“We might be pissed at you, Ike,” Joe said. “But trust me, we’ll get over it. Dottie is right. We’re friends here. Even Adam and Jerry, whether they want to admit it or not. And that gives us all quite a bit of leeway. By the time the next game rolls around, what happened tonight will be only a memory.”
“I hope that’s true,” I said. “You don’t know how much I want that to be true.”
“It will be,” Jeffrey said softly. “There’s no reason for it not to be.”
“How much time did — excuse me — does Dottie have left?” I directed my question mainly to Adam.
“It’s a fast-moving disease,” Adam said, “and it was caught very late. Based on her most recent tests, I would say a month at best, two if she’s at all lucky.”
“And is there any chance she might beat it?” I asked.
“No,” Adam said. “I can’t lie to you about that. There’s no chance at all. What Dottie has is terminal.”
“And did you all agree to help me?” I asked. “To do all the things she asked you to do for me?”
“What kind of friend would say no to something like that?” Jerry said. “We would do anything Dottie asked. And to be honest, we would have done it even if she hadn’t asked us.”
“We’re all you have,” Joe said. “We’re all what each of us has. The poker game is just a good excuse to get together. We’re family. This is it, all of it, right here in this very room. No matter how crazy or stupid some of us get at times, we are all here and will always be here for each other.”
“Dottie was right,” I said. “You are my friends and my family. She always could see that in a much clearer light.”
“She told me if we could keep it all together, then none of us would ever be alone,” Tony said. “And there’s no reason why we should ever not let it be so.”
“Would you help me then with Dottie?” I asked. “See that she gets buried properly, with respect and with care.”
“You know we will,” Jeffrey said. “You don’t even need to ask.”
“Dottie’s in the bedroom,” I told them. “I’m going to take a few minutes alone with her. Once we’re ready, I’ll call for you. I will need your help then.”
“We’ll be here for you,” Steve said. “Count on it.”
“I will,” I told them. I eased out of my chair and began to make my way toward the back bedroom and the bleeding and ruined body of my wife, Dottie.
“Believe me, I will.”