Back in Chicago...
Marcus couldn't sleep.
Every room in the condo felt empty.
Julianne's books were gone.
The children's drawings had disappeared from the refrigerator.
Their tiny shoes no longer waited by the front door.
The silence was unbearable.
He opened the hallway closet.
Nothing.
Even the old yellow raincoat Lily had outgrown was missing.
For years he had complained that the apartment was too crowded.
Now it echoed.
He sat on the floor.
Without thinking, he opened the photo gallery on his phone.
Thousands of pictures.
Birthday cakes.
School concerts.
Beach vacations.
Emma asleep on his chest.
Lily riding a bicycle while Julianne ran beside her.
He realized something horrifying.
Almost every happy memory in his life...
Included me.
His phone buzzed.
It was Penelope.
"Can you come over?"
He stared at the message.
For several minutes.
Then locked the screen without replying.
