The truth is inside.

It always was.

There was a gentleness in how Mr.

Vance handled me in that lobby that I did not appreciate until much later, when I understood the whole of what he was carrying.

This man had known the truth for twenty years.

He had known, every time he saw me mentioned in Julian’s careful updates, exactly who I was and what had been done to keep me safe.

He had helped build the walls.