She imagined him older now, out in the world, carrying none of the protection she’d tried to bestow on him through that pendant. Maybe he’d sold it for school fees, food, or some sudden expense. Maybe he was living on the edge, just like she had been.
The idea gnawed at her. She had given him the only beautiful thing she’d ever owned, not for its price but for the promise it carried. If he no longer had it, had she failed in even that small act of love?