No.” Blood everywhere. Soaking through her shirt, her pants, seeping into the concrete beneath them. Her arms around Michael, pulling him tighter, trying to stop the bleeding as it poured from of the jagged hole in his chest. She was vaguely aware of the children around her. Janey and Casey leaned up against the loading door, as if they honestly believed their tiny bodies might offer some leverage if the Baggers tried to break through. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered. “Come on, Michael.” Clementine held him. “Don’t you leave me. Don’t you dare…” * * * She sat at the bus stop, staring out across the street. Clementine couldn’t go on.
