She remembered the morning that she’d gotten the call from John, right after the disappointment of the negative pregnancy test. She’d felt as if she’d hit a wall. It seemed like everyone else around her was moving on or up, creating families or careers that suddenly seemed to be taking off, and she was being left behind, trapped in an endless version of her twenties, even as she got closer and closer to forty.

And now, this thing that she had wanted for so long, that she had dreamed about, and planned for, and which felt at the end like it might never happen, was finally falling into place. It put the trouble with the house into perspective. They’d hit a stumbling block, not a wall. It might take time to sort out the issues with the construction and the insurance payments, but they would get through this and come out on the other side with everything that they wanted.

If all went well with the obstetrician, she was going to surprise Ted at the apartment after work. They could go out to eat, maybe sit at one of the sidewalk tables at their favorite Italian place if it wasn’t too hot.

When the bus pulled into the city around eleven, Maja saw that she had just enough time to drop off her suitcase at the apartment before her doctor’s appointment. Inside, the foyer was dark, and there was a pile of take-out menus that had been slipped under the door by delivery guys. She rolled her eyes. Ted must have been stepping over them all week while she was away. As she bent down to pick them up, she paused. To her surprise, she heard sounds coming from the direction of the living room, and she thought she smelled cigarette smoke. “Hello?” she called out, leaving the door open behind her, just in case. At first, she thought that perhaps the windows had been left open and the noise was coming from the street. But then she heard a rustling sound, like newspaper, and a cough.

In the kitchen, she was surprised to see a sink full of dishes and a pile of dirty take-out containers on the counter that was usually scrubbed sparkling clean. The trash can was full, and there was another bag of trash sitting next to it. A glass on the counter was filled with cigarette butts floating in dingy gray water. The room smelled stale and sour.

“Hello!” she called out again, trying to sound calm. Ted was never at home this time of day, and he’d given up smoking when she had. “Is someone here? I’m calling the super.”

“No, don’t,” a voice called out.

It was a relief to hear Ted’s voice. “Ted?” She walked down the hall. “Is that you?”