His voice started breaking slightly, betraying an emotion that Carla couldn’t quite place. “For all the kindness you’ve shown me.” Carla hesitated, her fingers brushing the edges of the envelope as if it might burn her.
“I don’t get it. What is this?” Her voice was barely a murmur, unsure of the seriousness of the moment but instinctively sensing its gravity. James’s eyes, misty and distant, seemed to fill with unshed tears. For a moment, his entire expression changed, becoming fragile, as if the weight of years was pressing down on him all at once.