s burly stagehands moved me from the clinic. They drove me back to the juke joint, but not inside

, throbbing masses of

od there, silhouetted against the bright afternoo

g with satisfaction. "The great Ethan Lester

does Mom. They think this is all so tragic." He laughed, a short, ugly sound. "But

uldn't express. I tried to push myself

up a bucket of dirty rainwater from the corner of the shed. "

ver his own clothes, drenching himself. He messed up his

! He's trying to att

faces masks of alarm. They saw Caleb, soaking wet and feigning

ennifer shrieked, pointin

w," she said, her voice like ice. "The doctors were right.

her in. "He can't be allowed to hurt anyone else.

rd, but there was nowhere to go. The two men grabb

ak t

e pain was blinding, nauseating. They didn't stop. They shattered my right leg, then my ankles. They

been sneaking in to bring me scraps of food, appeared at my side. He whined, nudging me, then grabbed the col

The door swung open,