THE TRUTH IN OUR EYES

oed like a gunsho

k I do,

not since the night her life was swallowed whole and she ran, clu

re the

ir. Sa

through the mask she'd tried

voice steady despite the tremble ris

idn't need to. It was flat, final, like a judge d

sappear again-but her son was upstairs. Her little

hin. "What do yo

closer, fold

she played a game I never saw comin

ned. So Lucia hadn't

" she said. "S

re worried. You alw

he one person she trusted when she vanished

ing," she said, softer now,

jaw tw

en't dragged you out of this

d. But she he

n't sca

and it was true. Her ha

is fingers brushed the photos-the proof he'd

he muttered. "But h

call me

en you applied. Mia Costa. Not bad. But next time, you might want

ood ra

e photos scattered like accusations. He moved

d you

ing toward the door. "You

ask

m, something breaki

hur

n fr

but shaking. "A beautiful, quiet thing you could own. You called

"You disappeared, Elara! No trace. No

s pre

re out of he

opped br

ed, but the d

etween them, loud

le. Then another. As if space might hel

that

pounded agai

man," she whispe

floor had just spli

io.

ising someone else's child

didn't

't b

't m

heavy, like her confession had pull

ve told me,"

s goi

he

the door, not

n't a danger t

. Roman hadn't spoken to her since th

e had go

to the hall an

Elio's room

-it wa

was un

but the blanket fort was gone.

lood

li

th

The housekeeper wasn't in the kitchen. T

ing wa

e study and stopp

itting behi

on

ked on his.

said n

e is

ble mask again. The one he wore when she

e said. "

ed forwar

stole my son. And now you expect m

He doesn't know I'm his mother. Yo

hing him. I'm

om

n st

ished without a trace, who lied about every

alled into fist

ds the

ds his

h other, fire and

lked over and

gh," he said. "But no

er standing in the study, he

me here wi

he ha

h-and a son she might

nd Elara is suddenly locked out of her own child's life. Will Roman use Elio