After scolding Maria, the elderly woman turned her gaze to Anderson.
“Mr. Shelton,” she said, her tone softening with gratitude, “thank you so much.”
Then her gaze shifted to me, sharp and assessing, like an old wolf measuring a stranger at the edge of her territory.
“Mr. Shelton,” she said slowly, “this lady is…?”
“A friend,” Anderson answered quickly, his tone easy, but I caught the faint edge beneath it. “We ran into Maria at the amusement park and brought her home.”
“The amusement park?”
The elderly woman’s brows drew together as she looked toward Maria, who had retreated into the corner, her small body curled in on itself. The scent of her earlier fear still lingered faintly in the air, though it was beginning to fade.
Then she sighed, a deep, tired sound that carried more than
