“What?”
“Update the missing-person report. People spent months looking for you.”
He held me tightly.
We called the investigator and arranged for Lucas to confirm his identity. He also called the friend who’d sheltered him.
“I lied when I said I’d spoken to Mom,” he admitted. “I’m with her now.”
When he hung up, I turned to him.
“Why come back now?”
“Hannah’s grandmother died and left her an apartment here. We moved in last month.”
“I’m with her now.”
“That’s why you’re nearby. Why come to me?”
“We’ve struggled with money. I thought about asking for help.”
“Is that why you’re here?”
“I know how it looks. But Hannah wanted me to contact you before we needed help. I missed you, Mom.”
Hannah spoke.
“I told him we shouldn’t ask for anything until we’d explained everything.”
“We’ve struggled with money.”
