It went straight to voicemail.
Then I noticed an envelope tucked into the side pocket of the suitcase.
My son’s name was written across it.
“Eric.”
I didn’t open it.
Whatever was inside belonged to him.
Instead, I made one phone call.
To Eric.
This time, I told him exactly what the children had brought.
There was silence.
Then he said, “Mom, don’t call Vanessa. I’m coming home.”
“Eric, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know.”
His voice had changed.
“But Vanessa’s suitcase isn’t at the house.”
Forty minutes later, he walked through my front door.
He went straight to the suitcase.
When he saw the birth certificates, his face changed.
“Where’s the envelope?”
I handed it to him.
He didn’t open it.
He just stared at Vanessa’s handwriting.
“Did she say anything to you?”
“Nothing.”
He shook his head.
“We argued on Wednesday.”
“About what?”
“The same thing we’ve been arguing about for months.”
Before I could ask what that meant, headlights swept across my living room.
Vanessa’s car pulled into the driveway.
A full day early.
She came through the door smiling.
“Hey, guys. Sorry about the confusion. I just…”
Then she saw Eric.
Her smile disappeared.
Then she saw the envelope in his hand.
She stopped cold.
“Eric, I can explain.”
My son slowly stood.
“No. First, you’re going to explain why you packed our children’s documents before leaving town, and why your suitcase is missing from our bedroom.”
Vanessa went pale.
Brooks appeared at the edge of the room holding Vanessa’s tablet.
“Mom?”
She turned.
He held up the screen.
“Why does this say our flight leaves tonight?”
Eric crossed the room and took the tablet.
Vanessa lunged toward him.
“Don’t!”
He pulled it out of her reach.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
He stared at the passenger list.
Then at Vanessa.
“Vanessa… who the hell is the fourth ticket for?”
She said nothing.
Eric looked back at the screen.
His expression changed.
Not anger this time.
Confusion.
“Wait.”
He looked closer.
Then he laughed once, without humor.
“That’s me.”
I stared at him.
“What?”
