CHAPTER 2: The House That Was Too Big

Near dawn, Daniel took Noah back to the Cross mansion. The house was large, clean, and cold like a museum. Noah stepped inside, looked at the gleaming stone floor, and wiped the soles of his shoes on the carpet, even though his worn shoes had nothing left to soil.

“You can sit,” Daniel said.

Noah looked at the velvet chair and shook his head. “I can stand.”

Daniel had once run billion-dollar meetings, but faced with a child who didn’t dare sit in his own home, he suddenly felt helpless.
Margaret Cross appeared at dawn. Daniel’s mother wore a cream-colored coat, her silver hair neatly combed, her eyes as cold as thin blades. She looked Noah up and down.

“This needs to be handled discreetly,” she said.

“The boy needs to sleep,” Daniel replied.

“I don’t know who he is.”

Noah heard. He lowered his head, pretending to look at his sleeve. Daniel saw the movement and his heart tightened.

“I know his name,” he said. “And I know his mother is in the hospital.”

Noah’s room was larger than their old apartment. The bed was covered with crisp white sheets. He stood outside the door for a long time.

“I won’t make a mess.”

That night, Daniel returned to check and found Noah wasn’t in bed. He was curled up on the rug, still clutching his cloth bag. When Daniel bent down, he startled awake.

“I’m sorry.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Daniel said, and sat beside him until he fell asleep again.