N. Walters: Fabric of Fate

Audrey rubbed her tired eyes. They were burning from lack of sleep. This last campaign had been a killer with the client changing his mind almost daily, but she had it now. The perfect tagline and punch for the print and television ads. The final piece of an already perfect puzzle.

The storyboards were set up in the conference room along with some preliminary photos and the PowerPoint presentation. Everything was ready.

She reached for her coffee cup only to find it empty. A quick glance told her the pot sitting on the credenza was also empty. Had she really drunk the whole pot herself? The burning in her stomach told her that she certainly had. It was only 9:50 in the morning but she’d been at work for almost five hours. Of course, she hadn’t left work until midnight the night before, so she was operating on about three hours of sleep and a gallon of caffeine.

“Just get through this and you can have a long rest and some decent food.” Of course, she was lying to herself. Once this campaign was nailed down there would be another one and another one. It had been like this for—she paused to count—ten years now. Where had the time gone?

“Suck it up,” she ordered herself. She yanked open her top desk drawer and pulled out a roll of antacids, popping two in her mouth. She chewed the chalky tablets, praying that her stomach would settle and the burning in her chest would subside.

The last page popped out of the printer and she grabbed the stack and shoved them into the presentation folder. She stood and ignored the slight dizziness and the sharp pain in her head. No time.

She paused in front of the mirror and gave herself a critical once-over. Her hair was pulled back in a business-like chignon but her skin was pale and her lipstick nonexistent.

Audrey swore and went back to her desk and pulled out her emergency makeup kit. It only took her a few seconds to swipe on some lipstick and give her cheeks a light touch of powder. Not too much, just a hint. Satisfied, she tossed the makeup back into the case and threw it into her desk drawer.

Her vintage velvet Chanel jacket went well with the simple black pencil skirt she wore. The style and obvious designer label were designed to give the client confidence in her abilities but understated enough so as not to overwhelm them. Her black velvet and leather Prada pumps matched the jacket to perfection and added a couple extra inches to her five-five frame. She was as ready as she’d ever be. There were millions of dollars on the line here and she was the one who had to get them for Claymore and Butler.

She scooped up the folder and headed to the door. Two minutes to get to the conference room. Gwen would have everything else set up by now. Audrey knew she could depend on her assistant. Of course she could, she thought wryly, Gwen was gunning for Audrey’s job. The advertising world was a cutthroat business worth millions daily. She hadn’t stayed on top for all these years by burying her head in the sand. Audrey was always aware of what every member of her staff was up to.

A sharp pain in her chest brought her to a grinding halt just short of the door. She gasped and slapped her palm over her heart. “Okay, that’s it. No more coffee for you. Time to switch to herbal tea.” She’d never had heartburn this bad before but she was running on empty and she knew it. “Just get through the presentation and then you can go home and rest.” It was a promise she planned to keep.

She took another step and a wave of dizziness hit her, sending her stumbling sideways into the wall. “This is ridiculous.” The folder fell from her fingers, papers scattering at her feet. “I don’t need this now.”

Sweat beaded on her forehead and it got more difficult to breathe. For the first time, Audrey began to worry. “Water. I just need a glass of water.” Rather than a few simple steps, the mini fridge seemed miles away.

Her phone line buzzed on her desk, her cellphone vibrated in her pocket and Gwen knocked on the door. “Audrey, the clients have arrived downstairs.”

Audrey wanted to answer Gwen and both calls but couldn’t move. She, the queen of multitasking, couldn’t take one step. Her chest hurt and her arms seemed heavy and numb. She opened her mouth to call to her assistant but nothing came out.

She lurched to the side, desperately trying to make it into the client chair in front of her desk. She just needed to rest for a moment.

She didn’t make it.

The floor seemed to rise up to meet her. Audrey stuck out her hands to catch herself on the desk but all she accomplished was to shove her phone, penholder and a stack of files onto the floor, where they scattered like leaves in a wind.

The world took on a dark, hazy quality. She had a vague sense of someone coming into her office without permission, which was usually a no-no. Someone screamed and then there were people around her.

Time lost all meaning. She blinked and there was a stranger leaning over her, asking her questions. She wanted to answer him but couldn’t quite make out what he was saying.

The presentation. The client. She was going to be late.

She struggled to catch his arm, her hands flailing. He caught them and continued talking to her in a calm, even tone. She frowned. “Presentation.” Or at least that’s what she thought she said. She wasn’t sure. It sounded kind of garbled.

Then she was moving. The ceiling rolled above her and she struggled to understand where they were taking her. She had a presentation to give.

But she was so tired. She decided she’d just close her eyes for a moment. Just for a few minutes. Then she’d figure out what to do.

The steady sound of a beep woke her. Audrey tried to open her eyes but it wasn’t easy. She’d never been a quitter and so she kept at it until they fluttered open. The room was stark white and there was a curtain around her and several scary looking pieces of equipment next to her bed. It took her befuddled mind a few moments to process that she was in a hospital.

She’d had a pain in her chest and gotten lightheaded. She frowned and pushed harder to remember exactly what had happened but came up blank. There were flashes of memory—something over her face, strangers talking to her and urgent voices giving orders. Obviously something had happened to her. Had she collapsed due to exhaustion? Fainted? How embarrassing . Her bosses wouldn’t be impressed and someone else would have given her presentation to the clients. All her hard work taken over by someone else, probably Gwen.

The beeping got faster and she turned to glare at the annoying machine. The blips were rolling across the screen at a rapid rate.

The door to her room was pushed open and a nurse hurried in. “You’re awake. Good. How do you feel?” The short-haired blonde moved briskly to the side of her bed and checked the machines.

“Fine. I feel fine.” She tried to make her tone brisk and businesslike and was appalled with how weak she sounded.

The nurse gave her a look of disbelief and inspected the IV line running into Audrey’s arm. Audrey glanced at the woman’s name tag but couldn’t quite focus on it enough to read it. She hadn’t even noticed the IV and was vaguely surprised. “What happened?”

The nurse shook her head. “The doctor will be in to see you in a few hours. Rest and relax until then.”

“I want to know now.” The beeping got faster.

The nurse shook her head. “Please relax, Ms. Brennan. You’re not doing yourself any good by worrying. I’ll page Dr. Harper and see if he’s available.”

With that she was gone, leaving Audrey to lie on the cool, scratchy sheets and stare at the ceiling tiles. She was more awake now, more aware of her surroundings. She could hear muted voices beyond her door and the occasional set of footsteps. The doctor would be here soon and then she would get checked out of this place. She needed to get back to the office and find out what had happened with the presentation. She had no doubt it had gone ahead in her absence. After all, Claymore and Butler had a reputation to uphold.