She’s sitting in the same spot, too, in the shade, wearing a white cotton dress that shows off her freckled tan, the blond streaks in her hair. I wonder when she’s had time get so healthy, so groomed and vivacious.

She waves me down. The kids are by the sprinklers, Lola in a pink one-piece I bought for her and Jordan in purple trunks with palm trees on them. They duck wildly in and out of the water, playing a little game of their own, away from the other kids.

“I got a call from that school I interviewed with. They’re going to do their background check on me, so I think that means I’m getting the job.” She doesn’t look at me when she says it, but I can see a smile creeping up her mouth.

“Congratulations! That’s awesome!” I throw my arms around her and give her a peck on the cheek.

“No, thank you! I wouldn’t have had the time to go out looking if it weren’t for you. But anyway, let’s stop talking about it. I don’t want to jinx it.” She leans into me, resting her head on my shoulder, and I breathe in the soft scent of her hair.

It feels so comfortable, her right there beside me, that I almost forget about what’s in my bag. And I want to forget about it, maybe even place the bracelet back into the Candy Land box and pretend I never took it at all. I close my eyes, a breeze tickling my eyelashes as the children around me shriek, the sound drowning out any sirens that could be heard over the trees rimming the edges of the park.

A fragment of a dreamscape appears quite suddenly across my closed eyes. My grandmother shaking her head, disembodied, like some ghoulish GIF, her face disapproving, an expression I never actually saw. She’d never have that kind of grimace memorialized in a photograph.

I snap open my eyes, the afternoon light making me dizzy. I can feel Anneliese’s eyes on me, can even tell she has a velvety smile on her face without looking up. But I’m being haunted, so I edge away from her and begin to rifle through my bag. I bring the bracelet into the light before I look up at her, so I see her reaction only when my head is up, the bracelet laid to rest on the palm of my hand.