Malice

by Jennifer Jaynes

  “Good morning, handsome.”

  “Good morning.” He bent down to kiss her, searching for anything different in her kiss, her touch. There was nothing.

  The morning air was chilly. The temperature had dropped again overnight, and it was finally feeling more like winter. He made a mental note to take the extra standing heater out of storage and set it up on the deck.

  She pointed to his covered plate. “Surprise.” She smiled and removed the silver cover. He saw eggs Benedict and bacon, extra crispy, the way he loved it. A glass of orange juice sat beside it.

  “Well, aren’t you the perfect wife,” he said, forcing a smile of his own and watching for her reaction.

  She simply continued to smile.

  He walked around the table and took a seat.

  “Is it too cold out for you?” she asked, pulling her robe closer. “Would you prefer to eat inside? I wasn’t sure.”

  “I’m fine. Unless you want to.”

  “No. I’m comfy,” she said, tucking her legs more snugly beneath her body. “I love this weather.”

  They talked for several minutes as he ate his breakfast. He waited for her to mention the orchids, but she never did. Instead, she talked about a carrot cake recipe she wanted to try, a new yoga class in town that she wanted to check out. A new book she was reading. She was a voracious reader and often had three books going at one time. The new book was her third on numerology in the last few months. He ate and listened, studying her as she talked.

  As he chewed his last bite of toast, she propped her elbow on the table and rested her chin in the palm of her hand. Her blue eyes contrasted sharply against the dull gray morning, and he thought she looked especially beautiful.

  She yawned. “I’m going to take a long nap after you leave. I’m freaking exhausted,” she said, smiling wearily, flashing perfect teeth.

  It was all those hours on her feet, Daniel.

  All nine of them.

  He watched her gaze into his eyes, pretending nothing had happened. That everything was status quo. Like she hadn’t just lied right to his face. He felt something break inside of him. Something gravely important. Something that he was almost certain was irreparable.

  He wanted to stop this in its tracks. Say something to her. Tell her he had stopped at the restaurant and had left the orchids. Give her a chance to explain herself. To possibly clear everything up. But as he opened his mouth to do so, the little voice stopped him.

  Shh. Not just yet. Let’s see where this goes.

  And this time, he listened.

  CHAPTER 8

  DANIEL

  THE SKY WAS gunmetal gray as Daniel drove to work, the thick cloud cover making everything appear dull and colorless.

  Before marrying, Daniel had talked to Mia at length about honesty, how critical it was to him, and he’d thought they’d been on the same page. Yet she’d lied, anyway. Had this been the first time she’d lied? Or had she been lying all along? And if so, why?

  And perhaps more important, about what?

  As he pulled into the parking lot at the practice, he realized he needed to shake it all off. At least for now. He was at work and needed to focus on his patients. It was time to compartmentalize. Thankfully, this was something he’d become skilled at over the years.

  The first task on his list was telling Teddy about Suzie’s seizures. The physician he’d spoken to at Northridge Hospital’s emergency room last night said that Suzie’s CT scan and other test results had looked fine. After speaking with the doctor, Daniel had made a courtesy call to Rachel to reassure her that seizures, as scary as they were, weren’t uncommon in young children these days.

  Some kids experienced them with even lower fevers than what Suzie had run. Some without a fever at all. Still, he told her to bring Suzie in first thing this morning for a quick examination. It was more to reassure Rachel than anything. But he wanted to talk with Teddy before he saw the Jacobses this morning to make sure his boss supported his analysis.

  When he stepped into Teddy’s doorway, his boss glanced up from his paperwork.

  “Danny!” He smiled. “Still married?”

  Daniel tried to smile—if only to be polite—but the joke hit too close to home this morning.

  Teddy’s smile melted from his lips. “You look like shit. Are you feeling okay?”

  Daniel rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t get much sleep.”

  The smile was back. “Oh. Still on your honeymoon, I see.”

