Swann Song by Kim Pritekel

Author:Kim Pritekel [Pritekel, Kim]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sapphire Books Publlishing
Published: 2022-05-14T14:00:00+00:00

The night was cold, both Christine and Adam huddled in heavy jackets, scarves, and gloves. The singer had tugged a beanie down over her head. She looked at the street before them, cluttered with cars at the curb and traffic in between. Though she’d visited Adam and Camille many times over the years, she hadn’t allowed herself to venture beyond their building and direct neighborhood.

They strolled through their old stomping grounds. She felt like she’d been transported back to a time that was all about survival, quick thinking, and pushing down the fear monster, as it had no place. She felt nauseous as those instincts were trying to kick in, but she was doing her level best to stay in the moment. None of it could hurt her anymore. She had to remember that.

“Number four,” she said softly, looking up at the building they’d stopped in front of. She looked over at her friend. “Do you remember that her place constantly smelled like cat pee even though she didn’t have cats?”

He grinned and nodded. “God, yes. You on the floor one night, me on the couch, then swap the next.” He looked at her. “Do you ever wonder what she died of?” He shook his head. “Never forget waking up that morning and finding her.”

“In her bed,” Christine murmured. “Don’t know. She had us get her meds all the time, so obviously something was wrong. Maybe heart issues or blood pressure. Stroke. Diabetes.” She met his gaze with a shrug.

Without discussion, they moved on, walking farther down the street, commenting on this or that. Suddenly, Christine stopped dead in her tracks. Adam hadn’t realized it and had continued on. He returned to her.

He looked down the alley that Christine stood at the head of. “What?”

“Don’t you remember?” she asked him. She nodded in the general direction. “This is where that guy picked me up. Well, tried to.” She met his gaze. “That guy who was killing girls.”

“Oh, damn. Right.” Adam rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “That was so scary. Thought I was going to lose you that night.”

“You almost did,” Christine said flatly.

“I’ve been thinking,” he said as they began to move again. “Maybe you should hire a private investigator to see what happened to your parents.”

She felt an instant tug at her heart and her guts. It was almost like pulling on the string that was holding her emotions together as they made their way through their childhood. “Why?”

“Don’t you want to know what happened?” he asked as they trotted down the stairs into the warmth of the subway tunnels.

She considered the question for a long time. “I suppose. I think I’m afraid of the answer, though.”

They passed a guy, young, maybe twenty, sitting on the floor with his guitar case set open for tips. He strummed and he sang. She stopped and listened, a small smile on her lips. That, too, brought back a flood of memories. Reaching into her inside jacket pocket, she retrieved her wallet and pulled out a hundred dollars in various bills, tossing them into his case.

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