Blended Family
by Scott O’Neill I awaken to paralysis. Blinding lights. Hospital smells. I vaguely recall feeling dizzy at Mom’s wedding reception. “You’re conscious.” My new stepfather glides into view, wearing blood-spattered scrubs and a lunatic grin. “Observe.” He tilts my head right. I see my new stepbrother, Caleb, unconscious on a gurney. Gleaming surgical staples circumscribe […]