The Stolen Hours

The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Copyright © 2021 by Allen Eskens
Cover design by Lucy Kim
Cover photographs: woman © studioloco/Shutterstock, sky © VibrantImage/Shutterstock and Supermop/Shutterstock, bridge © nikitsin.smugmug.com/Shutterstock, trees © Sam Wagner/Shutterstock
Author photograph by Daniel Dinsmore Photography

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First Edition: September 2021

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ISBN 978-0-316-70349-9 (hc) / 9-780-316-70350-5 (ebook)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2021938717

E3-20210813-DA-NF-ORI

This book is dedicated to Hugo Allen Koser and Arthur Carey Koser, two brilliant, new points of light in this wonderful world. Welcome to the grand adventure, boys!

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Chapter 1

Lila Nash counted her steps as she walked from the kitchen to the bathroom of her apartment. Ten, nine, eight—the numbers falling silently in her head, a remnant from those days when she paced the corridors of the hospital. Seven, six, five—turn into the bathroom—four, three—close the door—two—turn—face the mirror—one.

Her last step had been little more than a shuffle, but it allowed her to stop on one, which somehow eased the clockwork that ticked inside her chest.

Lila never told Joe about the counting; she saw no reason to. It wasn’t a secret so much as a private comfort—a blanket she had learned to wrap around herself all those years ago when a head full of silence had the power to coax demons out of the shadows. Now, it had become more of a habit, an echo that refused to die away. Dr. Roberts had once assured her that the counting was a good thing, a coping mechanism to distract her from harmful thoughts.

She used a cotton round on her eyes, wiping away what little makeup she used: mascara, eyeliner, and just a touch of shadow. A once-over with soap and water, and she was ready for bed—almost.