Now he was telling me there was a boundary I should respect.

“You’re right,” I said at last.

“Please ask whether she’ll accept a message.”

I spent the rest of the day trying to work and failing.

A proposal that required my signature lay untouched.

I found myself opening the picture again, tracing the boy’s outline with one finger against the glass.

At home, Vivienne noticed.

“Something wrong with the Chicago project?”