Then she nodded once, barely.

“I was wrong,” she whispered, though the words sounded unfamiliar to her.

I hoped she meant them.

I also knew one sentence could not undo the years her choice had taken from us.

PART 9

When I went back inside, Mason was standing beside the staircase with the crooked star held against his chest.

Lauren stood a few paces behind him.

I couldn’t tell how much they’d heard through the door, and I didn’t ask in front of him.