We can continue tomorrow.”

I drove there with Paige.

No convoy.

No men with earpieces.

Just my sister holding a bag containing baby clothes Hannah had asked us to bring.

At the desk, I gave my name and waited.

The hours passed with a strange mixture of ordinary sounds: vending-machine wrappers, nurses laughing softly at a computer station, a family discussing whether to order sandwiches.

When Benjamin came out, his expression was exhausted but calm.