The heat pressed down on me. The highway behind me remained completely empty. Every step felt like it carried more weight than the last.
Then she whispered one word.
Please.
The snake tightened.
That was when I noticed something sticking out from her backpack strap.
A folded paper.
I reached closer with my eyes, not my hands, and saw what it was.
A discharge summary from a medical facility.
The date was from earlier that same day.
That detail changed everything.