“I didn’t understand it either, but Pakhan said he wanted to introduce me to him.” His voice drops. “Now that he’d met you.”
“Me? What do I have to do with anything?”
“I don’t know.”
“This is all very strange.”
“Yes. Especially the part where he told me to take a vacation.”
I lift my head and look at him. “A vacation?”
“A month off,” he replies, nodding.
“Has he ever given you time off before?”
“Never.”
“Don’t you think that’s odd?”
“I do.”
“So what are you going to do about it?”
He smiles. “Take a month off.”
A dangerous thrill goes through me, like I’m standing at the edge of a perilously high cliff, looking down. Aiming for nonchalant, I say, “Where will you go?”
His smile is indulgent. “Look at you, trying to act innocent. You know exactly where I’ll go.” He presses the s
