He sat with his wife’s photo, waiting for a son who had already boarded without him

His words felt like truth carved into stone. I closed the folder gently.

— I won’t need long, — I said.

A faint smile touched his lips.

— Good.

As I rose to leave, he added.

— Oh, and one more thing. You should know that Brixell’s Board reached out to us this morning.

I froze.

— They’re asking whether we’ve been in talks with you.

— And what did you tell them?continue reading …