be the last completely ordinary moment between us for a while.
Everything Seemed Fine
The first few days were exactly what I had hoped for.
Every evening, Lily called.
Sometimes she was exhausted.
Sometimes she was so excited that she talked so quickly I could barely understand her.
She sent me pictures of everything.
Her classmates standing outside museums.
The city skyline.
A restaurant where she said the portions were enormous.
A picture of herself laughing with two friends.
One night she called me from the hotel.
“Mom, you’ll never believe where we went today.”
“Where?”
“You have to guess.”
“I don’t know. Disneyland?”
She laughed.
“No!”
“A movie studio?”
“Close.”
She spent several minutes telling me about everything she had seen.
Her voice sounded happy.
Normal.
Safe.
And every night after we hung up, I felt a little less worried.
Until the final day.
That morning, Lily sent me
