it's a secret.
don't be afraid of it, daddy. the hell does that mean? but before tom can respond, jake turns, climbs back in bed, rolls over to face the wall, and goes back to sleep.
i told him. maggie oh. yeah, i understand. no, no, no, don't worry about it. okay. bye. shit. shoot. shoot, i mean. she picks up the phone and dials again. with all she's doing, she doesn't notice that jake is having a conversation with the empty chair. maggie philip, hi, it's me, call me when you wake up, is there any way --
yes.
who?
okay.
call vanessa and ask her about dorothy. i'aggie stops, looking at him. jake is calmly eating his c€.real. she looks at her watch.
samantha told me.
yes. that's when i met her. he goes back to eating his cereal. a doorbell rings.
oh, hi, mommy. she's relieved, but livid.
daddy, look!
bye, neil! the cop looks back over his shoulder and smiles. tom looks at his son as if he's never seen him before.
don't ask the boy any more questions. they freeze, staring at him. his tone was odd. and did he just refer to himself in the third person? jake talk to me. he goes back to playing, and to that little tune. it's becoming rather haunting. maggie and tom look at each other. good god.
feathers everywhere. maggie turns back to jake -- and gasps. he's peeing his pants, the urine drizzling down over his shoes.
help daddy.
i'm staying here.
i want to stay at uncle steve's, i don't want to go home.
because i'm not safe there. because of the feathers.
don't stop for the train, mommy.
let me see, let me see! maggie turns the baby so she's facing jake. the infant looks at her older brother. at first, his face is as blurry as everybody else's. but slowly, jake's face becomes crystal clear, even though everything around him stays out of focus. jake can i hold her?
don't be afraid of s t. tom and maggie look at each other.