Chapter 21: The Livestream

At five o'clock, the break-room television flickered, and the Lowrys' dining room came up on the screen.

Maxine had propped the phone against a gravy boat at the far end of the table.

The picture swayed a little, and then it settled.

The whole team was in the room with me.

The director sat at my left, my lab partner at my right, and the man with the beard had brought a bowl of popcorn, until she took it away from him.

"This is not a movie," she said.

"It's a little bit a movie," he said.

On the screen, I saw the table I had set every year of my life.

Five families sat around it, with the good tablecloth and the gold-edged plates.

My parents sat on the left side, next to my empty place card.

The card had my name on it, in Daphne's handwriting.

At the head of the table, in my chair, sat Felix.

He wore a cream sweater and his hair was combed flat.

His eyes were pink, and he was holding a napkin to his mouth.

"Oh, honey," said Daphne's mother, patting his arm. "You eat what you can."

Daphne sat across from him.

She was not eating at all.

Maxine sat on his other side, and she was looking at her plate.

Ingrid had her glasses off, and Bridget was close beside Felix, one hand on the back of his chair.

"That's my seat," I said.

"Not for long," said my lab partner.

Daphne's mother stood and clinked her glass.

"We're so glad everyone's here. It's been a hard year for some of us. We missed one of our own."

She turned to Felix with a warm smile.

"But we have a new one to look after."

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