SUNDAY, AUGUST 18, 1:00 AM

 

 

 

 

MY MOBILE RINGS at one in the morning. Answering, I recognize the voice immediately. Before he can begin talking, I disconnect. Sitting up in bed, I prop myself with pillows, wait for him to call again. He doesn’t disappoint. Three minutes later my mobile rings again.

“We were disconnected.”

“No, we weren’t.” I hang up.

If it weren’t so serious, I could laugh. Less than sixty seconds later my phone rings again.

“Listen to me, Fort—”

“No: you listen to me.” Click.

Sitting up in bed, I wait a half hour more for him to ring again. When he doesn’t, I lay back, sleep like a baby straight through to the alarm.