Chapter 60


    Kent couldn’t fathom why Brandon was getting all worked up over the “winter” thing all of a sudden, but


    he nodded anyway, “Yeah, just like Sophia’s dad said, I even recorded it.”


    As Kent said this, he clicked on hisputer, “You bet. She was such a darling, a real heart-stealer


    since she was tiny, pretty as a picture, all rosy-cheeked. Back then, she must’ve been five or six years


    old, middle of winter, all alone outside…” Haley’s voice, rough with a hint of booze, slowly drifted from


    the phone. Brandon cut him off, “Send me the recording.”


    “The whole thing? It’s kinda long, want me to edit down to the highlights first?”


    “Just send it all,” Brandon cut him off again, “Send it now.”


    “Alright.” As Brandon’s right-hand man for years, Kent knew the drill and was always ready. He quickly


    sent the prepared recording to Brandon.


    “Good, go on with your stuff.”


    After giving instructions to Kent on the phone, Brandon hung up, pressed his palm on the mouse, and


    opened the recording Kent had


    sent.


    He didn’t speed through it. Instead, he just put on his headphones, leaned back gently against his


    computer chair, and hit y. The recording from Kent’s phone was crisp and clear, without any


    background noise.


    Brandon had been listening with his eyes closed, but when Haley said, “It’s all my fault, when I picked


    her up back then, I never thought her mom might not like her.” he opened his eyes and looked at the


    audio ying on hisputer. Haley’s denials didn’t stir his gaze or expression, until Kent asked Haley


    if Sophia was always so sweet and adorable as a child. That’s when a flicker of emotion finally passed


    through Brandon’s eyes. He stared at the screen, listening to Haley’s hoarse, nostalgic voice recalling


    the moment he found young Sophia, describing her as five or six years old, in the winter cold, alone


    outdoors, her little face turning blue from the freeze, not crying or fussing, just hugging her knees,


    curled up into a ball, with those big eyes staring at him full of terror, not shouting out loud; when he


    walked over, she asked in a weak voice, “Mister, are you here to take me home?”


    Brandon swallowed hard, slightly tilting his head, his hands crossed on the desk, fingertips pressing


    into his skin.


    Ynda had also gone missing in the winter, out in the wilderness.


    The conversation in his headphones continued.


    “She had hypothermia which led to a bunch ofplications, ended up with pneumonia, high fever for


    days. When she came to, she was out of it, didn’t remember anything, just me.”


    As Haley’s voice filled with regret entered his ears, Brandon’s gaze slowly drifted to theputer


    screen.


    “She didn’t remember anything, just me.” Haley’s regretful voice echoed in his ears, and Brandon


    thought of something Sophia had said not long ago, “You miss her because you two shared many


    beautiful memories. But if you’re the only one holding onto those memories, does she still matter?”


    Brandon hadn’t given the question much thought at the time, but if Sophia was Ynda, whether or not


    she had those memories, she mattered all the same to him.


    Brandon didn’t get up right away. He listened to the entire recording seriously and patiently.


    When the voice in his ears stopped, Brandon sat motionless, staring at theputer screen, his


    expression nk, his mind filled with Haley’s description of a young Sophia. frail, helpless, terrified, yet


    remarkably well-behaved and sensible.


    The very image of young Ynda.


    Suddenly, Brandon longed to see Sophia, eager and impatient.


    His body reacted to the surge of emotion within hirn, his toes pushing off the desk to move the chair


    back a couple of steps, and he stood up. As he passed through the living room, he bent down to grab


    the keys from the coffee table and left the house.


    On the way to Sophia’s school, Brandon drove fast.


    The cold wind poured in through the wide-open car window, tossing his hair about.


    Brandon didn’t bother to close the window, letting the gustse in wave after wave, his hands steady


    and skilled on the steering wheel, his handsome face slightly tense, his mind reconstructing the image


    of a small figure, curled up in terror against the snowyndscape.


    Sophia’s school wasn’t far from the hotel, just a few minutes’ drive.


    Brandon arrived at the school just as sses were letting out, the ancient, echoing sound of the school


    bell piercing the campus, and groups of young students began, to emerge from the various buildings..


    Brandon stood beneath Sophia’s ssroom building, watching the clusters of young students descend


    the stairs but didn’t see Sophia among them.


    He didn’t wait downstairs. Instead, he moved through the crowd and up the stairs.ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org .


    He didn’t know where Sophia’s ssroom was or even if she had a ss. He just followed his instincts


    through the crowd.


    Like always, Sophia waited until almost everyone had left before she started packing up her things to


    leave.


    There were still quite a few people in the corridor,ughing and frolicking with the unique vitality of


    youth.


    Sophia didn’t join them, only smiling in response when familiar faces greeted her. Then, amidst the


    bustling crowd, she spotted


    Brandon.


    His handsome face was tense, his eyes searching eagerly through the crowd as he moved.


    Her steps slowed to a halt.


    Brandon also saw her and stopped in his tracks. The urgency in his eyes slowly faded, reced by a


    profound and peaceful softness, as if he had just let out a long sigh of relief.


    He didn’t approach her, just stood at a distance, letting his gaze rest on her through the crowd, his eyes


    showing a level of focus and tenderness Sophia had never seen before.