He was waiting for them in the diner, sparsely populated so early in the morning. Corbin was fairly certain most of the people scattered around the booths yawning over coffee cups and plates of eggs and bacon were rebels, though there was a trucker seated on a stool at the counter, all attention focused on his breakfast.

     The building was quiet; the only person Remi saw on his way up was the door man, holding it open for them as they passed and greeting him with a polite sir. They rode the elevator up in silence, then walked down the hallway to Shani’s door, the lights above them dimmed for the night. Colie lifted her face from where it’d been buried in his shoulder.    “Is Mommy with the people you were talking to Uncle Corbin about at Uncle Silas’s work?”    “Yes,” Remi replied honestly, but he couldn’t bring himself to say anything else. He’d already promised her in the car that he would get Charlie back.

     The soft chime of the doorbell ringing sounded once. Twice. A blue LED light shone briefly behind the button both times he pressed it, but there was no sound from inside. No footsteps coming towards him. After a couple of minutes, Corbin tried the door. Unlocked. He entered the apartment and closed it behind him, walking towards the living room, looking around.