Andrew Gross - Killing Hour

Then she heard a yelp from out back.

‘ Boomer? ’

At his age, Sherry knew a jackrabbit could scare the dog half to death. She left the front door ajar and went back into the kitchen. She wanted to have the cookies done by the time the girls arrived. Get those mamas into the oven . . .

As she got back to the table, her eyes were drawn to the floor.

‘ Boomer! ’

The old dog was on his side, panting, unable to move. Sherry ran over and kneeled beside him. ‘ Poor boy . . . Not now , baby, I’m not ready for this.’ She stroked his face. ‘Krista and Kayla are on their way . . .’

She ran her hand along his neck and drew it back, startled.

Warm, sticky blood was all over her palm.

‘ Boomer, what in God’s name happened? ’

Suddenly she heard the shuffle of footsteps from behind her. She looked up.

Someone was there.

A man was in her doorway. He just stood there, leaning on the door frame.

Her heart almost came up her throat when she realized just who it was. It was the man she had seen at Reg’s Market.

A shiver of fear ricocheted through her. What could he possibly be doing here?

She looked at Boomer, the dog’s blood on her hands, and glared back at him. ‘ What the hell have you done? ’

The man just stood there grinning against the door. ‘Hello, Sherry.’

She stood up, focusing on his face, years tumbling back, like a fog lifting over the pines and the lake coming into view.

Her hand shot to her mouth. ‘ Mal ?’

It had been such a long time ago. Over thirty years, a part of her life she had long buried. Or thought she had. Forever. She never thought she’d see any of them again. Or have to account for what she’d done. She was just a crazy kid back then . . .

‘It’s been a while, huh, doll?’ His dark eyes gleamed.

‘What are you doing here, Mal?’

‘Making amends.’ He winked. ‘Long overdue amends. The master of the house – you remember that, don’t you, Sherry? Well, he’s come home.’

He was grinning, teeth twisted, that same unsettling grin she had seen at the market, tapping something in his palm.

It was a knife. A knife with blood all over it.

Boomer’s blood.

Sherry’s heart started to pound. Her eyes shot to her dog, whose chest had now stopped moving. A chill sliced through her, and with it, a terror she hadn’t known in years.

The man stepped inside, kicking the screen door closed.

‘So tell me’ – he smiled, tap-tap-tapping his blade – ‘what you been up to all these years, hon?’

PART ONE

Chapter 1

A myriad of lights flickered brightly in the distance. The whoosh of the surf cascading against the rocks was only a far-off whisper hundreds of feet below.

From up here, the lights all seemed just like candles to him. Millions of candles! Like the whole world had all come out and assembled before him, an endless procession at his feet.

It made him smile. He had never seen anything more beautiful in his life. He had always wondered what it would be like from up here – the gigantic mound of rock, miles and miles of coastline stretching below.

Now he knew.

You could probably see all the way to LA, the boy imagined. He was no longer a boy really, he was twenty-one – though sometimes he still felt like one.

What are the voices saying to you now?

He stepped out closer to the ledge. ‘They’re saying this is where I was meant to be.’

He had made the climb up hours ago, before it got dark, to be alone with his thoughts. To calm the noise that was always in his head. To see . . . And now it was just so beautiful. And all the voices had quieted except one.

His angel, he called her. The one voice he could trust.

Have you ever seen anything more beautiful? the angel asked him.

‘No, I haven’t.’ He looked down at the lights of the small coastal town. ‘ Never. ’

Waves crashed against the jagged rocks below. His heart picked up excitedly. ‘I can see the whole world.’

Yes, it’s all there for you.

He hadn’t taken his meds today. Usually that made him a little foggy, his thoughts jumbled. But today, maybe for the first time ever, his mind was clear. Completely clear. ‘I feel just like Jesus.’

Maybe you are, his angel answered.

‘Then maybe I should just return from where I came. Maybe God wants me back. Maybe that’s what I’m feeling.’

You’re not meant for this world, the voice replied . You’re smarter. You were destined for greater things. You’ve always known that, right?

Yes. The voice was soothing and close to his ear. His heart began to pound like the surf. There’s only one way to find out . . .

He took another step, closer to the edge, the darkness surrounding him. The breeze brushed against his face. ‘That feels good. I feel good. I feel good about this.’

Just spread your arms , his angel instructed him.

‘Like wings?’ He opened his arms wide. ‘You mean like this?’

Yes, just like that. Now think of heading home. The pain you will no longer be feeling. You see those lights? They’re all so beautiful, aren’t they?

‘They are!’

Beneath him, a piece of the ledge broke loose. It took several seconds until he heard the sound of it breaking apart on the craggy rocks below. He stepped back, fear springing up in him. ‘I’m scared.’

Don’t be. This is the moment it’s all been leading to. All these years. You know this, don’t you?

‘Yes.’ He nodded. ‘I know . . .’

Then open your arms. Just let the wind caress your face. Let the darkness take you. It’s easy . . .

‘I feel it!’ the boy said. He spread his arms. ‘I do.’

Feel how loving its touch is. How free of pain. You’ve been in so much pain lately.

‘I have been. Yes, I have.’

It would be good to be rid of the pain, just for once. To stop the voices. To stop feeling he was letting everyone down. He knew how much of a burden he was. To his parents. To everyone who had expectations of him. The absence of pain is heaven, isn’t it? Heaven . That would be nice. To finally be free of it.

Then just reach out, the angel said. Let it take you. Like the wind. Just think of heading home. That’s all it is. You can do that, can’t you?

‘I think so,’ he said, nodding. ‘I think so.’

Sucking in a breath, he stepped farther out on the edge, his pulse picking up speed. Only the cushion of darkness beneath him. The welcoming sound of the surf far below. How incredibly peaceful it all was. And those candles, so beautiful . . .

So this was it . . .

‘I’m so sorry!’ he shouted to the panoply of lights. To his mother and father. He knew how much this would hurt and disappoint them.

‘Like an angel . . .’ he said, shutting his eyes. A final cacophony built in his brain. He stretched out his arms wide, palms in the air.

‘Like this . . .?’

Yes, just like that, the angel said. Then fly .

Chapter 2

The gal in the white lace sundress was as sexy as I’d ever seen.

She had shoulder-length, sandy-blonde hair, a little tangled and windswept. Eyes as blue and inviting as a Caribbean cove, the kind you could dive right into. A strap of her dress dangled loosely off her shoulder, exposing the shape of her breast, and she smiled, bashful yet unconcerned. The second I laid my eyes on her I remembered thinking, Now there’s the woman I’ve been waiting for all these years. The one I could live with forever.