Mother still has photographs of you two together in her album, when you weren't much older than my girls are now." Oh my, what does your father think ...about that?" He didn't mind. You and mother were friends long before he'd even met her." The way you said that leads me to believe..." Yes, mother is a widow, that's why we moved back to Italy, to be near her family. Oh, and Matt... ?" Yes?" Mother has told me many times just how close friends you two became." Oh dear! How embarrassing..." No, I. .”“How much do you trust me, Beck? I stayed married to a woman for a decade because I couldn’t do that ‘love ‘em and leave ‘em’ thing. Did you think about that part?”“Brad...”“I have feelings too, Beck...”“Oh, Brad...”“Well, I do. And I love you and...”“And tell me you won’t hate me...”“I’ll never hate you. It’s just ... Damn, girl! I never had anything like this...”“Me neither, just so you know ... I know it was risky ... The wine...”“Blame it on the wine.”“Will you let me sleep beside. Get ready fast to get your answers as soon as possible.”That was all the encouragement I needed. I got ready faster than I have before, although my clothes didn’t really fit me anymore. And my distress regarding that fact was evident on my face it seems as Frank said, “Don’t worry, you won’t really need to buy clothes much longer. Some experience and miasma manipulation will take care of that for you. Just imagine what you want to wear and perfect form-fitting clothes will wrap themselves. Some nights my brother James sat with me part of the night, curious as to our story. I spun him and him alone the tale. His eyes read the darkness in my eyes as I related the sights and smells of the morning after our attack of the village. He put his head to my chest and hugged me. Together we mourned for the ones we killed. Not all could have been guilty. We killed the children. We killed the children. together we wept. Those nights were very, very long. They are with me yet. They will never.