When Bella arrived at Mr. Henderson's house, the doctor Nancy had called had already arrived. He confirmed that Ben Henderson was gone. Nancy sat weakly in a chair not far from the bed. She looked devastated and sad.
"I thought he just had no appetite," she said hoarsely. "I coaxed him, but he said he wanted to sleep for a while. Half an hour later I came to check on him. He didn't wake up and seemed so still. When I checked his pulse, he was gone."
"He seemed quite cheerful when we had dinner together, didn't he?" said Bella. "I can't believe he died."
Not long after, Reef arrived. Their other friends followed. Mariel came with Brenda, as their husbands were out of town. Tom came with his best chessboard.
"I'll put it in his coffin if I can," he said. "I promised Mr. Henderson I'd play chess with this one."
Mariel hugged Bella with tears in her eyes. "What happened? Why did he suddenly pass away?"
