the coals became darker still ; the andirons and stone receded like an eclipsed sun , and their heavy silhouette locked into wynnets occluded pupils like a great black key , unlocking a series of shadowy visions he never knew he had : black birds hovering about the room , ex-girlfriends perfuming the stale , late-summer air , his mother telling him bedtime stories , tree branches and dark hills from his past teasing his selective memory .