Chapter 10

At that moment, the taste of blood rose in Evan's throat. His tie tightened like a snake around his neck. Static bloomed at the edges of his vision, like snow on a broken screen. The word "victims" burned inside his consciousness. Its ashes settled deep in his gut and triggered a wave of violent nausea. He stumbled backward until he hit a column and slid helplessly to the floor, his entire body drained of strength. Somewhere in his throat, a low, animal-like whimper escaped—a sound so foreign and raw it felt like it didn't belong to him, like it had been borrowed from a dying creature. Everything that followed felt like a dream. Through the haze of public announcements and crying voices, Evan signed documents like everyone else, dazed and silent, receiving what they called Lila's belongings. But all the authorities had recovered was a trace of ash—tiny remnants from the seat she'd occupied before the plane went down. The medical examiner had carefully placed that trace in a small