Let one note scrape at the edge before settling.
I watched the woman on the screen.
Savannah under the lights.
Annie’s bracelet around her wrist.
She looked completely at home.
Alive.
It would have been easier if Savannah had looked like a costume.
She didn’t.
She smiled during the applause.
Not the polished smile from the market.
The one I knew.
The one that began in her eyes when she forgot to control it.
I watched until the video ended.
Rosa returned.
“Well?”
“She’s good.”
Rosa looked offended.
“She fills arenas.”
“I was aiming for restraint.”
“She’s very good.”
“Yes.”
I handed back the phone.
Rosa studied me.
“You understand her better now?”
“No.”
“Good.”
I frowned.
“That was unexpectedly unhelpful.”
“Understanding people completely is how murders begin.”
“That seems statistically questionable.”
