Lana Finnegan was seated in the living room, absently watching the evening news without really paying attention to the words the anchor was saying. Her thoughts had been on Axel all day. Being his mother meant worrying was second nature, and even though he was no longer a child, she could never stop herself from fearing for him. She had just leaned back into the sofa when the sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hall.
Before Lana could turn her head, Axel's grandmother burst out of her room in visible panic. The old woman's eyes were wide, her face pale, and her hands trembled as she clutched her phone tightly. "Lana," she cried, her voice breaking, "Lana, see this, what is happening? Please, tell me what is happening." She shoved the phone into her daughter-in-law's hands with desperation.
