by Lisa Eugene
“Wade Connolly! How are you?”
Wade noticed what looked like a folded slip of paper concealed in Ben’s hand when he held it out in greeting, waiting casually for Wade to respond. Wade caught his friend’s eye, but his face was still a mask of bland emotion. The dread in Wade’s gut burned hotter and his internal radar was screaming.
Just as he was about to shake Ben’s hand, a loud deafening pop blistered his ears and the screams that followed erupted around him like cannon fire. Footsteps were heard scrambling in every direction and bags flew as pedestrians ditched whatever weighted them down. Nina hit the concrete hard as Wade tackled her, his big body landing on top of hers like a human shield. He issued a stream of harsh curses as the chaos continued.
He could hear the dark skinned vendor ducking inside the booth yelling frantically in a high pitched Middle Eastern tongue. Wade stayed still as the agonizing moments passed and the screams tapered into an eerie silence. He finally rolled off Nina, adrenaline pumping through his veins. His hands fluttered over her body making sure she was all right.
“Are you okay? You okay?” He inquired breathlessly.
“I—I’m okay,” she assured him, the tremors in her body visible. “Oh my God!” she screeched, her gaze landing on the stocky man that lay twisted on the sidewalk.
Wade gasped and rushed over to his friend. “Ben! Ben?”
Wade’s watched as the color drained from Ben’s face and his heart teetered in his chest. The pink hue around Ben’s mouth and eyes was fading into an ashy gray and beads of liquid pooled on his balding forehead. Wade’s gaze traveled quickly down to Ben’s chest where the area of blood on his shirt was quickly expanding. The red color was so bright that it blinded him with disbelief. He placed a finger on Ben’s chest and winced at the warmth of the ruby liquid pouring from his friend’s body.
“Give me your shirt!” Nina’s crisp command pierced his ears as she knelt next to him.
Wade was dazed, but followed her instructions, quickly discarding his sling and practically ripping the shirt from his body.
Nina’s head snapped up toward the vendor peeking over the top of the booth.
“You got a phone in there?” she yelled up at him.
“Yes ma’am,” he responded, his eyes round and wide.
“Call 911 now!”
Wade watched as Nina tore open Ben’s shirt. Blood flowed everywhere and he wondered how she could see what she was doing. She grabbed Wade’s shirt from his hands and after bunching it up, placed it over the erupting wound.
“I want you to press down as firmly as you can,” she instructed calmly.
She moved to Ben’s neck and poked around for his pulse.
“It’s weak and thready, but it’s there,” she noted. She crouched low with her ear over Ben’s mouth and tilted back his head. “He’s not breathing.”
Wade watched as Nina pinched Ben’s nose and blew two quick breaths into his lungs. She fingered his neck again and the look he saw on her face scared him to death.
“Is he..?”
“He’s lost his pulse. His heart’s stopped,” she said grimly.
Wade swore and yelled at his friend to hang on to the life that was rapidly draining from his ashen body.
Nina shifted her position from Ben’s head and moved to the upper part of his body. Suddenly she made a fist and delivered a vigorous thump to the left side of his chest. She palpated his neck again and Wade could see her eyes fill with determination. She balled her fist up again and delivered another blow to the left side of Ben’s chest. This time when she felt his neck she gave Wade a grim nod and blew out a long breath. He watched as she filled her lungs and delivered a robust breath into Ben’s mouth. Ben lay lifelessly beneath them, his face a gray mottled tapestry. Wade saw no signs of the street-savvy friend he’d had drinks with that afternoon, and as the shirt he pressed firmly against Ben’s chest wall started to saturate with blood he feared the worse.
The high pitched wails of the ambulance in the distance gave him momentary comfort and he stared hopefully as the large ambulance skidded to a halt in front of them; its whirling lights flash in brilliant display. Several police cars rounded the corner and came to a screaming halt as pedestrians suddenly crowded them.
“Step back! Coming through! Coming through!” He heard voices yell at the thong of spectators.
