The anticipation is a heavy weight, pressing down with every tick of the clock. I can feel it in the air, almost tangible in its intensity.
I replay the moment in my mind, searching for something I missed. A clue within the man’s reaction, a hint in his eyes when he saw those mittens.
Why did he freeze? What did those mittens mean to him?
The questions swarm, each one more insistent than the last. Answers feel so close, yet maddeningly out of reach.
The meeting is tonight, at a location chosen by them. Neutral and public, they said. Safe, they promised.
But safety is a concept I no longer trust. Not since the hitman’s shadow crossed our path.
My daughter is unaware of the depths below the surface, the currents pulling us into unknown waters.
She hums softly to herself, drawing in her coloring book, blissfully ignorant of the storm inside.
I envy her innocence, the simplicity of her world. One where yellow mittens are just mittens.
I check the clock again. The minutes crawl, yet sprint towards an inevitable confrontation.
