CARSON SAT WITH HIS back pressing against the wood of the gazebo, holding the bowl of ice cream in one hand and the spoon in the other. He hadn’t known what to say to Misha when she told him it was Anya’s birthday. No wonder the memory of her disappearing had devastated him so much. Anya lost— He shook his head. No, he had lost Misha on his birthday seven hundred years ago.
He stared down into his bowl, not sure what to say.
Saroj gave them the ice cream for free in celebration of his birthday, and Misha had merely nodded and then led Carson across the street to the park in the center of the roundabout to sit in the gazebo. She remained silent the entire way, and he could feel the anguish rolling off her. He wanted to say something—anything—but what was there to say? This mess simply kep
