Page 14

A white placard, clinical and stark against the place I had once called home, was nailed to the front door:

FOR SALE BY WILLOWS REALTY CO.

The name hit me like Preston’s fist had that night in the alley, the air stolen from my lungs.

My vision tunneled. Breath ragged.

Preston. The Willows.

The same company that owned all of South Lake Union, a plague on all the businesses that had been here for as long as I could remember. Preston’s words echoed in my mind from that night in the alley.

One word and you’d both be tossed on the streets, Evie. You should be thanking me.

I stumbled to the front door. I pressed my hands against the wood, splinters digging into my skin as I tried ripping it from the frame.

Three generations of memories, sealed up, tossed away—just like he’d done to my body.

Panic swelled inside as my throat tightened.

Where’s Dad? Where would he go?

We didn’t have any other family. It was just him and me, the two of us against the world. He had to be with someone they knew, maybe Mrs. Thompson? Yeah, that must be it. It had to be.

I staggered back from the building, spinning around, searching through the darkness of the street for any indication of how this all could have happened.

The surrounding shops were closed for the night, their windows dark.

Sounds of shuffling cardboard stirred behind me. Turning toward the sound, I saw something moving beneath the shadow of the shop’s awning. I beamed underneath my hood, and a sliver of hope bloomed in my chest.

Eddie.

He was huddled under the same spot he always claimed, especially when Dad was away from the shop. He was tucked against the wall, flattened cardboard beneath him, his tattered army jacket wrapped around his thin frame.

He looked thinner than I remembered. The time I’d been gone had not been kind to him, and the guilt weighed down on me.

Eddie slowly sat up, eyes half-closed. He squinted against the pale glow of the streetlamp, sleep still clinging to his face.

“Who’s there?” he drawled.

I stepped closer, pulling the hood tight around my face. I held my breath as I approached, praying the differences in my appearance were enough to curb any suspicion of the Evelyn Graymore he once knew.

“I’m sorry to bother you.” I gestured toward the boarded-up building. “Do you know where my Da—Mr. Graymore is? He used to live here, right?” I asked, trying to hide the shakiness in my voice.

Eddie sat forward, slowly regarding me. His voice was quiet and raspy. “Oh ma’am…ain't you heard?”

My heartbeat quickened.

I slowly shook my head, unable to speak.

Eddie’s head dropped, his voice heavy. “Oh…I’m sorry to tell you, but Mr. Graymore passed away, right after his daughter went missin’. They shut the place down immediately.” He sighed, “A tragedy, really. They were good people.”

Silence. Muted. Eddie’s voice trailed away as I stood staring at him, my face blank.

The world around me tilted, giving way beneath me, plunging me into darkness. It brought me right back to that night. Sinking into the darkness of the Bay, hopeless and afraid.

I lurched backward, slamming against the shop, the bones of my home, already buried. I opened my mouth, but the words died in my throat, and only a raspy breath choked out.

“Ma’am? Are you okay?” Eddie asked, voice muffled and distant. I could see his lips moving, the concern on his face, but the words weren’t registering.