Holding her hands tight, he went running into the moor. A hail of a thousand bullets whistled above their heads, but he let nothing harm her. Asking her to hide under a tree, he took a few steps forward to make sure she was safe. And a bullet came piercing his heart, a bullet she had aimed.

Sixty-five years ago, Jennifer met Daniel, and they married. Along the way came a daughter and a son who grew to be great parents. Family get-togethers were a tradition based on love and respect. Today is a day of quiet repose as Jennifer and Daniel rest side by side, forever in love in the forever after.

The seaplane had been too much. She’d always feared water, having nearly drowned as a girl; now that the craft obstructed her shore view, she left weekends at the lake house to him. Life changed little after Rod and the unknown woman went down in the Skywagon. Still, she occasionally tasted something in her wine that might have been regret.

So certain I knew who'd sent the flowers with the anonymous love note, I went and told him apologetically it would never work. He just looked confused, then nodded toward my best friend standing there, as if that should mean something to me. It took some time, but I eventually figured it out. I’m now married to my best friend.

His phone blinks back to life; he reaches for it like a life raft. Miles away, having hit send, she discards her phone on her bed. His face morphs into a rare smile as he reads and carefully replies. He monitors his phone for a half hour, his smile sliding away, before he realizes that she isn’t going to respond.

Excitedly, she talks of how she can't wait to attend her dream university and stay in love with her long distance boyfriend. And me, sitting quietly on her rug, cross-legged, watching her as she packs. Knowing all to well that her boyfriend has already broken his promises of fidelity. Knowing that I, her sister, have been the sole cause.

Tongues of flame engulfed the brick house, as I heard the sirens coming closer. I needed the money for Helen's hospital bills. And I have it now. Ethan Garcia won't know that the family wasn't there.

Is this what it feels like, when one tries to help someone who doesn’t want to be helped? The bottle is right in front of the puppy’s mouth, but he won’t eat, no matter how much I coax him. It’s frustrating in a panicky kind of way; he’s cold, weak, I know if I don’t get something in him, he won’t last much longer. After two hours of trying, he finally eats something, and slowly gets stronger, and suddenly my chest feels light with relief.

The silence endowed a fear in me, I quickened my steps. Suddenly, I heard the sound of spooky anklets nearing me, a large ominous shadow following me. A shiver went down my spine yet I turned back, surprised and my pupil expanded.

A cow with anklets was following me.