I didn’t want to touch it.”

The woman snapped the wallet shut, fast, and pressed it to her chest.

And watching that — the speed of it, the way she covered the envelope with her whole hand — I understood, from three rows back, that this was not simply a lost wallet with some cash in it.

There was something inside that envelope that this woman was frightened of losing more than anything, and my daughter had just handed it back to her.

Chapter 13 — A Glimpse in the Mirror

For several long minutes, a heavy quiet hung over the middle of the cabin.