Page 58 of Endurance

4:03 PM, Gabby:Any thoughts about dinner? I thought maybe we could go down to the pier.

4:33 PM, Gabby:On second thought, I don’t feel like going anywhere. I’m perfectly content to stay lying by the pool. How about we order pizza instead? Veggie toppings only, of course.

7:14 PM, Gabby:Hey, is everything okay? I’m getting worried.

Guilt washed over me, feeling terrible about leaving her after she’d flown all the way here to see me. Typing as fast as my fingers would allow, I sent back an apology.

8:06 PM, Me:Gabs, I’m really sorry. When I got here, Sloan was a bit of a mess, and I didn’t want to leave him. I’m not sure how much longer I’m going to be.

I saw the three little dots on the screen, signaling she was typing. A few seconds later, my phone vibrated with her response.

8:08 PM, Gabby:I figured as much. Don’t worry about it. I was starving, so I went ahead and ordered the pizza. There are leftovers here for you.

8:09 PM, Me:I feel awful. Thanks for understanding. I’ll text you when I leave here.

8:11 PM, Gabby:Don’t feel bad at all! I’m fine. I already assumed you’d be spending the night with that hottie. I’m completely jealous, by the way. Take your time. I won’t wait up. Have fun!

I glanced at the bed, then at the bent curtain rod and the hole in the wall.

Fun?

If Gabby only knew half of what had gone on here, she’d be screaming at me to get out. There was nothing fun about what happened earlier, and I didn’t expect things to get any better after Sloan woke.

19

Sloan

There was a stabbing pain piercing from one temple to the other. I tried to blink to rid myself of it, only to be blinded by rays from the setting sun coming through the balcony doors. Rolling away from the sunlight, I brought my hands up to my head and squeezed. My stomach pitched. It felt as if I’d been run over by a Mack Truck.

I lay there for a moment, waiting for the churning in my stomach to subside. As I did so, a feeling of awareness came over me, almost as if I were being watched. Slowly opening my eyes, I allowed them to adjust to the light. When my vision finally came into focus, I saw Kallie sitting in a chair in the corner of the room—and that’s when it all came flooding back.

The whiskey.

The argument with Kallie.

Shit! What the fuck was I thinking?

Almost as soon as the question popped in my head, I knew the answer. Memories of my crash had blended with Tyler’s, bringing back the terrible moment when my life had ended for all intents and purposes. I squeezed my eyes shut tight, trying to block out the images.

“How are you feeling?” Kallie asked.

I peered at her through squinted eyes.

“Like hell,” I mumbled.

“I would imagine. How much did you drink?”

“I’m not sure.”

“I saw the empty prescription bottle downstairs.” Although she said it as a statement, I could tell she was fishing for an answer about whether I’d been under the influence of oxy too.

I closed my eyes again and tried to recall the order of events after I got home last night. I remembered sitting at the kitchen table, pouring shot after shot. I’d tried going to bed, but memories of the crash plagued me, and I couldn’t sleep, so I came downstairs and drank some more. I recalled getting the bottle of oxy and struggling with the childproof cap. I was completely wasted by that point and had fumbled the pills, causing them to roll across the hardwood floor and disappear under the couch. I looked for them for a bit but gave up and opened another bottle of Jack instead. Everything was somewhat of a blur after that, but I was almost certain I hadn’t taken them.

“Kallie, if you are wondering if I took the pills, I didn’t. I thought about taking them, but I dropped them somewhere in the living room. I think they rolled under the couch.”

“That might explain why the living room looked as if someone had tossed it. Do you feel like getting up? A shower and some food will work wonders.”

“Maybe.”

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