The Night I Died, She Chose Him

madman, the tires sq

st the door, his small

whispering reassura

. I'm here. Some

lies. Who

ow, on a dirt track leadi

of shadows and old,

e car near the edge of th

e. The silence w

n, a predatory g

the li

round to Finn's side,

Finn out

ing openly n

't hurt me. I'll be goo

Oh, I know you wo

towards the edg

t least fifty feet to

eamed, digging

. He was enjoying thi

Finn over

, his hands scrabbling fo

can fly, little bi

I could have touched him,

reaming, clawing, bu

ppeared down the track

an f

under hi

e edge, just as an old pick

rmer, probably ch

ously at Julian's car and the t

posed his face int

d at th

My... nephew... got a little too

gesture that looked patern

o speak. He just clung t

, seemingly satis

was out of sight, Jul

Finn awa

" he hissed. "But don'

back to the car

towards town,

n huddled in the sea

dn't take

ch of road near the lake, no

nn out of th

t talking back to your elders," Juli

and dragged him

kety, some of th

ced Finn o

e scruff of his ne

m over the da

with the fishes, F

now, a high, thin s

m, closer and clo

plashed. The

can't swim!"

ghed. "Eve

nn's head

bbles. Finn'

was d

an again and again, a

tiffened. He'd

ther down the shore, w

led Finn up, sputt

on his concer

oy! You fell in! Lucky

back, hard enough to

king, shivering Fi

some dry clothes," Julian said,

e to ou

in the drivewa

in me. She would see Fin

rried Fin

chen, on the phone.

g wet, shivering, his

she gasped, dro

d, shaking his head. "Gave me quite a scare. He w

r the truth, but he was shaking

aura cried, r

nt, she wa

n a towel, her fa

saving him," she said

nything for you, Laura. An

spirit cold

eved him

s. She didn't see the bruises forming o

hat Julian wan

oy. A hero

cough, a deep,

er him, getting

ed, his expr

won.

y bedroom, to my st

was cold.

or hours. She hadn't

d if her husband

th Julian. Too busy

me, years ago, wh

ad stayed up all night with hi

good mother the

appened to

eaten away at her soul, leaving this

ightstand. Me, Laura, and a bab

e had be

real? Or had I bee

secret longing for Julian,

gument we'd had, months

an, a new apprent

e of paying too muc

nded. But it ha

y exploited that,

just a placeholder? A comfortable opt

oed in the silenc

't matt

ared, it was dead. As de

oncern no

n mortal

ther was h

rd Finn bein

tucked

sweetie," she said. "Mr. Van

. He just turned h

ed and lef

. He cried silentl

ne. So ter

d. The hous

rd a noise

aping

He was s

something in

ent. My

read fi

he plan

ly hours of the mor

ura. Not

ly rounds by the lake, had s

nn's small, di

arks on the pier, the

led the

ulian must have dumped him after the pier incident, probably int

scious, suffering

rah, stayed with him, wrapped him in he

at the hos

n called by

gurney carrying Finn, he

was another one of his "

ven recogniz

crossed her face as she

at her elbow, whispe

fighting fo

her didn't