At 2 A.M., a Hidden

aside.

“Mrs. Caldwell,” he said politely, “this way.”

My mother did not move.

“You’ll regret this,” she whispered.

“I already do,” I said. “Just not for the reason you think.”

She stared at me for a long moment, then walked past me with her spine straight and her chin high, as if she were leaving a party early instead of being removed from her son’s home continue reading …