I thought the young goth woman visiting Mom every Saturday was simply an unexpected friendship. After Mom died, I learned their bond had grown from something far more personal. The more I uncovered, the more I realized Mom had been carrying a regret none of us had fully understood.
Raven waited until almost everyone had left my mother’s funeral before she came near me.
I had spent the whole service pretending not to watch her.
She stood at the back in a long black coat, silver rings catching the light along one eyebrow and her nose. I’d seen her sitting at Mom’s kitchen table every Saturday for months like she belonged there.
