Maddy just stood there, on the porch, confused.  She hesitated, then took one step back, but no more.  She wasn't gazing in the eyes of her beloved artist.  As she searched her thoughts, her feet grew heavy, fixed to the old wooden porch boards. 

The figure in the doorway stared back, looking her up and down, and then stepped out towards Maddy's frozen frame.  A thick hand with bulbous knuckles and gnarled fingers reached out towards her. “You must be Madison.” 

The old lady’s face softened as she continued to extend her hand to greet the visitor. “I am.”  Maddy was still a bit confused.  Here stood a woman in her eighties or nineties, hunched over, with severely thinning gray hair, not the man she had fallen in love with. 

“You are prettier in person.  Come in, child.”  “But…” Maddy retorted. “Honey, didn’t Jared ever tell you about me?”  The old woman grasped Maddy’s right hand tightly and pulled her toward the threshold.  Her mouth smiled wide showing a few missing teeth, as her deep black eyes twinkled behind sagging brows. “I thought both sets of his grandparents were…”  Maddy stopped herself.  It couldn’t be polite to talk about one being thought dead if they weren’t.   

“Dead? Why yes, honey.  But, you see, I am not his grandmother.”  Her face lit up and she laughed.  A pleasant laugh that calmed Maddy’s nerves a bit.  “Now, come on in sweetheart.” 

Maddy was still quite confused as she found herself allowing the old woman to lead her by the hand down a dark hallway away from the sunlit porch.  All of her things were still in her rented Toyota, and she started getting excited again.  She just knew Jared would be in the back of the house working on a new and brilliant sculpture.   

“Are you hungry, Madison?”  Her hostess was still pulling her into the back recesses of the old farmhouse. “No, Ma’am.”  She responded politely, although she had hardly heard the question.  She was now mesmerized by the thought of seeing her lover in person, touching his face, and being engulfed in his embrace. “You will want to have something to eat.”  The woman let go of her hand as they entered a large room with heavy drapes drawn shut and a few dim lights scattered about.  

Maddy’s eyes searched the dark paneled space, quickly panning for Jared.  She took in a large overstuffed couch with an ugly floral print, a short brown leather chair severely cracked with age, and a few side tables scattered about.  There was no rug on the bare wooden floor, no books, no pictures or paintings on the wall, and no television.  And, there was no Jared. “Have a seat.  You must be exhausted.  How long was your flight?” 

The old woman shuffled around a counter that separated the large room from a small kitchen.  She ran one of her twisted fingers across the top of the bar, her finger tip sliding its full width.  She checked it.  No dust.  “Good thing,” she thought.  

“But…”  Maddy was more confused than ever.  Where was Jared? He is expecting me, why is he not here?  This is his home, isn’t it?  And, who are you? 

“Ah…Jared.”  The woman turned to the old white gas stove and struck a match as she turned a knob.  She fired up a back burner and placed a small brass tea pot upon it.  “I don’t want to upset you, after you made such a long trip and all.”  She was still facing the stove with the large hump on her back facing Maddy.  Her pale blue dress was not much more than a nightgown, thinning and tattered on the edges.  Beneath her bare skinny legs, she wore black cloth slippers, much too large for her veined, shriveled feet.  

Standing there, Maddy’s worst fears began to materialize.  Jared had changed his mind.  He didn’t want to see her.  Or worse, he had met someone else!  No…he was married!  But he had just emailed her this morning, wishing her a safe trip.  She knew he loved her, she could tell how desperate he was to be with her!  No, it was something else.  What was it? 

The old woman turned and stared at her houseguest, “He has been hurt.”  Her eyes reflected her pain, deep down inside as a tear welled up she slowly made her way back out of the kitchen.  “I don’t know how to tell you, honey.” 

“Oh, no!”  Maddy shuddered.  “Is he okay?  What happened?  Is he in the hospital?”  Her arms were flailing as she started to pepper the old lady with even more questions. “He will be okay,” she responded, “He will be okay.”  The elder of the two took Maddy’s hands in hers to calm her down.  “It will be okay, honey.”“What happened?  Where is he?”  Maddy was not calming down.  She couldn’t have been more upset.  Today was the day for her dreams to come true.  Today was to be the culmination of six long years of waiting, careful not to fall in love again too fast.  This was her day.  This was her moment.  What had happened in the past few hours to ruin it? 

