Heat shimmered across the busy sidewalks in glittering waves. Car horns beeped over the rumble of traffic. An ambulance siren bleated from a few blocks away, interrupted by bursts of jackhammers from the construction site at the next intersection. He glanced at the clock on the bank building across the street. Quarter past eleven. Pilar was late. Wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans, he tried to ignore the nervous apprehension in the pit of his stomach and focus on the headlines of the morning newspaper. Crime rates up. Unemployment rates climbing. Gas prices at an all-time high. No surprises there. He rolled his eyes and folded the paper, preferring to watch the crowd instead. “Daddy!” An excited shriek from behind had him twisting in his seat just in time to see Caleb break free from Pilar’s grasp and rocket down the sidewalk. He rose from his chair and swept the little boy into his arms. Red-haired and freckled, Caleb clutched Randy’s face between chubby hands and peppered his cheeks with sticky kisses.
