Something shifted in the small apartment that morning. Not loudly. Not all at once. But like concrete settling beneath a structure, it began where no one could see.

Chapter 4 — Toby’s Eye

The teddy bear lost its arm on the fifteenth day of the marriage. Lucy had been dragging it across the floor while pretending the apartment was a burning castle; the bear was rescuing invisible citizens when the old stitching finally tore.

Lucy froze. “Toby’s arm fell off.”

Matthew looked up from the cabinet hinge he was repairing. “I see that.”

“Fix him.”

“I’ll get my sewing kit.”