“Everything is okay, sweetheart. I’m here because the man who fell from the four-story building was involved with the Mexican cartel. I need you to listen to me very closely. Is he going to live?”
The Mexican cartel?Oh, fuck. So that means Mr. McCall was trying to say Catalina’s name. He was trying to give the name of his killer. This is a lot to process, for sure.
“I don’t know. He’s in surgery with one of the top neurosurgeons in the country, so he has a chance. Why?”
“It’s better if he doesn’t. They’ll come here to finish him off and I don’t need you caught in the middle, sweetheart,” my dad insists.
What is he trying to say? Does he want this poor man to die?
“What are you saying? You want me to do something about it? You know I can’t do that. I took an oath!” I whisper-yell.
“They told me, Willow. They told me they know you, and that if you want to stay alive, you have to do this.” Stunned, I open and close my mouth a million times, trying to muster up the will to say something. But I can’t. Instead, I stay quiet. I don’t think Dario or Catalina would do anything to me, but I don’t know them well enough to make that assumption. Maybe I have to do what they say. If my father is scared and telling me to do it, perhaps I should listen.
“What do you get out of it? What are you into this time? Do you work for them?” My father inches closer to hug me but I step back creating more distance between us.
“It’s complicated, sweetheart. I got involved with them a long time ago and I can’t get out. They are horrible people. Please, do this and don’t go near them again.” He says, reaching his hand towards mine. Nash and I have always suspected he was involved with something shady especially when Nash waskidnapped when he was younger. Fuck, I don’t know what to do. If I do this I’m going against my oath. I’ll just wait and see how the patient is doing. I raise a hand between us. He steps back and doesn’t approach further.
“Nothing has changed between us, Dad. If you are still not accepting of Nash’s or my sexual orientation, then we have nothing to say. You need to apologize to him and make things right, and if you haven’t done that, then we are done. Goodbye and goodnight. I have to get back to work, ” I state.
I don’t give him a chance to respond as I make my way to the nurse’s station, looking for my next patient.
It’s been three hours and Dr. Nimz has finally come to find me. I’ve been checking for status updates through our hospital portal, but I haven’t had the chance to check it thoroughly due to the number of patients who kept the ER floor busy.
“Hey, Hayden. I just wanted to let you know that the man made it out of surgery and he’s up in the ICU right now. It’s honestly touch and go, so the next few hours are crucial. He coded twice on the table—I don’t see him ever waking up. But who knows? Anyway, I just wanted to update you,” he says.
“Thank you, Nimz. I appreciate it. I’ll go check on him right now. I don’t know, but something about him struck me. I just need to see him for myself,” I explain. He nods and exits the main entrance to get some air.
Scanning my badge, I exit the side entrance and use the stairs this time. Two levels of stairs are just what I need to clear myhead. Breathing in and out, I ascend the stairs and mentally prepare myself for what I’m about to do.
There’s no way I’ll be able to kill this man. I take my oath very seriously. I’m not a killer.
No, I’m just covering for one.
Swiping my badge to enter the ICU, I pump some hand sanitizer and grab a mask near the container. I look at my tablet and see Mr. McCall is in room 310. His room is off to a corner of the wing, where I don’t see anyone else around.
He’s hooked up to so many machines I don’t even have to lift a finger. There’s no way this man will live. I feel someone behind me and turn to see none other than the Director of Emergency Medicine,my boss, Dr. Mila Delgado.
Fuck.
“I heard you were taking this hard. Are you doing okay, Hayden?” she inquires, giving me no indication that she suspects I was moments away from killing this man.
“I-I’m good. I promise. Well, I mean. I don’t know,” I stammer.
Nodding, she says, “I figured as much. I heard about your friend’s father’s death, and now this. I don’t think you should be here, Dr. Hayden. I can see your mind is elsewhere. I need you to be sharp when assessing patients.”
“Dr. Delgado. Ma’am. That’s not necessary. I promise I’ll be ok—”
“It’s not up for negotiation, Dr. Hayden. We can’t afford for you to cost a life because you were too proud to take a break. I’m putting you on a mandatory, two-week, paid sick leave. You can cut this shift right now and I’ll see you in two weeks. Go.”
I begin to say something, but just nod instead, knowing not to argue with the boss. Who knows, maybe a break would be good for me?
I quickly undress from my scrubs and shoes, redressing into my suit and heels, letting my hair down from my bun. Exiting through the main entrance to the ER, I make a mental note to text my work friends that I’ll see them in two weeks. Making my way past some nurses taking a smoke break outside, I reach into my purse for my keys when I bump into what feels like a brick wall.
Looking up, I see one of Dario’s bodyguards. I think his name is Alejandro, or at least that’s what I heard Catalina call him.
“Mr. Ramos needs a moment of your time, Miss Hayden,” he says. His hand hovers over my lower back and escorts me to Dario’s black Escalade.
The window of the backseat lowers and I spot Dario and Catalina with smiling faces. I ease the tension in my shoulders, not expecting they’d kill me if they were smiling.Right?
