Prologue
The sliver Volvo edged forwards cautiously. She hated driving in the dark; it always made her uneasy and she had to concentrate on the car’s headlights that cut through the gloom like a knight in shining armour, illuminating the way home.
“Mom, I’ve lost Freddie.” Her son’s whining voice cut through her focus. She glanced to her right to see him stuffing his hands down the side of the passenger seat. His bright blue eyes looked into hers with a sad desperation. Freddie was a marble that James, his father, had given him right before the plane crash that had claimed his life, since then their son had refused to let it out of his sight.
“Hold on.” She told him taking her right hand off the wheel, she tried to locate the small ball. Something cold brushed against her skin and she tried to grasp it but only succeeded in pushing it further out of reach. “Damn it.” Taking her eyes off the road for a second she leaned over and finally felt her hand wrap around the marble. “Got it.” She cried out with just a touch of triumph to her voice.
“Mom look out!” Something ran across the road in front of the car and she yanked on the wheel hard, the Volvo careened to the left where another set of highlights lit up the inside of the little car like the fourth of July. She tried to accelerate but lost control and met the oncoming vehicle head on.
The blare of the Volvo’s horn echoed through the frosty night air, by the road side a doe surveyed the mangle of metal before springing off into the dark wood.