Page 283 of Mountain Grump

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Flyer for a roof estimate. Offer for a credit card. Letter from Uncle Jack.

I stop.

Frozen in place.

Letter from Uncle Jack.

I grip the corner of the envelope and pull it free.

It’s a plain white envelope. Like the others he sent me. But this one went through the mail.

The writing is all done in his neat handwriting.

My name and this address are there.

The name on the return address label is his.

But it’s not for this house. The return address is from another city in Colorado.

“What…”

I shift my thumb and look at the date stamped onto the envelope.

This was put in the mail just a few days ago.

Someoneput this in the mail just a few days ago.

Part of me doesn’t want to read it. Because I’m afraid of what it might say. What demand he might make next.

But I can’tnotopen it.

I glance up the driveway to the house.

Not wanting to wait, I tuck the other mail under my arm, and I rip the envelope open.

Then, slowly, I unfold the paper from inside.

My lovely Matty,

This is my last letter to you.

I hope everything has worked out exactly as I planned.

You and Ethan really are perfect for each other. And it might take you both a moment to see that, but three months is enough time.

After three months, you’ll know.

Sometimes it’s the little things.

The laughs. The meals together. The hand holding.

Sometimes it’s the big things.

The moments that feel like they might’ve saved your life.

Usually, it’s everything.

The big and the little. The explosive and the slow.

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