“He is here.  He is resting in his bedroom.  I came over as soon as he called.  I barely made it.  I wasn’t planning the trip, you see.  My truck almost ran out of gas.”  The woman was still holding her hands, her voice was calming, her eyes were caring, her tone was genuine.  Maddy began to relax a little.  Tears filled her eyes as she returned the old woman’s gaze.  The woman’s tears had dried up, and her dark eyes began to twinkle again.  

 “He is okay?”  Maddy managed to stammer.  Her body went limp as hope began to flow through her once again.  “What happened?” With that, the woman turned abruptly and went back into the kitchen.  The teapot was starting to whistle.  As she turned off the flame, she quietly responded, “He will be okay.” 

“What on earth happened?”  Maddy was starting to tense up again.  “Please, I must know!” 

“I will let him explain.” Maddy was taken aback, but managed to clear her head enough. 

“I want to see him.” 

“You will, honey.” 

Maddy was feeling frustrated, perhaps angry with this old woman, whoever she was.  “I want to see him…now.” 

“Oh.”  The old woman poured a two cups of hot water.  “All I have is Earl Gray.  Is that okay with you?” 

“I don’t…”  The younger of the two almost forgot her manners.  “Okay.  Yes, that will be fine.”  She started looking around.  She would simply find Jared’s bedroom and go see him. 

“It will take a minute for the tea to steep.  I guess we can go back and check on him now.”  The woman sighed.  She started hobbling off into a corridor on the other side of the kitchen.  “Are you coming?” 

Maddy noticed a tinge of resentment in the old lady’s voice.  But she quickly followed her guide into another, even darker, section of the old farmhouse.  Her hopes were high.  Perhaps he wasn’t hurt so badly.  He must just be resting.  He would be so glad to know she was here.  Her moment was soon to be realized.  Her heart was racing inside of her chest.  As they turned a corner to start down another hall, the old woman said nothing. 

She was breathing heavily and shuffled her feet slower and slower, reluctantly coming to stop in front of an old whitewashed bedroom door.  Her left hand rested on the beveled glass knob.  She paused, and then turned it.   

The door creaked as the old woman pushed through the opening.  There was barely more light in this room than the hallway, but enough for Maddy to see a figure lying in the bed on the opposite side of the room.  The small bed was narrow and set atop a metal frame, with ornate pewter head and footboards.  A large bedspread covered the man, the back of his head resting on a white feather pillow.  She couldn’t see his face from the doorway, but he appeared to be asleep. 

“Jared.”  The woman announced.  “She is here.”   

 Nothing. “I am sorry, he must be asleep.  We should go back.”  Maddy was now embarrassed that she pushed the old lady to take her to him.   

“No, I am awake.”  A quiet, soothing voice answered from the bed.  It was a strong voice, but gentle.  Maddy was relieved and excited.  Her heart was beating hard now, her adrenaline was pulsing through her athletic frame. 

The old woman turned her head to look at Maddy.  Her face was expressionless.  Was she angry with her?  Was she being overprotective?  Was she…?  Who was she?  Maddy had to know.   

“Maddy.  I am so glad you made it safely.”  The man’s rich, smooth voice felt so good.  The sound swirled around her as she soaked it in. 

“Jared!”  The young woman ran past the old woman to his bedside.  But what she saw there shocked her!  His head was completely wrapped in bandages…covering his entire face! 

“Oh my God!”  She knelt down on the floor next to the man she loved so intensely.  Years of emotions building up, conversation after conversation over the internet, she was overwhelmed.  “What happened?  What happened, Jared?  Oh, sweetie!” 

The old woman joined her at Jared’s bedside, standing beside her.  Her face was gentle and sweet again, “He will be okay.” 

Maddy reached out and grabbed Jared’s left hand with both of hers.  She caressed his large palm and wondered what could have happened to him that morning.  As she rubbed his hand and looked past the bandages into his dark brown eyes, she began to notice that his hand seemed to belong to a man much older than she knew Jared to be.  He was just two years older than her, how could his hands be so aged and worn? Was it perhaps from years of creating sculptures?  She looked down to better examine his hand.  They looked weathered and calloused from years of work, and there was a long straight scar running from his wrist to the base of his middle finger. 

As Maddy looked back to Jared’s eyes, he told her, “it will be okay.”  She looked into his eyes for more.  His voice was so soothing, he was so gentle.  This is the man I will marry.  I love him.  She could see he was trying to smile beneath the cloth that concealed him.  “I see you have met my mother.”