“All we want is to have you home. Back with us.”

See? Everyone misses me.

My face rests against the wall of the bridge.

Gloria looks straight at the camera, then. There is a rectangle of light behind her. “You shouldn’t have run away, Rowan.”

I know. I know. I’m sorry.

Carl? You need to let me go home. You need to help me.

I shift my head. Stabs of pain bring it down. The ground smooth under my hands. Like thick plastic.

Light flickers. A flashlight in my face? Sunlight?

Turn it off. Turn it off.

Foggy blackness again.

I smell food. My stomach tightens, and I retch.

Carl?

Maisy was so afraid of you, but I explained.

You’re not a bad person, you’re not.

She thought you were a wolf.

I swallow again.

Are you a wolf?

Echoing layers of laughter.

Carl is laughing.

Stan is laughing.

Dot is laughing.

Somewhere among this is Gloria’s bubbly laughter. The kind that makes her stomach shake. I can imagine her. Arms open, waiting to hug me.

“Everything is going to work out. You’ll see. Me and Telly’ll make sure of it.”

Gloria?

My mind is going crazy.

I need to go home.

Carl? I’m going. I’m leaving.

“Coming home?”

Gloria is laughing her happy laugh again. Full of relief.

I’m going to try.

I know you miss me, Gloria.

I sit up again. Too much pressure behind my eyes. I squeeze my head. Pain rocks through me. The plastic covering buckles, cracks open. I reach my hands out, stretch my fingers over, under. Trying to hold on.

But I fall inside.

MAISY

“This is boring,” Shar said. She sat on the counter hitting the cupboard with her heels. “I’m so bored.”

Gloria was gone to work again, and then Aunt Erma had to leave, so Darrell was watching me and Shar. But he was in his room with the door closed, like always. I pretended I didn’t hear Shar. I lifted up a book and covered my face. Aunt Erma bought it for Shar but Shar didn’t want to read it. She said it was a baby book, but it was about a boy with freckles who made juice to get them gone.

“I got an idea,” Shar said.

“What.”

She dropped off the counter and came close to me.

“Let’s go talk to Rowan.”

When she said his name my lips and fingers got fuzz. “Don’t say that,” I whispered.

“I’m not joking.” She stuck her finger out and tapped me hard on the forehead. “Darrell’s got this board. You can talk to dead people. You know, ghosts or whatever.”