I Left My House Empty Three Days Before Christmas

A real laugh. Ugly and short.

She slid the key across the desk. “Thought so.”

My room was small and clean. Blue quilt. Two lamps. A window I could crack open enough to hear the ocean if the traffic calmed down. Somebody had left a little tin of butter cookies on the dresser with a card that said Merry Christmas from the staff.

I sat on the bed and took continue reading …