Amber nestled a sand-weighted paper bag against the sidewalk, turning it to align with its sisters. She fished a flameless tealight from her totebag. Her toddler wobbled in an awkward gait on the nearest square of walkway. Amber extended the candle. "Want to turn it on?" With a grin dimpling her…
Winter's breath needled through Amber's worn soles to bite at her toes. She trudged the walkway, burdens slipping and swinging at her sides. She clamped a stack of mail in her hand, while her arms fought to balance purse, diaper bag, and twenty pounds of wriggling flesh. Angela stretched her demand…
Meg slid the scissor edge along the packing tape and popped the seals free. As she unfolded the boxtop flaps, dust rose to dance where smoke once flowed through the air. "See it!" Angela wriggled her fingers toward the crinkle of packing tissue as Mrs. Standover drew out the long-latent gift.…
Amber shifted Babygirl to her other hip as Meg opened the front door. A deer-stalker capped fellow turned on the sidewalk. He clutched a package against his navy blue coat. "Oh, you're home." "And you're not the fire department." Meg stepped out of the smoky haze onto the threshold. She glanced over…
Citrus, thyme, and basil scents wafted from the kitchen. Angela wriggled on her mother's lap to grab a handful of the umber tablecloth. "No, no, babygirl." Amber scooted back from the table's edge and drew her child close. She raised her chin and yelled over the clattering sounds in the adjacent…
Instruments clattered. Latex gloves and masked faces loomed beyond the blur of Amber's squinted eyes. She groaned louder and deeper with each increasing, merciless cramp torquing her womb. Amber gripped the sweat drenched hospital sheet at her sides. Pain clenched her abdomen, searing through her entire body with horrific intensity. Every…
Intense pain seized her abdomen. Amber doubled over and staggered backward, knees faltering. Cradling her womb with one hand, she clutched at her neighbor's porch column with the other. She crumpled as horrific cramps shocked her entire core. "Are you okay?" The neighbor caught her before she hit the deck. Arm…