When we got home from the movies the house was all quiet. Her parents had left one lamp aglow on the little table next to the staircase. They always left it on to ensure their daughters would not stumble on the stairs whenever they came in late. It was an orange, soft and vaguely glowing lamp. Its light wasn’t strong enough to reach over to the far end of the living room. It was a huge living room, and the lamplight reach...