When she finished eating, Ethan stood, grabbed his coat, and said he would take her home. Lily hesitated and said her mother had warned her not to go with strangers.
“I’m not a stranger,” he said quietly.
Neither of them fully understood how true that was.
They drove through rain-slick streets. Ethan couldn’t stop glancing at the photo beside him. Each look tightened something in his chest. In the back seat, Lily held her bag and stared out the window. She admitted she had come into the city alone because she was hungry while her mother worked.
When he asked about her father, everything seemed to pause.
“My mom said he’s gone,” Lily said.
The words dried his throat.
When they reached the narrow alley where she lived, the city had shrunk into dim lights and quiet. Lily led him through a tight passage to a small rented room behind a row of buildings. There were a few potted plants outside, carefully tended. Ethan noticed that immediately—it meant the person inside hadn’t given up.
Lily knocked.
“Mom, I’m home.”
The door opened.
And time stopped.
Hannah stood there.
No doubt. No mistake.
She saw him, and all the color drained from her face.