The resistance seemed to drain from her body. She sat slumped on her heels for a moment. Moses looked up at her, abandoned his bowl of water, and propped his chin on her knee. She picked him up and rose to her feet, cuddling him against her chest.
“Okay,” she finally said. “But I hope you can understand that I’ve had valid reasons for not telling you before now. For one thing, I’ve been burned by trusting the authorities during this process. For another, I was warned not to talk about it.”
“By who?”
“The authorities,” she admitted with a slight smile.
“I’m hardly ‘the authorities’ in this situation. I’m on vacation.” Every time he said the word “vacation,” it sounded strange to his ears. Whatever this Lake Bittersweet adventure was, vacation didn’t cover it.
“That’s another reason. I
