But what if it hadn’t been Ryan?Learn a Language

The thought was insane.

Impossible.

And yet the necklace existed.

I barely slept.

At seven the next morning, my phone rang.

Unknown number.

I answered.Shop Jewelry

“Rachel?”

Christopher Bennett.

I sat up.

“What do you want?”

A long silence.

“Come back.”

“Why?”Edit Photos

“Because you

need the job.”

Anger flared through me.Bath & Body Products

“And you need someone willing to tolerate you.”

Another pause.

“That too.”

I looked toward Brandon sleeping on the couch.

“Will you tell me about Ryan?”

“No.”

I nearlyCelebrities & Entertainment News

hung up.

Then Christopher added, “Not yet.”

I gripped the phone.

“What does that mean?”

“It means there are things you do not understand.”

“Then help me understand.”

“I can’t.”Family Law

“You mean you won’t.”

“Yes.”

I closed my eyes.

Five thousand dollars a week could change my children’s lives.

It could move us out of that apartment.

Pay medical bills.

Put food in the refrigerator.Standardized & Admissions Tests

Give Emma new shoes.

Give Brandon the inhaler the doctor recommended.

And maybe, just maybe, staying near Christopher would give me answers.

“What time?”

“Four.”

I returned.Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

Christopher acted as if nothing had happened.

That almost made it worse.

For three days, we barely spoke beyond what was

necessary.

I helped him bathe.Bath & Body Products

Dress.

Eat.

Transfer to bed.

Stretch his arms.

Manage medication.

And every day, the silver locket remained around his neck.

He never removed it.Celebrities & Entertainment News

I began noticing other things.

Christopher hated
mirrors.

He refused visitors after dark.

He woke from nightmares shouting names.

Daniel.

Marcus.

Ryan.

The first time I heard my brother’s name, I nearly dropped a glass.Standardized & Admissions Tests

Christopher pretended he hadn’t said it.

By the end of the first week, Brandon’s fever was gone.

Emma had stopped asking whether we had enough food.

I paid three months of overdue rent.

Then Christopher did something unexpected.

He asked about my children.

“What are their names?”Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

We were in the library.

I was organizing his medication.

“Brandon and Emma.”

“How old?”

“Eight and five.”

“Father?”

I stiffened.Baby & Pet Names

“Gone.”

“Dead?”

“No.”

Christopher glanced at me.

“He left when Emma was two.”

“Why?”

“Because responsibility bored him.”

Christopher looked almost offended.

“His loss.”Patient transfer devices

“Yes.”