Love Lost and Found

Part 1: Mystery Woman

"Sierra!" my mom called. "Yeah?" I asked, coming into the living room. My mom, Tobin Heath, was waiting with boxes and a recycle bin. "I'd like you to clean the hall closet." Mom said. "Okay." I said. I began cleaning out the closet, recycling old papers and packing clothes into the boxes. At the very back of the closet, I found two boxes. One contained Mom's old UNC gear, sweatshirts and all. The other one was labeled "Photos." I opened the box, curious. At the top was a photo of Mom and her friends in London. I recognized my aunts Abby, Alex, Pinoe, Hope, and Carli. But there was another woman in the photo, my mom's arm around her shoulders. She looked vaguely familiar, small and narrow-built, with jet black hair streaked with red reaching down to her waist. She had tan skin and bright green eyes, and she was laughing. "MOM!" I yelled. "Whatcha need, Kiddo?" Mom asked. "I've got some questions." I said. "Fire away." Mom said. "First, can I keep this UNC gear?" I asked. "Sure." Mom said. "I'm not gonna use it anymore, so it's all yours." "Second, who is this?" I asked, handing Mom the photo and pointing to the woman. Mom smiled. "That's when we were in London for the World Cup in 2019." she said. "That's me, Aunt Abby, Aunt Alex, Aunt Pinoe, Aunt Carli, and Aunt Hope on the London Eye." "But who is she?" I asked, pointing to the woman again. Mom's eyes got misty. "An old friend." she said, handing me the picture and walking off. I took a picture of the photo, and texted my Aunt Abby.

Hey Aunt Abby. ~Sierra

Hey kid. What's up? ~Abby

Who's this? (picture attached) ~Sierra

Did you ask your mom? ~Abby

Yeah. She just got all misty-eyed and said "an old friend." ~Sierra

I'd love to tell you, kiddo, but it's not my story to tell. ~Abby.

I sighed in frustration, but I wasn't about to give up yet. I used the image to search the woman on Instagram, and got found an address for a house here in Breckenridge. I texted my friends.

Meet me in the park at 9:00 tomorrow morning. We're going on an adventure. ~Sierra.