Maria's Point of View
Those days since I made the call to meet Reina had gone by in a haze of dread, schemes, and fear. I had lied to Kairo, agreed to meet her over his protest, and every hour since then was a ticking time bomb toward doom. Reina was unpredictable-hazardous in ways I could barely plan for-but this had to end. For Floyd, for me, for all of us.
I was sitting at the kitchen table, staring out at my phone, when Fredrick walked in. It was late in the afternoon, and I was almost begging him to just leave me alone until evening was proper, but I guess that wasn't possible anymore. His presence filled the room; unspoken heaviness hung there between us since we last talked. His apology about Reina's manipulation had lugged up to mind, but we hadn't really settled anything.
Fred
