Page 27 of Eden's Dom

“I couldn’t do anything else but sleep.”

They hung up, and she set her personal phone aside. She drank more water before turning on the TV. She didn’t really want to watch anything, but she thought the sound would make her feel less lonely.

She was asleep within a minute. For the next twenty-four hours, she slept, showered, and took all the medicine she could. She did have the energy to call down to the kitchen for some broth and Jello or something soft. She stayed awake long enough to open the door and then eat a bit.

This went on for another day, and she wondered if she’dever feel better. One morning she was woken by the hotel phone.

“Hello.”

“Eden, it’s Robin. People have been calling around trying to find you. When they called here, I told them the system was down. I wanted to talk to you first.”

Eden was confused. “I’ve already texted my daughters.”

“It’s not them. The man I talked to sounded frantic.”

Eden’s mind was still fuzzy, so she couldn’t think of who it might be. Her emotions for Cain seemed to spread, but he never entered her mind as the one looking.

“If they call again, tell them I’m here and I’m okay.”

“I’ll do that. Do you need anything?”

“No, thank you.”

“Don’t forget to eat something,” Robin said.

“I’m trying.”

“Call if you need me.”

“I will.”

Eden set the phone back into the cradle. She sat on the mattress, looking around, trying to gather her thoughts. Why hadn’t anyone called if they were looking for her? She reached for her cellphone and sighed. The battery was dead, and she hadn’t thought to charge it.

She made herself get out of bed and find it before plugging it in by the bed. She used the toilet and drank more water before letting herself lie down again. If she didn’t watch it, sleeping so much would weaken her.

She decided to call one of her daughters.

“Mom, where are you?” her oldest daughter, Madison, asked frantically.

“Sweetheart. Settle down. I’m in a hotel. I got a little bug, so they wouldn’t let me fly. Didn’t you get my message?”

“Yes, but that was three days ago.”

Oh, God. She hadn’t realized it had been that long. “I’msorry. I hadn’t realized you guys were worried.”

“We’re not the only ones. Everyone at the ranch is looking for you,” Madison said.

“How did they even know? They knew they wouldn’t hear from me for a while.”

“Are you talking about Cain? Because he’s called several times.”

That surprised her. “What? No. Why would he do that?”

“He’s freaking out because he can’t find you. The airport just told him you hadn’t gotten on your plane. They wouldn’t allow you to fly because you’re sick. How sick are you?”

“Honey, it’s a cold. I swear you don’t need to worry.”

Madson sighed. “Mom, you always say that. You’d probably say that if you were having a heart attack.”

---