2.
Andy was sobbing quietly when she felt the car come to a stop. She wiped away her tears before recognizing her familiar surroundings. After Jimmy pulled the car into the garage, she asked him to carry the woman into the house. Andy moved ahead then used the biometric door handle to gain access to her home. Her instincts were still driving her actions as she directed Jimmy towards her master suite. As he lay the unconscious woman onto her bed it occurred to her that Jimmy had never actually been in her home before.
She dismissed her driver before turning her attention back to her guest. She thought for a long moment of what she should do next. When the woman shivered but made no other sign of regaining consciousness, she realized that she needed to get the woman out of her wet clothing. She went into her master bath, ran warm water into a bowl, then grabbed the soap and a cloth. Next, she decided to do something about her own soggy threads. She picked out something comfortable the returned to her bedroom. Wrestling the unconscious woman from her wet clothing presented a fair amount of challenges including violating the woman's privacy. She shrugged her shoulders not seeing a better solution. Besides she had already blown through any notions if privacy by reading the note that was not meant for her to see.
That note had touched her more than she thought was possible. As she stripped the woman bare she noticed how unnaturally thin she was. She also tried but failed not to imagine how she'd look once her health was restored.
"I'm already thinking about her future," Andy thought somewhat surprised at how her mind was jumping ahead to the future.
She took pains to keep the soft cotton cloth between her fingers and the woman's delicate skin not wanting to take further advantage of the situation. Thirty minutes later Andy had her dressed in one of her favorite pair of warm pajamas. Her concern for the older woman had not been eased as she had not stirred throughout the whole process. As she situated her guest under warm blankets, she heard the sound of her door chime.
She gave the intriguing older woman one last glance before making her way downstairs. As soon as she opened the door Lily rushed in and pulled her into a hug. When she felt Lily's hands begin to roam along her back and shoulders she realized the other woman was checking her for injuries.
She gently pushed her friend away before saying, "Lily, I'm fine. I needed Doc for someone else."
When Lily gave her a curious look she gave a brief explanation of the events of the last hour. The incredulous look on Lily's face was not a surprise. Her oldest friend and pseudo sister was fiercely loyal and very protective. It was also clear that Lily wanted to share a piece of her mind with Andy but she was literally saved by the bell as the door chime sounded again. She stood back to admit Doc Stover, a distinguished looking black man in his early 70's. Doc was Lily's grandfather and the closest thing to a loving father either of them still had.
"Hey gramps," both women said at almost the same time. Doc gave both his adopted daughters a wide easy grin. The man would always have a soft spot for these two. He and his wife had been crushed by the loss of their only son and his wife to a car accident. Being Lily's only family it had not been no decision at all to take the girl in.
Andy was a different story altogether. Their granddaughters best friend had suffered her own loss later that same year. In Andy's case, her parents died in a small plane crash. Only a last minute change in plans kept Andy from accompanying her parents on the doomed flight. Doc and his Dorothy felt compelled to take the girl in after it was revealed that her only living relative was the one responsible for her parents' deaths.
After an understandable rocky start, the two girls flourished in their care. The two thirteen-year-old girls become as close as any sisters ever could. The two did everything together and later both attended Harvard together. Taking after Dorothy both girls double majored in history and philosophy. The girls went on to graduate school with Andy getting her MBA and Lily a degree in Law.
Upon graduation, they'd both taken positions at the company Andy inherited. Both girls were hard workers and were soon promoted to key positions. Finally after convincing the board of their capabilities they Andy took the CEO chair and Lily became the company's Chief Corporate Counsel.
Andy gave a more detailed explanation of what happened tonight, as she led the pair up to her bedroom. She ignored her friends glare choosing to focus on Doc as he examined the mystery woman.
Andy was pulled away from the examination by Lily's now insistent glare.
"You put her in your bed, " Lily accused in a harsh whisper. The truth was she'd done it out of pure instinct but there was no way to make her highly analytical friend understand that.
Andy still ignoring her friend's concerns spoke quietly, "I need you to find out everything you can about her starting with her name."
"I want Sam on this, " Andy said referring to their mutual friend who also worked at the company as an all-around problem solver.
They'd met Sam at a college party and hit it off right away. Sam was at MIT a few years behind them. Later they'd managed to save Sam from expulsion and possible imprisonment after the brilliant but mischievous young woman allegedly pulled an epic prank by using every electronic sign on Campus and in the surrounding area to let everyone know how great the Sox were after they won another World Series.
