Becoming Strangers Again by Lily

As my phone vibrated and lit up with an unsaved number, I stared at it, debating whether to answer or let it ring out. Part of me wanted to ignore it, let the call slide into voicemail, and deal with it later-if at all. Life had thrown enough chaos my way, and I wasn't about to

LILY

waste time on a stranger who hadn't earned the right to a place in my contacts.

"You should probably take that," Ryan said, breaking my internal debate. His eyes, which had been glued to his laptop moments ago, now locked on me. "It might be someone who knows where to find the boys. You never know."

His words gave me pause, tugging at the fragile thread of hope I'd been holding onto. I sighed heavily. "Fine," I muttered under my breath, rolling over to the edge of the bed.

Reaching for the phone, I hesitated one last time before swiping the green icon to answer. Without lifting it to my ear, I tapped the speaker option and dropped the phone onto the bed beside me.

"Lily Williams," I said, my tone curt and emotionless. I didn't bother with pleasantries or warmth-I didn't have the patience for it. Whoever was on the other end could get straight to the point.

A cheerful, almost too-bright voice responded. "Hello! This is Sarah from Deep Cleaning Services," the caller said enthusiastically, completely oblivious to the tension in the room.

Oh, right-the cleaning company I hired to tidy up the estate after Maya and her mother were evicted. "How may I help you, Sarah?" I asked, my tone polite. I'd already paid the bill in full, so this couldn't be about money. "Well," Sarah began, her voice still chipper, "while cleaning, we came across an expensive item, and we thought it should be returned to you."

I frowned. Expensive? What expensive item could Maya and her mother possibly have left behind? "And what item might that be?"

"A cufflink," Sarah replied.

got Ryan's attention immediately. He snapped his laptop shut and moved to sit beside me on the bed. Both of us knew Maya and her mother, Salome, had no reason to own something like a

"Sure."

photo of a single, gold-plated cufflink filled the screen. There was no denying it looked expensive far beyond anything Maya or

for his phone, the tension in his body speaking volumes. "But

If this cufflink had belonged to Ryan's father, it meant one thing-Maya and her

silence on the other end. I imagined his mother sitting there, frozen, trying to

the CCTV footage for?" she

cufflinks Dad was wearing that

as a gift," she said softly, "I remember fastening them

"Do you have a picture of the cufflinks?" he demanded, his frustration leaking through despite his efforts to remain calm. As he spoke, he got off the bed and began pacing the floor. "I don't think I have a picture of it on my phone," Ryan's mum said, her

could she or Salome have had? It didn't

before ending the call. The moment the line disconnected, I realized something-I was still on the phone

"I need to confirm who the cufflink belongs to first. I'll call you back once I know more." Without waiting for a response, I ended the

thought, waiting anxiously for his mum's call. The minutes dragged on until finally, Ryan's phone buzzed. He answered it immediately, putting the call on

his mum said, "Maybe he lost it