The Vigil – Terence Faherty

The June 2006 EQMM has a story by a writer I was first introduced to last year, Terence Faherty. He wrote a very short novel called In a Teapot. Marvelous stuff. “The Vigil” is another great story. A little girl is praying for a new roof to her church. The previous year, she had prayed for a car for her mother…and got it. A cynical newspaper editor sends out a reporter to investigate. The reporter, working on Christmas Eve, finds some surprising information during his background check, but will he find anything to discredit the girl or to prove that the car her mother received the previous year was NOT gifted by the Virgin Mary?

The story moves seamlessly from plot point to plot point, the main character, the reporter, has a wry outlook on his predicament, and several minor characters are well fleshed out complete with motives for the things they do. That is, motives that work – motives that make them seem like real people – the things they do like the things done by real humans. Over all, very fine work.

I should note that the drawing on page 12 by Mark Evans is something rather spectacular. There has to be a trick to it, I’m thinking. It’s that good.