Paige smiled.

“That might be the nicest thing I’ve ever heard you say about her.”

We carried dessert to the living room.

Outside, the first snow began to fall, softening the city lights.

PART 24

The photograph Paige gave me at Christmas sent me looking for Walter’s old recordings.

He had owned a battered handheld tape recorder before his stroke, and after his speech became difficult, I used it to capture stories he wanted Paige to hear someday.

I found the recordings on a drive tucked into the ledger.