The Name on the Chart

The image burned into Vera’s mind long after the phone screen went dark.

A hospital room. Pale walls. Machines blinking softly in artificial rhythm. Tubes. Wires. Sterile white sheets pulled up to a familiar collarbone.

And the name.

Vera Russo-Bellanti.

Her name.

Her maiden name.

Her married name.

Her full identity, printed in black ink like a verdict.

Vera stared at it until the world narrowed, until the roar of the convoy faded into a dull, distant ...