The phone kept ringing until the cold mechanical voice of voicemail kicked in.

Patricia dialed again. And again.

Every time, the call was disconnected automatically, and the silence on the other end was deafening.

"Ahhh!!!"

Patricia screamed, her frustration boiling over. In a blind rage, she hurled her phone against the wall, shattering the screen on impact.

But Brandon wasn’t ignoring her calls because he didn’t want to answer. He couldn't.

Even ...