I chose you because of your birthday.
Because of the name of the town on your volunteer application.
Because when I looked at your face the very first day, I saw something I had not seen in fifty years.*
*I saw myself.*
My throat closed.
*I cannot tell you with certainty.
I am not a scientist and I am not a judge.
But I hired Mr.
Hale eighteen months ago to look into your history as carefully as the law allowed.
What he found is in the envelope.
I will let you decide what it means.*
*What I can tell you is this: I spent forty years believing I had no one left in this world.
And then you walked into my room with a library book and a terrible cup of vending machine coffee, and something in me went very quiet.
The way a search goes quiet when it is finally over.*
