"Don't say that. As long as I'm here, no one will ever bully you again," she vowed. "I may not be able to give you the official status you deserve yet, but I will give you a happy home. From now on, Mandy is your daughter. No one can separate us."
Mandy seized the opportunity to throw herself into Brandon's arms. She nuzzled against him, whining sweetly that she wanted to stay with him forever.
A family of three. Happy. Harmonious.
I, a lonely ghost, could only stand aside and watch, my spirit weeping silent tears.
Three years ago, it happened on this very riverbank.
A phone call from Bonnie had distracted me, and in that split second, the crowd surged, separating me from Mandy. Later, surveillance footage showed the last person to make contact with her was Bonnie's "white moonlight"—Brandon Pruitt.
I had tried to find him. I wanted to grab him by the collar and demand the truth. But time and again, Bonnie blocked my path.
No matter how I knelt, no matter how I begged, she would only glare at me, her face twisted in righteous anger.