  Ignoring the comment, Daniel told Teddy about Suzie’s seizures last night. “After what I heard has been happening at the clinic in Tarzana, I—”

  Teddy’s top lip curled a little; then the man held out a thick hand to stop him. “What was that medical student’s name again? The one who told you they were having problems with Respira in the valley?”

  “Andy Cameron,” Daniel said.

  Teddy scribbled something down; then his chair squeaked as he leaned back into it. “Look, Dan, all drugs present a risk. It’s a numbers game; you know that,” he said. “As long as the benefits outweigh the risks, a drug is a winner in my book. Plus, we have no way of knowing that Respira caused your patient’s seizures. The seizures could have been caused by anything. Maybe she had crackers that had GMO ingredients in them. Or used fluoride toothpaste. Lord knows enough parents are carrying on about those things, too, these days.”

  Teddy laced his fingers together and leaned forward. “But let’s say, hypothetically, that Respira did cause the girl’s seizures. The CDC and FDA both monitor that type of thing. If there’s a problem, they’ll let us know. And until then and only then, our jobs are to administer it. Having said that,” Teddy said, sitting back in his chair and twirling his fidget spinner again, “this practice’s official position is that the girl’s seizures and Respira are not related. Understood?” Teddy stared at him, his lips now a tight line. The trademark mirth on his face nowhere to be found.

  Daniel nodded. “Understood.”

  Daniel heard movement behind him. He turned to see Thomas from Immunext. The man was wearing a black designer suit and a red tie and had sprayed on too much cologne again.

  “Good morning, Dr. Winters.” Thomas smiled, his oversize teeth sparkling like diamonds.

  Daniel greeted him, wondering why he’d be at the office so early. Also, twice in the same week. Thomas’s eyes seemed to linger on Daniel for a moment; then he filed past him, into Teddy’s office.

  Teddy greeted him cheerfully and told him to take a seat. Daniel watched Thomas lower himself into a chair.

  “Is that all, Danny?” Teddy asked.

  “Yeah. Thanks.”

  Teddy nodded. “Great. Then please shut the door behind you.”

  CHAPTER 9

  RACHEL

  “SHE WAS INCONSOLABLE yesterday after we left here,” Rachel told Dr. Winters, speaking rapidly as she followed him down the examination hallway. She was trying to relay to him every detail she could remember about Suzie’s seizure. Also, everything that had led up to it and everything since.

  Rachel couldn’t get the memory of her daughter’s seizure out of her mind. Seeing Suzie in her crib, grunting, her little body convulsing, her back arching, and her eyes rolling back in her head, had been horrifying. There had been nothing she could do but hold her. She’d felt so helpless, so useless.

  “She must have been in a lot of pain to have been screaming like that, right?” she asked as they entered the examination room.

  Dr. Winters had her set Suzie on her lap, and he began examining her. “Are you feeling crummy, Suzie?” he asked.

  Rachel watched Suzie stare at Fluff Fluff as though Dr. Winters hadn’t said anything. Rachel pointed out how pale she looked. The black circles beneath her eyes.

  “You just spent most of the night in an emergency room. I’m sure she’s just exhausted.” He looked up at Rachel and smiled warmly. “I’m sure you both are.”

  Rachel was beyond exhausted. She was also worried tha
t she’d failed her daughter. She was going to ruin Suzie if she didn’t do better. She racked her brain, trying to think of anything else that had happened after the shot that she could tell Dr. Winters. The more he knew, the more likely he could help her.

  Rachel looked down at her daughter, who was curled against her, her thumb in her mouth. “She also started sucking her thumb again today. She hasn’t done that for months.”

  “Just a little regression. Not surprising at her age with the scare she had yesterday,” Dr. Winters reassured her.

  Rachel pointed out that Suzie’s eyes looked different. They looked distant, empty.

  “Exhaustion will do that.” Dr. Winters smiled.

