19
The drive home went by in virtual silence. Eric kept his eyes forward, staring straight ahead, not seeing anything. He sat in a thick haze, filled with such despair that he had to dig deep to keep it together. When Terri parked in front of his house, Eric leaned his arm against the door and turned to her. “I feel like I should apologize for something,” he said.
Terri looked at him with such understanding and sympathy that he had to look away. Eric pulled the handle of the door, and he noticed Joe step out of his house and head straight toward them. He must have been watching out the window. Terri shut off her engine. “You have nothing to apologize for, nothing at all,” she said.
“So what happens now?” he asked, feeling as if his chest had been hollowed out.
“The file is closed. I’m
