He’d meant what he’d said, countless times. Honestly, he wished he’d not lived, but Will had.
This burden had been so goddamn hard to carry alone. So much so that he hated it.
Because he was hurting, he did the one thing that every person would do. He reverted back to being a child.
He needed to talk to his mom.
Picking up his phone, he called Alice to make sure she wasn’t creating any problems, and to maybe help him through his own.
He told himself it was because she was on a new side of the country, and trying to assimilate now that she was retired, but it was more.
So.
Much.
More.
On the second ring, she picked up, thankfully. At that moment, he didn’t want to do something stupid, and he needed someone to keep him focused.
“Hey,” she said. “How are you, Crotch Goblin? What are you doing?”
He laughed sardonically.
“I’m alive. I’m in a hotel room, and I’m just checking in with my mother.”
Oh, boy.
Alice was curious.
Corbin didn’t check in with her. In fact, he did everything in his power to do the opposite. That one sentence told her everything she needed to know.
“What happened, Corby? Do you need me? I can come find you. Maybe I can help on the case.”
He laughed.
“Absolutely not. I’m not really working right now. Something came up, and I’m crashing for the night. I just needed company. Everyone else is busy.”
And he didn’t want to discuss his issues with them.
Hell!
He didn’t want to discuss it with Alice, but he had to get grounded, and fast. There was no doubt he was heading back toDamascustomorrow, and he’d be working with a new agent. It was only a matter of time.
Now, Alice was worried.
“What happened?”
He wasn’t going to tell her. Honestly, Alice was a pain in the ass more times than not, but she was a good listener, and knew what he lived through.
What he wanted was peace.
“I took a nap, and I dreamed about Will. It seems my partner wears the same cologne, and it took me back there. I then asked Elizabeth to give me a new partner to get away from him.”
She was silent.
Which was odd.
Alice was known for a lot of things, but silence was never one of them.
