“Listen,” he continued. “I didn’t tell you about it because it’s not relevant to the two of us. I broke the law. That was a long time ago now, and I’ve paid for it. My wife became my ex-wife, and my friend is now my ex-friend. They mean nothing to me—less than nothing. I’ve moved on. But I would be lying if I said I felt guilty about it or even regretted it. Like I said, he had it coming.”

Heloise didn’t know what to believe. Was he telling the truth now, or was this a lie he had made up on the spot? There was getting to be so much distrust between them. She had so many reasons to doubt him. Every time she demanded answers, excuses came pouring out of his mouth, far too easily, far too conveniently. Could she ever trust a man whose job for many years had primarily been about rewording, manipulating, and misleading?

“Why were you allowed to keep your job?” she asked. “Why didn’t they fire you when you went to jail?”

“Because I’m the best at what I do.” He didn’t even try to sound the slightest bit modest.

Heloise leaned back with her eyes closed, resting her head against the verdigris copper of the wall of the dome. She contemplated how to handle the situation.

“Where are you?” Martin asked.

Heloise didn’t answer.

“Why don’t we just get together and talk about this? I’ll come to you. Just tell me where you are.”

“I think …” Heloise said, trying to muster up some inner determination. “I think it’s best if we don’t see each other anymore.”

“What? No, come on. I—”

“I think it would be best if I were alone right now. So much is going on at work, and—”

“Heloise,” he said. His voice had been reduced to a dark whisper. “You’re going to have to start trusting me a little. I think … I think I’m in love with you.”

She smiled sadly to herself.

“I want to believe you,” she said, looking out at the city’s roofs. “But I don’t.”

Heloise sat there for a long time after she had hung up. She had lost all sense of time as she tried to untie the knots tangling up her thoughts. She jumped when the little door in the wall next to the bench was assertively pushed open.

Bobo stuck his wrinkly face through the doorway.

“Heloise,” he said, and then pointed a bony, admonishing finger toward the dome behind her. “Unless you want to lose your hearing, you come down now. It’s almost eight o’clock.”

Heloise jumped off the bench and looked fearfully at the giant bronze bell behind her.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I lost track of the time!”