The quality of the fabric.
The dirt ground into the hem.
Like a child who had left home dressed for one normal day and kept wearing the same clothes because she had no other choice.
“I hired private people too,” he said. “I searched every shelter, every bus station, every park, every place I could think of. I drove until my eyes blurred. I slept maybe four hours total over six days.”
His voice wavered for the first time.
“Do you know what it does to a father when the person he loves most is out there and he can’t put his hands between her and the world?”
Lauren had no answer.
He nodded like her silence itself was an answer.
“I started coming to that restaurant because somebody thought they might have seen a girl matching her description near that strip mall. I sat there every morning and evening hoping I’d catch a glimpse through the window.”
