Page 84
Expired
Colby
Our two-day road trip is in full swing. Last night we played in Chicago—and lost. After a short charter flight, we check into our hotel in Detroit and have gone our separate ways. We have a free night, so some of us plan to meet up for dinner later. Me? I got a tap on the shoulder as we exited the plane from Cap, who wants me to join him. Just the two of us. Fucking great. I can’t wait for our tête-à-tête.
My roommate this entire season, Nick, pulls out his portable gaming system and grins at me. “Chel?”
He means the EA Sports NHL game, which I normally agree to because we’ve got our own raging rivalry, and he’s ahead at the moment. The competitor in me bristles at the way he’s been gloating about it, but it takes a back seat to my pissy mood.
“Not feeling it, man.”
“Something else?” He points the remote at the TV and turns it on.
“No.”
Nick swivels his head, and I don’t miss the surprise in his expression. “What do you want to do?”
What I really want is to be left alone. “Take a nap.”
He lets out an exasperated noise and surfs through channels while I pick up my phone and scroll texts and emails, looking for anything from Peggy. She’s been either terse or silent. Unusual for her, and a sign that things aren’t going well with Jackie.
I hate being seven hundred miles away, stuck in this limbo where I can’t say or do anything. Where I’m left waiting for shoes to drop. But why would it ever be that easy?
My phone rings. It’s Jackie. Unexpected because it’s during her work hours. I pick up right away, worried this is the call I’m dreading.
Dropping my voice, I turn my back on my roommate. “Hey.”
“C-Colby?” There’s a level of hysteria in Jackie’s voice, and my insides clench. This is it, and while I’m not surprised, I didn’t expect the call so soon. Hell, I was holding out hope someone would discover the whole thing was a bad joke.
I brace myself.
“Right here, babe.” Oops. That was a slip. Jackie starts crying. “Hang on, okay?” I go to stuff my feet into my sneaks, missing one completely, as I prepare to take this conversation out in the hallway to get some privacy. When I glance at Nick, he eyes me suspiciously, then hurriedly turns off the TV. Yeah, that’s the first time he’s heard me call anyone “babe.”
He tosses the remote on my bed. “I’m going to go see what Dylan and them are up to.”
I wait until he lets himself out and closes the door. “Sorry. I was waiting for Nick to leave. What’s going on?”
“New Horizons suspended me without pay today!”
“What?” I don’t fake my outrage. Grinding my back molars, I say, “Tell me what happened.” I don’t have details, but I sure as hell want them. If there’s anything I can do about this clusterfuck, I’m doing it.
“B-Brandon got some kind of letter from an attorney saying they had to freeze anything I’ve touched to do with the nonprofit, including my email. Everything!” She hiccups a sob.
I even out my voice. “Did they say why?”
“The law firm that sent the letter works for Roscoe Biotech and says I’m committing some kind of ‘nefarious acts’ in my new job that have to do with my old job.”
“Like what?”
“They didn’t say,” she wails. “I don’t see how anything I’m doing here affects a biotech company in San Francisco. And what the hell is a ‘nefarious act’? It makes no sense, but they aren’t giving me any information. All they’ll say is that this accusation looks bad for the nonprofit and everyone involved in my hire, like Brandon and Peggy, so they have to distance themselves.” She cries in earnest now, and my heart shreds.
“Hey,” I soothe, “have you contacted an attorney yourself?”
“No. This just happened a few minutes ago. They called me into a meeting and dropped the bombshell. I’m driving home now.”
“Sweetheart, maybe you should call me when you get home.” I hate the thought of her driving when she’s this upset.
“Oh my God!” she shrieks, and my chest seizes.
