Something in her tone softened the air just slightly.
“When I saw your file… your pictures… your children,” she continued, glancing at them briefly, “I knew you had nothing to do with any of this.”
She paused.
“So I made a deal.”
“What kind of deal…?”
“That he disappears. Completely. No contact. No trace. And in exchange… you’re left alone.”
Her heart nearly stopped.
“Disappear…?”
“Yes.”
“And he agreed?”
The woman shook her head faintly.
“He didn’t have a choice.”
Silence fell again.
Heavy. Final.
“Is he… alive?”
The question trembled as it left her lips.
The woman hesitated—just for a second.
Then she answered.
“Yes. But you will never see him again.”
The tears came then.
Not loud. Not dramatic.
Just quiet, endless tears that slipped down her face as reality settled into place.
Her children looked up at her, confused and frightened.
She pulled them into her arms, holding them as if they were the only thing keeping her grounded.
“And now… what happens to us?” she asked softly.
The woman gently pushed the file closer.
“Now… you start over.”
“With what?” she asked, almost laughing through the pain. “We have nothing.”
The woman gestured lightly around the empty space.
“With this.”