  She remembered Suzie’s diapers. “And her diapers since yesterday have been foul. I’ve never smelled anything like it. I know you said on the phone that the shot didn’t do this, but—”

  “What I said was that anything could have caused her seizure. The fever was probably the culprit. Seizures can happen if a child’s temperature rises too quickly, but, frankly, there are a lot of reasons why kids have seizures. We really don’t know what all the variables are yet. There’s a good chance she’s even had seizures before, and you didn’t notice.”

  Rachel felt her mouth tighten. “No. That’s not possible.”

  “Please don’t get me wrong,” Dr. Winters said, looking up at her. “I’m not questioning your parenting skills. It’s just that seizures can be hard to catch, even by professionals. Sometimes it just looks like the child is daydreaming.”

  Dr. Winters shined a penlight into each of Suzie’s eyes. “Has she been out of the country lately?” he asked.

  “No,” Rachel said. “Never.”

  Dr. Winters nodded.

  “But the seizure could have been caused by the shot, right? I mean, it’s only logical, since she got the shot yesterday.”

  Dr. Winters powered on his laptop. “It’s a possibility, but a very small one. Like I said yesterday, one in a million.” He hit a few keys on his laptop. “The good news is, I’ve read the discharge summary from Northridge Hospital, and like I told you, her CT scan looks good. As did her blood and urine.”

  He pushed the laptop away. “Suzie’s going to be just fine. Kids’ brains are extremely resilient.”

  Rachel watched Suzie’s eyes drift slowly around the room. Usually, her daughter would be clutching her tightly and hiding from Dr. Winters, but today she seemed barely aware that he was even in the room. This was not normal for her. But then again, maybe Dr. Winters was right, and she was simply exhausted.

  “I’ll examine her again tomorrow morning before her second dose. In the meantime, you should both try to get some sleep.”

  Get some sleep? Easy for him to say. She had a job she needed to show up to, or else she and her daughter would be out on the streets soon.

  Dr. Winters grabbed one of his business cards from a plastic card holder, turned it over, and jotted something down. He handed her the card. “Here’s my personal cell number. If you have any worries or questions, call me directly. Okay?”

  “Okay.”

  Rachel was hesitant to leave. Just looking at Suzie like this for five minutes didn’t seem nearly enough time for him to see what was going on with her. To know that she was really, truly okay.

  But what else could she do?

  She took the card and thanked him.

  CHAPTER 10

  MIA

  MIA STOOD IN the brisk cold, watching waves break on boulders, sending up explosions of saltwater and foam.

  Surfers were out in droves, wearing dark-colored wet suits and bobbing on the choppy water. She closed her eyes, letting the salty wind whip her long hair into her face until her cheeks stung. Then she gathered her long mane into one hand and walked from the deck to the French doors to retreat into the warmth of the house.

  Her house, well, at least partially hers.

  For now.

  She gazed at the opulence laid out in front of her for a long moment, then moved slowly through the spacious living room, her bare feet sinking into the plush cornflower-blue rug. She moved through the room, running a palm over the soft buttery leather of the overstuffed couch, the rough river rock of the grand fireplace, then walked to the kitchen and studied the professional-grade gas stove, the many top-of-the-line appliances, and marble countertops. She was surrounded by luxury and living in one of the most expensive zip codes in the world.

  She’d won the husband lottery.

  The trick now was to keep the husband for a while.

  But doing so might be even more difficult than she’d expected.

  She reached for the bloodstained cloth in her shirt pocket and pressed it against her nose. Her left nostril had been bleeding off and on since she’d received the unexpected call—a call that had left her feeling threatened, unsafe. Her nose always bled when she was stressed. But it had finally clotted, and now the cloth came away clean.

  She wasn’t sure yet if the news she’d gotten was legitimate or if someone was playing a sick joke on her. She’d had a lot of sick jokes played on her over the years.

  Knowing Daniel would be home soon to pick her up for dinner, she went upstairs to finish getting ready. It was important to be on tonight. She was meeting Daniel’s twin sister, Claire, for the first time and would have to bring her A game, even though she’d barely had any sleep. She’d been having difficulty sleeping for years now. Her past had a tendency to visit her, unbidden, when she closed her eyes at night. She usually tried to catch up on her sleep in the daytime. But today she hadn’t had that luxury.

