The heavy brass door latch didn’t catch behind me as I walked out onto the porch.

I went down the concrete front steps, opened the door of my sedan, and sat behind the wheel.

I left the key in the ignition without turning it, listening to the faint tick of the cooling engine.

My phone lit up in the center console, showing Evan’s name across the screen.

I picked it up and swiped the green bar to answer.

“Did you drop off the paperwork?” Evan asked, his low voice steady through the speaker.