Chapter 4

An older customer scoffed.

"I've heard doctors are so busy they barely have time to use the bathroom. She's grocery shopping in the middle of the workday? No way she's a doctor. What a liar."

My cheek was mashed against the floor as Luke wrenched both my arms behind my back.

My phone rang.

"Hello?"

This time, Sharon didn't turn on speaker.

She didn't have to.

The voice on the other end carried across the store.

"Dr. Andersen... the child didn't make it."

Owen's voice cracked with grief.

Sharon froze.

After a few seconds, Owen spoke again.

"The woman is stable, but the man has a rare blood type. We're almost out. He might have thirty minutes." His voice was raw. "Dr. Andersen... how much longer?"

Sharon laughed.

"Nice performance. Very dramatic."

She hung up.

A second later, another phone rang.

Not mine.

Hers.

"Jack, your dad isn't with some other woman, is he?"

Whatever the caller said wiped the smile off her face.

"What did you say? My son's dead? Screw you! I hope your whole family dies!

"What a load of crap. You stole my son's phone? You're asking for it.

"That phone has GPS. Just wait till you're explaining yourself to the cops."

She stormed toward me, then suddenly froze and hurried back to the checkout.

"What are you all doing?"

The newcomer's voice was calm but commanding.

"Martin."

Sharon, Elliot, and Luke greeted him quietly.

Luke let go and stood up fast.

So Martin was the store manager.

He reached down and pulled me to my feet, his face giving nothing away.

Then he took my phone from Sharon and slapped it into my hand.

"Enough. You can go."

I stared at his smug half-smile.

Disgust and anger surged through me.

I gripped my phone, took two sharp breaths, and rushed for the exit.

I barely made it a few steps before his voice followed me.

"Avril Andersen, don't even think about filing a complaint. I know where you live."

I kept walking.

Faster.

Not because I was scared.

Because two patients were still waiting for me.

Outside the supermarket, I flagged down a cab.

I needed to get my head straight and be ready to operate.

"Norridge Hospital. Hurry, please."

The driver nodded and started to pull away when the front passenger door flew open.

Sharon climbed in.

"Go. I'm headed to Norridge Hospital too."

The cab took off.

I looked at her once, then said nothing.

I lowered my head and texted Owen to prep the OR.

After sending the text, I half-closed my eyes and slowed my breathing.

"My son's phone is at the hospital," Sharon said with a smile. "Guess the thief got what they deserved."

She kept laughing and cursing the "thief," but no one answered.

When she finally stopped, she turned to me.

"I know you're a doctor." She paused. "I unplugged the network cable. That's why the system froze.

"What a coincidence. Every time I'm working, you just happen to shop there."

Her voice rose.

"You could've bought your stuff and left, so why were you smiling so much? What, your life's that great?"

My fingers dug into my thigh, but my face stayed blank.

She stared at me.

"Hmph. Not smiling now, are you?"

She finally turned away, humming "It's a Beautiful Day."

The second the cab stopped, I paid and sprinted for the OR.

By the time surgery ended, we'd removed the metal from both patients' chests.

The adults were out of danger.

I leaned against the wall, dying of thirst. My scrubs were drenched.

"What a tragedy," a nurse sighed. "The child died, and both parents were badly hurt."

Another nurse lowered her voice.

"The adults aren't married to each other. The woman survived. I called the boy's mom earlier, and she tore into me."

I walked over and checked the child's chart.

[Name: Jack Cheney]

[Father: Robert Cheney]

[Mother: Sharon Jarman]

The nurse's words echoed in my head.

A familiar face flashed through my mind.

I looked up.

Sharon stood on the escalator, staring at her phone.

A second later, the child's phone on the table rang.