Kate saw her daughter finally smile, and it lit Kate up inside, that tiny change. They talked about little things through lunch, mostly fashions, about which Marah already obsessed and Kate knew next to nothing. When she’d paid the bill and they were ready to leave, Kate said, “There’s one more thing.” She reached into her handbag and pulled out a small wrapped package. “This is for you.”

Marah tore off the shimmery paper, revealing the paperback book that had been beneath it.

“The Hobbit,” Marah said, looking up.

“In that year when I had no friends, I wasn’t completely alone. I had books to keep me company, and that is the start of one of my favorite stories of all time. I must have read The Lord of the Rings ten times in my life. I don’t think you’re quite ready for The Hobbit yet, but someday soon, maybe in a few years, something will happen to hurt your feelings again. Maybe you’ll feel alone with your sadness, not ready to share it with me or Daddy, and if that happens, you’ll remember this book on your nightstand. You can read it then, let it take you away. It sounds silly, but it really helped me when I was thirteen.”

Marah looked slightly confused by the receipt of a gift she was too young to enjoy, but she said, “Thank you,” anyway.

Kate stared at her daughter for just a moment longer, feeling a pinch in her chest. It was going by so fast, these baby/little girl years were almost gone.

“I love you, Mommy,” Marah said.

To the world at large, perhaps this was an ordinary moment in an ordinary day, but to Kate it was extraordinary. This was the reason she’d chosen to stay home instead of work. She judged the meaning of her life in nanoseconds, perhaps, but she wouldn’t trade this instant for anything. “I love you, too. That’s why we’re playing hooky for the rest of the day. We’re going to go to a matinee of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.”

Marah slid out of the booth, grinning. “You’re the best mommy ever.”

Kate laughed. “I just hope you remember that when you’re a teenager.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE

Tully remembered the years by the stories she covered. In 2002, she vacationed in Europe, St. Barts, and Thailand. She went to the Oscars, won an Emmy, graced the cover of People magazine, and redecorated her apartment, but none of that stayed with her. What she remembered were the stories. She’d covered the launch of Operation Anaconda against the Taliban, the escalating violence in the region, the trial of Milosevic for crimes against humanity, and the start of the war against Iraq.