Frade looked at me as if I were a stranger. I was at a loss. Our eyes met. I could no longer see the familiar look in his eyes, the burning flame gone.

"Don't you remember me?" I found my voice as soft as a breeze. My heart was in my throat, and his answer would be the key to me.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I know you."

His answer made my heart drop to the bottom in an instant, and I felt pain. I looked at him quietly, silent tears in my eyes. He was at a loss. Perhaps he had never thought of the harm that the...