The Forgiven

Chapter 1: Hollow PathI: The GiftsThe November wind carried the smell of frost and dead corn across the yard. Mia's boots crunched on the gravel drive. The cold worked through her coat at the shoulders. Lora walked beside her, a cardboard box balanced on one hip.Thomas Wilds stood on the porch, coffee in hand, watching them come up from where they had parked. He did not wave. He watched the way a man watches weather — measuring what approaches, calculating what it might cost."Da." Mia kissed his cheek. His skin was cold and rough-dry at the jaw. He smelled of woodsmoke and the soap Martha kept by the kitchen sink."Ye're early.""Traffic was light." She took the porch steps two at a time. "Where's Ma?""Kitchen." He stepped aside to let them pass. His eyes stayed on the box.Martha was rolling dough on the flour-dusted table w…