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“I know.”
“It’s crazy. How could he do it? He killed my daughter.” He reached out blindly and covered her hand on his shoulder. “Our daughter.”
“Our daughter,” she repeated. Yes, in this moment they were bound together as they had never been during Bo
“Do you believe him?”
“Yes.”
“But it doesn’t take the pain away.”
“No, but it takes away some of the horror. I’ve always been afraid that Bo
“He was trying to save her?” Gallo’s eyes were moist. “Like he tried to save me. He did save me, Eve.”
“But he didn’t save—”
“Hurts…” Da
“Yes.” Gallo took his hand. “But I’ll take care of you.”
“How could you do that? You’re just a kid. Give me a minute, and I’ll get up and get us back to the cabin.”
Did he think he was back at that cabin in Wisconsin where he’d taken Gallo so many times? Eve wondered.
But Da
“Yes, I do.”
He suddenly tensed. “The demons. You have to keep the demons from finding her.”
“I have her safe. Forever.”
“But I have to help. I have to—” He began to cough, and a rivulet of blood flowed out of the corner of his mouth.
He was dying, Eve realized. There was no doubt in her mind. “I don’t need you. My Bo
“No, it’s my job.” His head was thrashing back and forth. “I have to do it. It doesn’t matter if I’m afraid. I have to do it.”
“I’ll do it for you,” Gallo said thickly. “Just rest.”
Da
“I know you did.”
“I failed you. I failed her.” His eyes closed. “Go away.”
“No.”
“Go away.” He jerked his hand away from Gallo’s. “I don’t want you. You make me feel— Go away.”
Eve couldn’t stand it any longer. She turned and moved a few yards from Da
“Take him away, Mama.”
“Bo
“Take my father away. They’re both hurting too much. I can’t help him.”
Eve hesitated, then strode back to Gallo. “Come on,” she said unevenly. “Leave him.”
“No.”
“Leave him.” She stared him in the eye with all the force of her entire will. “He won’t need you. I promise.”
Gallo gazed at her in bewilderment, then slowly got to his feet. “He’s dying, Eve.”
She nodded. “But he’s hurting because you’re here with him. He’s full of regret and guilt and pain. Let him go, John.” She took his hand and drew him a few yards from Da
Gallo stiffened. “Bo
Did he sense her, too? Eve wondered.
No, he could see her. She was here.
Bo
Her expression …
Compassion, tenderness, sadness.
“What are you doing, Bo
But Bo
“Ted.”
Da
“Because you won’t listen to me.” Bo
“No. I want you to go away.”
“Because you’re afraid of me?” Bo
“You don’t understand.”
“I understand that you’re afraid that I’m angry with you, that I want to hurt you.”
“Yes, because you think that I’m the one who hurt you. You don’t believe it was the demon.”
“No, because I don’t believe in demons.” She took Da
He shuddered and tried to pull away.
“No, hold my hand, and the fear will go. You’re not afraid of me, you’re afraid of the darkness. You’ve been in darkness for a long time and haven’t been able to break free of it. Sometimes it got lighter, then when you weren’t expecting, it came back. Isn’t that right?”
“And then the demons came.”
“But it’s light now, and you can see in every corner. Everything is bright and clear and beautiful. And there are no demons. There will never be demons again.”
He was gazing into her eyes. “You promise.”
“I promise.”
Silence. “You’re not angry with me.”
“I’ve never been angry with you. Why should I? I always knew that you meant no harm, that it was love that made you take me that day. Love for my father, even love for me. I tried so hard to tell you.”
“I … hurt you. Forgive … me. I wanted to say that to you, but it was too late. Everything was too late.”
“It’s never too late. You’ll see. I’ll help you.”
“Will you?”
“Shall I show you?”
Silence.
Then a brilliant smile lit his face. “It starts again? It’s a long road, a hard road, but I can make the ending different. I can begin again.”
“Is that what you saw? It’s different all the time. Beautiful but different.” She leaned closer, and whispered, “Now go to sleep. It’s time. Don’t be afraid. I’ll be there for you. I won’t let you get lost.” She smiled luminously. “I’ve learned so many things, Ted. You’ll learn them, too. Just hold my hand. Don’t let me go.”
“Bo
He closed his eyes.
Love, so much love …
Eve could feel the tears ru
And then Bo
“My God.” Gallo was moving back to Da
But Da
* * *
EVE DIDN’T FOLLOW GALLO. This was a moment of good-bye between Gallo and his uncle. She was shaken and confused, and she needed to be with Joe. She turned toward the edge of the clearing.
Joe was standing at the tree line, his gaze on Da
“Or the begi
“Yes, maybe not the way I wanted it.” His hand stroked her hair. “How are you doing?”
“Mixed-up. Happy, sad, angry. Bo
She could feel him nod but didn’t lift her head. She wanted to stay here hidden in his arms. “But I can’t hate him. All these years, and I can’t hate him. Because she never hated him. From the begi
“Yes.” He was silent a moment. “Do you remember that first week after Bo
“Yes, they were all disasters.”
“Except for one. That vicious woman who claimed to be a psychic and said that she’d seen Bo
“She just wanted to hurt me.”
“Yes, but she said Bo
Memories of that night were flooding back to Eve. “Even then, Bo