Aldrich was reading one of those books that Briony left last time when he heard metal clanking. If it was before, he would hastily put the book back on the shelf and sit on the edge of the bed pretending that he was not reading no matter how silly that action was.
But now he doesn't feel like doing it. He wanted her to see him reading the books. Somehow, he felt like doing it.
He sat on the edge of the bed with the book in his hand as he looked at the steel door with anticipation. It has been a month now since he last saw her. Since she last visited him. The books she left that day were enough to keep him sane in the past month.
Someone even came to him telling him that Sam wants to borrow some of his books. That means, Briony must have talked to his sister but he wonders why she hasn't come back since then.
He knew that something was off the last time she came. She only spoke a few sentences that day which was not her.
