Why had she purchased a ticket to return home early?
Beneath it lay a luggage tag.
The name printed on it was Ellen.
Not Margaret.
Not Evelyn.
Ellen.
I looked toward the hallway.
Mom’s bedroom door was open, and the mysterious black suitcase stood beside her dresser.
I hesitated.
I’d never been comfortable going through another person’s belongings.
But Mom was clearly unwell, and the explanations she’d given me didn’t make sense.
I carefully carried the suitcase into the hallway and opened it.
Inside were several sets of neatly folded clothing,
a sealed brown envelope, and an older digital camera.
The clothes appeared too large for Mom.
Beneath them, I found a small yellow sweater that looked as though it had belonged to a young child.
Beside it lay a miniature wooden rolling pin.
I picked it up.
Something about it stirred a distant memory.
I’d seen one just like it when I was little.
