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“How much sunlight do you get?”“Only a little in the afternoon.”I offered another pot.“This one would do better.”The girl looked disappointed until I showed her the new leaves.“You could draw it every week and see how it changes.”She touched a leaf with one finger.They bought the plant that suited their home.I tucked a care card into the bag.“First sale,” Martha said.I carefully filed the receipt.At lunch, Nora arrived with hot food.She pulled me toward a chair.“Eat.”“I have another customer—”“I’m here,” Martha said.Once I sat down, I realized how hungry I was.Nora placed a thin folder beside me.“The final confirmation. No additional conditions. No one you have to meet.”“Everything’s finished?”“The required work is. If anything else needs your attention, I’ll handle it. You don’t have to keep your life on hold.”I checked the last page.Property transferred.Authorizations revoked.Clear records for the remaining obligations.Then I put the folder away and continued
“You don’t have to write him a personal letter.”“I know. This isn’t one.”The notice went out that afternoon.Two days later, his lawyer confirmed receipt.The additional offer was withdrawn.No meeting.No explanation.The required financial work continued.I took Nora’s call at the small table behind the nursery, beside a care card I’d just finished.There was a spelling mistake.After hanging up, I erased it and rewrote the word.Martha walked past with coffee.“Problem?”“Last few details.”“Nearly done?”“Nearly.”She handed me a market vendor application.“I’m thinking of renting two stalls next month. Look at the costs.”The rent was high.Large pots would add transport costs and potential damage.I circled smaller, beginner-friendly plants and estimated quantities.“Want to run it?” she asked.I almost said I couldn’t.“What if we don’t sell everything?”“We bring it back.”“What if I get something wrong?”“We fix it next time.”She was already calculating delivery costs.“I’d
“I’d like to come back.”“Three mornings a week. Tell me about appointments ahead of time. If you feel lousy, sit down.”On my third shift, I saw a familiar name on a delivery order.Hale.My fingers stiffened.It was for a public pack building.“I can’t handle this account.”Martha waited while I explained only what she needed to know.She crossed something out in the schedule.“You take the propagation area. I’ll handle the order.”“If anyone asks about me—”“I sell plants. Not information about my employees.”She pointed toward the sink.“Wash your face. You look pale.”When I came back, the delivery had been moved aside.No one asked questions.A coworker called me over to steady a cart.I helped.At home, I wrote my shifts into the calendar.Then I added my medication and appointment times beside them.I didn’t cross anything out.Alexander’s last attempt to contact me came through a financial document that needed clarification.Nora extracted the parts I had to review and asked m
I placed the box in a drawer beside my mother’s scarf.I didn’t lock it away.I didn’t put it where I’d have to see it every morning, either.When Nora called, I told her about my new medication schedule and next appointment.“What’s for dinner?”“Soup and bread.”“Anything else?”I looked toward the refrigerator.“Chicken and vegetables.”After we hung up, I heated a pan.When the oil warmed, I stepped back.Then I moved closer and added the vegetables.They hissed.I held the spatula and stayed.I started looking for work because I’d spent an entire morning waiting for emails.Updates.Financial documents.Another old problem someone needed me to address.By lunch, my bread was cold and the inbox hadn’t changed.I closed the laptop.The next day, I visited a nearby nursery.Not to buy plants.To ask whether they needed help.The woman who met me was named Martha. She wore cracked glasses and muddy gloves.She slid an application across the desk.“What have you done?”For a moment, I
That night, I didn’t hide the album in a cupboard.I put it beside my bed, where I could reach it.The following week, Nora asked whether I wanted an update about the children.I finished wiping water from a plant tray before sitting down.“Tell me.”“Their care arrangements are settled. They’ll have a stable home and independent support. You won’t be paying their expenses, and no one can demand visits because they need comforting.”I nodded.“Celeste also wants to send a letter asking you not to discuss the details of the case with them.”“I wasn’t planning to contact them.”“I know. You don’t have to respond.”“What have they been told?”“That their parents did something wrong and can’t come home right now. Their caregivers will explain things in ways they can understand. None of the blame will be put on them.”My hands slowly relaxed.I remembered the older boy standing beside Celeste.What I remembered most clearly now was his hand gripping her clothes while the adults talked.“I d
I traced its edge, checked the secured compartment, and read the repair notes.“Would you like me to put it back?” she asked.“I’ll do it.”The next box held my mother’s old scarf.Its color had faded. Her repairs were still visible along the edge.I lifted it to my face.There was no familiar scent left, only the smell of fabric that had been stored too long.Someone knocked.Nora stepped outside, then returned.“Alexander’s mother is here. She’s not on the list. I can send her away.”“Did she bring anything of mine?”“No.”“Then I won’t see her.”Her voice came through the door.“I’m not here to beg for Alexander. Just let me say two things.”“Today is for the inventory,” Nora replied.“I was the lady of that house!”I kept checking the list.One album was missing.“Brown cover,” I told the specialist. “It has photographs of my mother when she was young.”The voice outside stopped.Then she said, “I have it.”Nora opened the door partway.Alexander’s mother stood there holding a dark







