“Hi,” I said to the hostess standing behind a little podium. “Um—reservation for Sinclair?”

“Sinclair,” she said, stretching out the word as she looked down at her iPad. “Ah! Yes, I see it. And we have a card on file for the bill with instructions, lovely.…” She frowned down at the iPad for another second, and then glanced up at me with a smile. “It looks like the other party is already here. You can follow me.”

Before I even knew what was happening, my coat was being shucked off and whisked away and I was presented with a claim ticket. The hostess turned and started walking briskly through the dining room, and I followed, trying to figure out where my coat had gone, and also, what she was talking about. The other party? I knew it wasn’t my dad. And I’d told Matty about the dinner, but none of the details, so it couldn’t be him or Margaux.…

It was Kat. It had to be.

Relief and happiness rushed though me, all at once. Kat had come through for me after all—I would get to see her, and we’d be together, the balance of the universe restored. She’d remembered the reservation and had taken the chance that I would be here too. It was like I hadn’t let myself feel the depth of how much how much I’d missed her all night until now. No doubt she was just ahead, sitting at our table, looking around eagerly and taking mental notes to share with Teri. Of course she would be there. And I could tell her about my dad—about what he’d done.…

“And here we are,” the hostess said, rounding a corner and stopping at a table.

I stared ahead of me, caught off guard. Because Kat wasn’t there.

But Beckett was.

PART FOUR 9:25 p.m.–11:11 p.m.

Lloyd: That’s farce. That’s the theater. That’s life.

Belinda: Oh God, Lloyd, you’re so deep.

—Michael Frayn, Noises Off

Meanwhile, in Brockville (Ontario) (Canada)…

SITTING ON THE COUNTER OF Alberta’s Goods, Teri turned her bottle of water in her hands. She tried to count how many laws she’d broken over the course of the night. She’d brought minors across state lines. Accidentally stolen diamonds. Driven a rental car she hadn’t rented. Not to mention illegally crossed a border.

Dustin had brought them all to his father’s store. It was the safest place he could think of. This meant, however, that they were now in Canada—which was certainly not where she’d intended to be tonight.

The store was dark and quiet—they’d closed at seven. Dustin explained they were mostly a wholesaler, but they kept a store in front of the warehouse. There were refrigerator cases, shelves of groceries and snacks, and most appealing to Chris and Daryl, a small arcade in the corner.