mere fragments—blurred edges of smiles and the faint scent of old perfume. Thomas, however, was high-definition. He was the one who sat through every school play, the one who taught me how to drive, and eventually, the man who walked me down the aisle. He was a bachelor who sacrificed the possibility of his own family to ensure I never felt the sting of being an orphan.
Whenever I broached the subject of that fateful night, Thomas would look away, his eyes clouding with a grief that seemed too heavy
