On March 10, 2014, Addie walks through the Prospect Park market as spring begins to return, heading for Rise and Shine, a year-round coffee-and-pastry stand run by sisters Mel and Maggie.

Addie orders a large coffee and two muffins and pays with a crumpled ten she took from Toby’s coffee table. When Maggie asks for a dime, Addie sorts through her change and is careful to avoid touching the wooden ring that always finds its way back to her.

As Addie pockets the rest of her coins, the darkness presses close and whispers, “I am always with you,” reminding Addie that she cannot shake its presence. Mel notices Addie’s lingering French accent, and Addie deflects with “Here and there,” admitting she was born in France.

Addie takes her coffee into the park, following the sun to a grassy slope. She finally looks at the book she stole from Fred’s table and finds it is a worn German paperback: Kinder und Hausmärchen by the Brothers Grimm.

Addie’s memory supplies the language despite years of disuse, but the fairy tales no longer feel like open doors. Seeing them as warnings about bargains, monsters, and greedy wishes, Addie hears an old admonition—Never pray to the gods who answer after dark—and, unsettled, tosses the book aside and tries to simply absorb the warmth of the sun.