“Why did you come to India for his surgery?” Jennifer asked, holding her breath. If Lucinda was capable of fielding such a question about a decision that had it been different, her husband might still be alive, Jennifer was confident there would be no holds barred as far as other questions were concerned.

“It’s simple: We didn’t think we could afford a knee transplant stateside.”

“I think it was the same with my grandmother,” Jennifer said. She was pleased. Although there was a slight catch in Lucinda’s voice, there were no tears. “Tell me,” Jennifer continued, “how have you found the Queen Victoria Hospital? Have they been easy to deal with? Are they professional? I mean, the hospital itself looks fantastic, which you can’t say about the neighborhood.”

Lucinda offered another one of her soft chuckles, which Jennifer was beginning to think was one of her idiosyncrasies, particularly the way she tried to hide the smile with her hand. “Isn’t all that trash just terrible? The hospital staff, including the doctors, act as if they just don’t see it, especially the child beggars. Some of them are demonstrably ill.”

“I’m equally mystified. But how have you been treated by the staff?”

“Excellent, at least at first.”

“How do you mean?”

“When we first got here, we were treated extremely well. Just look at this hotel.” Lucinda gestured around the restaurant. “I’ve never stayed in a hotel this nice. It was the same at the hospital. In fact, the service at the hospital reminded us of a hotel. Herbert specifically said so.”

Mentioning her husband so casually made Lucinda pause for a moment. She cleared her throat. Jennifer let her take a moment. “But it was a bit different this morning.”

“Oh?” Jennifer questioned. “How was it different?”

“They are frustrated with me,” Lucinda said. “Everything was fine until they insisted I make a decision whether to cremate or embalm. They said I had to do it right away. When I said I couldn’t since my husband refused to discuss it out of superstition, they tried to force me. When I told them my two boys were coming and that they would decide, the hospital representative said they could not wait for someone to come all the way from America. They needed to know today. I could tell they were truly upset.”

Now it was Jennifer’s turn to chuckle. “I’m in the same circumstance,” she said, “and they are irritated at me for the same reason.”

“That’s a coincidence.”

“I’m beginning to wonder about that,” Jennifer said. “Where is your husband’s body?”

“It’s in a cooler someplace. I’m not really certain.”

“It’s probably in one of two walk-in refrigerators in the basement near the staff cafeteria. That’s where my granny is while we wait.”

“Why are you waiting?”