Sophie explained that a school cleaner named Dolly had given her the sweater. Curious, I examined it closely and discovered Laura’s initials stitched inside. Sophie then told me that Dolly had instructed her to look beneath the flower. Hidden under the sunflower was a small pocket containing a wooden sunflower, an object our father had carved for Laura when we were children. The discovery made the past feel suddenly close again, as though the decades of uncertainty had disappeared in an instant.
I decided to meet Dolly, hoping she could explain where the sweater came from. When she saw me, she immediately spoke my name, even though I had never introduced myself. Then she revealed something I could hardly believe: her mother was Laura. My twin sister had survived. Dolly explained that Laura had left home with a boy when she was sixteen because she wanted to begin a new life. Years later, she returned with Dolly, hoping to reconnect with her family, but our father turned her away.
