Recovery

Havermouth, Five Years Before

Her parents weren’t home when Heath had pulled up in the drive. Her relief was lost behind the urgency to collect what she needed and get out before they returned.

Heath stood in the front door, waiting whilst she collected everything that she thought that she would need for a weekend away. She raided the kitchen cupboards, filling her bag with snack foods as well as clothing and cosmetics. Heath did not rush her, but she felt like the contestant of a game show: How much can you stuff into one suitcase in fifteen minutes or less?

She felt as if she were packing never expecting to return, but her destination wasn’t the happily ever after of children’s movies, but rather the fade out of grim adulthood.

She did not know what the courtesy was with finding the body of a child – was she supposed to dress for a funeral, or not? She went with something in between a funeral and church and shoved a good black dress and heels into the bag, anticipating going to the