I Came Here by My Own Choice
“Here,” a soft voice said.
I turned.
Maura — Lennox’s mother — had stepped up behind me.
She did not offer platitudes or tell me it would be fine.
She reached behind her own neck, unclasped a heavy string of luminous heirloom pearls, and draped them around my throat, the cool stones against my collarbone.
“My grandmother wore these,” she whispered, her eyes fierce.