He met my eyes.
“It’s time for Marcus to stop lying.”
My heart started pounding.
“Lying about what?”
“You’ll find out when he gets here.”
There wasn’t any anger in Andrew’s voice anymore, only certainty. He walked into the living room and remained standing.
I wanted to ask a thousand questions.
Where had he been?
Was he safe?
Had he been happy?
Did he ever think about me?
Instead, I stood there, terrified that if I asked the wrong one, he’d disappear all over again.
The silence stretched between us until the front door opened.
Marcus walked in carrying a paper bag from the bakery. He stopped the instant he saw Andrew.
For the first time in our marriage, I saw genuine fear on my husband’s face.
The bag slipped from his hand.
Bread rolls scattered across the floor.
“You,” Marcus whispered.
Andrew didn’t move.
“Tell her.”
Marcus recovered quickly.
“I don’t know what game you’re playing.”
“Tell her.”
“I have nothing to tell.”
Andrew reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his phone.
“I was hoping you’d make the right choice.”
Marcus’s face lost what little color it had left.
“What is this?” I asked.
Neither of them answered.
Instead, they stared at each other like two men who had been waiting years to finish the same conversation.
“I think you should leave,” Marcus said.
Andrew gave a bitter laugh.
“You’ve been trying to make me leave for years.”
I looked from one to the other.
“What is happening?”
Andrew finally turned toward me.
