Elena became a more regular presence in Mira's life after that conversation. She came by the shelter twice a week instead of once, and sometimes she brought Mira coffee from the shop next door, and sometimes she just sat with her in the courtyard and talked. The talking was not always deep. Elena talked about her day, about the people she worked with, about the small frustrations and small joys of being a case worker in a city that never stopped needing things she could not always provide. She ...