Felix disembarked from the ferry at Halifax, and stopped in the harbormasters house to ask if he could use the telephone. Fortunately, on the ferry Felix had changed back into his uniform, as it was the most properly fitting clothes he had. Upon seeing a sergeant from the army, the harbormaster was more than happy to lend the use of the phone to Felix.
Felix picked up the receiver, asked the operator to connect him with the Barrett home, and waited none too patiently for his call to go through. Had he known that Tommy was by himself, Felix would have had no qualms about just dropping by, but he thought better of doing that to the Barrett family, no matter how nice they were. Felix tapped his fingers impatiently, waiting to speak to the one person he knew of who could relate to his experiences. He stood reviewing in his mind the events of the past few days, and how nice it would be to knock back a few drinks with Tommy and forget all of it.
Felix was roused from his reverie by the sound of a male voice, which stated formally "Barrett Residence." Felix furrowed his brow; the voice didn’t sound like Tommy, or of any other male member of the family.
Felix inquired, "Hello, may I speak to Tommy Barrett?
He listened as the person on the other end of the line gasped, then stuttered slightly as he asked, "Who may I ask is calling?"
Felix, getting annoyed, replied stridently, "Felix King; Sergeant Felix King. May I please speak to Tommy now."
"Please hold on, I’ll get Mr. Barrett." came the answer and Felix began to protest that he didn’t want to speak to Mr. Barrett, but a sick feeling of dread came over him, and he clutched the receiver tightly.
After hearing muffled voices in the background, a familiar voice came on the line. "Felix," said Mr. Barrett, who then choked back a gasp, "Felix, I’m sorry, you can’t speak to Tommy. He died yesterday."
Felix’s jaw dropped and he sank into a chair, exclaiming "What!?! What happened?" to the sound of Mr. Barrett crying into the phone. Felix waited for Mr. Barrett to continue, and in stops and starts between sobs he advised Felix that Tommy had fallen down the stairs and broke his neck. A flush went over Felix’ face and he gasped for air. This can’t be happening, he thought, and he shook his head as the tears gathered in his eyes. Finally, Felix composed himself enough to choke out his condolences to Mr. Barrett and the family. As there really was not too much to say after that, Felix wrapped up the conversation and got off the phone, and limped out to the docks to cry in private.
When he got to an area where he could be alone, however, the tears wouldn’t come; only a cold, bitter despondency filled him. He had never felt so alone in his entire life. Upon realizing that standing there was useless, Felix resolutely turned from the water and walked back towards the city. He decided to go to the Citadel, where he knew the army would have personnel stationed. The first thing he needed was a new hat, as he forgot to take his back from Daniel when he left. Also, he was hoping they might have a lead for him about housing or a job, as his money was not going to hold out forever.
It took a while with his leg, but eventually Felix got to the Citadel, and saluted the staff sergeant at the front desk. Felix then inquired, "Is it possible for me to get a new uniform cap here? I lost the one I had to the wind while I was on the ferry." The staff sergeant directed him to the quartermasters hut. Before he left, Felix asked if, as a wounded soldier, he could stay at the Citadel for a few days. The staff sergeant apologized and said no, but that he could try some of the taverns by the harbor, they had about the cheapest housing around, or to ask at the soldiers mission house. Felix thanked him, saluted again and left for the quartermaster’s hut.
Upon collecting his new hat, Felix headed off for the mission house, and was told he could stay there for a few days, at least until the next load of wounded was transported back from France. While he was there, Felix recognized some of the men housed there and spent the rest of the day commiserating with them. After dinner, one of the wounded men produced a bottle of rum, which was passed around among the group.
After the drinking fest, Felix lay in his cot, looking up at the ceiling, trying not to think of the events of the past few days as he waited for sleep to come. Unbidden, thoughts of Izzy came to his mind and he tried to push them out. He reminded himself ruefully, "There’s no way now that I’ll ever be good enough for her. She wouldn’t want me the way I am."
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