CH.41

"Please be quick about this. I'm on borrowed time here," I urged, unable to mask the urgency in my voice any longer as I shifted restlessly in my seat.

I really wished he would just hurry up and get to the point so I could get back before Karl returned from work and inevitably started interrogating me about my whereabouts.

Felix wouldn't be wasting both of our time like this, dragging out some dramatic speech, if only he knew the precarious, suffocating dilemma I was caught in at home.

The invisible chains Karl kept me bound with were growing tighter each day, making even the simple acts of breathing or thinking for myself a struggle.

I tried hard to resist the urge to check my watch, not wanting to seem rude or impatient with my oldest friend, but the seconds felt like they were stretching into eternity.

My nerves were rapidly fraying with each agonizing tick of the clock, the knot of dread in the pit of my stomach winding itself tighter and tighter until I could hardly draw