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“No.” He presses his lips into a thin line. “Already did that. I’m r
eady to buy something. At least I think—”
A family walks up to the booth. Both Alex and I look over at them and then to each other. “I’ll be right with you,” I say.
“Come on!” A little boy squeals. “This is no fun!” His father quiets him, but his little brother starts in, pulling at his mother’s hands.
“You’d better get to it,” Alex says with a nod. “Tough customers.”
I fish my card off the stand. “Here, why don’t you give Dana a call—I’m sure she can help you—”
“I don’t want to work with Dana. I want to work with you.”
“I see.”
He smiles politely, but in a way that doesn’t touch his eyes. “I have a feeling she’ll understand.”
As he walks away, I think about how wrong he is. Dana never loses a sale without a fight.
Dana returns with popcorn and a chipper attitude. She doesn’t seem pissed, which is not surprising. “I had no idea you knew Alex,” she remarks, stuffing a handful of popcorn into her mouth. She holds the carton out to me.
I shake my head. “He was my roommate in college.”
“Really?” Her bottom lip juts out. “Tragic situation. Horrible.”
I check my phone to see how much time is left on the clock. I can’t wait to get out of here and meet up with my family. I cock my head. “Tragic? What do you mean?”
“You haven’t kept up with him, then?”
I shrug. She sets the carton of popcorn on the plastic table and straightens the brochures to her liking. “I sold his house for him after the accident. You should have seen it—it was basically a shrine… he just walked away, never went back— and left it up to me to deal with everything in it.”
“Accident?”
“His girlfriend and baby were killed. It was horrific. Driving home from church…they were T-boned. Killed instantly. He was in the hospital for a while. I don’t know how long—”
I stare at her for several moments, wondering whether we’re talking about the same person. The Alex I knew in college told me he was gay. And he was definitely agnostic. Suddenly, I feel a deep sense of nostalgia and terribly, terribly sad for him.
“Anyway, it makes sense he’d want to work with another agent. Who wouldn’t want a fresh start?”
“I—” Dana looks over my shoulder, and my eyes follow hers. Greg is taking deep strides in our direction. He’s dragging Naomi behind him, her eyes wide and her mouth open.
“Don’t freak out,” he says, holding up his palms. “But I need your phone.”
I take it from my back pocket. A police officer joins us and I feel my heart rate rocket upward.
“Where’s Blair?”
He furiously types in my password. “You took pictures right?”
“Greg. Where’s Blair?”
He scans the photos and hands the phone to the officer.
I feel like I can’t breathe. I feel like I’ve gotten on a carnival ride and it’s spinning. Everything is blurry, and I worry I might puke.
“Naomi,” I say, bending in two so I am at eye level. “Where is your sister?”
Tears stain her cheeks. “She wandered off.”
