I thought of Seth walking away through the park trees, his dark jacket getting smaller between the bare brown branches.

“Yes,” I said, adjusting my silver wristwatch and taking a steady breath.

“He’s completely gone.”

By eight o’clock Monday morning, the practice software on the office manager’s computer was running its final system update.

I sat in the leather chair behind the oak desk, watching thirty-four patient records clear the queue without a single error.

The database login showed my name as the sole lead administrator for Oak Street Dental.

Dr.