She answered on the fourth ring.
“Tessa?”
Her voice was the same and not the same. Older. Softer. Always carrying the echo of what had been missing.
“Mom,” I said. “I need you to sit down.”
“What happened?”
“Please sit down.”
“Tessa, you’re scaring me.”
I started crying before I could stop myself.
“I found him.”
Silence.
Then, very carefully, she said, “Found who?”
I looked at Jesse.
He had both hands over his mouth.
“Jesse,” I said. “Mom, I found Jesse.”
The silence that followed was so complete I thought the call had dropped.
Then my mother spoke in a voice I had never heard before.
“Tessa, do not say that to me unless it is true.”
“It’s true,” I said. “He’s alive. He’s here with me.”
