At the two-hour mark, Gabby rose and went to the front desk. She pulled Josh’s file from the drawer and dialed the number listed. The call rang—then cut. “The number you have dialed is not reachable.” Her stomach turned. She dialed again. Same result. The backup number was switched off.
She paced. Checked the street. Tried again. Still unreachable. She returned to Juno, who was now curled in the corner but alert, ears still high, body trembling. Gabby sat next to him, her hand resting on his side. “Maybe he’s stuck in traffic,” she whispered, but the words tasted like dust.