Officer Discreetly Follows Lost Boy, Then Breaks Down When He Discovers the Truth

Elm Street Bridge rose out of the rain like something cold and forgotten. Beneath it were shopping carts, tarps, milk crates, and careful arrangements that told Sean people had been sleeping there for a long time. Leo slowed for the first time all afternoon. He stopped near a pair of men arguing over a radio, then backed away and tried another cluster farther down. This time, he held up the photograph with both hands, as if urging people to take him seriously. Most barely glanced. One waved him off. Another muttered that kids should go home before dark.