An emergency technician relieved him and applied a large heavy pressure dressing to Ben’s wound. Another man in uniform knelt beside Ben and threaded a needle into his vein.
“I’m a doctor. He’s got a gunshot wound to the right upper chest. He’s not breathing on his own. Possibly a collapsed lung,” Nina told one of the ambulance workers between puffs.
“Okay, step back.”
Nina joined Wade and they observed in bleak silence as the technicians worked on Ben. When he was finally lifted onto a gurney, he had tubes and machines snaking from his flaccid body, and the technician was using a bag to squeeze air into his lungs.
Wade stepped forward. “Where are you taking him?”
“Washington Memorial Hospital,” one of the technicians answered.
Wade grabbed the man’s arm and stilled him. Fierce anger stung his eyes.
“No. You can’t go there.”
The technician frowned at him. “What? It’s the closest hospital. We have to take him there.”
Wade’s large body blocked the gurney and Nina stepped forward.
“What’s going on?”
“He won’t let us take the patient to Washington Memorial.”
Nina turned to glare at Wade. Her eyes filled with puzzlement. She looked like she was about to say something to him, but instead she turned to the ambulance workers and showed them the identification badge she’d fished out of her purse.
“I’m his doctor and I want him to go to St. Vincent Hospital. It’s about the same distance. I’ll meet you there,” she said.
The technician hesitated, but evidently deciding the priority was getting the patient to the hospital, scrambled into the back of the ambulance, yelling out new instructions to the driver.
Wade released the long slow breath that had been trapped in his lungs. He raked his fingers through his already disheveled hair, causing the waves to flow unevenly.
His head shot up as he remembered something and he quickly scanned the area where Ben’s broken body had lain. The folded note was peeking out from under his discarded blood soaked shirt. He struggled to subdue the tremor in his hand as he picked it up and attempted to unfold it. It was saturated with blood. Whatever was written on it was illegible. The only words he could make out were, ‘Be Careful’ and ‘Dr. Henley’.
The conflicting emotions swirling through Wade were staggering. He pocketed the note and turned to the sound of the ambulance as it disappeared down the avenue with its siren screaming.
“I want to know what the hell is going on.” Nina appeared before him, her jaw taut and her green eyes blazing with confusion and anger.
He spied a uniform cop weaving his way through the crowd towards them and he grabbed Nina’s arm.
“Let’s get out of here. Let’s go to the hospital.” When she didn’t budge he added, “I’ll explain everything later. I promise.”
The waiting room on the second floor of St.Vincent’s hospital was quiet. It was only the loud ticking of a large wall clock that challenged the eerie silence. The florescent lights overhead obliterated shadows and bathed Nina’s skin as she searched for Wade.
She’d just left him sitting in one of the chairs that formed a row of seats that bisected the room. She’d gone to the bathroom down the hall to rinse the blood that had crusted like a macabre tattoo on her hands and forearms. Her silk halter-top was speckled with blood and the knees of her capris were stained with patches of dirt. This was the least of her worries.
She and Wade had taken a silent cab ride to the hospital. He’d been visibly distraught by the shooting of the man on the sidewalk, a man he obviously knew
and cared for. He’d clasped her hand tightly during the cab ride, his gaze fixed on the road ahead, his brow creased and tense.
She hadn’t prodded him then for information, instead her heart had ached along with his. The pain in his eyes was too intense and his anguish too raw. As a doctor she understood grief. She’d witnessed it many times. He needed to claw his way out of this initial shock, then he’d be ready to talk.
She’d sensed it earlier. She’d sensed the change in him as they’d walked to the restaurant. She remembered him in stride beside her and the firm squeeze of his large hand, but she’d sensed that he’d been somewhere far away. A cold shiver vibrated through her as she relived the shooting. She could still hear the echoes of the blood-curdling screams around her. That poor man. Who was he? What was he doing there? What was his connection to Wade? Her heart bucked in her chest as another thought came to mind. Had that bullet been meant for Wade?
