"Oh, he had taken May down to the beach.
They weren't far off."
She sighed deeply and continued to prepare
dinner, talking as she went to the stove.
"They got into a political discussion and the
judge had an argument with Congressman Dunlap
about taxes. They were getting pretty riled up. No one
noticed Jacob rubbing his chest and taking deep
breaths until suddenly--" She paused and looked at
the wall as if the scene were being projected onto it.
"Suddenly, he struggled to his feet, made a strange
guttural sound, and fell forward on the grass. The
congressman was the first at his side. He had been in
the army and had some training in CPR. Jacob complained about pressure on his chest and pain up his arm to his shoulder. The congressman said it looked like a heart attack and we should get an
ambulance quickly.
"I was no good to anyone. I couldn't move. My
legs turned right to butter. All I could do was hold
onto the chair and cry.
"But Olivia. You should have seen her,
Melody," she said with a wide smile of appreciation
and admiration on her lips. "She stood up and like a
general, coolly dictated commands," Aunt Sara said
and then demonstrated, pointing this way and that. "Samuel, go make the phone call. Nelson, go
get a pillow and a few blankets from the maid. She
even told the congressman's wife to pour some water
for Jacob. In minutes, everyone was moving about,
doing something. Then she turned to me," Aunt Sara
said, imitating Grandma Olivia's expression. "Sara, get a grip on yourself. Go get the
children immediately,' she ordered, and I tell you
when she turned her eyes on me, I felt my buttery legs