arms, beg him to take me. Tell him I’m sure I’ve been wrong all along.
But I keep walking. I can already hear the beeping of his phone. He’s gone back to work. It’s amazing that he’s able to disconnect so easily.
And it seems like he’s already forgotten about Matthew Silvers. He doesn’t want to think about his past.
I have Matthew Silvers’ phone number in front of me on a piece of paper. It took me over four hours hunting this down. It wasn’t easy, but I was determined to speak to him.
Since last evening’s encounter with Reed, I am now even more determined to get to the bottom of this and find out why his extended family never reached out to him. I don’t know what will happen between us in the future, I don’t know how our ‘date’ will go, nor what he actually wants from me, but I want to do my job well.
I pick up the phone before I can change my mind and dial the cellphone number. It rings twice, three times, and I’m sure it’s going to go to voice mail. But then I hear a man on the other end.
“Yeah?”
“Matthew Silvers?”
“Yeah. Who is this?”
He sounds like a much older man, but he doesn’t sound like a cold-hearted one. Not over the phone, at least. Can you tell these things accurately?
“Hi, Mr. Silvers, I was hoping I could take some of your time to discuss your nephew,” I say. I have already decided I’m going to get straight to the point. No beating around the bush. Too much time has already passed for that.
“My nephew?”
“Reed.”
There is silence on the other end. I don’t know where he is or what he’s doing, but it seems like he’s standing still.
“Where is he? How is he?” Matthew asks.
“I have some questions for you, Mr. Silvers, and I was wondering if we could meet and discuss them in person.”
“Who are you?” he sounds a little defensive now, but I can’t blame him.
“I work for Reed Silvers. I am conducting an investigation into his past and family. I’m sure you know, for obvious reasons, your name came up.”
“Is he okay? Is Reed okay?” he asks.
“Yes, Mr. Silvers is doing very well.”
There is silence again.
“Would he like to meet me?” he finally asks.
“I am not sure what our next steps should be, but I would like to meet with you first and get the full picture before we can bring him into the scene. Is that something you would be comfortable with, Mr. Silvers?”
Matthew is thinking again.
“Where are you?” he asks.
“Chicago.”
“I can be there tomorrow by midday.”
“I’ll text you my phone number and an address where we can meet. One o’clock? Tomorrow.”
Matthew Silvers mumbles a response before he ends the phone call. My heart is racing when I put it away. What am I doing? I shouldn’t be meeting Reed’s uncle alone. What would he say if he found out? Wouldn’t he want to know?
But this is part of my job, right? I’m just doing my job, I tell myself. I drum my fingers on the desk and look up at the books lining the wall across from me.
Maybe this is the point at which Reed’s life changes and he doesn’t even know it yet. The question is: will he shoot the messenger?
I told Matthew to meet me at a cafe far away from Reed’s house.
I’ve been sitting outside under the awnings with a cappuccino on the table. He is already twenty minutes late, and I don’t know if he’s changed his mind. I’m thinking about texting him. Can I threaten him? Force him to come here and see me? But with what?
I’m staring out at the honking traffic when from the corner of my eye, I see a man walking towards me. He doesn’t look anything like Reed, and he’s much older. Probably in his sixties. But there’s something in the way he’s walking that reminds me of Reed.
I stare right at him. I know it’s Matthew. When he catches my eye, he stops.
“You’re Ella Davies?”
I stand up and shake his hand. He looks me up and down, trying to assess me.
“Hello, Mr. Silvers. Please, sit down.”
He does. I play with the handle of my coffee mug. We are both eyeing each other suspiciously.
“What kind of work do you do for Reed?” he finally asks.
“I’m working on a short contract with him. Just for this project.”