Chapter One
"Great party, Beatrice," said Tony. He and Jeannie were at a dinner party hosted by a couple of their neighbors, Tom and Beatrice Engstrom.
"The pleasure is ours, Colonel Nelson," Beatrice replied. She was a short, stout lady in her late fifties. She had a mop of curly red hair.
"No need to be so formal. Call me Tony," said Tony.
"She is beautiful," said Jeannie as she admired a set of photos on the Engstroms' end table.
"She's my granddaughter ... Claudia," Beatrice replied. "She's in a nursing home.
"She has MacGregor Syndrome. She's in a medically-induced coma."
"I am so sorry," said Jeannie.
Later, with her back turned to Beatrice, Jeannie blinked. A wallet-sized photo of the Engstroms' granddaughter (aged six with shoulder-length blonde hair) appeared in the palm of her hand.
I need to see her, Jeannie thought. I cannot quite put my finger on the reason why, but I do.