Epilogue
KILLIAN
YEARS LATER
Deadly killer to stuffed animal wrangler.
How quickly things can change. My Zolotse has a way of making you enjoy everything.
This carnival is one of many examples. Years ago, this place would have been my nightmare.
I'd rather be down in a hole waiting to make the perfect kill shot for ten hours, unable to move, before I'd want to be at a carnival.
Now, seeing the way it not only lights up my wife's face but our child's too makes this place feel a whole lot different.
"Daddy, don't choke it!" I glance down at my daughter and then at the giant bunny I'm holding. I do have it in a partial chokehold.
"I assure you it will not die," I tell Olivia, our youngest.
"What if I tossed it into the bonfire?" Remy asks with a mischievous smirk.
Olivia's small face swiftly changes to horror.
This isn't the first stuffed animal incident.
Once Remy got mad that Olivia colored in one of her books so she tossed a few of her stuffed animals down the stairs. Harmless, right?
With the way Olivia screamed bloody murder, you would have thought there had been a real murder, but the stuffed animals came out unscathed.
Olivia, on the other hand, not so much. She became extra protective over her stuffies and insisted I protect them with my life.
One pinky promise from me later and the crisis was averted.
"Oh my God." Chloe, our oldest, rolls her eyes. "Will you stop it?" She tugs on the end of one of Remy's braided pigtails.
"Watch it." Remy smacks at her hand. "Mommy did these for me."
"Daddy did mine." Olivia shakes her head back and forth quickly, causing the single braid I created to fly around. Braiding hair is easy to do once you treat it like it's a rope. Same shit.
All three of them start bickering. It only stops when a boy runs by and accidentally shoulder-checks Chloe.
"Oh, no you didn’t, you little shit." Remy spins around to go after the boy. I grab her by the back collar of her sweater to stop her. I pull her toward me and lean down.
"Too public," I remind her. A small growl leaves Remy, but she nods, letting me know she's going to lock it down.
I'm not sure who the kid is. He's not a local, and no one besides two families have moved into the area, and he's not with them. I make it my business to know everyone around here, especially in the closest town, where Teddy once went to school for a short time.
The only time Teddy brought up the idea of moving was when our oldest was getting close to kindergarten age. School kids had not been kind to her. That's when we started to dig more into Willow Creek.
I didn't want to, but I knew we'd have to become real locals, which was for the best. There are town events our kids would want to be a part of. Except for this carnival; that's all me. I paid them extra to make sure our town was one of their tour stops.
Having your family ensure the carnival's annual visit to your town gives you an advantage—do I throw money at it? Yes, what choice did I have? My wife has forbidden me from killing locals unless preapproved by her.
"Come on," I say, distracting the girls with another game that isn't rigged. I don't care if they scam others, but not my girls, and I made that clear.
Teddy winks at me. She is over talking to Nora, who is the town librarian. For as much as my wife didn't care for Willow Creek, it was easy for her to sink in and be friendly with everyone. I'm not a fan of that shit, but if it makes her happy, then I'm happy.
It doesn't matter how many years go by; when I see Teddy’s face light up, it still does shit to me.
That sweet, trusting warmth she has soaks into me, bone-deep.
I'd still like a list of the names of kids that picked on her.
I'm sure a few are still locals and adults now.
I have also been banned from trying to find out.
Teddy’s hand absently goes to her stomach. She’s only three months, but the small bump has already formed. We found out yesterday that we’re having a boy. I wasn't sure how to handle little girls, but at this point I’m a seasoned pro, and I'm wondering how to raise a little boy.
"Suckers!" Remy shouts as her duck makes it to the top. She shifts her water gun over to aim for her little sister's bullseye to help her beat Chloe, who rolls her eyes at her but gives Olivia a smile.
Remy isn't giving anyone a pity win, but after she gets first place, she'll help one of her sisters get second.
That was another reason I wasn't too worried about the girls going to school here.
I pity anyone who tries to pick on one of them.
Only they can bully each other. You mess with one of them and you get the wrath of all of them.
"You guys rob the place?" Teddy asks when she makes her way back to us. Nora gives me a small wave, and I return a nod.
All of the girls start speaking at once to tell her what we've been up to for the last thirty minutes while she ate her funnel cake and chatted. Although I don't enjoy sharing my wife's attention with the locals, I understand that it's necessary.
"All right, give me kisses. Roland is going to take you to get dinner and on a few rides."
"Yay!" Olivia bounces on her heels. Roland and she can be as thick as thieves. He doesn't let anyone get away with shit except Olivia. She has him wrapped around her little finger, and she knows it.
In spooky Roland fashion, the man appears. Not many can sneak up on me, but Roland is fucking good. I'll give him that. That's why I wasn't shocked when he told me that in his heyday, as he called it, he served in the Navy.
"Come along, girls. Let's get you hopped up on sugar so you'll crash later and I can watch my shows."
"Not M*A*S*H again," Chloe groans.
Remy's whole face scrunches. I hand a bunch of the stuffed animals over to him. He's taking the girls so I can have a little time with my Zolotse. I give the girls kisses before grabbing Olivia and tossing her into the air, making her giggle before putting her back onto her feet.
"Make sure your sister doesn't kill anyone."
"We know," both Olivia and Chloe say at the same time before we watch them walk off with Roland.
“How are you feeling?” I ask Teddy, placing my hand on her belly.
My wife does pregnancy well. Thank fuck. I didn’t know how I’d make it through labor, but Teddy was as entertaining and chipper as ever, even during childbirth.
"I feel great." She runs her hand up my chest. "But I could feel better."
"Come." I take her hand, leading her through the crowd and to one of her favorite games.
I keep her close, my eyes scanning all the faces.
Families here are having a good time and laughing.
This was a world I never thought I would be a part of.
One I told myself that I didn't want. I never could have imagined the capacity for love that I have.
"You know how much I love and adore you?" Teddy asks.
We're on the Ferris wheel. Every year when the carnival comes to town, she wants to kiss on the top of it. It's a tradition, as she calls it. We have a lot of those.
I need to be closer to her. I take the bear jammed between us and toss it. "Heads up!" Teddy shouts to the people below and then covers her mouth with her hand to giggle. "Now we know where Remy gets it."
"I got that from her," I correct, making Teddy laugh harder. "You're the only bear I want."
"Oh my God, that was so cheesy." A giant smile lights up her face. It might have been, but I got what I wanted out of the comment. My wife is staring at me with love and adoration. What more can I ask for?
I lean in and kiss her as we reach the top.
Yes, I know how much Teddy, my wife, loves and adores me. My Zolotse shows me every day. She vowed to me on our wedding day, in front of Elvis and everyone else, that in this lifetime and all the others, she will forever and always love me.
If I've learned anything from my Zolotse, it's that she and love are both unstoppable forces.
I hope you enjoyed Teddy and Killian’s story!