Maya hung up the phone and sat in silence for a long moment.
The shop was quiet around her. Sunlight streamed through the windows, casting warm golden patterns across the wooden floor. Dust motes danced in the beams, suspended in the air like tiny stars. The scent of paper and ink and the faint floral perfume of her latest project filled the room, a familiar comfort that usually soothed her. Outside, life in Nowhere continued—birds singing their cheerful morning songs, a distant truck engine rumbling down Main Street, the soft hum of the world going about its business. But inside, Maya felt a familiar ache in her chest, one that she'd thought she'd outgrown. It was the ache of a mother's worry, a weight that settled in her bones and refused to lift.
Lily was struggling. Her daughter was
