Excerpt from A Man Named Dave by Dave Pelzer, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

She shakes her head. "This has to end, David. Look at you. You're--"

"It's okay," I interrupt in a calm voice. "I'm not . . . when I'm at school, I'm not afraid. Just promise me you won't tell. Not today, please?"

"David, you know I can't do that," the nurse replies in a flat tone.

"If you . . . if you tell," I pant, "then you know what will happen. Please, let it go!"

She nods her head in agreement. "Just for today."

"Promise?"

"Promise." She takes my hand and leads me to the small bed in the corner of the room.

"Cross your heart and hope to die?" I ask, making an X mark on my chest with my finger.

"Cross my heart," she repeats in a choked-up voice. She covers me with a thick wool blanket.

". . . And hope to die?" I repeat. The nurse's lips part with a smile as she gently strokes my matted hair. I take her hands and cup them around mine. ". . . And hope to die?"

The nurse gives my hands a gentle squeeze. "And hope to die."

In the deepest part of my soul, I feel at peace. I am no longer afraid. I am ready to die.

From A Man Named Dave : A Story of Triumph and Forgiveness, by David J. Pelzer, Dave Pelzer. © October 1999 , David J. Pelzer, Dave Pelzer used by permission of the publisher, E.P. Dutton.