Anthony did most of the talking the whole ride home. Hayley was fine with that, with long bottled up words flowing between them. They laughed and cried and shared secrets, hopes for their future, for the child they would try again for someday. If they did have a boy, they would not name him Daniel.

The real Daniel was buried, cremated to ashes in the ground. Anthony promised to drive her to the cemetery in a few days and let her mourn at his grave. She needed that. She needed to kneel at the stone and feel the grass beneath her knees. She needed to rub her fingers along the engraving of his name and finally let him go.

As for the thing that crept into her life using his name, she wondered if Danny was ever real or something conjured by her grief. Anthony believed the latter, that much was obvious, though she wasn't sure she could convince herself quite yet. Her arm twinged, reminding her of that moment, Danny's cold fingers wrapped around her forearm, pressing the bones together and the terrible anger in his face.

Not real.

He wasn't real. Hayley couldn't remember or explain what really happened but she would push him from her mind until he faded for good. She grinned at the dopey lovely expression on Anthony's face, leaning toward him to drink in his warmth. The relief and love in his eyes were a balm, sunshine on her soul. The car rolled to a stop.

"We're home," he said.

Hayley nodded. "We're home." This time when he came to the other side, she took his hand without hesitation. They clung to each other as they faced their house. So much happened in such a short amount of time.

"Want to sleep on the couch tonight?"

Anthony grinned. "I was going to suggest a hotel."

"No, I want to stay here," she said. She touched the door, warm from the sun, the paint smooth under her fingertips. "We can curl up on the couch and watch Princess Bride or something."

Anthony rubbed between her shoulder blades. It was a casual touch she'd missed and craved so desperately since their loss. She leaned into him, giggling when he swept her off her feet and kicked the door open. He carried her over the stoop in new bride fashion, setting her down on the couch. He kissed her forehead.

"Let me get you some aspirin for your arm and we can talk movies."

She watched him walk away, a dopey grin on her face. They were going to do this. They were going to come back together. They could leave this nightmare behind. Her smile faded as her eyes shifted down the hall to the empty nursery. The door was cracked open. It shouldn't bother her, but it did. She couldn't dismiss the niggling doubt the door was closed when they left.

"Leave it, Hayley, just leave it," she muttered, gnawing on her lip until she tasted blood in her mouth. The corners of her mind itched. She could hear Anthony humming from the kitchen. The sink was running, dishes clinking, and through it all, she swore she could hear the creak of the rocking chair. Her jaw flexed and she swallowed.

She eased off the couch. Close the door. That is all she would do. Tomorrow she'd drag that rocking chair out of the house, with one arm if she had to, and burn it on the front lawn. Her quiet footfalls were eclipsed by the running faucet and by her pulse throbbing her ears. She paused outside the nursery door, her hands slack at her sides. Her heart fluttered inside her chest, trapped and panicked. There was nothing in this room, only an empty crib and heartache. She pushed the door open.

The nursery was the same mess they'd left it in. Broken glass scattered across the floor, the contents of the picture frames shattered. Her vision blurred as she stared at the debris. So much ruined, so much lost so fast, her pulse stuttered as her unease melted to heartache.

"Don't look at the mess," said Anthony, coming up behind her. He slipped his arms around her waist. "Look further. Someday our baby will sleep in this crib. We shall rock them in this chair and sing them lullabies."

The ache subsided at his words, at his embrace. She turned to tease him about the rocker. She smelled wet earth. Danny stood in the doorway.

Her lips parted. Not real.

Anthony's neck snapped to the side, the crack of bone like buckshot ringing in her ears. His arms fell away as his body collapsed to the floor.

Buzzing filled her head. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think. She dropped to her knees hard, the impact jarring up through her teeth. She reached for Anthony, her breaths coming short and fast as she pushed his body over. His head lolled, the bone of his neck jutting out from beneath the skin. His eyes were still open, staring up at her, empty, empty, empty.

Hayley screamed.

The sound roared up from her guts, scraping her throat raw as it poured out of her mouth. On and on until she had no breath left in her. She couldn't take her eyes off that jutting bone. Not until Danny's small feet appeared in the corner of her vision.

Hayley clutched at her chest, trying to hold her heart inside. Her sob stuck fast in her throat. "What have you done?"

"I heard him, Mommy. I heard him in that room, in the car." Danny stomped his foot. She jerked, gaping up at his pale, petulant face. "He said you were going to replace me. I couldn't let that happen, Mommy." His face crumpled and he began to cry. "Please don't replace me, Mommy. I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm so sorry. Can't we go back to before? I just want you to hold me. Please, Mommy, I love you. Please, hold me."

He held up his arms to her, tear filled eyes pleading. She couldn't look at him. She couldn't look away. Her gaze darted, flitted, drawn to Danny over and over, a moth to flame. Her wings were about to catch fire. Her gaze drifted over broken bone, shards of glass, and the vanity mirror. Half the mirror remained in the frame, reflecting back into the room. She stared at herself, at the spiraling misery she saw there, at Anthony's body and the horrid angle of that jutting bone. Anthony's skin in pale grays and pinks, his body twisted like a dead animal on the side of the road. There was no Danny in the mirror.

Not real.

Her mind reeled and snapped. Anthony was dead. Danny wasn't real. He wasn't, right? What did that make her? Her tears stung as they slid down her face. Her thoughts stuttered, unable to process. Antony was still dead.

"Please, Mommy, hold me."

Hayley opened her arms.