Suffer the Children by Craig DiLouie Read Free Book Online Page A

freezer. Venison was good eating if you cooked it right. Roasts, stews, burgers.
    Nate skated to a halt at the edge of the ice. “Is that hot chocolate, Dad?”
    “Yup.” Doug handed it over.
    His son poured a cup, gulped it down, and gasped for air. “Jeez, that’s really hot.”
    “Warm you up good, kid.”
    “I got invited to a game of shinny later. Can I play, Dad?”
    “Sure. Just keep an eye out for Keith.”
    “I will,” Nate grumbled.
    Nate loved playing pickup games of hockey, but Keith McDonald always got carried away and reefed the puck, sending it flying above the ice among kids without protective gear. Normally, Doug wouldn’t say a word; he wanted Nate to learn how to handle these things for himself. But he was in charge today, like it or not, and intended for both his kids to give their mom a glowing report card for Daddy.
    “And get home before dark, understand?”
    “Okay, Dad.”
    “Daddy!” Megan yelled. She trudged along the ice in her bulky snowsuit and helmet, pushing her bright orange training aid. “Look at me!”
    “See you, Dad,” Nate said as he sped away.
    “You’re doing great, princess,” Doug told Megan.
    “I want you to come with me as I go around, Daddy.”
    “I will in a minute.”
    She ground to a halt in front of him and promptly fell on her butt. He laughed.
    “No, not in a minute,” she groused. “Right now .” She grabbed two handfuls of snow at his feet with her pink mittens and flung them over her head. “Dad-deeeee!”
    “I will in a minute. Promise.”
    “You have to chip in, you know,” Megan added in a perfect imitation of her mother.
    Definitely the same blood there . The apple doesn’t fall far and all that.
    Nate tested boundaries like any other kid but otherwise didn’t give his old man lip. Doug had never hit his kids and never would, but his size was naturally intimidating. Megan, on the other hand, was turning into the mother-in-law he’d never had. A real nag, but he was totally fine with it. Little Meggie could do no wrong in his book.
    “I’ll see what I can do,” he told her. “Daddy’s trying real hard.”
    “Okay.” Megan returned to skating along her slow circuit. “Bye, Daddy!”
    He watched her go, noting with pride how she got right back up after falling.
    And he thought: My life is pretty fucking good.
    As always happened, once he gave up thinking about what he wanted to do and resigned himself to focusing on the kids, he loosened up and began to enjoy himself. Sometimes playing along. Other times, like now, just watching.
    One of the children took a nose dive onto the ice, producing gasps and a little laughter among the other kids.
    Doug winced. That had to hurt. Several of the older kids and adults gathered around and gawked. Doug’s eyes flickered to Nate and Megan to make sure they were still trucking.
    “Hey, partner.” Coral’s husband, Earl, sidled up to him, hands buried in the pockets of his jacket. He wore an absurd plaid winter hat with floppy earflaps. “I thought I’d find you here. Girls’ day out, eh? How you been?”
    “Peachy,” said Doug. He cupped his hands to light a Winston.
    “What’s in the thermos?”
    “Hot chocolate. For the kids.”
    “Nothing stronger, huh?”
    “Nope. Don’t drink.” He watched the crowd grow around the fallen kid. It looked like somebody was going home with a sprained wrist or worse.
    The parents buzzed along the edge of the rink. Concussion , Doug heard.
    “Eh, too bad. I could really use a boost right about now.” Earl wiped his nose with the back of his glove. “Man, I wish I was off on my own today.”
    “Yeah, tell me about it.”
    “I’ll tell you what I’d rather be doing. You got yourself a snowmobile?”
    Doug resisted the urge to laugh in the man’s face. “No, Earl, I don’t have any snowmobile.”
    “Me and Coral just bought one. It’s a cross-country model. It’ll take you anywhere . Fuel-injected four-cylinder engine, easy steering,