Noah lay on the bed in full darkness now, unaware the light had gone. How could he not relive such a scene over and over? Forcing the trembling man to his knees behind the barn. Closing his ears to his desperate pleas. Watching him piss himself when the pistol found the back of his skull. Then, his last words. Garbled. Desperate. ‘He’ll die. He will. He will. It’s too late.’ Noah fired. The smell of black powder and singed hair followed almost instantly by blood and s**t was like a physical assault. He had moved away then, to puke. He wanted to puke now, that stench haunting him still.
When Sam arrived in their chamber, Noah kept his back turned, feigning sleep. Sam lay down beside him, pressing close, though Noah remained unmoving. He had no words yet. He found it hard to imagine how he
