Every Saturday was grocery-shopping day in the Ramone household; and on every Saturday for the past three years, Mrs. Ramone would strap two-year-old Madeline—Maddie for short—into her car seat and the two would set off together in the family's beaten red sedan, two miles down the road to the nearest Vons. This Saturday, however, was different. Oh sure, it started off normally enough: Mr. Ramone left for work as he always did at five o'clock sharp, while Mrs. Ramone herself rose with the baby an hour later. And by the time she had changed Maddie's diaper, got her dressed, fed her breakfast, finished getting herself decent, and finished writing out the grocery list, the time was 8:30. It was as the two were pulling out of the garage that Mrs. Ramone first felt that something was wrong.

Maybe she had forgotten something?

No, that couldn't have been it. She had her purse, grocery list, money, keys, cell phone, and Maddie was strapped safely into the backseat. On a whim, she glanced back over her shoulder to make sure that Maddie was fine, only to find that her daughter was quietly drinking milk from a bottle. Seeing that her mother was paying attention to her, Maddie quickly threw her bottle to the ground and grinned. "Uh-oh mama!" She screamed happily. Mrs. Ramone began to laugh but quickly stopped as the loud blaring of a horn could be heard. Snapping her head forward, and instinctively slamming down on her breaks, she watched with horror as a giant black truck came barreling toward them. Panicking, she stepped on the gas, but it was too late. The truck was inches away from the sedan. Screaming, Mrs. Ramone tried to lean over to where Maddie was sitting, desperate to save her daughter before the moment of impact. "NOOOO!" She screamed.

And everything stopped.

It took Mrs. Ramone several moments to register what was happening. To her right, just outside the sedan's door, was the truck's silver grille, poised like a battering ram to flatten the car. Maddie's mouth was frozen open, her eyes staring up into where Mrs. Ramone's had been when she had blindly tried to free her from the car seat. Maddie's expression was strangely blank.

You wish to file a complaint?

An unfamiliar male voice drawled, interrupting Mrs. Ramone's thoughts. She swung her head around, looking for the source of the voice. "Who are you?" She whispered.

You know. The voice responded smugly.

"No, I don't," her hands were shaking now.

Oh yes, you do. Think back, hard. Remember those stories your grandparents used to tell you? The ones about the doomed twins? Remember? The voice paused impatiently. Or am I dealing with an idiot?

Squeezing her eyes shut and shaking her head, remembering the fairytales Grandma Laura had told her and her sister about a place called Wingfall, where two siblings, twins, had been forced into immortality. "One to give and protect life, the other to dole out death." As Grandma had put it. But it wasn't possible... Not even the least bit. 'Next I'll see a wolf trying to blow down a house.' Mrs. Ramone thought to herself and then broke into a hysterical fit of laughter. This was absurd, it had to all be a dream--nothing else could explain it. Soon she would wake up and--.

If you're finished, drawled the voice. I have a proposition that may interest you.

Mrs. Ramone was too busy trying to pinch herself awake to notice (or was she supposed to get someone else to pinch her?). "All right."

The voice spoke quickly, as if afraid the obviously traumatized woman would lapse into insanity again, if she had even recovered from her previous lapse.

There's been a minor miscalculation on my part--and to a lesser extent your sister's.

"My sister?" Mrs. Ramone asked, startled enough to temporarily forget about trying to wake herself up. "What does she have to do with this?"

It's a long story. And truthfully, I haven't the time to tell it. But that is beside the point. Basically, your daughter's time has run out, and I am scheduled to take her with me today. However, due to the present circumstances, I'm willing to allow your daughter to live--for a price.

Mrs. Ramone's voice was cautious. "And what's that?"

The laws dictate that everyone has a set amount of time allowed in life. Usually, I cannot make an exception, but seeing that you and your sister are of the Aderyn line, your daughter's life may be spared.

Aderyn? Laws? Mrs. Ramone rubbed her forehead as she felt the beginnings of a migraine coming on (so this couldn't be a dream--who got migraines in dreams?). None of what Death--if that was whom she was truly speaking to--was registering with her. Nevertheless, if it would save Maddie's life then whatever the agreement was had to be worth it. "So what do I need to do?"

Your sister has a daughter too, yes? One born on the same day as your own? I believe that the two of you were on the news for a brief period of time.

She didn't like where this was going. "Yes."

With certain lineages, there exist loopholes. I can save your daughter's life if an exchange of a life of greater or equal value is made.

"What are you saying?"

With your permission, I can take your sister's child in place of your daughter. And then on her eighteenth birthday your daughter can agree to a contract that guarantees my protection.

"I-I can't do that. Jenny would be crushed without Kate."

It's up to you. Just remember that either way, you'll have blood on your hands. And do you really want it to be your own child's?

"N-no." Hot tears flowed down her cheeks. She glanced backward that Maddie in her car seat and finally nodded. "All right. Do it."

Very well, said the voice. And remember...

Mrs. Ramone sat straight up in bed, lathered in a cold sweat. So it was all just a dream... "Oh thank goodness..." She muttered as she lay back in bed, breathing a heavy sigh of relief. So Maddie was safe and her sister Jenny still had little Kate and everything was as it should be. The phone rang then, and she rolled over in bed to answer it, glancing over at her clock in the process. It was only 5:32 AM. "Who could be calling now?" She wondered as she lifted the phone to her ear. "Hello?"

It was Jenny, and her voice was low with tears. "Lissey, is that you? There's been an accident. Kate..." She broke off, sobbing in the background. "She'd dead, Lissey! She's dead, and I have no idea what to do..."