––––––––
Christie lathered shampoo in her hair.
The hot water coming from the showerhead washed over her neck and shoulders. Her muscles slowly relaxed, the tension in them finally washing away. She felt a migraine forming at the base of her skull and working its way up. That often happened during particularly stressful times.
The events of the morning had pushed her further mentally and physically than she’d ever gone before. The migraine would probably be one for the record books. She could only hope that a hot shower and a few ibuprofens would dull some of the sharpness.
She stood in the water until the room had filled with steam and her skin had reddened from the heat.
The chirpy sound of her phone’s ringtone greeted her as she stepped out of the tub. Normally, she would have run through the apartment naked to answer it before the caller hung up. It had always been an oddity of hers—that she hated letting a phone ring.
But today, she was just too tired.
Running anywhere, for anything, would have taken a herculean effort.
After toweling off, she brushed her teeth, pulled on a T-shirt and boxers, and promptly crashed on top of her bed. She didn’t bother to crawl under the covers.
Sleep took her within seconds.
She never heard the commotion breaking out in the streets surrounding her building.