sepia photographs were displayed all around her, the faces of Herbert’s cousins, sisters, and of course, Malynne. The smell reminded Laura Dell of her grandparents’ home. What was it about age in a house? It was as if the walls knew they were supposed to take on the scent of Vicks Save and stale crackers. It was lovely.
They shared the leftover dumplings and strawberry salad that Laura Dell had packed for Herbert the night before, but most of their conversation was interrupted by the shrill chirping of the sparrow. After only a few minutes in the apartment, he had grown adjusted and had begun to sing. Soon after, a small grey kitten frolicked into the room.
“Oh Herbert, the kitten!” Laura Dell left her lunch half eaten, to lean down and scoop him up. “No sparrow for lunch today, you cute thing.” She had never considered herself a cat person, but because he belonged to Herbert, she couldn’t’ help but think him special.
Herbert smiled the smile of an adoring father as he watched Laura Dell stroke the
white fur beneath the kitten’s head.
“You two make quite a pair there, my dear.”
“Well look what you’ve done to us! We’ve got a regular zoo on our hands here! In a minute I’m going to have to start calling you Dr. Doolittle instead of Dr. Walters.” They both laughed deep throated belly laughs that caused their sides to ache. It seemed that all the world was at peace inside that blue apartment, and for a few moments, it was. After a while though, Herbert began to yawn and Laura Dell got the impression that it might be time for his afternoon nap. She wondered if Herbert was at all like her own grandfather, who had passed away a few years ago. Every afternoon at exactly three o’clock, he used to undress from his work clothes, put on a full suit of pajamas, and get into bed as if it were nighttime.
“Why don’t I let you get some rest? I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”
“Oh, I’m not that tired; it’s just that my body is giving me the signal that I need to rest up for my big event tonight.”
“Big event?”
“Oh yes, didn’t I tell you? I’m taking a lovely young lady to the theater again. That is, if she’ll accept my invitation.”
“But Herbert, do you really think you should---”
“Now Laura Dell, I’ve got twelve nurses over there at that hospital if I want to be told what I can and cannot do. Let them worry about that.” Despite his assurance, it did worry Laura Dell to think of what might happen while taking Herbert out on a busy Friday night. But still, they had been looking forward to making another visit to the theater.
“Well in that case, I’d be delighted.” She smiled at him, trying to conceal any misgivings about his fragile condition. “Pick you up at seven?”
“Don’t be late!”
“And what show might we be seeing?”
“All in due time my dear. Surprises can be fun, you know.”
At his request, she left the sparrow at Herbert’s, and there was nothing to encumber her light steps on the way back to her apartment. If she had been little again, she might have skipped all the way home. She made up her mind that they would have a good time that night, and that she would not let her protective fears spoil their evening. Herbert had been right. The theater was the best idea he could have had.
Her girlish mood continued as Laura Dell dressed for the special occasion. She found a cocktail dress pushed to the back of her closet that she had worn to a social in college. It was turquoise chiffon and still fit beautifully. Normally, Laura Dell would have worn black or some other muted tone like the other women of Chicago, but with the spring weather and the excitement of their night out and all, she decided it was time to have a little fun. She hoped Herbert would like it too.
By the time she made it up to Herbert’s floor, she found herself almost out of breath. Perhaps the elevator would have been a better decision for her strappy sandaled feet. She was in no mood to let a minor setback like that weight her down though. She went up to his door, and rapped on it with a pompous look on her face, if only for her own entertainment. A few moments went by without any sound from within.
“Herbert? Herbert? It’s Laura Dell.” She tried to keep her voice calm. She didn’t want to alarm him if he was on his way. A few minutes more, and her mind began to race. She pounded harder on his door this time, her hands beginning to shake with every hit. Deciding it was time to use the key Herbert had given her earlier, Laura Dell searched the contents of her purse, halfway hoping that Herbert would throw back the door any moment, catching her in the act.
But no such surprise came. She finally found the small gold key, and inserted into the lock. When she entered the blue apartment the smell that only hours before had greeted her with warm nostalgia now struck her with unfamiliarity. There was no sight or sound of Herbert. She felt like a stranger in his house.
“Herbert? Herbert!” Again, no answer. Only a second later, she began to hear a faint chirp coming from the kitchen. Still hoping Herbert might not have heard her and was perhaps occupied with the bird, she followed the sound. To her dismay she walked in only to find the small wire cage knocked over, the flimsy door still swinging on its hinge. A few feet away the small grey kitten lay crouched over the sparrow, it’s small white teeth gnawing the birds broken foot. Laura Dell’s heart wretched within her. She ran over to scoop up the little bird, which the kitten continued to paw at as she pried its leg out of his teeth. He was at least still alive and would be fine in the cage, for a few minutes at least.
“Herbert! Where are you?” Laura Dell became more frightened than anything, and she began to run towards the back of the apartment, her mind in a frenzy. The bedroom door at the end of the hallway was slightly cracked, and Laura Dell could hear the low hum of the ceiling fan as she approached. It all looked so normal, only she couldn’t get her hand to push the door open. She wanted to run, run all the way back to Siloam, run anywhere but in that room. She knew she had to do it though; if not she, who?
The door creaked as it opened, but Herbert did not stir as the sharp sound sliced the silence in the room. He only lie still, his chest motionless.
“Herbert!” She ran to his bedside, and her eyes were flooded with tears before her hands could reach him. She continued calling his name as if he could hear her, though she knew he could not, at first in a forced whisper, but as she kept repeating it, it grew to a shrill scream. Laura Dell threw herself on him, her sobs becoming muffled in his starched white shirt. His body was still warm, his cologne still fresh. Laura Dell’s dress cascaded around the bed, a waterfall of blue.