Elena stared at it.
Another photograph lay beneath it.
Then another.
Birthday parties.
School concerts.
A graduation ceremony.
A family Christmas.
Each photograph showed a different year of our lives.
Elena began pulling out the envelopes.
She read the first one.
Chloe’s school recital. Thursday, 6:30 p.m. We’d love for you to come.
The next was a birthday invitation.
The next was a graduation announcement.
Some envelopes had been returned unopened. Others carried postal markings showing that delivery had failed.
Then she found a bundle of printed emails.
Her own name appeared at the top of every page.
Chloe’s voice remained steady.
“Dad sent you invitations to our school events. He sent photographs. He wrote to you when we graduated. He asked whether you wanted to speak to us.”
Elena shook her head.
“No.”
She grabbed another envelope.
“No, this is impossible.”
“Keep looking,” Chloe said.
Inside the box were the girls’ handmade cards. One had a crooked pink heart and a message written in Stella’s childhood handwriting.
