Chapter 87: Joyce

Joyce writes in the morning, which she says is unusual for her. She briefly reflects on the previous day’s developments involving the murders, drugs, and the men involved, and she notes that Johnny sounds like a plausible culprit.

Joyce then admits she is avoiding the real subject: she has had sad news. That morning she made her regular “All’s Well” call to Bernard, an arrangement where each person lets the phone ring twice so the other knows they are safe without needing a conversation.

Bernard does not return the signal. Joyce initially tries not to worry because Bernard sometimes forgets, but she walks over to check on him. On the way, Marjorie Walters sees Joyce looking distracted, which Joyce later takes as a sign that she already sensed something was wrong.

At Bernard’s block, Joyce sees the curtains drawn and imagines ordinary explanations, such as Bernard sleeping or being ill. She lets herself in with a spare key fob, climbs the stairs, and finds an envelope taped to Bernard’s door with “Joyce” written on it.

Joyce is too upset to continue writing. She ends by noting that Bernard had drawn a smiley face in the “O” of her name, a small gesture that makes the moment feel even more personal and ominous.