Zacarias's telephone rings.
"Make-A-Moment individuals settling on house decisions?" I inquire.
Zacarias shakes his head. "Leire is calling from her grandma's telephone. Should I . . ." He returns his telephone to his pocket and doesn't reply.
"Very much played on her end," I say. "Essentially she's connecting. Haven't heard poo from my companions."
"Continue to attempt."
Why not? I park my bicycle against the divider and FaceTime Alexius and Carlos. Both are no-gos. I FaceTime Elke, and right when I'm going to hang up and send all the Plutos an image of me flipping them off, Elke answers, breathing rapidly, her eyes stressed, her hair adhering to her temple. She's home.
"I was taken out!" Elke shakes her head. "What time is . . . You're alive. You . . ." She loses my eyes briefly; s
