No lights were on. She left them off, and made her way through the darkness to her bedroom. She knew there was no point trying to sleep. She would just toss and turn, wide awake, worrying about Charlie and reliving all the rotten things that had happened during the past few hours: the fight with Jack; the nightmare; the horrible scene at the bridge and knowing that Charlie, on fire, had leaped for the creek; and on top of all that, the humiliating encounter with the police chief. Enough to keep her awake for days. She peeled off her sooty T-shirt, took a fresh one from the drawer, and put it on. Then, she looped the chain with the house key and whistle over her head. Running would help. It always helped. On her way back through the house, she wondered if she shouldn’t stay and wait for Joey’s call. He’d promised to let her know, when they found Charlie. But that might be an hour from now.
