no today.”
I hated that answer.
But I understood her.
We gave Elaine our hotel details.
Then we left.
Leaving that cafe while Nora was still alive inside was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.
Michael cried in the hotel room.
I had already seen him cry.
But not like that.
“What if she disappeared again?”
“She will not disappear.”
“You don’t know anything about it.”
” No. “
We waited.
At seven o’clock that evening, my phone rang.
Elaine told me, “She wants to see you.”
Twenty minutes later, we were in a quiet room behind the cafe.
Then the door opened.
Nora entered.
For a few seconds, nobody moved.
She looked at me.
Then Michael.
Her face darkened. “I’m sorry.”
I crossed the room before I even realized it.
I took her in my arms.
She stiffened for half a second.
Then she collapsed against me.
She was