Ben had been taken immediately to the operating room. Nina had spoken to the surgeon briefly who’d told her that the bullet had shattered two of Ben’s ribs and pierced the upper lobe of his right lung, causing it to collapse. The bullet had fortunately missed his major vessels, but had caused so much damage it was impossible to tell at this point if he’d recover. From the information Wade had given the doctors Ben was not in good health to begin with, which made his chances of survival even slimmer.
She followed the far wall of the room that turned abruptly to form a secluded alcove. The sound of whispered voices floated to her ears and she stopped suddenly, recognizing Wade’s angry voice.
“Damn, when he told me someone was tailing him I should’ve voiced my concerns! I should have told him to lay low for a while. Maybe get protection!” Wade stated harshly.
“What were you suppose to do, Wade? You know how Ben is. He likes to work alone.” The other male voice was resigned.
“I should have been more careful, especially after the break in at Mr. Johnsons.”
“Listen, this is not your fault. No one could have predicted that it would escalate to this degree. Breaking and entering is one thing. Attempted murder is quite another.”
“Obviously the new information he got has really ruffled some feathers.” Wade stated.
“We have to proceed cautiously.”
“This won’t stop me. We need to get some answers. I’ll do whatever it takes!”
After a short pause she heard, “Watch your back. You sure you can trust her?”
“Yeah,” Wade replied softly.
“They probably also realized that he took the MRI. We’re getting closer and our case is getting stronger. We just have to connect the dots. Joel is still out of town. He should be meeting with his friend from the State Insurance Board on Wed.”
“Keep me posted. If Ben doesn’t pull through this—” Wade started angrily.
“Ben’s a fighter. Fighting is what he does best.”
“I’m more determined than ever to make those damn quacks pay. Now they can add attempted murder to the list of atrocities. Fucking doctors!”
Nina’s ears rang as Wade’s angry words echoed through her head like the reverberations of a chapel bell. Acid burned a hot hole in her stomach and her legs pedaled her back slowly until she collided with a chair. Wade bolted around the corner, a middle aged man dressed impeccably in a dark suit at his heels.
“Nina, are you all right?” Wade asked, grasping her shoulders.
She nodded, but she could feel her knees wobble. Wade’s intense gaze searched her face, and she knew she hadn’t fooled him.
“This is my law partner Andrew Bennett. Andrew, this is Nina.”
She extended a slender hand and Andrew shook it firmly. He held her gaze a little longer than was comfortable then turned to Wade. She couldn’t shake the odd feeling that she was the punch line of a secret joke. Wade was wearing a scrub top that one of the nurses had given him. The inappropriately sized garment stretched across his wide chest and the tight sleeves bunched above the curve of his large biceps. She noticed that the swelling in his left arm had increased. He’d probably re-injured it when he’d tackled her to the sidewalk. He didn’t seem to notice as his blue gaze stalked her every move. The tension in his jaw squared his unreadable features.
“I’ll cover your cases for the next few days. I know you’ll want to be here.”
“Thanks Andrew.” Wade turned back to his partner.
“Please be careful and call me with any new developments.”
Andrew departed and Nina turned to Wade, her arms pretzeled across her chest. She tried valiantly to smother her anger and the quakes that threaten to wrack her body. When he looked at her she could almost see the emotions weighing down his shoulders. He touched her arm to direct her to a chair, but she pulled away. She needed to keep a clear head, and she couldn’t do that when he was touching her.
“Let’s talk. I assume that you overheard that whole conversation.”
“I heard enough of it to know that I’m not going to like what you’re about to tell me.”
He sank into one of the chairs in the waiting area and looked up at her. She sat gingerly beside him, trying to read his odd expression. Regret? Anger? Pain? She wanted to reach up and smooth away the lines that marked his forehead, but she resisted.
“Ben is a private investigator who works for my firm.”
Nina nodded and he continued, “His shooting has to do with a case that we’re working on. It’s a medical malpractice suit against a doctor and it also involves egregious misconduct by a major medical insurance carrier. It’s now become apparent that there might be other parties involved.”
