Leo reached down with his thumb and smoothed the soft gray velvet on his rabbit’s face.

“He left his navy blue tie in the closet,” Leo said.

“I threw that away weeks ago,” I said.

“Good,” Leo said, turning back toward the yard.

I leaned forward and rested my hand gently on the sleeve of his yellow cardigan.

“We’re safe now, Leo, and this house belongs to us,” I said.

He looked down at the garden beds along the porch walk, where green bulb shoots were pushing up through the dark soil.

“Can we plant the yellow flower seeds tomorrow?” he asked.