Hugo never asked.
He assumed I had enough to live comfortably and little beyond that.
I let him.
I never asked him for rent, groceries, or utilities.
Years earlier, he slipped two thousand dollars into my purse after I mentioned our community food pantry needed supplies.
He apparently thought the money was for me.
I spent every dollar on groceries for Norma’s neighborhood association.
He never asked.
I never told him.
That was our relationship in miniature.
He saw a simple older woman who sometimes needed managing.
He never wondered what else existed.
The morning after his call, I drove to Hugo’s house.
I usually rehearsed difficult conversations because I feared sounding emotional.
This time I rehearsed nothing.
Hugo and Carla had lived there five years. I knew the house well because, when Hugo lost his job after they bought it, I had quietly paid for part of the renovation.
