"Tell me about Vítor. What was he like?"
Teresa smiled. "He was a gentle person, so kind and honest. You could read him like a book. He would try so hard to show a brave face when he was upset, but we could see through it." Her eyes saddened. "I think that's why he became such an easy target for his father. When Mário wanted to be friendly with me at school, Vítor got close to Paula to help his big brother. They became best friends. I always wondered if they'd eventually get married because they were inseparable, especially after Joel's mom left to live in America."
"What kind of things did he like?"
"He always carried a drawing pad with him. He liked to draw things that caught his eye, people, buildings, the world around him. He was so excited to become an uncle."
Teresa's voice left her and tears ran down her face. It was my turn to put my arms around her.
"Aren't we a pair?" I said, trying to inject some humor. "Let me have this coffee before it gets cold, and there's no amount of tears that will stop me eating that custard tart."
She wiped her tears and smiled.
I didn't know what I'd expected when I came to the café to talk to David about Vítor, but I definitely hadn't expected to have my core shaken to the ground.
After twenty-eight years, it would be very difficult to find Vítor, but I'd be damned if I wasn't going to give it my best try.
Coloring with Filipe was the therapy I'd needed after the day I'd had, and I promised I'd take him to the zoo in the next week or so before he went back to school. His excitement was one of the highlights of my week, the other being the man that had starred in all my dreams in the last week, even though he ran away after giving me the best kiss of my life.
