Josh slowly approached the cabin. Snow hugged the shadows, remnants of the last cold winter. Trees surrounded the building, concealing it from view from above and finding it on foot required intimate knowledge of every rock and crevice, knowledge Josh had.

The door hung open slightly, reminding him of the last fight, the last time she flung from his arms to pursue a dream that turned nightmarish.

He crept into the home as memories ghosted around him: sitting on the bed, eating at the cold table, dancing around him on the hardwood floors. He quietly went to the corner of the fireplace, now dead – cold – like everything else.

The farthest edge of the hearth contained a brick which looked only to have been set a little too loose. He gently pried it off it’s position, mortar falling, dusting the floor. Reaching in through the dark, he found a bundle of paper wrapped in a bow.

He sat down, gently pulling the ribbon and then watching as it dropped streaming to the ground.