The snow crunched beneath my boots as I walked up the porch steps.

I unlocked the front door and stepped into the hallway.

The smell of coffee and pine greeted me.

“Mom?” Rachel’s voice called out from the kitchen.

“In here,” I replied, hanging my coat on the brass rack.

I walked into the kitchen.

Rachel was sitting at the table, a cup of herbal tea in her hands.

David was standing by the window, his back to me, looking out at the falling snow.

He looked so much like his father from behind.

The same broad shoulders, the same slight slouch.

“You were gone a long time,” David said without turning around.

“I was having coffee,” I said gently.

“With Harold.”

David stiffened, his shoulders rising.

Rachel gave me a sympathetic look, shaking her head slightly.

“Did you have a nice time, Mom?” Rachel asked, trying to soften the tension.

“We did,” I said, sitting down across from her.

“We discovered something very unusual.”

David slowly turned around, his arms crossed over his chest.

His eyes were hard, searching my face.