Eyes Wide Open (aka Killing Hour)

Suddenly she heard the shuffle of footsteps from behind her. She looked up.

Someone was there.

A man was in her doorway. He just stood there, leaning on the door frame.

Her heart almost came up her throat when she realized just who it was. It was the man she had seen at Reg’s Market.

A shiver of fear ricocheted through her. What could he possibly be doing here?

She looked at Boomer, the dog’s blood on her hands, and glared back at him. “ What the hell have you done? ”

The man just stood there grinning, leaning against the door. “Hello, Sherry.”

She stood up, focusing on his face, years tumbling back, like a fog lifting over the pines and the lake coming into view.

Her hand shot to her mouth. “ Mal? ”

It had been such a long time ago. More than thirty years, a part of her life she had long buried. Or thought she had. Forever. She never thought she’d see any of them again. Or have to account for what she’d done. She was just a crazy kid back then…

“It’s been a while, huh, doll?” His dark eyes gleamed.

“What are you doing here, Mal?”

“Making amends.” He winked. “Long overdue, wouldn’t you say? The master of the house-you remember that, don’t you, Sherry? Well, he’s come home.”

He was grinning, teeth twisted, that same unsettling grin she had seen at the market, tapping something in his palm.

It was a knife. A knife with blood all over it.

Boomer’s blood.

Sherry’s heart started to pound. Her eyes shot to her dog, whose chest had now stopped moving. A chill sliced through her, and with it, a terror she hadn’t known in years.

The man stepped inside, kicking the screen door closed.

“So tell me”-he smiled, tap-tap-tapping his blade-“what’ve you been up to all these years, hon?”

PART I

Chapter One

A myriad of lights flickered brightly in the distance. The whoosh of the surf cascading against the rocks was only a far-off whisper hundreds of feet below.

From up here, the lights all seemed just like candles to him. Millions of candles! Like the whole world had all come out and assembled before him, an endless procession at his feet.

It made him smile. He had never seen anything more beautiful in his life. He had always wondered what it would be like from up here-the gigantic mound of rock, miles and miles of coastline stretching below.

Now he knew.

You could probably see all the way to L.A., the boy imagined. He was no longer a boy really, he was twenty- one-though sometimes he still felt like one.

What are the voices saying to you now?

He stepped out closer to the ledge. “They’re saying this is where I was meant to be.”

He had made the climb up hours ago, before it got dark, to be alone with his thoughts. To calm the noise that was always in his head. To see … And now it was just so beautiful. And all the voices had quieted except one.

His angel, he called her. The one voice he could trust.

Have you ever seen anything more beautiful? the angel asked him.

“No, I haven’t.” He looked down at the lights of the small coastal town. “ Never. ”

Waves crashed against the jagged rocks below. His heart picked up excitedly. “I can see the whole world.”

Yes, it’s all there for you.

He hadn’t taken his meds today. Usually that made him a little foggy, his thoughts jumbled. But today, maybe for the first time ever, his mind was clear. Completely clear. “I feel just like Jesus.”

Maybe you are, his angel answered.

“Then maybe I should just return from where I came. Maybe God wants me back. Maybe that’s what I’m feeling.”

You’re not meant for this world, the voice replied . You’re smarter. You were destined for greater things. You’ve always known that, right?

Yes. The voice was soothing and close to his ear. His heart began to pound like the surf. There’s only one way to find out…

He took another step, closer to the edge, the darkness surrounding him. The breeze brushed against his face. “That feels good. I feel good. I feel good about this.”

Just spread your arms, his angel instructed him.

“Like wings?” He opened his arms wide. “You mean like this?”

Yes, just like that. Now think of heading home. The pain you will no longer be feeling. You see those lights? They’re all so beautiful, aren’t they?

“They are!”

Beneath him, a piece of the ledge broke loose. It took several seconds until he heard the sound of it breaking apart on the craggy rocks below. He stepped back, fear springing up in him. “I’m scared.”

Don’t be. This is the moment it’s all been leading to. All these years. You know this, don’t you?

“Yes.” He nodded. “I know…”

Then open your arms. Just let the wind caress your face. Let the darkness take you. It’s easy…

“I feel it!” the boy said. He spread his arms. “I do.”