Her thoughts shifted away from the hellish day, night…whatever it had been, as she sipped her wine and let the soup warm her.
She must have drifted off because she was startled awake by the sounds of singing on the TV. Her movie had ended, and a new one was starting.
Hilary sat up and rubbed her eyes. How long had she been asleep?
Her left hand had gone numb. She wiggled her fingers to try and get the feeling back.
Then she checked her phone.
It was almost one o’clock in the morning.
Her stomach dropped like she had caught air flying over a ski jump. Ben should have been home hours ago.
Had he gotten in an accident?
She had worried so much about the twins driving in winter weather conditions, even though she and Ben had taught them how to navigate snowy streets and icy hillsides from the time they got their driver’s permits.
Ben was a good driver. He didn’t take risks.
She scanned her phone.
Then she texted him.
No response.
Hilary got up from the couch and paced back and forth in front of the fireplace.
She tried calling him. His phone went straight to voicemail.
She texted him again, twice.
Each of her messages got stronger in intensity.
BEN WHERE ARE YOU? I’M FREAKING OUT.
This was a situation that called for all caps.
Hilary wondered if she should start calling hospitals. Or the police?
Should she drive his route from the gym and make sure he hadn’t skidded on a patch of black ice and his car was in a ditch somewhere on the roadside?
Yeah, that was a good idea.
Hilary’s breath came in short gasps.
Please, God, don’t let something have happened to him.
She ran down the hallway, not bothering to turn off the TV. She stopped in the foyer to grab her jacket and car keys. They kept a basket near the door for mail, keys, and miscellaneous junk. It had been dark when she had gotten home earlier. She hadn’t bothered to look through it, but a new round of terror sent waves of nausea through her body when she noticed a plain envelope on the top of the mail pile with her name written in Ben’s handwriting.
She ripped open the envelope.
Inside was a note.
Dear Hilary,
We need a break. It’s obvious that this isn’t working. I feel like I’ve tried and keep hitting a brick wall with you. I don’t know what else to do, so I’m going to take some time for myself.
Love, Ben
