Erin sat in a chair along the wall, a knee-length denim skirt pulled up the left side exposing her stump. The spaghetti straps of the black top exposed the shoulders and a small remnant of the right arm. She watched Casey attach the peg leg to the dark-blue carbon fiber socket. In the background, an electric saw buzzed though a plaster mold and in the other part of the shop, a phone rang with no one moving to answer it.
"Ready," Casey said as she stood the completed peg leg on the rubber tip at the end of the titanium shaft.
Erin stood and hopped six times, her stump swinging to help with the balance and the hem of the skirt flopping in the process. She rolled the socket liner in place over the stump and put the socket on. Balanced lightly on one foot, then applying weight to the peg leg, she looked at Casey. "Much better. That old socket was becoming un-wearable."
"I like the color."
"Yeah-h. Too bad I hide in pants it at work." She leaned closer and kissed Casey deeply on the mouth letting a hand touch a breast. It was not the first time and Casey casually pulled her closer.
Thelma, standing nearby, coughed. "Sorry." Casey pulled back and turned around. A slight blush covered Thelma's face. "There's a phone call." She knew it was silly to react that way, she had seen them before. Now she felt her body grow warm from the sight.
"Thanks again for the new socket." With a smooth, yet stiff-legged gait, Erin walked towards the door. Thelma followed and held the door for her. "How's the new stump?"
"Been nearly a month and it's wonderful. Jack's thrilled too. We get stares. Not often, you see a couple where both are missing a leg. If they only knew why." She giggled. The door closed behind them and they both made their way across the parking lot to Erin's car. "Casey's going to make me a peg. That is just the coolest looking thing." She moved backwards on her crutches and watched Erin awkwardly get in the car then roll the window down.
"We should have lunch," Erin said before blowing a kiss.
Thelma nodded and waved as the car backed out of the parking place. The sun felt good and the morning was warm. She sat on the curb. The denim jeans pant leg folded neatly behind and tucking over the waistband provided a little additional padding for one hip.
Casey walked across the parking lot, the sun reflecting off the metal pylon of the prosthetic leg with each step. "Such a great day," she said stopping in front of her.
"Sorry, didn't mean skip out on work." She laughed and picked her crutches up before starting to stand.
"It's okay. No one is coming until three."
"Mack, right?"
"Double below the knee and left below the elbow. One of the leg sockets isn't fitting very well. I think I can make a simple change and take care of that while he waits."
"Is he going to get something for the arm?"
"Doesn't sound like it. His older son is seeing Robert tomorrow about having a trim."
"What, below elbow to above?"
"Yup. Sam's excited about it. Mack too." She turned.
"Be there in a minute," Thelma said watching Casey walk back. The tops of her crutches rested on the curb beside her, the tips pointing towards the door. Her eyes looked up along the blackened glass in the door, to the number above it - 3256. There was no sign naming the small prosthetics company. Casey only worked with people that had been to see her husband. Robert's only patients at one office were people, like Casey, like herself, and all his relatives, that had wanted to have an amputation. Erin was his nurse for that office which was open only one day a week. He had another office for other surgical patients open the other four days.
She laid back on the grass strip between her and the sidewalk along the curving street though the office park. An occasional car or truck went by, but she found herself drifting into thoughts of lying on the grass at the lake where she had lived, where she had met Jack - the amputee she married just before her amputation.
"Thelma!" Casey called holding the door open.
Thelma stood and placed the crutches under each arm then made her way across the parking lot. "Huh?"
"Olivia, a new patient of Robert's, is coming over to talk about prosthetics. She only had her surgery last week so she is no where close to being ready."
"What'd she have?"
"Her left arm, about midway between the wrist and elbow. She's forty-four, single, and Robert said a real knockout and loaded."
They had just passed though the small lobby and front office into the workshop when the buzzer on front door sounded. "Olivia," the woman said, the door closing behind her. The white cotton dress lay perfectly over her tall, slim, nicely proportioned body. The neck of the dress was cut deeply enough that it was clear that she wore no bra, yet her breasts filled the bodice perfectly. The hem ended evenly just above the knees of tanned and perfect legs without hosiery. She would have been tall even without the black high-heal shoes. The fingers, long and slender, with nails pained a pleasant shade of red, extended only from her left hand. The right hand not there, the forearm ending below the elbow, a small white gauze bandage crossed the end of the stump.
She took a few steps, heals making a slight clicking sound against the unpainted cement floor with each. "I'm here to see Casey." The right arm rose, the elbow flexed, and the stump moved as if to explain why, then dangled beside her.
"I'm Thelma. Let me get her." Her eyes scanned the woman an extra moment before beginning to turn away.
There was no need. Casey now stood beside Thelma and gave Olivia the same thorough study. "I'm Casey." She held out her left hand.
"Must be awkward to do that," Olivia said. "Kind of you." It had only been a week and she still found herself reaching out with the hand no longer there.
"I have several others without the right hand and I know it is polite to extend my left hand in that case. Can I get you some coffee? Have a seat." Casey said pointing to a chair beside the desk.
"No. I just had some. I understand you...." Her elbow flexed as she paused and sat.
"Yes, both of us actually. Robert is my husband. Thelma is married to his nephew. No use hiding anything when Robert is someone's surgeon." Casey giggled, and sat with her ankle resting over the prosthetic knee. "I'd started in prosthetics before I met him." She fussed with her hair. "He did my amputation. My business is with patients of his that wanted what we all wanted." She paused and looked again at different parts of Olivia then back at her face. "How can I help?"
"I know it is too soon...." Her stump moved. "But I will want an arm, a hook probably. I don't know."
"Give yourself a month, maybe a bit more. I'd be happy to help. I don't take any insurance though."
"No problem. I was interested in finding what the options might be ... ah, appearances, terminal devices, and such." She lightly scratched at the end of her stump. "Hooks, cosmetic hands ... things like that."
Thelma leaned against the wall and watched as Casey pulled a pamphlet from a shelf. "A lot of choices." She flipped it open to a page. "Have you thought about something like this?" A finger pointed at a woman fitted with a hook at the end of a flesh colored arm.
"My friend has suggested something like that would be nice." Her eyes glanced first at the picture then Casey.
"Friend?" Thelma asked moving closer to be involved in the conversation.
