While Silas Thorne drank his coffee, he watched Joyce Monroe. Having already eaten breakfast, she was on the balcony, hanging dyed silk threads to dry. She was on the phone with Preston Monroe, telling him she was busy with her entry for a competition and wouldn't be coming into the office today.
"...Don't sit for too long. It's not good for you," Preston Monroe reminded her.
"I know."
"Silas has put his company on hold to spend all this time in Graymoor with you. You two need to get along well."
"Okay."
The phone was on speaker, so Silas Thorne could clearly hear the conversation between father and daughter. After a few more words of advice, just as Preston Monroe was about to hang up, Joyce Monroe suddenly asked, "Dad, how has Grandma been lately?"
Preston Monroe hadn't expected her to suddenly bring up his mother. He paused for a couple of seconds. "Why do you ask?"
