When the Eight-Year-Old Boy We Were Adopting Came Home With Everything He Owned in a Black Bag—Then My Missing Brother’s Watch Fell Onto His Bed

The stuffed bear still slept beside his pillow.

The black bag was gone.

I had thrown it away after asking him.

He had looked confused.

“Why would I want it?”

Fair.

On finalization morning, Oliver wore a blue shirt because he refused the tie Julian bought.

“Looks like a funeral.”