Harbor

I sat there on my porch as the sun disappeared completely, darkness settling around me like a blanket. The folder was still open in my lap. Michael's shaky handwriting stared back at me, each word a knife twisting deeper into my chest. "Promise me." I'd broken that promise before I even knew it existed. I stood up, grabbed my car keys, and drove to the house. Claire's belongings were still scattered across the lawn and sidewalk, exactly where I'd left them. Some of the boxes had tipped over in the wind. Clothes spilled onto the grass. Framed photos lay face-down in the dirt. I'd done this. This cruelty. This disrespect. To the woman who'd loved my son enough to sacrifice everything for him. I started gathering the boxes, carrying them back inside, one by one. It took me nearly two hours to get everything back in the house. When I finished, I sat on the couch in the dark living room and called Claire's phone. It rang. And rang. And rang. No...