  Upstairs, she went to the bathroom mirror and smoothed her hair. Then she blotted more concealer over the scar above her left brow, swiped on a little more powder, and repainted her lips. She stepped away from the mirror to inspect her handiwork.

  It was critical to keep up the facade that had helped her catch this new husband, this unbelievable new life, neither of which she deserved, and both of which she could lose at a moment’s notice for half a dozen reasons. And things were starting to get much more complicated.

  Speaking of complicated, a text came in: I was hoping we could talk again tonight.

  Her mood darkened. Yes, they would talk, but it would have to wait. She couldn’t have him texting her. She’d already told him as much. Why couldn’t he follow simple instructions?

  She pursed her lips and wrote: Do not text or call me. I will call you tomorrow.

  He replied instantly: OK. Sorry.

  She heard the hum of a car’s engine. Daniel was pulling into the driveway. She flicked her phone to vibrate mode, tossed it into her purse, and took one last look in the mirror.

  Gently pressing her lips together, she smoothed her cashmere top with the palms of her hands. It was time to become Mia again. The Mia her new husband knew and loved.

  The scents of garlic, oregano, and thyme wafted through the air as Mia and Daniel waited for Daniel’s sister and brother-in-law to arrive.

  They were sitting at a table for four at an Italian restaurant in Calabasas, an upscale neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. Daniel had warned her about his sister on the drive to the restaurant. That Claire wasn’t exactly thrilled about their relationship. Apparently, she was upset that they’d married so quickly and was likely to be pretty vocal about it during dinner. Daniel said that Claire lacked a few social graces, one of them being a filter, and as a result, she often came across as harsh.

  Mia already knew how Claire felt about her because she’d secretly read the texts and emails the two had exchanged over the months—and she knew tonight was going to be a challenge.

  Mia already harbored a healthy disdain for other women. Not just ones like Claire, who tried to steal away hard-won prizes like Daniel, but most women. Yes, there had been an exception or two in the past, but not many. Women had always hated her. Some even seemed to have a sixth sense about her and didn’t trust her.

  One morning in sixth grade PE class, Mia had been stepping
into her gym shorts when a girl had thrown a large cockroach at her. The insect had landed on her head. In its anxiousness to flee, and hers to remove it from her head, the bug had become hopelessly tangled in her long hair. She’d screamed and torn hair from her scalp as she’d tried to get rid of the insect. Now even after all these years, she could still hear the roar of her classmates’ laughter and see the girls’ savage smiles.

  After managing to get the cockroach out of her hair, she’d beaten the shit out of the pretty but vicious little blonde who had masterminded the prank, but the damage had already been done. She was now deathly afraid of insects and loathed other women even more.

  That was just the first of several incidents she’d go on to have with other women, so she avoided them when she could. But since avoidance hadn’t always been a possibility, she’d spent years learning how to handle them, and now she was rather skilled at it. But Claire was a different class of person than she was used to and might require new tactics.

  “There they are,” Daniel said, scratching at his elbow. It was apparent he wasn’t looking forward to the dinner, either. He stood up and glued a smile on his face. She followed suit and watched the couple as they approached with the hostess, quickly recognizing both from the photos she’d seen of them online.

  Claire and Daniel were twins, but they didn’t look very much alike. They had the same dark hair and olive skin, but that’s where the resemblance ended. Daniel was six feet two and athletically built with strong features and a sturdy chin. Claire stood at barely five feet and was round with soft features. The kind of looks that would easily blend into a room.

  When Claire’s gaze landed on Mia, her eyes grew steely. She gave Mia a long once-over, then threw Daniel a frosty look, as though she were displeased.

  “We’re lucky we weren’t late,” Ben said, his face flushed by the cold weather. “The new puppy got out, and I must have chased him at least ten blocks.”

  “You’re fine,” Daniel said. “Is he okay?”