The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy

Hart is surprised by Mercy’s dirty appearance. Before he can speak, Mercy warns him to be civil for once. Angered, he responds rudely. Mercy ignores him and introduces herself to Duckers. When Zeddie walks in, he and Duckers immediately start flirting. Mercy orders Zeddie to meet Duckers around back to retrieve the body. Then Hart insults Mercy, calling her and other undertakers “a bunch of grubby opportunists” (96). Mercy starts to cry and rushes out of the room. Hart and Duckers leave.

Later, as Hart and Duckers drive back to the hotel, Duckers asks Hart why he is so mean to Mercy. He also suggests that Hart secretly likes Mercy and is afraid to show his interest, for fear that Mercy will reject him. Duckers then declares that he has a date with Zeddie and leaves Hart brooding in the hotel room. Hart reflects that it is difficult to have romantic relationships while working as a marshal.  Feeling lonely, he writes another letter to his unknown pen pal and heads out.

As Hart drives, he recalls his first meeting with Mercy four years ago. A new law had just been enacted that required marshals to take bodies to whichever undertaker was indicated on that person’s key, rather than going to whichever was closest. For the first time, Hart had a body that had to go to a small family-owned business called Birdsall & Son. The moment he entered the lobby, he hated the premises, believing the cheerful decor to be fake and distasteful. In the lobby, a woman wearing a bright yellow dress greeted him cheerfully, and he found himself tongue-tied by her beauty. As they discussed the body, Hart grew more embarrassed by his instant attraction to her, which conflicted with his distaste for her work. He was defensively brusque, and in the face of his hostility, Mercy’s cheerful politeness faded, and she told him not to come back.

Now, Hart shakes free of this memory as he pulls up to Alma’s house and knocks on the door nervously. Since their argument four years ago, Hart has not invited himself to her house unannounced. However, as Alma’s wife, Diane, opens the door and happily invites him, he realizes how much he has missed them.

Hart reflects on the conversation that began his fight with Alma. Four years ago, she told him that he needed to deal with the grief of Bill’s death like an adult. She observed that Hart had idolized Bill because the man was the father Hart never had, but she asserted that Bill was also “a sanctimonious pain in the ass” (111) and a hypocrite. Unable to listen to criticism about his mentor, Hart exploded at Alma, and their friendship has not been the same since.

Now, Alma reminds him that he is in his thirties and needs to grow up. She suggests that he get a new dog. His previous dog, Gracie, was his best friend and only source of comfort after Bill’s death, and Hart does not want to think about replacing her. Diane offers Hart the guestroom, and he falls asleep, wallowing in his loneliness.

At Roy’s house, Zeddie cooks dinner to prepare for a date with Duckers and the family. Mercy is shocked by Zeddie’s skill with cooking. As they clear the table, Duckers questions Mercy about her relationship with Hart. He insists that Hart is soft on the inside despite his brusqueness. Duckers also suggests that Hart likes her, but Mercy rejects this idea. 

The next day, Mercy and Zeddie talk while they work at Birdsall & Son. Zeddie really likes Duckers, and Mercy approves of him. When Horatio arrives with the mail, he hands her another letter from her anonymous pen pal. Shocked, Zeddie teases her about her secret boyfriend. Mercy insists they are only friends and begs Zeddie not to tell anyone.

In a series of letters, Mercy and Hart talk about their lives. They lightheartedly argue about the merits of tea versus coffee. Mercy talks about her family, explaining that she took over the management of her family’s business when her mother died. She also explains the long list of secrets that various family members have asked her to keep. She insists that she does not want to know particulars about her pen pal. They agree that their anonymity allows them to be more honest about other things. In return for Mercy’s candor, Hart writes about his new coworker, who is slowly pushing him out of his curmudgeonly ways. He also talks about his mother and admits that he does little but sleep and work. He wonders if he and his pen pal would like each other if they were to meet in real life. He also warns her that keeping secrets is dangerous, and she should tell her family the truth.

Mercy continues trying to interest Zeddie in undertaking, but he angrily tells her that it is never going to work and announces that he wants to be a chef. He has been offered a two-year unpaid apprenticeship at a restaurant in the neighboring town. Furious, Mercy asks if he really expects the family business to finance his living expenses for another two years. She demands that he tell their father the truth.

As the argument intensifies, Mercy loses her temper and finally announces to the entire family that Zeddie failed his degree, has no intention of taking over the family business, and is determined to become a chef. Shocked, Roy expresses disappointment in Zeddie and admonishes Mercy for keeping secrets. The other secrets then spill out. Zeddie and Lillian are angry that Mercy did not tell them about Cunningham’s offer to buy the business. Mercy tells everyone about Lillian’s pregnancy, and Zeddie tells them about Mercy’s letters from her secret boyfriend. Lillian and Zeddie also accuse Roy of foisting the family business on them all—especially on Mercy, who has had to carry the load and sacrifice her own life to keep the business running. Mercy finally storms out.

She walks to the local temple to pray at the altar for the Warden, “the god of doorways, of exits and leave-takings and endings” (141). She fears that the doors in her life are closing and asks him for guidance. While there, Lillian approaches and asks about the letters, and Mercy explains. Lillian warns her that letters are a “pretty flimsy foundation for a solid relationship” (143). Mercy fears that Lillian is right. That night, she writes a new letter.

One day, Duckers asks Hart to explain the details of what a “drudge cluster” (145) is. Hart warns that most stories are exaggerations, but he offers to show Duckers the truth. Together, they ride to Sector 28 in Tanria, which features a ravine and a meadow. Hart explains that a drudge cluster defines a situation in which 10 or more drudges swarm. Only five confirmed clusters have occurred, and all of them happened in Sector 28. In each incident, they lost good marshals. He warns Duckers to stay out of Sector 28.

Duckers asks if Hart has ever seen a drudge cluster, and Hart reluctantly admits that he lost his first partner, Bill, in a drudge cluster on the meadow, but he does not want to talk about it. Duckers asks why the drudges are more violent there, and Hart lies, claiming not to know. Bassareus arrives with mail. Hart opens his new letter and freezes when he reads that his pen pal wants to meet in person. His pen pal worries that they can only be true friends if they know each other in real life. Hart panics, afraid that she will reject him. Bassareus criticizes him for wanting “a girlfriend without having to put in the work of being a decent person in her presence” (151). Then Bassareus suggests that Hart only has one life to live, so he might as well be brave. Bitterly, Hart considers what life means as a demigod, reflecting that because he fears the prospect of living forever, he has stopped living entirely.