Fumes — Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Ernie wants to forget. His short life marred by pain he struggles to understand, he hopes the sirens will blast the thoughts of his mother, his father, of life and death from his brain. Thoughts too serious for someone so young. Thoughts that can scar deeper than flames.
A searing short story about family, betrayal, and murder.
“Like early Ray Bradbury, Rusch has the ability to switch on a universal dark.”
-- The Times (London)