LivFearing for my son’s safety was paralyzing. My body felt frozen, but my heart and brain pumped panic into overdrive to compensate. I wanted to scream, but that wouldn’t be enough.
I mindlessly stacked shampoos, conditioners, and hair gels. I had to stay here. Leo couldn’t have gone far. Likely he’d come home any minute. If he didn’t see me here he’d worry—or worse, go out looking for me.
I rearranged the bottles on the shelves by height. I pulled them all down and began again, this time by the color of the bottle.
Three crisp raps on my back door startled me. I flung the door open without even pushing the curtain aside. Rika huddled on my doorstep. The blowing snow blocked her face behind a scarf, but the long fur coat was the same. Her dark eyes blazed like coals over her scarf.
“M
