That I had learned, too late to say it to his face, exactly what the pancakes had been — not breakfast, but a small daily act of a love so total it disguised itself as an ordinary morning.

I laid the blossom on the wood and watched the petals scatter into the dark of the grave, and I let him go, this man who had given up everything he was so that I could have everything I had, and who had spent his final breath making sure that when I stood up from his graveside, I would not be standing there alone.

Chapter 20 — The Safe in the Attic

Three months later, the probate settled without a single complication.

Clement had left his modest home, his savings, and his small pension entirely to Juniper and me.

And among his belongings in the attic, I found a hidden metal safe.