10. Chapter 10
ten
Mirror Rooms - Ghost Atlas
Ten Days Since Talia’s Abduction
Dimitri’s mind was a wreck as he flipped through the file in front of him. Each page he turned sent dread curdling deep in his gut. He was totally lost. He felt on the verge of losing everything he held dear. Talia was already gone. And Jackie…
Jackie.
He glanced at the clock.
Jackie needed him more than ever. She was falling apart, even if she refused to acknowledge it. He could feel her slipping through his fingers.
The dread coiled tighter.
The clock read 10:55. He flipped the file in front of him closed, took it to his filing cabinet, unlocked the bottom drawer, and tossed it in.
It landed with an ominous thomp. He stared at it for a minute, as if to scare it away so the drawer would be empty the next time he opened it.
He relocked the cabinet and walked over to the door with his hands in his pockets and a deep scowl on his forehead.
He leaned against his doorway, watching the quiet common area and checking his watch periodically. Time dragged as he waited.
At 11:15 on the dot, Kendra emerged from her office. She nodded to Dimitri as she passed, headed toward Jackie’s office.
“She skipped again,” he said.
Kendra paused. She gave him an assessing look before deciding what she could share with him and what she couldn’t. He’d caught her leaving Jackie’s office once already, and he knew exactly what was happening, whether she admitted it or not.
“She’s trying to,” she finally admitted. Dimitri sighed. He was at a loss as to what to do with Jackie. He didn’t know how to help her when she refused to help herself. “You’re worried about her,” Kendra stated, with that assessing look still on her face.
“She’s my girlfriend, of course, I’m worried about her.”
Kendra tilted her head, assessing him again. “There’s something else.”
Dimitri ran a hand through his hair. “One girlfriend was abducted, and I don’t even want to think about what she’s going through right now. And the other is burning herself out trying to get Talia back. And all of it is my fault,” he lamented.
The way Kendra watched him made his skin crawl. If she watched Jackie the same way, he almost couldn’t blame her for avoiding her sessions. Slowly, as if coming to some realization, Kendra nodded.
“When I’m done fighting with Jackie, I’ll come see you.”
“No, that’s fine. I’m fine,” he said.
Kendra smiled knowingly. “Did you know that caregivers are at the highest risk of burnout?”
“I’m not her caregiver,” he insisted. Jackie’s own words echoed through his head. “Jackie’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself.”
The look on Jackie's face when he told her that he wanted to take care of her flashed through his mind. He loved how strong-willed she was, but realizing that no one had ever made her feel cared for had broken something in him.
Kendra chuckled softly. “Are you the one taking her those smoothies that sit half-drunk on her desk and make sure she eats something regularly?” Dimitri nodded.
“And rest? I know sleep has been an issue, but have you tried to get her to take a break here and there? Make sure she makes it into bed for a few hours at night?” Dimitri’s shoulders slumped as he nodded again.
“And when you’re not actively thinking about if Jackie has eaten or gotten enough hours of sleep, you’re thinking about Talia and whatever she’s experiencing right now.
” She didn’t phrase the last part as a question, leaving Dimitri to nod in acceptance this time.
He couldn’t meet her gaze anymore. She placed a hand on his shoulder.
Resigned, he finally looked back up at her.
“I’ll come see you when I’m done with Jackie.
If for nothing more than my own curiosity about why you think it’s all your fault. ”