jerked awake, heart pounding. I sat up and grabbed my phone from the bedside table.
Rosalyn calling.
“Shit!” There was only one reason my sister would call at—I glanced at the luminous hands on my clock—four thirty in the morning. I touched the green button and held the phone to my ear. “Ros, what happened?”
“Joe, you have to come home.” Her voice was thick with tears, and I jumped out of bed, groping for the light switch. “We’re at the hospital. Mum’s bad.” She broke off on a sob. Panic filled me and my stomach turned over.
“All right, Ros, I’m getting dressed now.”
“Give me the phone, love.” Steve spoke in the background, and after a muffled sound, he came on the line. “Joel, Marie had a heart attack about an hour ago. They brought her in by ambulance. They had to shock her, but we don’t know yet how she’s doing.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I dragged on a pair of boxer briefs and struggled one-handed with a sock. “I’ll get a taxi to the airport and book a seat from my iPad. Where’s Rachael?”
“We left her with Andy and Clare next door. Their little girl, Emma, is her best friend.”
“Yeah, I know. Go take care of Rosalyn. I’m on my way.”
“Safe trip.” Steve hung up, and I dropped my phone onto the bed. Within ten minutes I’d dressed in jeans, a warm sweater, boots, and coat, and had a large piece of hand luggage packed. I dug my passport out of a drawer, slipped my iPad into its case and my phone into my pocket, and rushed to the door.
Luckily I found a taxi in Wenceslas Square. The driver had just dropped off a customer, and I hurried toward the car, waving my arm. He waited and I dived into the back seat.
“Airport,” I panted. “Quick as you can.”
“The roads will be quiet. We should make it in twenty minutes.”
“Good.” I pulled out my iPad to search for flights. The first one left at seven, landing at London Heathrow at just after eight, local time. Relieved to find seats available, I reserved one. By the time the driver turned into Václav Havel Airport, I’d checked in online and had cash in my hand ready to pay the man. I gave him a generous tip and charged into the building as fast as my aching leg would allow. I had over ninety minutes before takeoff, but until I’d reached the appropriate gate I couldn’t relax. Not that I was likely to relax anyway.
I hurried through check-in, found a seat in Departures, and checked the time—five forty. Calculating quickly, I realized the earliest I could possibly get to my family was by nine thirty local time. Taking Monday rush hour into account, it could easily be longer. Of course if I used the trains rather than a taxi, it could be faster. I sank back into the seat with a groan and rubbed a hand over my face. Please be okay, Mum.
I fiddled with my phone while I waited. Steve sent me a text to confirm which hospital they were at. Mum had always been taken to the same one, but he hadn’t wanted to assume I knew. I let him know I was waiting to board a plane.
I considered calling someone at the club, but it was much too early. It was rare for any of them, particularly Karel, to crawl out of bed before noon. I’d have to remember to contact someone later. If I couldn’t reach Karel, it would have to be Pavel. As the bar manager, he was the next senior person I trusted with everything. For the most part, I kept my private life removed from everyone else at the club—except for Sasha.
“Fuck,” I muttered. I’d have to call him at some point. If I didn’t, he might think I’d changed my mind about him. The dancers all had landline telephones in their rooms, and I had the numbers in my cell. I’d probably be able to reach him later in the day. I almost wished the landline phones had answering machines, but I wouldn’t have wanted to explain the situation via a recorded message.
It seemed an interminable length of time before my flight was called. I kept my phone on
Rosalyn calling.
“Shit!” There was only one reason my sister would call at—I glanced at the luminous hands on my clock—four thirty in the morning. I touched the green button and held the phone to my ear. “Ros, what happened?”
“Joe, you have to come home.” Her voice was thick with tears, and I jumped out of bed, groping for the light switch. “We’re at the hospital. Mum’s bad.” She broke off on a sob. Panic filled me and my stomach turned over.
“All right, Ros, I’m getting dressed now.”
“Give me the phone, love.” Steve spoke in the background, and after a muffled sound, he came on the line. “Joel, Marie had a heart attack about an hour ago. They brought her in by ambulance. They had to shock her, but we don’t know yet how she’s doing.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I dragged on a pair of boxer briefs and struggled one-handed with a sock. “I’ll get a taxi to the airport and book a seat from my iPad. Where’s Rachael?”
“We left her with Andy and Clare next door. Their little girl, Emma, is her best friend.”
“Yeah, I know. Go take care of Rosalyn. I’m on my way.”
“Safe trip.” Steve hung up, and I dropped my phone onto the bed. Within ten minutes I’d dressed in jeans, a warm sweater, boots, and coat, and had a large piece of hand luggage packed. I dug my passport out of a drawer, slipped my iPad into its case and my phone into my pocket, and rushed to the door.
Luckily I found a taxi in Wenceslas Square. The driver had just dropped off a customer, and I hurried toward the car, waving my arm. He waited and I dived into the back seat.
“Airport,” I panted. “Quick as you can.”
“The roads will be quiet. We should make it in twenty minutes.”
“Good.” I pulled out my iPad to search for flights. The first one left at seven, landing at London Heathrow at just after eight, local time. Relieved to find seats available, I reserved one. By the time the driver turned into Václav Havel Airport, I’d checked in online and had cash in my hand ready to pay the man. I gave him a generous tip and charged into the building as fast as my aching leg would allow. I had over ninety minutes before takeoff, but until I’d reached the appropriate gate I couldn’t relax. Not that I was likely to relax anyway.
I hurried through check-in, found a seat in Departures, and checked the time—five forty. Calculating quickly, I realized the earliest I could possibly get to my family was by nine thirty local time. Taking Monday rush hour into account, it could easily be longer. Of course if I used the trains rather than a taxi, it could be faster. I sank back into the seat with a groan and rubbed a hand over my face. Please be okay, Mum.
I fiddled with my phone while I waited. Steve sent me a text to confirm which hospital they were at. Mum had always been taken to the same one, but he hadn’t wanted to assume I knew. I let him know I was waiting to board a plane.
I considered calling someone at the club, but it was much too early. It was rare for any of them, particularly Karel, to crawl out of bed before noon. I’d have to remember to contact someone later. If I couldn’t reach Karel, it would have to be Pavel. As the bar manager, he was the next senior person I trusted with everything. For the most part, I kept my private life removed from everyone else at the club—except for Sasha.
“Fuck,” I muttered. I’d have to call him at some point. If I didn’t, he might think I’d changed my mind about him. The dancers all had landline telephones in their rooms, and I had the numbers in my cell. I’d probably be able to reach him later in the day. I almost wished the landline phones had answering machines, but I wouldn’t have wanted to explain the situation via a recorded message.
It seemed an interminable length of time before my flight was called. I kept my phone on
Similar Books
