Noon arrived with the weight of a verdict.
I'd spent the morning pacing my apartment, rehearsing speeches, discarding them, starting over. Elinor watched from her perch on the bookshelf, her expression clearly communicating that she thought I was an i***t.
"You're probably right," I told her. "But here we are."
At 11:30, I walked to the park.
It was a small one—the kind that existed in every city, tucked between apartment buildings and coffee shops, used by dog walkers and elderly couples and parents with strollers. I'd passed it a thousand times without really seeing it. Today, every bench, every tree, every patch of grass felt significant.
I chose a bench near the fountain. Central. Visible. Neutral.
Then I waited.
Kael arrived first, at 11:52. He'd made an effort—nice jeans, a da
