Calling Card

[Raffe]

Ana plucked one of his hands free. Tears blotched Raffe’s face, and he didn’t look up, but he did wrap his palm around the offered glass of water. It was the kind of emotional outburst that had gotten him beaten on as a kid, at least until he’d learned to defend himself. At least no one questioned it; he wasn’t sure how he’d explain all the shitty baggage knocking around in his skull, and nor did he really want to. The overwhelming nature of it surprised even him. He thought he’d laid those demons to rest years ago.

He squeezed Ana’s arm, offered a slim smile for her kindness. Then he sat up, scrubbed a hand over his head, and took a breath. Cruz and Sage were talking amongst themselves. Raffe tapped out a quick reply, You’ve no idea how relieved I am to hear it. Stay safe. See you soon, before he shoved the phone back in his pocket. He pressed the cool glass against one cheek, then took a gulp and stood. He had no idea what they were talking about beyond the ominous vagaries of Sage’s earlier message, but he spied the trinket in Cruz’s palm, and it left a weighty feeling in his stomach. Maybe that was just the sickness talking.

“Going where, exactly?” He hedged the question a little, but his gaze dipped to the coin Cruz held with a frown. He was aware of Ana and Christian in his periphery. Ekeziel’s coins could be good and bad both, depending on who you were and what you asked. They could even be benign, little more than an entertaining diversion. But he was rarely benevolent to wealth.