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Those squeaking breaths continued for a few seconds then: “Yes … I’m … fine”
He didn’t sound fine “Stefan, if you’re having an asth, you need to call for help”
“Can’t …” He gave a ragged cough “My wife … can’t know … I’m down here this late She’ll know I’m up …”
He coughed again
Jesus Christ Oakley shook the water off her hand “What’s she going to think when she finds you dead in the base up the phone and dial 911”
“I—”
“Stu?” a sharp voice said in the backgrou
nd “What are you doing down here? Stu?”
“Oh, shit,” Stefan/Stu said betheezes
The dial tone buzzed in Oakley’s ear a second later
She pulled off the wireless headset and sagged against the fridge, exhaling a long breath Okay It would be all right Stu’s wife ht kill him when she found him with the phone to his ear and his underwear around his ankles, but at least the guy wouldn’t die of a heart attack on Oakley’s watch
She could handle a lot of stuff—callers threw all kinds of bizarre shit at her—but she couldn’t be responsible for helping kill one It was bad enough that she’d just contributed to strife in another e
Gold star for her
It shouldn’t bother her The guys who called were growna conscious decision to seek out paid phone sex She was siht, they may download porn and watch a dirtyher years of doing this job, it was that it wasn’t personal She had a job to do The callers needed a faceless soht The relationship was purely transactional And hell, she’d been used for free by enough people in her past Now she was at least paid for it and not getting emotionally annihilated in the process But still, so addicts easy access to their vice
She rolled her shoulders, trying to shrug off the stress of the call, and dug a tube of antibiotic ointment out of the junk drawer to slather on her burned knuckles It was past two and she really needed to get to bed, but there was no way she’d be able to sleep after that burst of adrenaline from the call
Plus, she’d never gotten her dessert And right now, she could use a big honking piece of chocolate
She went back to the brownies They’d cooled enough by now, so she cut herself a bigger square than the original corner she’d planned and took a bite She closed her eyes Yeah, that’s the stuff
After pouring a big glass of ht that and the rest of the brownie to the table She glanced at the walkie-talkie she’d placed on the table, the soft white noise relaxing her, and leaned back in the chair to enjoy the solitude She was used to pulling the night shift by now, but usually she fell into bed after the last call, grasping for any shreds of sleep she could get before the alarm went off to start her real job But it was nice to sit for a moment and simply be
She polished off the last bit of brownie and lass to the sink The exhaustion was settling in full force now She braced her hands on the edge of the counter and eyed the soaking dishes Her o to bed with a dirty sink—as if a bright, gleaether the household was Maybe it was
Oakley turned away from the dishes They’d have to wait until tomorrow She didn’t have it in her
She put foil over the rest of the brownies and grabbed the walkie-talkie and her headset She should be able to get at least four hours of sleep But right as she flipped off the light, the walkie-talkie beeped
“Mom?”
Oakley halted, startled by the sudden break in the quiet She pressed the button on the side of the device “Yeah, baby?”
“What’s that sy from sleep