The Mark

the long version

Right as I'm about to die, I realize all the myths are fake. There's no white light at the end of a tunnel. My life isn't flashing before my eyes.All I can think about is how much I want to live.I moved to New York City a month ago to become the best journalist the world had ever seen. To find the greatest stories never told. And now here I am--Henry Parker, twenty-four years old and weary beyond rational thought, a bullet one trigger pull from ending my life.I can't run. Running is all Amanda and I have done for the past seventy-two hours. And I'm tired. Tired of knowing the truth and not being able to tell it.Five minutes ago I thought I had the story all figured out.I knew that both of these men--one an FBI agent, the other an assassin--wanted me dead, but for very different reasons.If I die tonight--more people will die tomorrow.