{"id":24691,"date":"2025-12-19T18:42:44","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T18:42:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readmore.cx\/?p=24691"},"modified":"2025-12-19T18:42:44","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T18:42:44","slug":"24691","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readmore.cx\/?p=24691","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

My four-year-old granddaughter. The light of my life.<\/p>\n

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Sophia\u2019s gaze darted toward the mall entrance, her pulse visible in the hollow of her throat. \u201cEmma\u2019s with\u00a0Richard\u00a0and his mother.\u00a0Diane\u00a0wanted to take her to the park. A picnic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you didn\u2019t go?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2026 I had errands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cErrands,\u201d I repeated, glancing at the empty chair beside her. \u201cWhere is your car, Sophia? The Highlander?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her smile faltered, shattering completely. She looked down at her coffee, the steam rising between us like a barrier. \u201cRichard needed it for work. His truck broke down last month. The transmission.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor a month?\u201d I kept my voice level, the same tone I used when cross-examining a hostile witness during my thirty-three years as a real estate attorney. \u201cSo, how did you get here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bus.\u201d She shrugged, a jerky, unnatural motion. \u201cIt\u2019s fine, Mom. Saves on gas. Helps the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSophia.\u201d I reached across the table and covered her hand with mine. Her skin was ice cold, despite the sweltering California afternoon. \u201cLook at me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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My four-year-old granddaughter. The light of my life. Sophia\u2019s gaze darted toward the mall entrance, her pulse visible in the hollow of her throat. \u201cEmma\u2019s with\u00a0Richard\u00a0and his mother.\u00a0Diane\u00a0wanted to take her to the park. A picnic.\u201d \u201cAnd you didn\u2019t go?\u201d \u201cI\u2026 I had errands.\u201d \u201cErrands,\u201d I repeated, glancing at the empty chair beside her. \u201cWhere…<\/p>\n

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