Chapter 72

She insisted, pushing the phone into Mrs. Dashiell's hands until the old woman reluctantly accepted.

Tears welled in Mrs. Dashiell's eyes. "I never thought that at the end of my life, you'd be the one here with me."

A lump formed in Latisha's throat. She took Mrs. Dashiell's hand, feeling a sense of kinship. She had never expected that when she had no one left, she would find comfort sitting with a woman decades her senior. They were separated by a century of life but shared the same profound loneliness.

Human loneliness, it turned out, was universal.

Latisha looked around the shelter. Despite the plastic sheeting, dampness had seeped into everything. The bedding was cold and moist. It was hard to imagine how this elderly woman had survived in such conditions for so long.

An idea sparked in her mind. She stood up, said her goodbyes to Mrs. Dashiell, and went to hail a cab.

Once in the car, she typed out a message and sent it to Clifford before calling him.