The words sounded naive the second they left my mouth. Still, I let his warmth seep into me. His arms stayed stiff by his sides with not even a fraction of movement in response. And as I pulled away, I felt alone again. Everything that had been safe was gone.
Hot sweat climbed the back of my neck, and my stomach knotted with anger that had nowhere to go. None of it mattered. This wasn't about me anymore. It was the cost of my mother's freedom.
"Goodbye, signorina," he said at last in a distant voice, nodded once, and pressed a few folded dollar bills into my palm like a stranger would.
I stood there and watched the car disappear into the moving line of traffic until I couldn't tell it apart from the others. I didn't know how long I stayed rooted there, but when I turned back to
