Borrowed Your Boat by Walt Giersbach

Orville sensed the house by the river was unnaturally quiet as he unlocked the front door. Not a sound, not even the usual noises from the TV. “I got a raise,” he shouted. “Anybody want to celebrate?”

Then he saw his father and the letter. The man was on the living room floor and the letter centered on the man’s chest. The gash on the man’s forehead and the baseball bat nearby told Orville he was an orphan. In shock, he picked up the tablet paper and read Paula’s labored script: