Page 16 of Drake Eternal

Sophie almost squealed in response, for of course, it was Elsa in a long ice-blue dress, and not the snowman who is one of the beloved characters in the movie.

“Olaf? It’s not Olaf. You’re joking, Daddy.”

He dramatically moved his face closer to the camera and then closed his eyes. “Oh, of course it’s not Olaf. What was I thinking. It’s Elsa.”

“Funny Daddy,” Sophia said and shook her head.

“How was your day without me? I’ve been up all night working because I slept on the way from London to Nairobi.”

I put on a sad face. “We missed you this morning. We missed saying goodnight to you.”

“I missed both of you, too. I’m here in the hotel after spending the night and day at the hospital because of the jet lag and time difference,” Drake said and moved his iPhone around so we could see his nice room. He then walked over to the sliding door, which led to a patio surrounded by trees. It was dark and we could see lights of the city sparking in the distance. “It has the nicest view and is close to everything.”

I told Drake about our plans to go out to the island with my father and Elaine before we came to Nairobi, and he thought it was a great idea to spend the weekend at the beach house with my father to celebrate me finishing my first article.

“It’s good that you’ll spend some time with Ethan before you come here. We would have spent time at the beach house with them if I was still there. Your father would really feel deprived if you went without seeing him and celebrating your first bona fide article.”

“That’s the way I feel,” I said. We chatted about the hospital for a moment and Sophie listened with half an ear while she continued to color. Finally, Drake yawned, and I decided we’d delayed him from sleep for long enough.

“Time for bed, Daddy,” I said, and Sophie agreed. “Don’t you agree, Sophie? He looks very tired.”

“Yes, it’s time for bed.” She seemed to enjoy telling Drake it was bedtime instead of the other way around.

“Okay, if you two say so,” Drake replied, smiling. He blew us both a kiss, which we blew back.

Then, the call ended.

I felt a twinge in my chest, hating the fact we were so far apart, but Sophie was unconcerned and went right back to coloring.

Ah, the resilience of youth. Don’t yet understand how fragile life is…

We spent the rest of the day following the usual routine, with Sophie working away at whatever she was coloring or watching a movie on television, while I worked in my office. We had a quick supper, and then spent the evening watching a Disney movie together. I put her to bed, and the only difference was that Drake wasn’t there to add his kiss goodnight.

“When will Daddy come home?” she asked as I tucked her in.

“Soon,” I said. “He’s got another three or four weeks if they can find some new doctors and get them all set up at the hospital. Then, after we go to see Gramps and Grandma at the beach house, we’ll fly to Nairobi and meet him and go to Africa and see some giraffes. How does that sound?”

She smiled and opened her eyes wide. “And elephants?”

“And especially elephants. Maybe we could go to the Sheldrake Trust Elephant Refuge.”

“Yes, I want to see the elephants…”

I kissed her cheek, and she snuggled down into her covers.

“Good night, my love.”

“Good night, Mommy,” she replied, her eyes already closed.

I turned off the overhead light and switched on the night light, and then closed the door behind me. I knew she’d be asleep in no time, being a very fast sleeper like her father.

Then, I went to the living room and switched on a news channel, needing to further unwind before I went to bed myself.

Usually, Drake and I would sit together and watch an hour of news before we headed for bed, and I missed his presence beside me, commenting drolly on whatever antics politicians had been up to for the day, making me laugh.

Instead, I just sat there and missed him terribly.

I checked in to see how Sophie was doing one last time before I went to my own bedroom, and after my evening ablutions, washing my face and brushing my teeth, I slid into the huge and very empty king-sized bed that Drake and I usually shared.