Lisa scrolled obsessively, her thumb numb, her eyes aching. Each message offered a glimmer of promise, followed quickly by disappointment. Someone swore they saw the eagle fly toward the hills. Another claimed it had dropped something near the riverbank. All vague. All unverifiable.
She couldn’t sit. Couldn’t breathe. The minutes felt like quicksand. The more she waited, the further away Coco seemed to drift. The guilt was suffocating. Why hadn’t she been closer? Why hadn’t she noticed the shadow sooner? Why had she let her out alone?