Later, he told Wren. She was quiet for a long time. Then: “Animals can’t perform grief. They can’t be deceived by someone they’ve imprinted on. Titan loved her because she was real to him. Whatever she was to you, she was something true to that dog.”
He moved Catherine’s photograph from the desk to the bookshelf—not face-down, but not centre-front either. Between two books she’d loved. It felt honest in a way the desk placement hadn’t. She had been complex. Most people are. The photograph didn’t need to be a shrine or an accusation.