“Dad, NO!” My legs were useless, they wouldn’t move fast enough. By the time I reached the bottom of the stairs and turned the corner, tears burned my eyes when I caught sight of Ethan. Just learning to walk, stumbling across the living room with a Lego block in his hand, he smiled when he saw me. His doll-like arms stretched towards me and his baby blue eyes were so focused on my presence that he never saw Dad closing in behind him. “Leave him alone!” I screamed, and charged at Ethan. I scooped him up against my chest like a football just as Dad’s steel-toed boot made contact with my stomach.
...more
