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CONNECTING

"Da the phone--Tyler’s phone--away from me How had I been so careless, so stupid? Of course they’d traced the call Agent Tru overthe phone line to find out exactly where ere "Da for his keys now, too, understanding clear on his face as he snatched the phone and chucked it out the driver’s side"Let’s get outta here"

Standing at the open door to my dad’s trailer, it was hard to say for sure if his place had been trashed or not

Using the disposable cell phone Siiven me, I had dialed my dad’s number at least half a dozen times on our way to his place When he didn’t answer any of my calls, I’d finally turned off the phone and thrown it on the seat between us

"It’s gonna be okay," Tyler had offered consolingly "When we get there you can talk to him in person If anyone’ll understand, it’s hied, in no mood to be comforted "That’s what you said aboutbecause I was good at it--always had been It wasn’t Tyler’s fault, but it was easier to be pissed at him than to admit how terrified I was I didn’t want my dad to turn on me the way my mom had

"Looks like they’ve already been here," Tyler saidthe wreckage, which would have been stating the obvious if I hadn’t already seen my dad’s place on a "normal" day

"I don’t knowit’s hard to tell" I had no way of knohether the unlocked door should alar scattered newspaper out of my way There were dirty dishes piled in the sink and on the countertops, and stacked on the kitchen table

I assu and wisely chose not to state the obvious, that rossness of it, so felt off The skin at the back of ht, and the tiny hairs at the nape stood on end "Nancy!" I called out, wishing reet , fat, juicy tongue I thought about the way she’d placed her head in my lap and stared up at me all dreaent told her I was no longer who she thought I should be

My hopeful plea was ed ater seemed like just the clutter of a drunken slob I looked down, paying nized the papers I ading through

These were s, histhe way to his room like a haphazard trail The door at the end of the hallway stood ajar, but it was the handprint on the door that made me stop dead inits way around ht find on the other side of that door

Behind me, Tyler reached for my hand, and every muscle in my body tensed "You stay out here," he whispered, but I shook h my voice shook, I’d already made up my mind I needed to see for myself if that was my dad’s bloodied handprint To knoithout a doubt if he was in there Because if he was, it was all my fault