She listened intently. She wasn’t surprised so far by anything he’d said. She braced herself for much more given the gravity of his voice. Her fingers felt cold and numb, a feeling that was slowly consuming her body.
Wade issued of a harsh curse under his breath, causing her to look up. She tracked his steely gaze to the waiting room entrance.
A tall lanky figure stalked angrily towards them, the wide bottom of his wrinkled trenched coat flowing behind him like the cape of a villain. He came to an abrupt halt directly in front of Wade. What drew Nina’s attention was how disheveled the man looked. His oily hair was slicked back from his receding hairline and gray stubble spread in blotchy patches over his neck and jaw like a poorly mowed lawn. Sunken cheeks and dark circles under his eyes made him look like he hadn’t slept in days.
“What the hell are you ambulance chasers up to now?” the man asked gruffly without preamble.
“Good day to you too, Detective Sullivan,” Wade answered evenly.
“Good day, my ass! I was finally on my way home after staking out a murderer for five days straight when I got the phone call about Ben. I have better things to do than to run around town after you guys! I don’t know why the captain’s got a soft spot for you.” He paused briefly and when he spoke again his voice held little remorse. “So one of yous finally got plugged, huh? It was just a matter of damn time!”
“Ben’s in surgery now. Thanks for inquiring about his welfare, officer.” Sarcasm dripped from Wade’s voice.
“If yous amateurs would stop playin’ coppers this sort of thing wouldn’t happen! Let us cops do our job and you concentrate on leaching every dime out of schmucks like me!”
Wade stared calmly at the detective’s jabbing finger, but she could sense his barely banked fury. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Come on Connolly, fess up, who’d you and your partners piss off now?”
Nina sat quietly and watched the dark shadow settle across Wade’s face. His smile was tight, and the tense crackle of his control palpable.
“I have no idea why anyone would want to hurt Ben.”
She couldn’t hide the surprised on her face. Why would Wade lie to the detective? Why would he not enlist his help in finding Ben’s shooter? He knew the shooting was related to his case.
The detective sighed wearily, spearing fi
ngers through his oily hair. “Tight-lipped as always, hey, Connolly?”
“I’m always more than happy to cooperate with the police,” Wade drawled, crossing his muscular legs in front of him.
Detective Sullivan stood for a quiet moment then said, “You know you’re not supposed to leave a crime scene. My officers told me you hightailed it outta there with this chick.” Detective Sullivan turned to her then as if just seeing her sitting beside Wade.
“You mixed up in this too? You a lawyer?”
She cleared her throat and stood primly. She extended a hand to detective Sullivan. “My name is Nina Henley. I’m a physician.”
Sullivan looked down at her extended arm like she’d just handed him a cobra. He ignored it and looked back at Wade, a humorless chuckle erupting from him. “They’re making doctors prettier than I remember.”
Wade stood then, his large frame hovering dangerously close to the lanky detective. “Leave her alone. She doesn’t know anything.”
Nina stood frozen, staring at the two men. Animosity crackled between their bodies. Detective Sullivan stood his ground, seeming to get a charge out of Wade’s sudden burst of emotion.
“Fine!” Sullivan finally sneered, stepping back. “Have it your way. Hopefully the next time I see you it won’t be to scrape you up off the sidewalk like your friend.”
With those words Detective Sullivan spun around on his heels and left, his coat billowing out behind him.
“Why didn’t you tell him what you know?” she questioned, her voice alarmed.
“Detective Sullivan and I have a long history,” he explained simply.
Wade sat and nudged her down beside him. She opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off. His blue eyes captured hers as he started to explain his case. A vice constricted her throat and squeezed tighter and tighter until her jaw slackened and her eyes bulged in disbelief.
“You are telling me that you think a doctor knowingly misdiagnosed his patient because the insurance company paid him off?” She could feel the tension wind between her shoulder blades. Wade held her gaze steadily, scrutinizing her reaction.
“Yes. Not only did he do that, but he produced fraudulent MRI scans to back up his contrived diagnoses.”