He arrived in eleven minutes, which meant he had not stopped for anything.
She had the coffee on and the shaking mostly under control by then. He came through the back door and did what she was learning he always did first when he arrived somewhere she was -- looked at her, specifically and completely, the full assessment that took two seconds and missed nothing.
"You're okay."
"I said I was."
"I know. I needed to see it."
He sat at the prep table. She put coffee in front of him. She sat across from him and they stayed there for a moment in the good quiet of the kitchen, which had started to feel, she thought, like the one place in Hollow Creek where the world outside couldn't get in.
"This is Dutch, she said. Not a question."
"Yes."
"He's using me to send you a message."
"Yes."
