Chapter 005 – The Bench
Chapter 05 - Chapter 005 – The Bench
I sat on the metal bench from before sunrise until the first bus left.
Then the second.
Then the third.
The station smelled of burnt coffee, wet coats, diesel, and lives passing through without intending to stay. A man slept with his duffel under his head. A young mother bounced a crying baby and looked at me with quick pity before looking away. A janitor pushed a mop around my shoes and apologized even though I was the one in his way.
By ten o’clock, my back began to ache.
By noon, my hands shook.
By two, I realized none of my children were coming back.
That realization did not arrive dramatically.
It sat down beside me.
It placed its cold hand over mine.
And it stayed.
I opened my purse and looked again at the brass house key.
They had taken my phone, my money, and the illusion that family meant safety.
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But they had forgotten the key.
More importantly, they had forgotten whose name was on the deed.
