Page 53 of The Senator's Wife

“I took the red-eye. I can only stay a day, but I wanted to see you. FaceTime wasn’t cutting it.” Emmy walked over to the love seat where her mother was doing a crossword puzzle and embraced her before settling herself next to Sloane. “What’s with the alarm sensor on your door?”

“Oh, that.” Sloane waved her hand dismissively. “Whit insisted on it as an extra precaution since he’s been sleeping in a guest room. I’m on so much medication, he wants to make sure I don’t sleepwalk or something.”

Emmy frowned. “I still don’t understand why he’s not sleeping in here. Aren’t you lonely?”

Sloane was, but she didn’t want to upset Emmy, so she shook her head. “I’m so restless at night, and he needs his sleep. He’s doing so much between his job and helping with the foundation.” She sighed. “And taking care of me. Anyway, enough about me. Have you eaten? There should be some stew in the fridge from dinner. I just came upstairs.”

“I’m good, Mom. I grabbed something at the airport. Whit said that the doctor upped your steroids. Is it helping?”

Sloane shrugged. “The swelling in my legs has gone down, so that’s good. And my bionic hip is great!” She didn’t mention her constant exhaustion or the host of other troubling symptoms plaguing her. Especially not the terrifying hallucinations. Emmy would be beside herself.

“Do you want to finish your tea?” Emmy picked up the mug and then stopped, her brows knitted. “What’s this white stuff floating on top?” She handed the mug to Sloane.

Sloane raised the cup to her nose and inhaled, but there was no discernible scent. “Maybe it’s stevia. I guess it’s been sitting too long,” was all she said to Emmy, but she would show it to Doris later and see if she knew what it was. She had no intention of drinking it and placed it on the table next to her.

Emmy tilted her head. “How is Athena working out? Are you happy with her?”

She wasn’t pleased with how much time Athena was spending with Whit, but shewasrelieved that she’d found nothing about Athena’s past to raise alarm bells thus far. Rosemary’s suspicions were probably her imagination, but Sloane was not ready to completely dismiss them. None of these things was something to burden Emmy with, however. “She’s been a great help to me.”

“Okay, well, you know I’m always just a phone call away.”

Sloane smiled at her daughter. “I know. Andyouknow I don’t want you worrying about me. I’m well taken care of.”

Emmy nodded, but Sloane could see from her expression that she was still worried. Sloane wasn’t about to let this disease steal her daughter’s peace of mind. She was careful to keep her voice even. “Athena is terrific. I’m really glad she’s here.”

“I hate that I’m so far away,” Emmy said.

Sloane reached out and stroked Emmy’s face. “The next time you’re home, I’ll be up and around, making all your favorites.”

The smile on Emmy’s face was evidence enough that Sloane was doing the right thing to keep any reservations about Athena to herself. Truthfully, Athenahadbeen doing a good job, no matter how much she sometimes aggravated Sloane with her intrusiveness. It couldn’t be easy, though, caring for sick people and living in someone else’s home. But soon enough, Sloane would be on her feet, and Athena’s presence here nothing more than a fading memory.

It was after eleven by the time Emmy went to bed, and Whit still wasn’t home. Sloane wasn’t ready to get back into bed yet. She picked up her phone and opened Instagram. Ever since Madelyn’s bitchy remarks at the donor party, Sloane had been uneasy. She hated the fact that Whit had to have anything to do with her.

She navigated to Madelyn’s Instagram page, which was public. She’d heard Madelyn call herself a social media influencer, and with over three hundred thousand followers, Sloane conceded that she was. She rolled her eyes as she reviewed the posts from the past few days. Didn’t the woman have anything better to do than catalogue every moment of her life for public consumption? A pictureof her manicure with the caption:Zelda is the best #junglered.Next, a picture of her with Fred, Madelyn in a figure-hugging turquoise sheath, Fred looking droll in a plain tuxedo with a sour expression on his face. Caption:Charityworks Dream Ball #breakthecycle.Post after post of her fabulous life with all the accoutrements of wealth—at the DC Film Festival, Wolf Trap, Hillwood Mansion. Sloane knew that Madelyn was a narcissist, but this was over the top. She saw that Madelyn had recently added a story. It was a selfie of Madelyn in a limo with a man’s arm around her shoulder. He was out of the frame, but part of his arm was clearly visible. What caught her attention was his wrist. The nickel-sized burn that had scarred Whit from an old fireworks accident. Was he with her right now? She felt the heat spread to her face and adrenaline rush through her body. That bitch had intentionally posted this, hoping Sloane would see it. But wouldn’t Fred also see it and become suspicious? Then again, Fred probably didn’t even use social media. All thoughts of sleep evaded her now. Had Peg been right about Whit? And if so, was history repeating itself? She texted him.

Come see me when you get home. We need to talk.

- 42 -

SLOANE

Sloane had struggled to stay awake until Whit got home last night, but by midnight she was unable to keep her eyes open any longer. She had no idea what time he’d finally gotten in. Emmy woke her at ten, bringing in Sloane’s breakfast tray.

“I’m sorry to wake you, Mom, but my flight’s at two, so I need to leave for the airport soon.”

“Oh, Emmy, you should have gotten me up sooner so we could have spent more time together. I’m sorry I slept so late.”

“No, no. You need your rest. I’ll be home again soon. I had some time with Whit before he left for the office. He and Athena were having breakfast together when I went downstairs. Do they do that every morning?”

Sloane felt her face grow warm. “I…I usually don’t sleep this late. Athena has breakfast with me.” But lately shehadbeen sleeping late. The truth was, she had no idea if they were together in the mornings.

“Anyway, tell me more about the work you’re doing. I want to hear everything before you leave.”

After a tearful farewell an hour later, Emmy left for the airport. As soon as she was gone, Sloane called Whit and asked him to get home early so they could talk. His late hours were becoming more and more frequent, and she couldn’t help but wonder if Madelyn had anything to do with it. Especially after that picture from last night. And why the hell was he having breakfast with Athena this morning? It was inappropriate of him and unprofessional of Athena. She thought back to last night’s tea and the white crap floating in it. Was it really stevia, or was it something else?All these things kept rolling around in her head as she swung between paranoia and reason. Once again, she thought of Peg and how they’d all accusedherof paranoia. One thing was for damn sure: She wasn’t going to discover anything lying in this bed. The first thing to do was get up and get dressed.

It took all her effort to shower and dress, but she had to admit that she felt more powerful out of bedclothes. For the first time in she didn’t know how long, she applied a tinted moisturizer, lip gloss, and mascara, then brushed her hair until it lay loosely on her shoulders. She faced the image in the mirror and saw the changes. Illness was taking its toll. She rang for Athena, and moments later, her door opened.

“Sloane, how are you…” Athena’s expression turned to surprise as she took in Sloane’s appearance. “You look very nice. Are you going somewhere?”

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