Rain hammered the pavement so hard it seemed to bounce back into the air as a shimmering silver mist. The neighborhood had already retreated indoors, wrapped in warmth and light, windows glowing softly while the storm swallowed the streets outside. No one had any reason to be out there in weather like that—unless they had nowhere else to go.
Liam almost didn’t notice him. He was hurrying home from his evening shift, head down and hoodie soaked through, when…