“It’s not. It was more of a glancing blow. It stunned me for a second, but it’s fine.”
“Good.” Relief shone in his eyes and he shot a look at the sky. “It’s stopped raining.”
“Of course it has.” She laughed without humor and pulled the satellite phone from her pocket. “I need to return this to Mr. Benson after I call Mike and fill him in on everything. Although I imagine Raina or Holly have already given him some of the scoop.”
“I’ll make sure he gets it back. Probably tomorrow.”
“Will you be staying in town for the night?”
“Yeah. I’ll be here working the case until we find Rabor’s girlfriend. For now, I need to get an update on Gus, as well as Marty and Julianna. So I’m heading to the hospital as soon as I drop you at your house.”
“Why don’t I just go to the hospital with you? I want to check in on Claire anyway.”
“The patient that was on your bird?”
“Yes.”
Blades thumped the air and he looked up. “There’s our ride.”
“I’ll call Mike from the air.”
He grasped her hand and together they darted for the chopper. Once on board and buckled in, she pulled the headset over her ears. Exhaustion swept over her and she closed her eyes for a moment, relishing the heat blasting from the vents. As soon as she quit shivering, she plugged her phone into the headset and called her boss to fill him in on everything. He was nicer than usual—downright solicitous—and she frowned. “What’s going on with you, Mike? You haven’t bitten my head off once.”
“Your mother called.”
Penny froze. “What?”
“She was checking up on her little girl who was flying in dangerous storms.”
“I see.” Penny wanted to crawl into a hole.
“See you when you get here, Penny.”
She hung up and groaned.
“What’s wrong?” Holt asked.
“I don’t think I want to talk about it, okay?”
“Sure.”
“Sorry, it’s just work. My boss is a jerk.”
“Thought you didn’t want to talk about it.”
She laughed and immediately her mood lightened in spite of everything. “I appreciate you, Holt,” she said, her voice soft.
He squeezed her shoulder and she shut her eyes, focusing on the moment she could step into a hot shower.
When the chopper landed on the hospital helipad, Penny jerked, realizing she’d dozed off in spite of her saturated attire and absolute fury with her mother.
Fortunately, she lived at the base in one of the wings of the hospital when she was on duty and could grab a change of clothes. She’d already done her twelve-hour shift—and then some—and would be off for the next twelve.
Once again, Holt grabbed her hand and led her out of the chopper and toward the hospital. Bulbs flashed and voices yelled questions at her. “What was it like crash-landing the helicopter with a patient, then finding yourself trapped on a mountain with a serial killer?”
Holt’s harshly expelled breath puffed across the nape of her neck. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” He practically growled the words. “Who let them up here?”
“Penny, have you been in touch with your mother?”
Flash, flash.
“Penny, how does it feel to survive something that would have killed most people?”
“Penny, you’re being hailed as a hero. How does that feel?”
“Penny, word is that the serial killer is dead because of you. Can you tell us that story?”
Flash, flash.
“Penny, you’ve come a long way from your days in juvie. Do you have any words of wisdom for parents struggling with their rebellious children?”
For a moment, she couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. It was her nightmare come true. She’d been successfully hiding away in her beloved mountain town, working a job she was born to do, and had made friends with genuine people she adored. With each shouted question, she could feel that slipping away.
Only Holt’s comforting hand on the small of her back, guiding her through the throng of reporters, kept her from shattering apart.
But an anger was building. A familiar fury that she was worried she wouldn’t be able to leash and return to the mental compartment she’d learned to keep locked up tight.
She continued her forward momentum, ignoring the fact that the media rotated like a pack of wild dogs to follow her and Holt into the hospital.
There was only one way they could know about her part in the rescue, then crash—okay, rough landing—and how Darius Rabor died.
Mike Bishop.
Without a word, she followed the maze of the hospital halls to Mike’s office. She threw the door open and stepped inside, mentally ordering herself to control her words. The effort vibrated through her.
