" The boy swallowed. "He doesn't like going back."The girl shuddered, the scene all too easy to imagine. Simon undoubtedly begged not to return to his...own 'dark room, ' just like she had. But he'd been trapped for much longer than her own moments of forced solitude.She marched into the shadowed miasma, before her fear could overpower her empathy entirely."Simon?" she called, peering into the black. "Are you ... here?"A form lurched out of a corner and sprawled, naked, at her feet.The boy she. I walked home. Normally I take a bus but the walk, the wind and the bustling streets occupied enough of my mind to numb the confusion. Tuesday End this, I told myself. Don’t be drawn in. You are, I told myself, a forty-three year old woman. You have a life, friends, a home. Thus resolved I went to work and performed as normal. My boss was gentle and kind. She took me out for lunch and gave me the opportunity to talk as I had so often before. What could I tell her? It’s like this, Maggie. My. Our money is spent in the service of God! We are good stewards of his finances. Not one cent of His money is spent on personal gain! How dare you question the Shining Light Christian Church’s handling of the finances given to us to do God’s work!’ ‘But according to the Scriptures that you hold so dear to your heart, only ten percent of the monies collected is supposed to go towards the running of the church. No, I am not critical of the money that you use to do God’s work, because there isn’t. * * * * * *Danica was completely bamboozled by his recent experiences now. AuntieLynda, with her authoritive air, Maxine with her haughtiness and evenMandy with her spicy/sweet personality all had him utterly beguiled. Ifhe was honest with himself, he would have to admit that his status inthe household was below all three of them. Even when Auntie Lynda andMaxine took it in turns to give him his nightly "relief" he still feltas though all the control was in their hands, which ironically,.