All three of the kids were already outside, building some sort of igloo. They had made tons of bricked-snow with molds made out of sticks. Kia oversaw production, pointing here and there. Jalen stacked the bricks on the side of her. Poppy pushed the snow into the molds to make more.
I checked my watch.
I slept through breakfast? Fuck. It’s almost lunch time.
Sighing, I turned back to the bullet on the table.
Terror entered my heart.
How did that get there? I wouldn’t have left it out, not with the kids around the house.
Besides, I only kept the shotgun near my bed. For now, Ebony had it. The rest of the guns were in my closet.
Salt and Pepa whined from the door, pleading to go outside and relieve themselves.
Rising from the table, I picked up the bullet and twisted it between my fingers. The metal warmed my tips, speeding my heart up. For a second, I wondered if the nightmare hadn’t been a dream at all, but something that actually happened.
No. The dream couldn’t have been real. There must be another explanation. Maybe. . .I left the bullet here days ago and didn’t notice it. But then why did I wake up in this chair?
With the mystery spinning in my head, I walked over to the door and let the dogs out. They raced away. I shut the door and scanned the room. My bed was disheveled like I’d been sleeping in it.
But how did I end up in the seat? And how did this bullet appear?
Footsteps sounded next door.
It had to be Ebony in her room.
I set the bullet in my pajama pants pockets.
The guest room was side to side with my room, laid out in exactly the same way. I guessed Ebony stood only three or four feet away from me, just through the wall. Perhaps, she was cleaning the space.
A shiver of dread moved through me. The nightmare had shaken me. It would’ve been nice to talk to her, have her console me. But I would’ve had nothing but madman shit to say.
Hey, Ebony. I played Roulette with death in my nightmare and I woke up with the bullet right in front of me.
Like any normal person, she would’ve thought I was crazy.
Letting out a long breath, I touched the wall as if I could breathe in her energy—wrap her soothing presence around me.
I knew what the walls were made of. They were the original ones—close to a hundred years old. A great balk of timber lay crossway on the floor. Brick was built up on top of it, rising all the way to the ceiling.
When I had bought the house, Kevin and I had done renovations, patching the bricks that appeared weak, plastering the edges, and giving the walls a solid stucco finish. All of this would seal out most of the sounds in each room and fireproof the house.
But still I caught her footsteps between the foot-thick sandwich of stucco and brick between us. And for now, that was enough to comfort me—to make the nightmare disappear. To quiet the questions of the bullet sitting in my pajama pants.
Death’s words rang in my head.
“There was a time, when you hoped I would come. There were moments when you wished I would reunite you with Olivia and Akio.”
My eyes burned with the reality. Whether Death had really come or not, he’d been right. I had wanted death to come my way. I did contemplate taking my life. Many times, I considered walking up to the other house, grabbing a gun, sticking it in my mouth, and pulling the trigger. I’d planned on doing it there, while leaving the dogs in the main house.
The only thing that saved me was that I didn’t want Salt and Pepa to see it. Be left behind lying next to my dead body.
And then I wondered who would take care of them. Kevin was shit when it came to taking care of his self. There would be no way he could properly love the dogs the way they deserved. I talked to Mabel at the gas station from time to time. Besides helping her kill her father, I didn’t know how she would feel about watching my dogs. She had no pets and seemed to not have an affinity for animals at all.
And so I put suicide on a back shelf in my mind.
The sound of Ebony’s footsteps disappeared.
Outside of the window, the dogs barked. One of the kids must’ve noticed them downstairs and let them out. Laughing and loud chatter from them came next.
I smiled.
A soft knock came to my door.
Ebony.
Excitement filled me.
I rushed over and opened the door.
She widened her eyes as she took in my bare chest. “Oh. . .I can come back.”
“No. Stay.” I stepped away from the door. “Come inside.”