SeventeenThe snow came down in a thick wall as Josh rode into the town of Glory, bent double with cold, hands stuffed inside his coat, the horse walking its own chosen direction. At the livery stable, he got down, every movement a struggle, and the young boy took the horse inside without a word.
Stepping into the Golden Nugget saloon, he crossed immediately to the fire, unaware of anyone else, not caring for anything but the desire to be warm. His coat was stiff with cold, his fingers blue, eyes watery, everything around him out of focus. The fire drew him to its flames and he knelt down in front of it, moaning and rocking himself backwards and forwards, luxuriating in the warmth.
“Where's Clifton?”
The voice came to him from a distance, a strange, hollow sound, not at all human.
“I sa
