Renee took the red wine bottle from her, poured the wine, and gently set it aside.
Sawyer pressed her lips together, silent for a long moment before she finally spoke. "Renee, am I really a coward? After all these years, I still don't have the courage to face reality."
"You're not a coward at all." Renee reached out and stroked her hair. "I think you're very brave."
Sawyer's eyelashes trembled, and she instinctively looked up at her. "I... am I brave?"
"You are." Renee met her gaze and said seriously, "All these years, you've never given up looking for Sweetie. You've been facing reality this whole time, but I think you've got one thing wrong."
"I... what have I done wrong?" Sawyer asked in confusion.
Renee said slowly, "You've put all the blame on yourself. You have to know, the one at fault isn't you, Sheryl Sawyer, but those utterly heartless human traffickers."
Sawyer instinctively clenched her fists. Her lips moved, but not a sound escaped.
