"Mary Janice Davidson - Betsy 01 - Undead And Unwed" - читать интересную книгу автора (Davidson Mary Janice)

world.

тАЬGod,тАЭ I said, teetering for balance, тАЬIтАЩm coming to see you now.тАЭ

I dove off the roof and hit the street below, headfirst, exactly as I had planned. What wasnot in the plan
was the smashing, crunching pain in my head when I hit, how I didnтАЩt even lose consciousness, much less
see my pal God.

Instead I groaned, clutched my head, then finally stood when the pain abated. Only to get creamed by
an early morning garbage truck. I looked up in time to see the horror-struck driver mouthingтАж

(Jesus Christ, lady, look out!)

тАжsomething, then my forehead made brisk contact with the truckтАЩs front grille. I slid down it like road
kill and hit the street, ass first.

When I stood, brushing dirt from my cheap skirt, the driver slammed the truck in reverse and got the
hell out of Dodge. Not that I could blame him. But who ever heard of a hit and run garbage truck?

CHAPTER THREE



I am nothing if not persistent. Flinging myself into the Mississippi didnтАЩt work: I no longer needed to
breathe. I floundered around on the muddy river bottom for half an hour before giving up and slogging my
way back to shore. Neither did grounding myself while I held onto a live power line (though it didawful
things to my hair). I drank a bottle of bleach, and the only consequence was a startling case of dry mouth.
I shoplifted a butcher knife from the nearby Wal-MartтАФthe place to shop if youтАЩre dead, itтАЩs three a.m.,
and you donтАЩt have any credit cardsтАФand stabbed myself in the heart: nothing.

I was walking dispiritedly down Lake Street, trying to figure out how to decapitate myself, when I heard
low voices and what sounded like muffled crying. I almost moved onтАФdidnтАЩt I have problems of my
own?тАФwhen good sense returned and I walked through the alley and around the corner. I saw three
men hulking around a woman. She was holding hands with a big-eyed girl. The girl looked about six or
so. Fear made the woman look about fifty. Her purse was lying on the ground between them. Nobody
moved to get it, and I had a quick, clear thought: she tossed it at them, and tried to run, and they
cornered her. They donтАЩt want her purse. They wantтАФ

тАЬPlease,тАЭ she said, almost whispered, and I thought the acoustics must be very good, for me to have
heard them from almost a block away. тАЬDonтАЩt do anything to me in front of my daughter. IтАЩll go with
youтАФIтАЩll do whatever you want, just please, pleaseтАФтАЭ

тАЬMommy, donтАЩt leave me here by myself!тАЭ The girlтАЩs eyes were light brown, almost whiskey-colored,
and when they filled with tears I felt something lurch inside my dead heart. тАЬJustтАФyou go away, bad
men! Leave my mommy alone!тАЭ

тАЬShhh, Justine, shhhтАжтАЭ The woman was trying to pry her daughterтАЩs fingers free and made a ghastly
attempt at a laugh. тАЬSheтАЩs tiredтАФitтАЩs lateтАФIтАЩll go with youтАФтАЭ

тАЬDonтАЩt wantyou ,тАЭ one of the men said, his eyes on the girl. Justine burst into fresh tears, but not before