Under_The_Whispering_Door_by_TJ_Klune

I KNOW. BUT I HOPE IN HEARING FROM ME, YOU’LL
UNDERSTAND THERE IS SOMETHING MORE BEYOND WHAT
YOU KNOW.
“How am I supposed to believe you?” Nancy cried. “Stop. Stop playing
with me. It hurts. Can’t you see that? It hurts so much.” Her voice broke.
THE GIVING TREE.
Nancy flinched. “What?”
“Hugo,” Wallace whispered. “I … can’t. It’s too much. It’s up to you
now.” He dropped the chalk to the floor. It shattered. He almost fell off the
chair, but Nelson was there, grabbing onto his legs, keeping him from
collapsing. He sat down roughly, his strength draining.
“No,” Nancy whispered, taking a stuttering step forward. “No, no, come
back. Come back!”
“Nancy,” the ferryman said.
Nancy turned, bone white.
“It was her favorite book,” Hugo said quietly, and Wallace sat upright,
Nelson gripping his hand tightly. Apollo sat next to them, tail swishing back
and forth. Mei looked pale, her hand at her throat. “She loved the voices you
did when you read it to her. Even though she learned to read on her own, she
always wanted you to read it to her. There was something about your voice,
something warm and beautiful that she always wanted to hear.”
“You can’t know that,” she said hoarsely. “It was just her and me. Our
thing.” She sounded as if she were choking.
“She told me,” Hugo said. “She was so happy when she did. She spoke of
picking apples in the fall, and the way you laughed when she ate more than
she picked.”
Nancy covered her mouth with her hand.
Hugo took a step toward her, slow and deliberate. “She was sad, too,
because she missed you.” His voice cracked, but he pushed through it. “Her
body was tired. She fought as hard as she could, but it was too much for her.
She was brave because of you. For you. You taught her joy and love and fire.
You went to the zoo because she wanted to see polar bears. You took her to
the museum because she wanted to touch dinosaur bones. You danced in your
living room. The music was loud, and you danced. Once, she knocked over a
vase. You told her it was just a little thing, and there was no need to be upset
when it could be replaced.”