Nathan
It was late by the time I decided it was time to go to bed. The kind of late that made the house feel quieter than usual, as if it had gone to sleep long before I had.
Most of the lights were out downstairs when I came up from the office, and I assumed everyone was in their rooms. Ms. Rhea and Eleanor had already gone to bed hours ago, and the soft murmur of the night wind against the windows was the only thing I heard as I made my way toward my own room.
I should have been heading there straight, should’ve been looking forward to the feel of my mattress beneath me after the kind of day I had had.
But as I passed Eleanor’s room, I heard it.
Sobbing.
It was soft; a muffled even sound, but it was unmistakable. A sound that curled straight under my skin and tugged at the part of
