I couldn’t shake the dream and Mama’s strange reaction, so on my way to work I called Maggie just to get her impression of the whole thing. She was still at home, as this was her morning off from the hospital. I ducked inside a little bistro that was near my office to get a quick cup of coffee, and after I ordered I made the call.

Maggie, knowing I was with Mama this morning, answered on the first ring. “Hey, babe, how did it go?” she asked. I could hear the excitement in her voice.

“Well, to say the least, it was very strange. I wouldn’t go so far as to say upsetting, but it was strange,” I said.

After a pause, Maggie replied, “That’s nothing new with Mama Vermillion, Jim, but what exactly do you mean? Strange in what way?”

Hearing anxiety in Maggie’s voice was my signal to go slow with this, so I cautiously replied, “She really didn’t want to talk about it, and actually she didn’t really answer me. I told her the dream and then she mumbled something about being tired and asked me to close the shop for her because she needed to go rest. I’ve never seen her like this before but she was visibly upset about something. I pressed her a bit but she just wouldn’t talk to me. I thought maybe we should invite her over or something. Maybe with you there she’ll open up a bit more.”