A knock at the door startled me. I whipped my head around, shoving my emotions down my throat as I did so.
Fohr?
Without hesitation, I was up on my feet and pulling at the handle. To my surprise, a white envelope waited for me on the porch. The delivery guy was already on the next porch. With my wine in hand, I picked up the government issued medication and slipped back inside of my home.
As I tore through the white envelope, I found four pills. They were in a bottle much like the one Fohr held an hour and a half ago. The revelation of his team’s negligence quickly left a bitter taste in my mouth. They’d equipped themselves and Fohr with the antiviral medication and left me to fend for myself.
The help. I shook my head, recalling how Olivia had begged for my assistance just a month and a half ago. She stood out in the rain waiting for her boss to hear the same answer she’d heard hours prior. Suddenly, I wasthe help.
“Comical.” I chuckled to keep from crying.
True to my nature, I was a maid. And, Fohr’s maid, nonetheless. But, I was far from the person she was making me out to be with her distasteful remarks.
Everything about the day felt like a sad joke. From the moment Fohr and I stepped out of the shower, things began to go downhill. Water wasn’t on my list of options at the moment. There was only wine. Wine. And more wine.
I tossed two pills back and used wine to wash them down. According to the reports, they were rapid release capsules and would begin their job within seconds of consumption. In under a minute, I would be exempt from the pool of people who could still contract the virus.
Thank you, God.
I plopped down on my couch with a heavy head and an even heavier heart. My stiff nostrils warned me before the first tearstained my cheek. Yet and still I didn’t know I was crying until the saltiness slid from my face onto my satin pajama top.
I wiped my face with the back of my hand, attempting to clear the evidence of my burdened heart. It was pointless. I swallowed the pride my father had bestowed in me and placed the wine glass on the table in front of me.
I pulled the knitted blanket up over my feet and up my body until it was tucked underneath my chin. And like the bruised-hearted girl I was, I allowed my silent tears to blend with the fabric of my couch.
“So,just to be clear and make sure you have it all,” Olivia rattled off, “Plane. Straight to the physician’s office. Testing. Once cleared, team hotel where you will stay the night. First thing in the morning, we’re up and at it. Team meeting.
“It will be a long one so we need to get with the nutritionist to get you something on your stomach. After the team meeting, practice. You have to touch the field. It’s been over a month. They want to see where everyone is right now. Mentally. Physically. All of that.
“Then, it’s press conference. The cameras will be out. The world is in a frenzy right now. They want to know what is on everyone’s mind, including players of the league. Team dinner. And then we have the endorsement deal to sign. After that, you–”
I had tuned her out at the mention of food. There had been one person making sure I was fed well and kept my regime throughout this time. I searched the room but couldn’t find her.
While Olivia continued, I stood on my feet and made my way toward the door. She followed behind me, still going over my schedule for the next two days.
We would be playing soon. That was the most important message in the words she kept tossing in my direction. I’d be ready. That’s all I knew and that was all she needed to know.
I peered out into the hallway, expecting to find Kit somewhere prancing about. She was a loner at heart. The sudden rush of people into my home had overstimulated her. I wanted to make sure she was alright and all was well. But, she was nowhere in sight.
The kitchen was empty.
The dining room was empty.
The theater room was empty.
I took the stairs two by two with Olivia on my tail.
“Did you hear me? You play the Seals in two days!”
The bedroom she slept in the first few days of her stay was empty.
The closet where she hung her clothes was empty.
And, for the first time since I met her, I felt empty.
“Where is she?”
“Where is who?”
