A young policeman stood on the doorstep, shifting his feet.

“It’s about your son. Please call this number.”

She pleaded for an explanation, but instead he thrust the paper into her hand.

Trembling, my parents dialed the number. The line rang.

An eternity of rings.

Finally, a voice answered. “Homicide.”

Margie Nairn is a retired nurse and emerging writer in Corvallis, Oregon, where she writes memoir, poetry, and silly limericks for her daughter.