A soft meow broke the silence again.

The lights came up.

Tears spilled down her cheeks, fast and silent at first, tracing glistening paths through her makeup. Then, a shaky laugh escaped her lips, a sound that was half sob, half joyous release.

She reached out with trembling fingers and touched the cat's soft fur, then gently, reverently, touched the ring, as if she was afraid it would disappear if she breathed too hard, as if it were too precious to be real.

Joshua stepped out from the side, his face etched with a mixture of hope and trepidation, his eyes locked on Olga's. He knelt in front of her,...