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He tiptoed to the phone, unplugged it, and took it downstairs. He stepped out the kitchen door onto the porch.
Cicadas chirped their songs. Distant traffic from one of the highways nearby droned on. A single small plane flew overhead. The sky was dark and clear, the moon half full, and the stars especially bright. It was the calm before the storm.
He didn’t have to look at the note. He knew her number by heart. Had dialed it in his sleep many times. Had wondered if she’d pick up if he ever tried to call her. He never tried, knowing that she’d been killed and feeling embarrassed he was trying to cheat death, or deny reality. Why would you call your lover’s old phone if you knew she was no longer here? He was desperate, but he wouldn’t allow himself to go that far, because maybe he’d go over the edge and never return.
But tonight, with this call, his life was about to change.
The dial tone wasn’t a U.S. ring; it sounded European. A forwarded number. He’d have someone look into that later, but he heard a click, then another double click, then the beginningsof a recording, which was shut off. At last, he heard the voice he thought he’d never hear again.
“Moira?”
“Oh my God, Dimitri. My love. Can you forgive me?”
“What do I forgive you for?”
“For not telling you the truth. You got my note, or Jordan found you?”
“Both. Where are you?”
“He didn’t tell you?”
He felt really dumb about this. “I never asked. I was listening to everything he told me. Listen—do you have time? Is this okay?”
“Yes, it’s safe but not for long. We have to be quick. Under thirty seconds.”
“I’m here, Moira. Can I help?”
“Oh yes, my love, yes.”
He felt the brittleness of her timbre. Different than lying. She was downplaying the danger she was in. Trying not to panic him.
“How?”
“The picture on the note. You still have it?”
“I do.”
“You have both of them?”
“I have both, yes.”
“Peel off the picture and underneath I wrote the address. Come to Capri. We’re all in Capri. Hiding. Well, hiding in plain sight. We can’t leave.”
“Are you in danger?”
“I am. But my parents and my sister and brother more than I. We think we’re about to be arrested.”
“What do they want?”
“I’ll explain it when I see you. Come soon. Call me tomorrow, seven p.m.”
“But Moira, why didn’t you—”
The phone cut off. He tried to text his question, but the service didn’t allow texts and came back with an error message. He made sure he erased his attempt. He took a picture of the screen listing of the call on his father’s phone and then erased all evidence of the activity.
He asked the question anyway.Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you keep part of your life a secret from me? Do you not trust me?And the most important one for today:
Do you still love me?
