Page 99 of The Voices are Back

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“Hey, Morr!” I heard Bowie call.

I stopped in the middle of brushing my teeth and called out, “Yeah?”

“I turned the alarm off because I needed to take the trash out. Do you need anything from me?”

I smiled. “No, but thank you!”

“Welcome. I’m gonna play someCall of Dutyon the big TV. Is that okay?” he yelled.

“Yes!” I said. “I have to get some payroll done, and then I’ll be down!”

Plus, Aodhan should be home very soon.

It’d been a full twelve hours since he’d left. Any second, he’d be sliding that tight butt onto the back of his bike and riding home to me.

Well, to Bowie, too.

I faced forward and cleaned the bathroom mirror where I’d sprayed toothpaste foam during my conversation, and then went back to brushing my teeth.

I felt better today.

A lot better.

Better enough that I wished, only kind of anyway, that we were completely alone when Aodhan got home. But I’d thoroughly enjoyed Bowie’s presence last night, and maybe I could get Aodhan to take us out to lunch…

There was a clicking sound in the bedroom, and I walked out, excited because I thought maybe Aodhan was home early. But who I walked out to definitely wasn’t Aodhan.

Hell, it wasn’t even a man at all. But a woman.

My mother.

I blinked, staring at her in shock.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, shocked to not only see her, but to see her standing in my bedroom where she definitely wasn’t supposed to be.

“He’s going to kill you,” she whispered, her eyes slightly chaotic as she started to move toward me.

And before I could do much of anything, because I was still in complete shock to see my mother for the first time in forever, I didn’t stop her from not only getting in my space, but touching me altogether.

Her hands went to my neck, and once again someone was choking me.

I instantly started to fight back, pushing her away.

But, for an old woman, she was extremely strong and wouldn’t let go.

That’s when I started to panic, which wasn’t a good thing for me.

Anxiety and my condition didn’t mix.

I started to feel light-headed, but still I tried to pry her off of me.

She wasn’t necessarily hurting me, but she was there, in my personal space, with her hands on my neck. That was enough to shoot my adrenaline into overdrive, and my stupid body to start overreacting.

When my vision started to haze around the edges, I groaned.

“Let me go,” I whispered, feeling her fingernails dig into my skin, and hot liquid started to drip down my neck. “Please don’t do this.”

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