There is a sinking weight that settles in his gut as his cousin turns to finish gathering the tea, and he moves back to the table ahead of his cousin. Using his foot to pull the seat out, he turns and sits, easing down with obvious discomfort, yet once seated he is able to relax. He offers a fill to the verbal blank that is left open, “Convenient? Yeah. Something is still drawing people into this mess. She and her second youngest discovered their numbers a couple weeks ago. Apparently the sequences started one day like they did for us but with no identifiable event and with nothing prior except their first changes. Dr. Tilly thinks that she had her first one nearly two decades ago.”

In terms of preserving mental health, Russell may have the right idea.

Rather than avoid it, Benjiro makes one more remark about the matter of seeing a doctor, “If you give me permission, I’ll talk to Dr. Tilly and give her a heads up, then you can call her to make arrangements.”