Page 52 of Drake Eternal

“Daddy!”

“Hey sweetheart! I miss you so much. But we’ll see each other tomorrow, right?” He blew a kiss to us.

“We’re flying tonight and will stay in London for an hour and a half,” I said, blowing a kiss to Drake and smiling.

“How is Miranda?” I asked, wanting to probe his story a bit.

“She took a couple of days off to recover but is otherwise fine. A very sore throat and a bit of a wheeze, but that’s to be expected. Michael is relieved.”

“I bet. She inhaled a large olive?”

“Yes, it was meant for me, but I didn’t want to drink and so I gave the martini to Miranda.”

“Why did you buy a martini and then not drink it?” I asked, confused.

“Oh, someone bought it for me.” Drake shrugged but said nothing more.

I didn’t question him any further, although I would have liked to. But not in front of Sophie and my father and Elaine. I could ask him for a bit more details of the night in a text.

“So, you get on the plane tonight at what time?”

We spoke about the flight and what time we’d be arriving in Nairobi, and Drake promised to meet us there.

“Boss promised that I could take the evening off so I could go to the airport and pick you up.” He smiled. “We have a lovely suite at the Fairmont, which is pretty close to the hospital.”

“Sounds great,” I said, and Sophie was excited.

“Do they have a swimming pool?”

Drake laughed. “Yes, in fact, they do. A nice outdoor pool you can swim in anytime you like.”

We watched as Drake carried his laptop over to the patio attached to his room and showed us the exterior. There were beautiful palm trees and flickering lights in the area between wings of the hotel. Below was a large swimming pool.

“We can’t wait,” I said with a sigh, glad that our separation would soon be over.

We spoke for a while longer and then we all said goodbye, with promises to text and maybe do a call when we were in London for the layover.

After saying goodbye all around, I ended the call and exhaled. Now, all we had left to do was have dinner and then say goodbye before driving to the airport for our eight-ten flight.

I didn’t like saying goodbye to my father, because I never knew if he might suddenly die, but I knew more than anything else, I wanted to be with Drake. I wanted Sophie to be with her father. I wanted us to be together and then meet up with Liam to visit Liam’s grave.

It would be hard to say goodbye, but hopefully, he would be healthy enough to meet us in Ethiopia.

CHAPTER 18

Iwas happy that Kate had decided to read my texts and we were able to finally connect.

I had a nice Skype session with them both. Ethan and Elaine also popped in to say hello. I knew it would be hard for Ethan to see them leave, but we would all — hopefully — join up once more for the trip to Ethiopia.

I went to bed that night pleased that everything was falling into place. We’d been able to manage the overload of patients who came our way because of the flooding in Nairobi, and with Kate and Sophie in the hotel waiting for me each night, I would be able to manage my remaining two-week stay at the hospital much more happily.

Part of me debated whether to tell Kate and Sophie to wait it out, and come much later, but the flooding had subsided for now, and the forecast was for no more rain for at least a week or so. In fact, for the next ten days, there was at most a twenty-percent chance of rain. The hotel was fantastic, and I figured that Sophie and Kate could enjoy their days while I worked, watching movies on the flatscreen or swimming in the pool. There was a lot of unrest in the city and nation, but the Fairmont was very well-protected, and we could leave the city at a moment’s notice if necessary.

If I felt Kate and Sophie would be in danger, there was no way I would bring them to the city. I contacted Kyle to see if he had any contacts in Nairobi who could provide temporary protection while Kate and Sophie were with me. He gave me a number and I called and arranged for someone to monitor us while we were in the hotel. The company, run by a former military man who Kyle knew from his time in Africa, was only too happy to take my American dollars. Many of them, in fact, but the safety of Sophie and Kate were priceless to me.

I would spend every dollar that it took to ensure they were safe.

With that settled, I turned over in the bed, pulled a pillow over my head, and tried to go to sleep with thoughts of reuniting with Kate and Sophie on my mind.

---