‘Because he needed to know you would be safe.’

‘Does he know now?’

‘He’s learning, just like the rest of us.’

Eli nodded, apparently satisfied.

Then he ran to join his siblings, leaving me with a half-eaten sandwich and the strange peace of understanding that the careful steps weren’t obstacles to love.

They were part of protecting it.

PART 19

The call from Anna came on a rainy Thursday, almost a year after the emergency registry notice.