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Back The Hallows Save as PDF
Chapters (89)
  1. TITLE PAGE
  2. COPYRIGHT PAGE
  3. DEDICATION
  4. CONTENTS
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. 24
  29. 25
  30. 26
  31. 27
  32. 28
  33. 29
  34. 30
  35. 31
  36. 32
  37. 33
  38. 34
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. 40
  45. 41
  46. 42
  47. 43
  48. 44
  49. 45
  50. 46
  51. 47
  52. 48
  53. 49
  54. 50
  55. 51
  56. 52
  57. 53
  58. 54
  59. 55
  60. 56
  61. 57
  62. 58
  63. 59
  64. 60
  65. 61
  66. 62
  67. 63
  68. 64
  69. 65
  70. 66
  71. 67
  72. 68
  73. 69
  74. 70
  75. 71
  76. 72
  77. 73
  78. 74
  79. 75
  80. 76
  81. 77
  82. 78
  83. 79
  84. 80
  85. 81
  86. 82
  87. 83
  88. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  89. ABOUT THE AUTHOR

“Maybe. Let border security know and send them down a photo. And shoot one up to the Canadian border, too, just in case.”

“Cool. Anything else?”

“Yeah, I’ll be at the bar if you need me.”

I sat at a bar near Benson’s and sipped a beer. Despite the early hour, there were a few people there, older men with dark circles under their eyes. One woman sat in a corner and drank by herself, absently staring out the window. The entire place reeked of mold and rot that wafted up from underneath the floorboards.

Adam would come here almost every night after work while I was growing up, and I couldn’t imagine why.

Gates walked in and sat down at the bar next to me.

She looked at the bartender. “Diet Coke, please.” She waited until she got her drink before turning to me and saying, “It’s not your fault. We’ll find him.”

I shook my head, staring down at the white froth at the bottom of my glass. “That’s not what I’m thinking about.”

“What then?”

I inhaled deeply and looked at her. “My mother didn’t die in a car accident.”

She glanced away and couldn’t look at me.

“Holy shit, you knew.”

“Tatum—”

“You knew, didn’t you?”

She kept staring down at the bar top. “I heard my father talking with Adam after it happened. Adam said he wasn’t going to tell you, and my father said that was a bad idea. That you might hear it from someone at school if it got out, and then you wouldn’t trust him again.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t want it . . . I don’t know. No one else was going to tell you, so I figured I shouldn’t. It wasn’t my place.”

“Yeah, okay, when I’m nine, maybe. How about when I was seventeen? You didn’t think that might be something I’d want to know?”

“I don’t . . . no. No, I didn’t think that’d be something you’d want to know. Why would you? What good would it have possibly done for you?”

“It was the truth.”

She scoffed. “Look who’s lecturing about the truth. And by the way, maybe I would’ve eventually told you if you hadn’t run away while I was in a hospital bed, unsure if I was going to wake up again each time I fell asleep.”

I stared at her a second and then threw a fifty on the bar.

“Tatum—”

“No, don’t.”

I left the bar and didn’t look back.

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