When he first noticed the postings he waited at the bus stop until he spied Betty trudging home from the hospital. She didn’t look up until she was close, though she had seen his shape, and without really looking, had known it was Simon. Only a mother can identify her children by their gestures and posture alone.

“So you’re moving.”

“Who told you that?”

Simon jerked his head at the demo notice on the bus stop.

“You’re moving less you plan on livin in a vacant lot.”

“Rojta sold it to make a gas station.”

“Asshole.”

“You care about that house? Woulda thought you’d be glad to see it gone. Even before Lester. Even before all that you never did like to spend much time under that roof.”

“His roof. Didn’t like to spend my time under his roof.”

“We made it ours, Simon.”

“Not so long as we were payin him.” Simon loaded the word “pay” so full with spite that Betty took a step back.

“So where you goin?” he asked.

“Figured I’d move back up north.”

“There ain’t nothin there no more.”

“I still got it in me. I’ll figure somethin out. Besides, it’ll get Lincoln out of the city.”

“He’s comin with, then?”

“Where else he gonna go? Don’t know if he’ll like it. Too slow some days, too fast others.”

“I seen Vera.”

Betty rolled her eyes.

“How she look?”

Simon shrugged. “Looks like Vera eleven years older and thirty pounds fatter.”

“She ask about Lincoln?”

Simon shook his head. “He know who she is?”

“Never told him,” said Betty. “She don’t wanna know him, ain’t gonna keep him, then I ain’t gonna make it worse. I’m the only mamma he knows.”

Simon looked around, his gaze aimless. “He’s a good kid, Ma.”

“He’ll be all right if Boo and them don’t make him crazy.”

“He’s a good kid. I gotta go.”

“You comin by?”

“Didn’t know if I should.”

“Too late for should. Just do it.”

Simon nodded assent and she continued up the sidewalk. He watched her take the steps, and though she wasn’t more than fifty-two, she pushed herself up wearily. She’s old, he thought, suddenly she is struggling with steps. She’s got old overnight.

He beats the crews but is late coming over. Betty already packed what she could into the back of Boo’s car while he was “on the town,” gave the rest away, and the next day, with Boo bloodshot but steady behind the wheel, headed north. There were no drawn out good-byes to place or people, no last ditch effort at repair between Betty and Simon. She had no regrets, as far as Simon could tell, about the promised demise of the house. Betty simply folded that moment into the next and looked hard at trying to start again on the reservation.