The Fallen

by David Baldacci

  “You really think so?”

  “Yeah, I really do.”

  They reached the spot and Zoe looked at the raised mound of dirt. There was no headstone there yet, but her mother had told her that it was coming soon. It would attest to Frank Mitchell’s being a good husband and father. Decker knew that it would be a place that Zoe would be drawn to for the rest of her life, even if she ended up moving far away.

  For her, Baronville would always be a touchstone, a place she would want to forget, and also a place from which she could never separate herself.

  Decker knew this from experience.

  With Zoe’s assistance, he carefully laid out the blanket on the ground next to the grave.

  He helped her position the flowers at the head of the mound, and then they sat on the blanket.

  Zoe was in her best dress and her hair was done in the pigtails that she had told him her father had loved.

  Decker was dressed in the best clothes he had brought with him. They weren’t fancy, but they were freshly laundered and ironed.

  Zoe looked at him anxiously. “Now what do I do?”

  “You can talk to your dad.”

  “What do I say?”

  “What did you used to say to him?”

  “I told him what I did at school and what Mom and I would do while he was at work. And about a book that I really liked.”

  “Well, go ahead and do that. I’m sure he wants to hear all about it. You can catch him up on things.”

  Zoe dropped her voice and looked anxiously around at the other graves. “Do I whisper? I don’t think you’re supposed to talk loud here.”

  “That’s fine, Zoe. Your dad will be able to hear you no matter what.”

  “And he’ll talk back to me?”

  “Yes, just not in the way he used to. But just think about him in your head, and you’ll hear your dad. You just have to let it all come out. Okay?”

  “Okay.”

  She leaned close to the mound and started to quietly speak.

  Decker patiently sat there while she did so. He looked around at some other people visiting the graves of loved ones.

  Baronville had a lot of problems, just like other places, rural, suburban, and urban. But problems could be solved. And lives could be changed for the better.

  It wasn’t impossible. If anything, Decker believed in the resilience of the human spirit.

  I’m actually a living example of that.

  Yet as he continued to look around, a bit of trepidation crept into Decker’s thoughts. Would he wake up tomorrow with his perfect memory gone? Would he no longer see colors where he used to? Even more troubling was the possibility that his mind, instead of increasing its abilities in certain ways, might begin to go the other way, leaving him with a diminished capacity.

  He had spoken in an indifferent manner to Jamison about his football career and all the head shots he had taken over the years. But he knew his chances for having some brain damage were heightened because of it.

  He was beginning to sense his anxiety levels edging up when he felt a hand on his arm.

  He turned to see Zoe staring up at him.

  He smiled at her innocent and trusting features, and the wave of panic that had been about to overwhelm him immediately receded.

  “Did you tell him everything you wanted to?” he asked.

  She nodded. “I think so. For now, anyway. But I’ll have more to tell Daddy on my next visit.”

  Decker touched his chest. “Did you feel it here? All warm?”

  Zoe nodded vigorously. “I did. Just like you said. And he did talk back to me. In my head.”

  “I know it means a lot to him that you’re here. And he’ll always be with you, Zoe, your whole life. No matter where you go.”

  “Because he’s really in here?” she said, touching her chest.

  “Yes.”

  “I wish he were here with me, like you are,” she said, her eyes suddenly becoming wide and watery.

  “I wish Molly was with me right now too. But since they can’t be, we have to keep on living our lives for them. Do good things. Things they would be proud of, okay?”

  Zoe nodded.

  “Can we stay here for a little while, Amos? With my dad?”

  “We can stay here for as long as you want, Zoe.”

  When Zoe reached out and took his hand, Decker gripped it back.

  In a way, he was holding on for dear life to the hand of a child.

  Yet Decker had not felt such calm, such inner peace, for a very long time.

  His time was consumed with hunting down those who committed bad acts, but Decker knew that evil would always be outweighed by the good.

  Actually, he had to believe that, otherwise he wasn’t sure, like Kate Kemper, that he could continue to do his job.

  Sometimes you just had to believe.

  He let out a deep breath, and kept hold of Zoe’s hand.

  And the little girl and the giant man sat there, while both life and death revolved around them.

  Acknowledgments

  To Michelle, because every day with you is a reminder that I fortunately married way above my pay grade!

  To Michael Pietsch, for being a great and caring publisher.

  To Lindsey Rose, for being so wonderful at your job.

  To Andy Dodds, Nidhi Pugalia, Ben Sevier, Brian McLendon, Karen Kosztolnyik, Beth deGuzman, Brigid Pearson, Bob Castillo, Anthony Goff, Michele McGonigle, Cheryl Smith, Andrew Duncan, Joseph Benincase, Tiffany Sanchez, Stephanie Sirabian, Matthew Ballast, Jordan Rubinstein, Dave Epstein, Rachel Hairston, Karen Torres, Christopher Murphy, Ali Cutrone, Tracy Dowd, Martha Bucci, Lukas Fauset, Thomas Louie, Laura Eisenhard, Anne Twomey, Mary Urban, Barbara Slavin, Sean Ford, and Genevieve Kim, and everyone at Grand Central Publishing, for working so hard on my behalf for over twenty years.

  To Aaron and Arleen Priest, Lucy Childs, Lisa Erbach Vance, Mitch Hoffman (and thanks for another fine editing job), Frances Jalet-Miller, John Richmond, and Rachael Burlette, for being the absolute best at what you do.

  To Anthony Forbes Watson, Jeremy Trevathan, Trisha Jackson, Katie James, Alex Saunders, Sara Lloyd, Claire Evans, Rob Cox, Stuart Dwyer, Geoff Duffield, Jonathan Atkins, Anna Bond, Leanne Williams, Natalie McCourt, Sarah McLean, Charlotte Williams, and Neil Lang at Pan Macmillan, for being a world-class publisher. I’m lucky to be part of the family.

  To Praveen Naidoo and the team at Pan Macmillan in Australia, for continuing to outdo yourselves with each book.

  To Caspian Dennis and Sandy Violette, for being so fun and delightful to work with, and even more fun to party with!

  To Kyf Brewer and Orlagh Cassidy, for your incredible audio performances. We get a ton of fan mail about the audio books, all well-deserved.

  To Steven Maat and the entire Bruna team, for continuing to build the brand.

  To Bob Schule, for once more taking up his “consultant” hat on the manuscript.

  To Terry Williams of Langford Insurance, for educating me on the finer points of insurance!

  To Roland Ottewell, for superb copyediting.

  And to Kristen White and Michelle Butler, for keeping Columbus Rose on a terrific roll!

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  About the Author

  David Baldacci is a global #1 bestselling author, and one of the world’s favorite storytellers. His books are published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with over 130 million worldwide sales. His works have been adapted for both feature film and television. David Baldacci is also the cofounder, along with his wife, of the Wish You Well Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting literacy efforts across America. Still a resident of his native Virginia, he invites you to visit him at DavidBaldacci.com and his foundation at WishYouWellFoundation.org.

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