I smiled at first. I actually smiled.
I imagined her downstairs, ordering coffee and pancakes, maybe trying to surprise me. Nina loved small surprises. Once, when we were dating, she drove 40 minutes just to leave a paper bag of warm muffins on my porch before work.
I checked my phone.
No message.
I called her.
It rang from somewhere inside the room.
Her phone was in her purse.
That was when the smile left my face.
"Nina?" I called, though I knew she was not there.
I checked the bathroom. The hallway. The vending area near the elevator. Then the lobby.
The woman at the front desk looked up from her computer. "Can I help you?"
"My wife," I said, still not understanding how strange those words were about to become. "Did you see my wife come through here? Dark hair, white cardigan, maybe still in a dress?"
The woman frowned. "I came on shift at 6 a.m. I don't remember anyone like that."
