A thin woman sat beneath its metal awning, wrapped in an oversized gray coat.<\/p>\n
Her hair was tangled, and a battered paper cup rested beside her knees.<\/p>\n
I looked away, uncomfortable with the familiar ache of grief.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know you miss your mother, sweetheart, but she died three years ago, and seeing somebody similar doesn\u2019t mean she\u2019s returned.\u201d<\/p>\n
Poppy shook her head.<\/p>\n
Before I could explain further, she pulled toward the pedestrian crossing.<\/p>\n
I followed immediately, keeping her beside me until the crossing signal changed.<\/p>\n
The woman noticed us approaching and lowered her face.<\/p>\n
Poppy stopped directly before her.<\/p>\n
\u201cMommy, I\u2019ve been looking for you, and Daddy said you couldn\u2019t come home anymore!\u201d<\/p>\n
She slowly raised her head.<\/p>\n
Her eyes widened.<\/p>\n
The paper cup slipped from her trembling fingers, spilling coins across the wet pavement.<\/p>\n
Then she reached toward Poppy.<\/p>\n
My daughter stepped into her embrace, and she held her against her chest.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy beautiful little girl, I never stopped wanting to come home to you,\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t move.<\/p>\n
Beneath her exhausted expression and hollow cheeks, I recognized the woman I had married.<\/p>\n
The slight asymmetry of her jaw.<\/p>\n
The small beauty mark near her left eyebrow.<\/p>\n
The familiar way she kissed our daughter\u2019s forehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdriana, how can you possibly be here when I watched them bury you three years ago?\u201d<\/p>\n
LEAVE \u201cMOM\u201d BELOW HERE IF YOU WANT TO READ PART 3 TO END OF STORY \u201c<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"