“For sure.”
“All right, then I’ll chat to you later.”
“Yip. Later.”
I dash around getting done so I’m not late and fly out the door. Thankfully, the traffic is light, and I make good time, arriving with minutes to spare. As expected, I get the all-clear from the doctor with a warning to contact his offices if symptoms crop up in the next few months.
As I exit his office, my stomach tightens in anticipation. I press the call button on the elevator and pray that Indigo is on duty today. I’m taking a chance that she’ll be here since it’s the only thing I could think of to find anything out. Even if I contact their commanding officer, I sincerely doubt he’ll tell me anything anyway.
For one, protocol. And two, I’m nothing to Jessen. Although, truth be told, I’d love to get to know him better. The brief time we spent together was wonderful. He’s exactly the kind of man any woman would be lucky to have. He’s funny, considerate and seems loyal and protective.
The quiet ding of the elevator pulls me from my thoughts. Striding over to the nurses’ station, I smile at the women gathered there. I recognize a few of them from my recent stay. As I approach, one of them steps forward with a warm smile.
“Hi, Agatha. How are you?”
“Hey, Sage, good thanks. I was wondering if Indigo was on duty today?”
“Yeah, she should be doing inventory in the drug supply closet. Follow me, I’ll show you where.”
Our footsteps nearly silent on the linoleum as I do as she says and follow Sage, the sounds of the hospital are muted around me. The antiseptic smell an unpleasant reminder of my recent stay. We turn a final corner, and I see the hall ends a short distance down with only a couple of doors leading off it.
Right at the end, a door stands open. Walking up to the door, Sage calls out, “Indie, visitor for you.”
“Holy shit, Sage. You’re going to give me a heart attack sneaking up so quietly. Damn, woman.” A hand clasped to her chest, Indigo appears in the doorway. “Yeah, laugh it up. I’m still going to kick your ass one of these days.”
Sage simply laughs harder. “Sorry, Indie. The little devil on my shoulder makes me do it.”
“Get outta here,” she shoos, looking my way. “Hey, Agatha. It’s great to see you. Everything all right?”
Butterflies take flight in my belly now that the moment of truth is here. Wiping my hands as surreptitiously as possible down the back of my thighs, I greet her back. “Hi. It’s great to see you too. I’ve just come from my last checkup, and he’s given me the all-clear, so all good. I was in the building so I thought I’d come say hi and see how you guys are doing.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet of you. We’re all doing great, thanks. I’m missing Knight like crazy, but otherwise it’s all good.”
“Missing Knight?” I ask, playing dumb.
“Yeah.” She sighs. “You know that mission they were called away on the day you were admitted?”
Yes, I want to jump for joy. She’s making this so much easier than I anticipated it would be. I thought I’d have to find a way to drag the info out of her, but here she is, offering it up on a silver platter.
“Vaguely,” I lie.
“Yeah, that.”
“You mean, they’re still not home yet?’ She shakes her head, a sad expression in her eyes. “But that means they’ve been gone for weeks. Is that normal?”
“Well, it’s not unheard of. Sometimes they get lucky and they’re home before you know it, but then other times, like now, they’re gone for ages. I don’t like it because you never know what the situation is. It’s not like you get a call to say ‘hey, we’re gonna be gone for six weeks, but we’re doing okay, chat soon’, you know?”
“That sucks. It must be hard on you, not knowing if he’s safe or not.” Something in me relaxes just a tiny bit at the knowledge that Jessen isn’t ignoring me. On the other hand, I can’t help but wonder if he’s okay. Are he and his team safe?
A little lost in my thoughts, I jolt when I hear Indigo call my name.
“Shit, sorry. Spaced out there for a second.”
“You sure everything’s all right?”
At her frown, I hasten to assure her. “Yeah, absolutely. Just a thought that popped into my head had distracted me for a moment. Sorry.”
“No problem. As long as it’s nothing serious.”
