Chapter 20

When he left the bathroom, his cell phone seemed to stare at him from the table, mute and silent. It seemed to be waiting for an excuse to start ringing.

“I can’t, come on,” he said to himself, rubbing a hand through his wet hair. He went to the kitchen and took a beer from the fridge, thinking that maybe drowning his anxiety with alcohol would help him make the night easier without taking sedatives.

He went back to the living room, and at that moment, his cell phone lit up and signaled an incoming call.

The jump Thomas made to pick up his phone was as good as any Olympic athlete. For a fraction of a second, he imagined Elias’s number on the display, but no. It was Anne. A short call, she needed a ride on Monday morning.

And again, his phone was staring at him. Now he was even holding it in his hands. It took just a moment to write a text. Short and concise.

Are you coming to the Black Sheep tonight?

So scant, brief—after all, he wouldn’t expect anything different from Elias.