The need was great upon him to touch her, to comfort her, to do anything to stop the wretched wailing. He fingered the short braid at the end of his beard. The thin vellum scroll crinkled in his gloved hand. The draft-churned fire cast its moving light on the floor and across their feet and faces. O'Reily, without words to draw on for such an occasion, waited for her to speak. He cleared his throat.
Sometimes, vacations just don't turn out the way you hoped they would. An idyllic wilderness house boating get-a-way soon turns into a hellish nightmare...
