The Only Son

(Verse 1)

Somewhere in the heart of Austin

Underneath the Texas clay

Tiny bones are resting

In a place I couldn't say

Our father took me there just once

To show me where you lay

A slab of rock that simply read "Son"

While the world just looked away.

(Chorus)

And I hated you for dying

For leaving me behind

To face the ghosts and shadows

Of the ones you left alive

You got the peace of silence

While I took every blow

I hated you for leaving me

With nowhere else to go.

(Verse 2)

It took twenty-two years to mark the spot

To give your ghost a home

They took the money for my future

Just to buy that heavy stone

Mother laughed and called it a gift

A graduation prize

The price of your name in granite

Was the light behind my eyes.

(Verse 3)

Three years, five months, and six long days

You were supposed to lead the way

But the cord that gave you life for months

Took your very breath away

They said you were born already gone

But you fought for three days more

No name, no water, no prayer whispered

As you drifted from the shore.

(Chorus)

And I hated you for dying

For leaving me behind

To face the ghosts and shadows

Of the ones you left alive

You got the peace of silence

While I took every blow

I hated you for leaving me

With nowhere else to go.

(Bridge)

You were meant to be Henry, you were meant to be Bill

The third in a line they’re protecting still

But they wouldn't "waste" a name on a ghost

So I got the name that I hate the most

I was the daughter they didn't want near

Resented for breathing, for being right here

I dreamed of a brother, a knight in the dark

To heal all the bruises and cover the marks.

(Guitar Solo / Instrumental Break)

(Verse 4)

But you abandoned me before we met

A protector I never knew

In the shared nightmare of this house

I was looking out for you

Now the anger’s tired, the fire is low

The truth is all that’s left to show

You found the exit, you found the door

And I don't have to hate you anymore.

(Outro)

You escaped.

And I survived.

I love you.

Somewhere in Austin...

I love you.