Sebastian finally had his answer. “You’ve been living here, haven’t you?” he asked quietly. The girl nodded, her expression defeated. “I’ve been squatting here while he was deployed,” she admitted. “I had nowhere else to go, and the house was empty for years.”
The man stood in stunned silence, realization dawned on him. “You were living here… all this time?” His voice cracked slightly. The girl nodded again. “When you came back, I hid. I’ve been sneaking in before you get home, using the attic to sleep.”