IGMS Issue 17 by IGMS Read Free Book Online Page B

expected it to take some time for the hospital to believe the results of their own tests. He had expected to be annoyed by the delay, but wasn't really. In the hospital, he and Matt had unlimited time together. They watched the TV, and wore out a box of crayons and a coloring book.
    Steve hadn't slept on the cot in Matt's room after all -- just watched all night as his son slept -- and he thought he could pinpoint the exact moment when the junkie's spell had worked on Matt. Just as the cloudy sky had begun to lighten outside the window, in that fading moment between night and day, Matt had rolled over in his sleep and suddenly begun to breathe deeply and easily, as though a giant hand had been lifted from his chest.
    Like the Emperor, thought Steve, when he heard the nightingale sing.
    They were home in time for dinner: spaghetti and meatballs. The sauce was from a jar, but that was how Matt liked it, and Steve had been too dazzled by his smile, his laughter, to find any fault with the menu.
    Steve had thought it would be hard, this last day with Matt, but he simply lost himself in it, taking each moment as a gift, without letting his mind dwell on the future. At least until he called Leah, arranged for her to come early the next morning, in time for breakfast, so that Matt wouldn't have to wake up alone and frightened. Hanging up the phone, he found himself staring at the palm of his hand, where the agreement he'd made last night had left only the faintest of scars -- a sparkling trail that reminded him of snail slime rather than fairy dust.
    He stared at his own hand for a long, lonely moment, unmoving, while Matt rattled and bounced in the next room, sounding like an elephant juggling freight trains. The rush of relief was worn away; there was only crushing exhaustion. How long had it been since he had last slept? It felt like months. He heard the thunder of Matt's feet, running, and lifted his own head an instant before he was tackled full-on, by a cannonball hug.
    "Dad," said Matt, breathless from running. Running! "Dad. Dad! Can we watch a movie before bed?"
    This was definitely not on the good-parenting list, but clearly Matt had homed in on the fact that today the rules were for other people. "Dad, can we?"
    And Steve, knowing himself for a coward, smiled and nodded.
    He reached out and ran a hand over Matt's hair, and pretended to be a strict disciplinarian, pretended he was going to be there tomorrow. "After your bath," he said.
    They had a bath, with bubbles, and they had a tooth brushing race. Matt got to wear his own pajamas again, and he leapt almost his whole body length to land sprawling and happy on the couch. They watched the movie, and had popcorn, because Matt was hungry for it. Matt ate two bowls and stayed awake through the whole movie, but as much as he wanted to, Steve couldn't delay bedtime forever.
    It was almost midnight, long past when Matt should have been in bed.
    It was story time.
    "What'll it be?" asked Steve, settling in with the customary unopened book on his lap. He felt giddy, almost drunk with happiness every time Matt laughed, or bounced, or made some idiotic joke. There had been an infinite number of fart noises included in the evening's entertainment. "How about The Juniper Tree? The long version?"
    His back was deliberately turned toward the window, but he was all too aware of the presence of the junkie on the other side. Her shadow cut across the room, sharp as a knife.
    "How 'bout I tell you a story, Dad?" asked Matt. He was smiling. Bright and beautiful. "I got a story for you! It's called Pandora's Ducks."
    "Pandora's Ducks?" said Steve. "That's a new one on me. Where did you hear this story?"
    "In the hospital," said Matt. "Not this time. The first time, when Mom died. A nurse read it to me from a book. But I still remember." The day or the story, he didn't specify. "At least, I remember the good parts."
    Steve swallowed hard and nodded. "Lay it on me, kiddo," he said.
    "Once upon