“Suspect sighted outside!”
The cop’s radio burst like a firecracker—loud, scratchy, slicing through the thick, greasy diner air. Camille flinched. Her heart slammed up hard, knocking into her ribs. Her palms—already slick—slipped off Ellie’s shaking shoulders. The lights buzzed louder, like hornets, blinking on and off like the room couldn’t decide whether to stay real or not.
Ellie’s unicorn drawing—crayon scrawl of Mommy Camille—was still on the table, crumpled next to the mess of Adrian’s papers, like the past and future just dumped together.
Camille’s vision swam. Her throat burned. Her brain was just... chaos. Suspect? Who—him? Is it Adrian? Or someone else?
I can’t—I’m not built for this.
Her stomach flipped again, nausea scraping up her throat like claws. Her backpack lay on th
