She stood beside Adrian outside a brick building I did not recognize.
Adrian had one arm around her shoulder.
She was smiling.
He wasn’t.
He looked emotional.
On a table behind them sat an old wooden box.
Dark wood.
Brass corners.
I zoomed in with my phone.
Something about the box tugged at me.
Not recognition exactly.
More like the feeling that recognition was standing just beyond reach.
Then I read the note again.
Claire still can’t know I’m back in Bellmere.
Back.
Not visiting.
Back.
Who was she?
And why did she know me?
I took the elevator downstairs.
The Evermere Grand Hotel lobby was already awake.
Wedding flowers from the night before still decorated one corner.
A hotel employee pushed luggage toward the entrance.
A pianist was quietly practicing in the lounge.
Everything looked normal.
I felt insane.
I sat near a window overlooking Bellmere and searched the storage company.
