I was halfway through cooking dinner when it happened—nothing special, just a normal evening, a pan of ground beef sizzling on the stove, the kind of routine you don’t think twice about.

The smell was familiar. Comforting, even.

I stirred it absentmindedly, breaking it apart, watching it brown the way it always does. Everything looked normal—until it didn’t.

When I finally turned off the heat and started scooping the beef out of the pan, something caught my eye.

At first, I thought it was just a shadow.

Then I saw it.

Something pale.continue reading …