Waver wanted to be able to give a reply with some level of wit. Get another drink. That'd be a good response, wouldn't it, making light of so much while acknowledging how heavy things felt. But he couldn't do it, not without the words ringing false. Rider would pick up on it too.

"As much as I know you don't dwell on the past, I think I'd at least like to know what you've been doing for the past month," he said finally. "Perhaps in a quieter space."