The silence in the bedroom stretched on for a while after Annabelle left, while Derek’s gaze stayed on the file in his hands, though his focus was clearly elsewhere.
Much later, he sat with his phone pressed to his ear, his expression bored as if the call was a waste of his time. “We should have been there yesterday,” he said, his tone flat, “but something came up. We’ll be around after her school tomorrow.”
He paused, listening to the person on the other end. “She’s—”
Before he could finish, the door flew open, and Annabelle stomped back into the room. She didn’t even glance at him as she climbed into bed, still fuming. She pulled the blanket over herself with sharp, jerky movements, clearly done with the day.
Derek ended his call with a quick, “I will call back later,” and set the ph
