Chapter 5

The morning rush had already begun by the time I pushed through the pharmacy doors. 

A queue of patients had formed at the counter, the phone was ringing every few minutes, and Maya was trying to organize a stack of prescriptions while answering a question from one of the assistants. 

She caught my eye as I shrugged off my coat, a flicker of relief in her own. "You're early."

"Only by a few minutes."

"Still counts," she said, sliding a printed slip across the counter toward me. I tucked my bag into its usual hiding spot beneath the register. 

"What did I miss?"

"Nothing exciting," she replied, though her tone suggested otherwise.

"Mrs. Parker called twice about her refill, the delivery came in twenty minutes ago, and Chloe nearly sent the wrong medication upstairs again."

I looked up from the slip, my brow furrowing. "Again?"

Maya let out a long-suffering sigh. "She's learning." I couldn't help the soft laugh that escaped. 

The morning settled into its familiar, demanding rhythm after that. 

One of the patients, an elderly man named Mr. Henderson, whom I'd seen several times before, spent nearly five minutes searching through his wallet for his insurance card. When he finally found it, he held it up with a relieved smile, and I couldn't help smiling back. "Found it."

"I knew I had it somewhere," he said.

"I believe you." 

He laughed, a dry, rustling sound, and I finished processing his prescription. Moments like that were part of the reason I liked my job. 

Even on difficult days, I liked knowing that I could help someone with a problem and actually make things a little easier for them. 

Around 9:30, Maya came over to my workstation with two steaming cups of coffee in her hands. "I brought you one."

I looked at the cup, then at her. "You might be my favorite person right now."

"I know," she said, placing it carefully beside my monitor and leaning against the counter. "How's Noah?"

The question, spoken so softly, softened something tight inside me. "He's okay."

"Just okay?"

"He had a rough night with his breathing, but he was better this morning." Maya nodded, her playful expression shifting into something more serious, understanding.

"Your mum still wants you to stop worrying so much and you're still ignoring her." 

"Obviously." 

She laughed, a warm, genuine sound that cut through the pharmacy's hum. I took a sip of the blessedly hot coffee and returned to the prescription in front of me. For the next hour, we worked in a companionable silence, the kind of quiet that only descends when everyone is too focused to remember they're tired.

Then, one of the office assistants appeared at the pharmacy's gated entrance, her expression hesitant. "Ivy?" I looked up. 

"Mr. Carter wants to see you." Maya's eyes immediately met mine across the counter, a silent question hanging between us. I set down the prescription I was holding, the paper suddenly feeling flimsy in my fingers. 

"Now?" The assistant nodded. 

"He said immediately." 

I took a steadying breath, the coffee turning to acid in my stomach. 

"I'll be back." Maya gave me a small, tight nod as I followed the assistant down the corridor, my shoes squeaking softly on the polished linoleum.

When I reached Carter's door, it was already ajar, a sliver of the sterile office visible within. 

"Come in," he called before I could knock. 

I stepped inside, my hands clasped behind my back. He was seated behind his large mahogany desk, reviewing a file with an intensity that felt performative. For a few long seconds, he continued reading before finally looking up.

Eventually, he looked up, his eyes flat. 

"Close the door." I did, then remained standing near it, my posture rigid. He leaned back in his leather chair, the hinges groaning in protest. "We need to talk about yesterday."

My shoulders tightened into hard knots and before I could formulate a response, there was a crisp, deliberate knock on the door. The door opened without waiting for a reply, and Mrs. Kane stepped inside. She stopped when she saw me, her gaze flickering from my tense face to Carter's smug one. 

"Carter."Mrs Kane called. 

"Mrs. Kane." He immediately straightened in his chair, the sycophantic shift in his posture so abrupt it was almost comical. "I wasn't expecting you this early." 

"I had a meeting nearby." Her gaze moved briefly between us again, a silent, appraising sweep.

Then she looked at me. "Ivy." 

I straightened automatically, my spine snapping to attention. "Good morning, Mrs. Kane." 

"Good morning." Something in her expression changed when she noticed the tension in the room, a subtle tightening around her eyes, but she didn't ask about it. Instead, she turned her full attention back to Carter and he gestured vaguely toward the empty chair opposite his desk. 

"We were just discussing Ivy's work." Mrs. Kane looked at me, her expression unreadable. 

"Is that so?" 

I hesitated, my throat dry. Carter answered for me, a smug note in his voice. "There was a concern about how she handled a prescription yesterday."

Mrs. Kane's expression remained perfectly calm, her posture relaxed. "The prescription that had been incorrectly labeled?" 

Carter paused, his composure faltering for a fraction of a second. "Yes."

 "The one Ivy caught before it reached the patient?" 

His fingers tightened around the edge of the file on his desk, the knuckles turning white. "Yes." 

Mrs. Kane nodded slowly, a deliberate, almost ponderous motion. "Then what exactly is the concern?"

For the first time since I entered the room, Carter seemed to have trouble finding an answer. "I was simply reviewing procedures." 

"I see." Her voice was polite, but it carried a chill that made the room feel considerably colder, the sterile air suddenly sharp and unforgiving. She turned toward me, her expression softening almost imperceptibly. 

"You should get back to work, Ivy." I nodded, a wave of relief washing over me so strong it almost made my knees buckle. 

"Thank you, Mrs. Kane." As I reached the door, she spoke again. 

"I'll see you downstairs later." I glanced back at her, a question in my eyes. 

"Of course." I left the office without looking back. By the time I reached the pharmacy, the air in my lungs finally came easily, a shuddering inhale that felt like the first I'd taken all morning. Maya was waiting, her arms crossed, her expression a mixture of anxiety and curiosity. "What happened?" 

I set my hands on the cool countertop, leaning my weight against it as I exhaled. "Mrs. Kane happened." 

Her eyebrows lifted, a silent invitation for more. "That sounds promising." Despite myself, a smile touched my lips. 

"She walked into his office right as he was trying to make yesterday sound like a problem with my work." 

"And?"

 "And she asked what the problem was. She pointed out I was the one who caught the mistake, not the one who made it." Maya's smile widened into a full-blown grin. 

"I like her." 

"So do I." The words slipped out before I could stop them. I looked down at the prescriptions, realizing how easily I'd said it. I looked down at the prescriptions in front of me, suddenly aware of how easily they had emerged. Maya noticed, of course she did. 

"You're becoming fond of Mrs. Kane." 

"She's been kind to me." I gave Maya a look, but she only laughed and handed me another prescription. 

"Here. Before you start getting sentimental at work." I shook my head, but I was smiling as I took it. 

For the first time that morning, I felt lighter. 

Then the pharmacy doors slid open, and Mrs. Kane walked in. She came straight toward my counter. 

"Ivy, do you have a moment?" I glanced at Maya, who was suddenly engrossed in her work, and then back at her. 

"Yes, Mrs. Kane." She smiled, a small, private curve of her lips. 

"Okay, I'd like to talk to you about something."