I called Audrey Vance again and told her to move.

Every hour Julian was gone was an hour I put to use, because a woman who has finally stopped hoping is the most efficient person alive; all the energy she used to spend on hope becomes available, suddenly, for action.

He thought he was punishing me with his absence, or perhaps he did not think of me at all.

Either way, he handed me three uninterrupted days to build the door he did not know I was building, and I took them, and I have never been so grateful for anyone’s neglect in my life.

Chapter 10 — Two Unfamiliar Coats

When Leo was released, I brought him home in a wheelchair — and stopped just inside our own front door, because two unfamiliar coats were hanging in the foyer.