Leon still held me close, though the kids’ arms had grown slack around my waist, their little bodies becoming soft with sleep during the long flight. I’d stolen strength from the love in their embraces, but I hadn’t been able to look at any of them either, the weight of my failure ripping through me, the guilt grinding away my core. They’d never seen their uncle Roary in the flesh and had come all this way because they’d believed in me and my foolhardy plans.