Mike sat at his desk to the right of the door. The television mounted on the wall to her left played on silent, the closed captions flashing at the bottom. He looked up, met her gaze . . . and swallowed. Then gathered his features into a hard mask. “Penny?”
“You called them.”
“Now, Penny . . .” The mask slipped and he held out a hand in supplication.
Penny stayed still, feeling Holt at her back. “Don’t you even deny it,” she said. “You called them and now my life is going to be turned upside down.”
“It’ll die down in the next couple of weeks. As soon as a more interesting topic comes along.”
“But . . . why? Why would you do this?”
Mike glanced behind her. “Who’s that?”
“A friend.” She didn’t bother turning. “Well? Why?”
“If your friend wants to wait outside, we can have a private conversation.”
“He can stay.”
“Then we’ll talk later.”
“Mike!”
“This is business, Penny!” His shout echoed off the walls.
“Argh!” Penny whirled and eyed Holt, who looked like he’d already bitten his tongue in half with the effort not to intervene. “Will you please wait outside? I won’t be long.” She was actually proud of the control in her voice.
“Are you sure?”
“Oh, for crying out loud,” Mike said, “I’m not going to hurt her.”
Holt met the man’s gaze. “I wasn’t worried about her.”
At the look on Mike’s face, a bubble of mirth formed at the back of Penny’s throat, and that was all it took for her to grab a deep breath. Her pulse slowed a fraction and the boiling in her bloodstream settled to a low simmer.
Holt eyed her, then Mike. “Sure, I’ll wait outside.”
He left and Penny turned back to Mike. Before she could open her mouth again, her phone buzzed. She resisted the urge to groan but wiggled the device from her wet pocket. She really wanted to change clothes. “It’s my mother.”
“Guess you’d better not keep her waiting.”
Penny hit the green button on the screen. “Hi.”
“Have you seen the news?”
“I haven’t, but I take it you have.”
“You could have died! Are you crazy? You want me to lose another child? This is payback for all those times I wasn’t there for you, isn’t it? I’ve tried, Penelope, I’ve tried, and you know I have, but you just continue to . . .”
Penny tuned out her mother’s rant, closed her eyes, and pulled in a steadying breath. If she didn’t manage to escape and have a really good, really long cry, she was going to explode.
“Mom, I’ll have to call you back.” She hung up. She’d pay for that, but—
“Did you just hang up on Geneva Queen?” Mike looked like he might be in danger of exploding, himself.
“She’s not Geneva to me. She’s Mom. Forget about her. This is about us and this program and the fact that you called the newshounds out here—”
The door opened and she turned.
“What’s going on in here?” Larry Kirkpatrick, Life Flight’s medical directo
r—and Mike’s boss—stepped into the room.
“Nothing,” Mike said. “I’ve got this.”
Penny gave a harsh laugh that drew a raised brow from the doctor and a glare from Mike. “No, Dr. Kirkpatrick, he doesn’t have this.” She was so going to lose her job. “He’s been here six months and has made radical changes that risk our lives and the lives of our patients every day.”
“Penny!” Mike’s face flushed a deep red and his eyes leaked his anger. “Shut up while you still have a job.”
“I’m just glad I still have my life! It’s only by the grace of God that Holly and Raina and Claire are still alive. You’re so worried about appearances and making sure we ‘look good’”—she wiggled air quotes around the last two words—“that you’ve cut safety areas.”
He placed his fists on his desk and leaned forward. “You need to stop these baseless accusations, Penny.”
“No,” Dr. Kirkpatrick said, “she needs to keep talking. I’ve always encouraged my staff to let me know if there’s a problem. Sounds like there’s a problem.”
Finally. Penny turned to him. “Do you know that two months ago Mike discontinued our satellite phone service?”
The man blinked. “What?”
