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Regina had never before been kissed goodnight, so she had not kno to respond Soive you an affectionate squeeze now and then, but none of theina could renal to be in bed within fifteen hts went out, each kid was responsible for getting tucked in hiht twice, all in the sa, and she had been too surprised to kiss either of them in return, which she now realized she should have done

"You’re such a screwup, Reg," she said aloud

Lying in heraround her in the darkness, Regina could iht that ht?

No, did she kiss you?

No Maybe she’s a cold fish

Maybe she’s a psycho demon child

Yeah, like that kid in The Omen

You knohat I’m worried about?

She’ll stab us to death in our sleep

Let’s hide all the kitchen knives

Better hide the power tools, too

You still have the gun in the nightstand?

Yeah, but a gun will never stop her

Thank God, we have a crucifix

We ’II sleep in shifts

Send her back to the orphanage tohed "Sorry, God" Then she folded her hands in prayer and said softly, "Dear God, if you’ll convince the Harrisons to give ain, and I’ll be a better person" That didn’t seeain from God’s point of view, so she threw in other inducee in school, I’ll never again put Jell-O in the holy water font, and I’ll give serious thought to becoh "And I’ll eat beans" That ought to do it God was probably proud of beans After all, He’d reen or wax or Lima or navy or any other kind of beans had no doubt been noted in Heaven, where they had her down in the Big Book of Insults to God--Regina, currently age ten, thinks God pulled a real boner when He created beans She yawned She felt better now about her chances with the Harrisons and about her relationship with God, though she didn’t feel better about the change in her diet Anyway, she slept

2

While Lindsey ashing her face, scrubbing her teeth, and brushing her hair in the master bathroom, Hatch sat in bed with the newspaper He read the science page first, because it contained the real news these days Then he skimmed the entertain, at last, to the A section where the latest exploits of politicians were as terrifying and darkly ae three he saw the story about Bill Cooper, the beer deliveryman whose truck they had found crosswise on the ht in March

Within a couple of days of being resuscitated, Hatch had heard that the trucker had been charged with driving under the influence and that the percentage of alcohol in his blood had been more than twice that required for a conviction under the law George Glover, Hatch’s personal attorney, had asked hiainst Cooper or the coious Besides, he dreaded becoed down in the dull and thorny world of lawyers and courtroo charge would be brought against the trucker without Hatch’s involvement, and he was satisfied to let the system handle it

He had received two pieces of correspondence from William Cooper, the first just four days after his reani-winded and obsequious, apology seeking personal absolution, which was delivered to the hospital where Hatch was undergoing physical therapy "Sue ive you everything if you wanted it, though I don’t got much, I’m no rich man But no matter whether you sue me or if not, I enerous heart to forgive enius of Dr Nyebern and his wonderful people, you’d be dead for sure, and I’d carry it on my conscience all the rest of htly spaced, cra

Hatch had responded with a short note, assuring Cooper that he did not intend to sue him and that he harbored no anied thefor alcohol abuse if he had not already done so

A feeeks later, when Hatch was living at hoain and back at work, after the media storm had swept over him, a second letter had arrived froet his truck-driving job back, froes that the police had filed against hi drunk twice before, it’s true," Cooper wrote, "but both them times, I was inwork hours Nowto take away , how aure is, from your kind answer to entle help After all, you didn’t wind up dead, and in fact you got a lot of publicity out of the whole thing, which must’ve helped your antique business a considerable amount"

Astonished and uncharacteristically furious, Hatch had filed the letter without answering it In fact he quickly put it out of his rehenever he contee three of the paper, based on a single technical error in police procedures, Cooper’s attorney had won a disainst him The article included a three-sentence summary of the accident and a silly reference to Hatch as "holding the current record for being dead the longest tied the entire ordeal with the hope of winning a place in the next edition of the Guinness Book of World Records

Other revelations in the piece ht in bed, cul to sue his eet his old job back or, failing that, a substantial financial settlement "I have suffered considerable humiliation at the hands of my former employer, subsequent to which I developed a serious stress-related health condition," Cooper had told reporters, obviously disgorging an attorney-written statement that he had memorized "Yet even Mr Harrison has written to tell ht"

Anger propelled Hatch off the bed and onto his feet His face felt flushed, and he was shaking uncontrollably

Ludicrous The drunken bastard was trying to get his job back by using Hatch’s compassionate note as an endorsement, which required a complete misrepresentation of what Hatch had actually written It was deceptive It was unconscionable

"Of all the fuing nerve!" Hatch said fiercely between clenched teeth

Dropping e with the story in his right hand, he hurried out of the bedroom and descended the stairs two at a tied open a sliding closet door, and jerked out the top drawer on a three-drawer filing cabinet

He had saved Cooper’s handwritten letters, and although they were not on printed stationery, he knew the trucker had included not only a return address but a phone number on both pieces of - correspondence He was so disturbed, he flicked past the correct file folder--labeled MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS--cursed softly but fluently when he couldn’t find it, then searched backward and pulled it out As he pawed through the contents, other letters slipped out of the folder and clattered to the floor at his feet

Cooper’s second letter had a telephone nued file folder on the cabinet and hurried to the phone on the desk His hand was shaking so badly that he couldn’t read the nuht from the brass desk lamp