Chapter 3

He was so tired that he didn’t remember getting dropped off at home. Stumbling into his house, he sat down at the table and put his face in his hands.

“Papa, is everything okay?”

Arnaud parted his hands and saw that his daughter Esme sat across from him. She was busy picking apart a pastry and eating it.

“When… did you get…” Arnaud looked at the clock and was surprised to see that it was now dinnertime. The smell of fresh-cooked pasta wafted from the kitchen and he heard his wife singing.

“You fell asleep at the table,” said Esme. She smiled at him. “I was telling you about my day.”

“Right, right. Um…” Blinking his eyes in surprise, he pulled out his phone. There were a few text messages on his screen from the men he worked with, all of them checking in to let him know that the deliveries had been made. The most important notification was the one from his bank account. A recent deposit had been made.

“Did Daddy fall asleep at the table again?” His