“Serial killer notwithstanding, we were on that mountain with no way to communicate. No cell phone signal, no radio, nothing. With a seriously injured patient who I still don’t know if she’s alive or not. But this is the last straw. Telling reporters what went on up there and then inviting them to meet me on the tarmac? That’s just wrong. And it could have, once again, put someone’s life in danger. What if we’d had a patient on board?”
Mike’s face was beyond red. Penny almost expected to see smoke curling from his ears at any moment.
Dr. Kirkpatrick studied her. “Are you finished?”
“Yes.” Probably in more ways than one. Sick at the thought of losing the job she loved, Penny could only hope it wouldn’t be in vain. Maybe her sacrifice would save lives. If so, it would be worth it.
“Yes,” Mike growled, “she is. Penny, you’re fired.”
She jutted her jaw and glared at him. “Fine. I’ll go pack up my locker.” She turned to Dr. Kirkpatrick. “But if you don’t do something about this, someone’s going to die and that’s going to be on you.” She started to sweep past him.
His hand on her arm stopped her. “Why didn’t you come to me?”
She raised a brow. “I tried. I sent you emails and an interoffice memo. I even stopped by your office and asked your assistant to put me on the calendar to meet with you.”
He frowned. “I never saw an email, a memo, or an appointment.”
“Then talk to your assistant, because I did all of the above. Sir. I’m sorry, I’m not trying to be disrespectful, but when lives are at risk because safety measures are discarded . . . well, it fires me up.”
“I can tell.” Something flickered in his eyes, but Penny couldn’t put her finger on what it meant. “Would you mind stepping outside and waiting?” he asked, his tone mild. “I’d like to speak to Mike alone for a moment. Things are becoming more and more clear.”
Things? What things? She bit her lip on the questions. “Sure.”
Penny pulled the already cracked door open and walked out into the hall. She shut the door with more force than necessary, but it felt so good, she almost opened it to do it again.
“You okay?”
Penny jumped. “Oh, Holt. You’re still here.” He was definitely still here and the desire to sink into his arms was . . . overwhelming. But the look in his eyes was odd. Like he’d just put ten feet worth of distance between them.
“Of course I am. I wasn’t leaving you until I knew you were going to be okay—or at the very least keep you from committing murder.”
The words belonged to Holt, but that look . . .
“He’s still alive and I’m jobless, but I’ll survive.”
“I heard.”
“You did?”
“Dr. Kirkpatrick left the door open. It was kind of hard not to hear.”
“Right.” She raked a hand over her drying hair and realized they were alone in the hallway. “Where’s the media?” she asked. “I didn’t figure they’d give up that easily.”
“Security ushered them out.”
“Oh. Good.”
“Speaking of security . . .” He nodded to two of the armed officers that worked hard to keep the hospital safe. Clark Haverty and Greg Lehman approached.
Penny frowned. “Hey, guys, what’s going on?”
“Dr. Kirkpatrick called and asked us to come up here and escort a terminated employee from the premises,” Clark said.
She gaped. “Me?”
“No, not you.” Greg motioned at her with a sweeping hand. “Step back from the door, will you?”
Confused, Penny locked eyes on Holt, who shrugged. They moved aside just as the door opened and Mike stormed out.
When he spotted Penny, he pointed at her. “This isn’t over. You’re going to pay for this.”
Holt started to go after the guy, but Penny laid a hand on his arm. “Don’t.” She stood still while she watched Clark and Greg walk a now-silent Mike Bishop down the hallway. “Okay,” she said. “What do you suppose that means?”
“It means,” Dr. Kirkpatrick said from the open door, “that Mr. Bishop is no longer in charge here.”
“I was kind of getting that feeling.”
Holt had taken note of the fury in Bishop’s gaze. “He’s just made a veiled threat against Penny.”
“I’m sorry about that. He won’t be around much longer. He’ll get over it.”
“You fired him?” Penny’s disbelief echoed around them. “But . . . I didn’t mean to get him fired, just some training or . . . something.”