The campus wanted to expel her and the city wanted to give her a parade. Luckily Lily now a newly minted attorney was able to find a mistake they made in obtaining the search warrant thus invalidating most of the evidence against her. Andy contributed by making an endowment to MIT in her parent's names with the caveat that Sam be allowed to graduate. The University President was at first adamant that this would not happen. After meeting with the board and Sam's professors they decided to give her an oral exam which she aced.
That same day they conveyed her degrees in computer science, industrial engineering, and mathematics, all of her subjects of study. She was then escorted off the campus and told to never come back. Andy offered her a job on the spot not knowing how she would use her but knowing not to waste that kind of talent.
Sam had quickly become her fixer. Any problem worldwide she would send the details to Sam. Sam would then analyze the situation, go to the location and see the problem in person. Within a week or two she would work out a solution and send Andy a detailed report with recommendations. Her contributions had saved the company so much money that she had to double the woman's salary every year until it rivaled both hers and Lily's significant level of compensation. There was so much more to her history with Sam but despite that complicated history, she knew that Sam would understand why she'd done what she did tonight.
Recognizing Andy's tone, Lily switched into work mode asking Andy to tell her what else she knew.
"The fact that she has two daughters named Cassidy and Caroline is all I know for certain."
"I'm sorry Andy but even Sam can't pull a rabbit out of that hat."
"That's what I know but there are a few things I can infer."
Lily remained quiet waiting for her brilliant friend to organize her thoughts.
"I believe she is in her late forties or early fifties, she was wealthy but isn't anymore, and she was likely born in England."
Lily looked on astonished at her friend's insights.
"Explain," Lily said wanting to know how she came to these conclusions.
Andy could not help the blush that bloomed on her cheeks as she explained how getting the woman out of her wet clothing had given her significant clues to her age. Next, she explained the dichotomy of her expensive clothing' now threadbare appearance. Then she told her about noticing the material in her crowns was something they would have used in England. Finally, she reluctantly told her enough about the note to validate why she knew her daughter's names.
"Not bad Sherlock," Lily said reviving an old childhood nickname.
Andy smiled at her friend suddenly feeling happy to have Lily here.
Gramps finished his examination then explained that he wanted to move her to nearby Mt. Sinai Hospital.
Something in Andy's gut told her that this was the wrong move. When she expressed her wishes, Gramps relented knowing his adoptive daughter's strong will. He instead called for a monitor and an IV to be brought to her home.
"The monitor will warn you if any of her vital signs drop, and the IV will help to restore her fluids," Doc said.
He went on to explain that he suspected that she had taken a combination of narcotics and alcohol in the previous hours.
"That combination can be lethal but I've given her a stimulant to counter the effect and she appears to be reacting well to treatment. She also appears to have suffered a concussion during her fall."
Next, he gave her two needles, then explained that one was Narcan and the other adrenaline. After he explained how to use each drug, he promised to check on his patient the following day.
Andy thanked both of them before she escorted them to her front door, then walked back upstairs to check on her ward. She stood over the sleeping woman for several moments. She knew deep down what was happening but she wasn't yet ready to think about it. She brushed a lock of hair away from the woman's eye but the stubborn lock of hair simply fell back into place.
She finally decided that it made no sense to stand vigil all night. She gathered a few things then sat on an oversized chair and ottoman she kept near her bed. She pulled her computer into her lap and began reviewing the companies annual report. She was scheduled to present this information to the board of directors next week. She, of course, knew every word in the report by heart but she wanted to give it one last check for errors.
An hour later she let in two nurses who hooked the mystery woman to the monitor and connected the IV. They explained that the monitor would set off an alarm if any of her vitals dropped below a healthy threshold. She thanked both women, gave them a healthy tip, then showed them out. She made herself a sandwich for dinner then took it upstairs not wanting to leave the woman alone for long.
She sat back in her oversized chair put her feet up on the ottoman and continued to read while she ate. A few hours later she checked her watch and was surprised to see it was already after midnight.
She put down her computer then slipped into the master bath. She removed, her makeup followed quickly by all of her clothes. She took a quick shower then bushed out her hair. Finally, she brushed her teeth and slipped into silk pajamas.
She got comfortable in her oversized chair and pulled a blanket over her. She prepared to get a few hours sleep knowing she almost never slept all the way through the night. She picked up her kindle and began to read her favorite fantasy story. After an hour she was still wide awake and quite distracted. Finally, she got up moved over to the bed and sat next to the unconscious woman. She had been concerned about sleeping through one of the alarms. Without thought, she pulled the woman's hand into hers. She was calmed by the strong rhythmic pulse she found there. Her last thought was how right this felt as she drifted off.
AN: This story is layed out to be a rather long piece so if you like it strap in for the ride.