Page 458 of The Sinner: James

“I see. So that is pretty much it since...? How old was Tiago when his father left?”

“Fourteen.”

I look down and start playing with my lighter, processing the information.

“How did you earn your money?” I ask.

“I have an antique shop and an art gallery.”

Our eyes meet.

“I make enough to support myself and have a comfortable living, but I’m nowhere near retirement.”

“You’ve never thought about coming back? You’d make more money in Colorado.”

She pulls in a short, rushed breath.

“I thought about it, but as I said before…Tiago was against it.”

“Well, he’s gone now, and you’d be better off––financially speaking––if you moved back.”

“I may consider it at some point, but first, I need to find him and make sure he’s okay.”

I break my gaze away from her.

“I’ll see what I can do,” I say when our eyes connect again.

I pick up her phone from the table and study my brother’s pictures again.

In some of the earlier photos, he has a sweet, boyish expression about him, much different than his cocky, arrogant attitude in the most recent snapshots.

“Why Tiago?” I ask, my eyes lingering on him.

She doesn’t answer right away.

I raise my eyes.

“It’s the Portuguese equivalent of James.”

My fingers unglue from her phone.

I lean back in my seat, my eyes still on her.

“Interesting...” I say. “He looks very much like me when I was about his age.”

“He looks just like you,” she confirms.

I fold my arms across my chest, weighing my answer.

“I’ll find him for you...” I say in a quiet, even voice.

Nervous, she starts chewing on her lip.

“Why do I have a feeling there’s more to the story?”

Her eyes glint.

I wait.

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