I sat in the car. I shut my eyes. I tried not to think about Klara and why she hadn’t texted me back. I failed. I tried not to think about the legal shitstorm that I was going to have to engage with when it came to the house and Agnieska. I failed. The only thing of comfort at the moment was the realization that, whatever came down, I would never be going back to her again.

Fatigue hit me. I nodded off. Then … bing. Elise let me know she was ready. I checked my watch. It was 3.18 p.m. Rush hour in all its insanity was about to hit. I put the car into drive. After checking that no cops were in the vicinity I made an illegal U-turn. As I pulled up in front of the law firm Elise was already awaiting me.

‘Home now?’ I asked as she got in.

‘When you say it that way you sound like my chauffeur.’

‘I haven’t started calling you “ma’am” yet,’ I said.

Elise laughed. A bleak laugh. Then she shut her eyes and shook her head.

‘You okay?’ I asked.

‘Not really.’

‘A difficult meeting?’

‘A sobering meeting.’

Silence. I checked the GPS. It was now going to take us over an hour to get back to Westwood.

‘Shall we go?’ I asked.

Elise nodded. But just before I pulled out into the street there was another bing on my cell phone. A new number, unknown to me. Which contained a text from Klara:

Poppa – heard you’re in trouble. Some stuff has blown into my life and I had to make some choices, take some action. The result is: I’m now in hiding. Don’t want to text you exactly where I am. I’ve ditched my old cell. This is my new number. It can’t be traced. Call me now.

sixteen

I WAS NOW frightened. Beyond frightened. Elise read me immediately.

‘That text,’ she said. ‘Troubling news?’

A moment of decision. In that instant the thought struck me: Elise is one of the few people whom I think I can trust. I held up Klara’s text message for her to read, then asked if I could step out for a cigarette.

‘Don’t you want to call Klara first?’

‘Not until I’ve had that cigarette.’

‘Understood.’

I turned off the engine. I stepped out of the car. Elise joined me, standing by me on the sidewalk as I fished my packet of American Spirit out of my shirt pocket.

‘I don’t mean to interfere, but if your daughter is in a bad place …’

‘Truth be told I am scared about finding out what that trouble might be … even though I’ll have to know.’

I pulled a cigarette out of the pack with my teeth and lit it up.

‘Might I take one?’ Elise asked.