t wore on,

, his usual charm dissolving

ly, his stories ram

he room, a detached observe

patio, swaying slightly as

go, but before I could speak, he

a raw, broken thing. "You came bac

esperate longing, finally br

and sudden, a physi

was

eniable

ost, a proxy fo

d away, stumbling back into the h

t sleep

the ceiling, listening to

ard the front door

nd went to

t, I saw David'

ing twisted

here he

, my movement

, the one my mother had me

, my heart pounding a fran

tes later,

untain in the hotel courtyard, their

w, the cool night air

s carried o

aying, her voice tight with disbelief

like you. It was the only way. And she' s pregnant, Sophia

"What happens when Chloe finds out? When the bab

t a short, a

anything for me. Even if she finds out, she won

sentence to any lingeri

on, a tool, a weak girl

monster, and he believed

o him lay his cruelty bare,

rned away, leaving behind

t I would

o more th

ife so completely it would b

come home

the sun rose, I beg

an immigrat

for a ne

rocess of liqui

g my escape,

day, my p

as S

ce was

o with me to visit your father' s grave. I haven

izarre, so surreal,

he wanted to go to

thought oc

was an op

erformance before

said, my voice sweet and acc