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“Here’s your coffee, Jamison.” Her voice was soft, so the name sounded like “Jame-son”.

“You get my eggs and toast?” Jamison didn’t eat much these days, but today he wanted some nourishment.

“Yes, dear. It’s right here.” Purla set the tray down on his beside table. She sighed, seeing it was already piled high with tobacco and cigarette butts. She had just cleaned it yesterday. “Jamison,” she began, “You need to go to the hospital.”

“For what?” He slurped his coffee, eyeing her in the darkened room.

“You’re not well, Jamison. You realize this is the first time this week you’ve eaten?”

“You telling me when to eat now?” Jamison set his coffee saucer down. He always poured his coffee into a saucer, then drank it from there. Purla instinctively drew back.

“And you so thin these days,” she said. “If anything was to happen to you, they’d be looking at putting me in jail for neglect.” Her voice caught.

“Won’t be my problem,” he said, sitting up. Purla felt the rough texture of the wall behind her. She had meant to stay in the doorway. Always keep a clear line of quick escape. If the years had taught her nothing else, they had taught her that.

“And don’t start that fake *** crying. You know I hate crying. Keep on. I’ll give you something to cry about.” For a man in his late seventies, Jamison’s movements weren’t fast. They were sudden. His slender body was out of the bed before she could reach the door frame.

Jamison had never been a big man, but he had always been strong. Years of physical labor, when he chose to work, left him well muscled.

“I bet you don’t cry when you out having all them men for free.” He gripped her face with his thumb, squeezing into her jaw. She felt the upper plate of her dentures dislodge. “Think you gonna tell me what to do, do you?” Purla felt an explosion of pain the ball of her cheek. Her head snapped to the left, just in time to meet the forehand slap that set her other cheek on fire.

“I’ll get you some fresh coffee,” she murmured. She didn’t dare touch her face. That would only make him angrier.