We were just supposed to stop in for snacks and funnel cake. That was it. The county fair had always been our little escape—bright lights, fried food, and rides that looked a little too old but somehow still ran. But this year was different.
It was our first one without her dad. I didn’t realize how much she was holding in until we passed the booth for the state highway patrol. There was a cruiser parked with the door open for kids to climb in, plastic badges on the table, coloring pages. I told her she could pick one out.
