The old house seemed quite, wind whistling through the chinks in the windows, the floors silent with no creaking footsteps or hushed radio. It seemed desolate. Abraham wouldn’t wish for his father back, not for one moment, but the house was an empty thing now. Abraham didn’t like spending more time than needed in it, preferring to take walks around the downtown docks, talk to the men, see the gulls wheel around the salty air. The doctor said it would be good for him to walk, it would strengthen his heart more. Abraham had his coat and cap on, door open, when a shadow filled it. It was good thing he had been walking so much, because if his heart was much weaker it would have stopped.
Eli lingered in the doorway, the same dark hair and pale face, but Abraham thought for a heart-stopping moment that Eli had actually died and this was just a shade haunting him. The illusion broke as soon as he thought it, but Eli remained looking haunted, he could see his brother’s eyes darting all around, gazing at him like he was waiting for Abraham to recognize him. As if Abraham wouldn’t know him blind. “Eli... You’re home. At last.” The words came out as hardly more than a whisper, Abraham felt too frozen to move.
