Maya's POV
My mother called on a Thursday evening.
Not unusual. She called on Thursdays when she had something to say that wasn't Tuesday dinner conversation. The Thursday call was always more direct than the Tuesday version.
"The house," she said. No preamble.
"What about it?"
"You've seen the bathroom tile."
I stopped. "How do you know about the bathroom tile?"
"Aria told me. She said the tiles came from a building in Brooklyn from the same period." A pause. "She said Luca found them at a salvage place."
"She told you all of that."
"She tells me everything. You know this." Another pause. "She also told me about the soil pH."
I sat down on my couch. "Mom."
"Six point four after amendment. Within range for tomatoes and marigolds."
"She's five."
"She's your daughter." The speci
