“Death knocked on my door, asking for my mother, so I gave him my eyes and he left.

“A year later Death returned, asking for my mother, so I gave him my voice and he left.

“Today I heard myself calling from the doorstep. She ran out to greet me.”

Clio Velentza lives and invents stories in Athens, Greece. Her work has appeared in print in the anthology of short stories 21 New Voices and online in FractalArt, Literature.gr, and 25th Hour Project. Find her at @clio_v.