“Mommy, are we coming back home after this?” she asked, her voice wobbling.
Her mother pressed a kiss to her forehead but didn’t answer. She turned, tears streaking down her cheeks, and walked toward a car where a man was waiting — the man who, Alexa would later learn, didn’t want children.
The engine started. The car door slammed. And then she was gone.
Grandma Rose scooped Alexa into her arms before she could chase after the car. “Hush, sweetheart,” Grandma murmured. “You’ve got me now.”
From that day on, Grandma Rose became her entire world — mother, father, best friend, and safe place all in one.
