Emily couldn't sleep. Not without seeing his sweet face with his round cheeks just starting to hollow as he got older, his hair always needing a comb, the sparkle in his blue eyes. The shadow hovering behind him, swallowing him. How many times did she shudder into wakefulness, the light tearing open the dream, exposing the wound again and again? She lost count. Finally, Emily forced herself to get up and sit in her chair by the window and watch the sky turn navy, then gray, and softly orange.
There would be no school today, not for her. The very idea was ridiculous and almost made her laugh. If she were able to laugh. She felt pretty sure she would never be happy again.
Instead, she found herself perched on a kitchen stool, making a mess of her pancakes and syrup while her parents altern
