Not pleasant questions either.

“Oh. Sorry,” Sveta said, to me. “I should have thought you might not want to broadcast it. I’m sorry. I kind of brought it up earlier, too.”

On its own, it was something I could handle most of the time, but it might have been a return to the group therapy session, the presence of Sveta and Mrs. Yamada, even, and possibly the fact that I’d had a few reminders and it was harder and harder to surface, while it almost felt like Chris was pressing down.

Dark, uncomfortable memories stirred. Being paralyzed, silent, the interminable restlessness. The way the things on the television and radio had been almost unbearable to see and listen to, not because of the subject matter, but because of my inability to change the channel or shut it off, even though I’d asked for it to be put on in the first place.

I had to take a second to swallow and remember normal breathing and cadence again, after thinking about it.

“Let’s not put too much pressure on Victoria, please,” Mrs. Yamada said. “I understand that you might feel the need to vet her or figure out if you can trust her, and that makes sense, given the degree of what’s shared here, but let’s be fair. Let’s keep the small talk small, I’ll outline things as we start, and you can decide if you’re uncomfortable. If you are, then we’ll figure out a way to move forward.”

“It’s okay,” I said.

“If you’re sure.”

“It’s fine,” I said, glad I was able to find and use a normal tone of voice without any giveaway. I turned back to Chris, “Yeah. I was there. Arrived midway through twenty-eleven, year and a half, and then the Asylum-supported housing after.”

“Right,” Chris said. “Brockton Bay before that?”

“Yeah,” I said. I wondered for a second at his jumping to the conclusion, before I remembered I had the city and its name on my dress.

“There was a lot of Brockton Bay in the news, before,” he observed.

“Yeah,” I said. “Not a lot of it good.”

I wasn’t sure how to approach the conversation with Chris. He was hard to read, in fashion, in expression—I’d glance at his mouth to see if he was smiling or frowning and I’d only see the braces. He’d been quiet up until now, too, which meant I didn’t have a lot to go on.