Page 95

“That I lost the position. That my employment was attached to my status. He asked to come over and I said no.”

“Did he accept that?”

“Immediately.”

“Do you want him involved?”

The accurate answer arrives ahead of the manageable one.

“Yes.

“I want him there. I also know he will try to solve whatever I put in front of him.”

“Then decide what you’re asking him for before you call.”

“That sounds simple.”

“It’s one sentence. Those are rarely simple.”

I close the folder.

“I am asking him to know.”

Elena nods once. “That’s enough for a first call.”

Outside, the cold has sharpened while I was upstairs.

I sit in the truck without starting it. The retainer receipt is folded on the seat beside the counseling invoice and both have already cleared the account. HOUSE is smaller. The clock is not.

I open the employment list first, because it is the one I know how to do.

There is a new message from the university clinic. They would like a preliminary interview on Thursday. The final line says they are unable to confirm sponsorship availability at this stage.

I accept the interview.

Then I open his thread. The last message has not changed.

Okay. If that changes, call me.

For nine days I have treated that sentence as an unlocked door I was safer not opening.

I press the call symbol.

He answers before the second ring.

“Astrid.”

My name in his voice makes the cab smaller.

“Are you alone?”

“Yes.”

He does not ask whether I am all right. He knows me better than that already, which is its own problem.

“I have seen an immigration lawyer.”

One quiet breath on the line.