He sat carefully, as though he was visiting someone else’s kitchen instead of sitting in his own.

“What was he like when he was young?”

I had expected to answer questions about the ring, the secret, or why I was there.

Instead, the child wanted his grandfather back in a story.

“He could never make pancakes without burning the first batch,” I said.

Toby’s face brightened.

“He did that last week!”

“He said the first ones were for practice.”