Dr. Kirkpatrick pulled the stethoscope from around his neck and shoved it into his lab coat pocket. “I didn’t fire him solely based on what you said. I’m not completely in the dark about what’s going on in my department. At least, I didn’t think I was. But all the training in the world isn’t going to help that man if his integrity has already slipped down the drain.”
Holt agreed.
“I have a question for you,” Dr. Kirkpatrick said to Penny.
“Sure.”
“You said you sent me a memo detailing what you were observing in the program. Specifically, Mr. Bishop’s lack of leadership and poor funds management.”
“I did.”
“And that went to my email?”
“It did.”
He nodded. “Did Mr. Bishop know you were going to send it?”
“No. I never mentioned it to him, so I don’t see how he could have. After a confrontation I had with him when he’d decided to cancel the satellite phone contract, I simply went to my computer and typed the email to you.”
“And when I didn’t respond, you figured I gave him the green light?”
Penny ducked her head. “Something like that. I did think it was out of character for you, but . . .” She shrugged.
The doctor scowled. “I’ve been doing some investigation into the man and I haven’t been pleased with what I’ve dug up.” He paused and studied her. “Normally, I wouldn’t say anything, but in light of your involvement, I think you’re owed an explanation. Could you step back inside the office so we have some privacy?”
“Sure.”
“I’d like to hear this,” Holt said. He showed the doctor his badge. “Bishop made a threat and I may need to follow up on it.”
“Of course.”
They followed him inside and he shut the door. “It seems Mr. Bishop and Ms. Long, my assistant, are in a relationship. I’ve noticed him in the area a lot more often than is necessary. At first, I just chalked it up to being extra busy or something. But this morning, I caught him and Ms. Long in a rather compromising situation in the very clichéd supply closet. They quickly gathered their composure and went their separate ways, but in light of this new knowledge, I suspect she’s bee
n protecting him by deleting your emails and shredding anything you may have sent through hospital mail.”
“And not telling you I wanted to make an appointment with you.”
“And that.”
Penny sighed. “Well, that would explain a lot.”
“Both Ms. Long and Mr. Bishop are fired and will have to find employment elsewhere. You, however, are an excellent pilot and I don’t want to lose you.”
Penny nodded. “Well, thank you.”
“Now, why don’t you and your friend go get into some dry clothes, get some rest. Take the next couple of days off. We’ll see you back on Monday.”
“Oh, but I was supposed to work—”
“Byron can handle it. Or one of the other pilots. You just did some pretty miraculous flying, had a showdown with a serial killer, and learned one of your coworkers betrayed your trust and the trust of your team. In fact, I’m not sure what he did wasn’t illegal and will be consulting with hospital lawyers about that. Regardless, you need some downtime. Take it.” He cleared his throat. “And it will give me some time to deal with the media. Mr. Bishop’s actions have stirred up quite the storm here.”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
He quirked a half smile at her. “I had no idea your mother was Geneva Queen.”
“Well, I don’t advertise it. I don’t necessarily hide it, but I—” She paused and Holt wondered at the conflict in her features. “Actually,” she said, “yes, I do, but she has her life and I have mine.” A sigh escaped from her. “Or had. I’ll . . . resign . . . if that will make things easier for you. If you think it’s necessary—after trying to quiet the storm, so to speak.”
“I just said I didn’t want to lose you. I meant that.”
Penny bit her lip and nodded. “Thank you.”
“Good.” Dr. Kirkpatrick brushed past them, and a shiver rippled through Holt. He just realized he was freezing and really wanted to get out of his sodden clothing and then check on his friends. Gerald would call Nick Gresham’s family and let them know about the man’s death. Hopefully before the media found out.
And he needed to reevaluate his relationship with Penny. A cold, hard knot had settled in his chest as soon as he realized Penny had lied to him. She’d never mentioned her mother or her fame or the fact that she’d spent time in juvie. Okay, not outright lied, but a lie of omission was still a lie.
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