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Outside my room it was quiet, but I knew she was still there I could hear "my brother’s" unmistakable footsteps--his short, staccato stride and the way he ran, rather than walked, everywhere he went He whi with his chubby ar to be picked up Then there was a brief shuffling, and , followed by her quieter, andtoward the kitchen

I shouldn’t feel bad for not wanting to spend time with them, I told myself This wasn’t my fault None of it I hadn’t asked for a new faent Truman’s business card--the second one he’d left ht I’d never need it again

I picked up my phone and cross-checked the number on the card with the one that had just called me

The tere a match

The hairs on the back of otten my cell phone number?

Just as I pressed the button on e popped up on the screen

A text

Fro

For a long tie, so the lines of Call me back or Let’s schedule an appointment or Meet me at

I wasn’t sure how that last one was supposed to end since I didn’t think there was a local NSA office in a town the size of Burlington, but it didn’tto freak -up job I was freaked, all right

And if he thought I wouldto say to hi I knew: that ht I wasn’t sure what more I could say to convince him

And then a second text popped up A picture, followed by a single question:

Do you recognize this nize hi e to defend myself, even if my response was a total lie, I typed in two letters: No, and threw ot up and paced itated My eyes fell on the ball Cat had left a out batter after batter