Not because I had failed to catch him immediately, but because I had learned to apologize for asking reasonable questions.
There had been other signs.
His phone was suddenly always face down.
He had changed his password, claiming that the company had introduced a new security policy.
He smiled at messages he refused to explain.
And twice in one week, our landline had rung, only for the caller to disconnect when I answered.
The second time, I had heard a faint breath before the line went silent.
“Hello?” I repeated.
Nothing.
Then the call ended.
I mentioned it to Tyler that evening.
“Probably a wrong number,” he said.
“You don’t think it’s strange that it happened twice?”
He shrugged.
“People dial the wrong numbers every day.”
I wanted to ask why he seemed so determined to make me feel foolish for noticing things.
Instead, I let the subject drop.
That was the final mistake I made before Rachel arrived.
