Slowly, I turned the watch over.
The engraving was still there.
Tom. Come home to us. Love always, June.
I collapsed into the chair.
My father’s watch.
The watch we’d searched for twenty-two years earlier.
The watch we’d believed was lost forever.
It was sitting in my hands.
And it was ticking.
“Mike,” I whispered. “This is my dad’s watch.”
He came around the desk.
“I know, Rachel.”
“We looked everywhere. Mom and I searched the roadside. It disappeared after the accident.”
My voice cracked.
“How did that woman get it?”
Mike gently handed me the letter.
“I think you’ll find the
answer here.”
Then he brought me a cup of water.
He told me to take all the time I needed.
And when he stepped into the hallway, I heard him instruct the others not to disturb me.
I unfolded the letter.
The first line read:
Dear Rachel,
My name is Maya Brooks. I’m thirty-six years old, and when I was fourteen, your father changed my life.
Twenty-two years ago, I was living in a foster home in Kentucky.
It was not a safe or happy place for me. One winter night, I left with a backpack, eleven dollars, and no real idea where I was going.
I walked until I reached a truck stop near the interstate.
It was snowing, and I was so cold I could barely feel my feet.
I entered the diner because it was warm and stayed in a corner booth, staring at the menu.
I
ordered hot water because it didn’t cost anything.
Then a truck driver approached.
He had a friendly face, a baseball cap pushed backward, and the biggest smile I’d ever seen.
He introduced himself as Tom.
I was frightened at first.
But he sat across from me and told me he wouldn’t bother me.
Then he joked that I’d been studying the menu so long it must have personally offended me.
Before I could protest, he ordered pancakes, eggs, bacon, and hot chocolate.
He let me eat without asking uncomfortable questions.
Instead, he talked about his family.
He told me his wife June was the smartest woman he’d ever met, and that he still couldn’t believe she’d married him.
He talked about his daughter Rachel, whom he called Rae-bug.
He said she was twelve years old, loved animals, and wanted to become a veterinarian.
