When he unlocks the door to his apartment, Dante hears the television on low and knows his mother is already home. An early evening, then, which means she either left with a headache or was sent home because they didn’t need her to close. Whatever the reason, it’ll put her in a bad mood—she’s probably in the living room now, brooding over the fact that she’s here watching TV and not making money to pay the rent or put food on the table, and she’s going to want to know why he’s not at work, either. What did Ryan say? You can’t work all the damn time. But no one ever told that to Torres Espinosa, and Dante’s not about to be the one to break the news to her now.
As quietly as he can, he closes the front door behind him, locks it, looks down the length of hall that leads to his bedroom. He wo
