Later on, as the lights dimmed and the unit quieted, Taylor lay on her side, facing the wall. The photograph sat just within her line of sight. She didn’t look at it right away; she didn’t need to. She already knew it was there, patiently waiting for her gaze to study it.
Her mind moved through the day slowly, replaying small moments without meaning to. When the guard handed her Adam’s letter, the tone of Denise’s voice, they way a bit of the pressure in her chest eased after she wrote her reply.
“You’re starting to need it.” The words surfaced again, uninvited.
Taylor’s fingers curled against the thin blanket.
No, that wasn’t right. She didn’t need it. She just… Her thoughts paused. She just what?
Her gaze finally shifted, fixing on the photograph and staying there. The anxiety that
