The last time he killed someone, it was an accident. This? This was murder. Sacrifice, they called it, as if she were a goat instead of a person. He curls in on himself, the tears coming. He can still feel her pulse against his fingers.

"She was screaming," he sobs. "She was begging me. Festus started hitting her because she was so loud. I moved my hand, and...and I did it. I held her as she died."