“He wouldn’t, unless he had the organization’s protection from the law.”
I tell my father the idea I had when I was at the restaurant, which is that I want to invite Logan to work for the Clinic. The physicians who work there are not members, but they are given limited knowledge of Dunamis. They have to sign a contract before they receive that knowledge. The contract basically says they’ll be harmed if they ever tell our secrets, and yet we still find plenty of people to take these jobs, and not one physician has ever attempted to tell our secrets.
Being a doctor for us has many rewards. Large sums of money. Not having to deal with the hassle of insurance. And the freedom to treat your patients using whatever means necessary to keep them alive and well, even if those treatments aren’t approved. Our doctors can even work with the lab at Sinclair Pharmaceuticals, the company owned by Royce’s family, to develop their own drugs.
“Logan would be an excellent addition to the Clinic,” I say. “He has many innovative ideas and treatments that would benefit the other members.”
“And what are you getting out of this?”
“I’m helping you.”
He huffs. “You have no interest in helping me. You hate me.”
“That’s not true, Father. I care about you and I want you to get better.”
“It’s more than that. What is it?”
“Logan is my friend. I’m helping him out.”
“And?”
My father knows me too well. He knows I’m hiding something. So I tell him.
“If I recruit Logan to work for the Clinic, I want the organization to release one of our associates from her contract.”
“What does an associate have to do with this?”
“Logan has been dating Sophia on and off for over a year. He wants to marry her, but she can’t agree to it because of her job with Dunamis. Logan, of course, isn’t aware that she works for us.”
He chuckles. “Sophia. Yes. I know her well.”
I cringe, not wanting to think about how many times he’s been with her.
He coughs. “Why the hell do you care so much about this man’s love life?”
“He will be more committed to his job if he’s not pining over this woman. And it works out well because she already knows about us. She’ll know not to ask him questions.”
“He won’t marry her if he knows what she did for us.”
“He won’t know. None of our physicians are told about the associates.”
“If he thinks she’s unaware we exist, he’ll have to lie to his wife. He may not be willing to do that.” He smirks. “Although you seem to have no problem lying to your wife.”
I ignore his comment. “Logan can tell her he’s working for a private clinic, which is what he already does. It’s just a different clinic. It’s not that big of a lie. And he won’t be told all our secrets so there won’t be much to lie about. The only thing he’ll be told is that we’re a private, very exclusive organization that is able to protect him from any repercussions that could come his way by performing these unapproved treatments.”
“Many of our physicians know far more about us than that.”
“Only because they’ve worked for us for years. Logan doesn’t need to know details.”
“You’re putting yourself at risk by doing this,” he says.
“What’s the risk? I’m simply offering them something in exchange for something else.”
“I’m not backing you up on this. This is all you.”
And yet it benefits him. I should’ve known he wouldn’t support me. But I’m doing it anyway. My father will get access to this new treatment, Logan will find the job at the Clinic fulfilling, and Shelby will be free from her contract, and free to marry Logan.
“I’m going to present this at the meeting on Friday. This needs to be decided quickly so you can start the treatments.”
“I haven’t even agreed to them yet.” He coughs again, this time into a tissue.
“Father, do you need something? Some water? Anything?”
“Stop treating me like a child.” He crumples up the tissue and I see a spatter of blood on it. “You should be at the office. Get out of here.” He shoos me away.
I leave and go back down the stairs.
“Pearce, what are you doing here?” My mother approaches me from the hall.
“I was telling Father about a new cancer treatment. He can tell you more about it.” I lower my voice. “He doesn’t look well.”
She pats my back. “He’ll be fine, dear. Get back to the office.”
My parents live in a state of denial when it comes to illness and death. They express zero emotion and just continue on as if nothing’s wrong. My grandfather on my mother’s side died of stomach cancer, but when he was diagnosed, my mother acted as though he had a cold and would get over it in a week or two. When he died, she didn’t shed a tear. I’ve never seen her, or my father, cry. I don’t think they’d cry even if I died.
I go back to the office and find a pile of work on my desk. My father probably called his secretary as soon as I left his house and had her gather up all his work and leave it on my desk.
That night, I don’t get home until after ten. Rachel is watching TV in the family room.
“I’m sorry I’m late,” I say, leaning down to kiss her.
“You missed dinner,” she says. “And you didn’t even see Garret today.”
I sigh. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“Pearce, is this how it’s going to be now? Are you going to be working every night and on the weekends, like you did before?”
“I hope not, but with my father gone, I will have to put in some extra hours.”
Her shoulders slump and she nods.
“Rachel.” I sit next to her. “You know I don’t want to do this. I’m only doing this to help my father.”
“I know.” She leans her head on my shoulder. “I just don’t want it to be at the expense of our son. I don’t want him to grow up with his dad never around.”
I kiss her head. “That won’t happen. I’ll always be here for both of you.”
But as the week continues, I begin to doubt that statement. I’m swamped with work and I can’t keep up. I get home at ten every night. Rachel doesn’t say anything, but I know she’s upset.
On Friday, I go to the Dunamis meeting which is scheduled from ten to one. It’s an update meeting, but they reserve an hour at the end for members to bring up topics to be discussed. It’s noon, and they just asked if anyone would like to speak.
“I would,” I say, getting up from my chair.
“What is the topic?” Martin, the man leading the meeting, asks.
“I would like to recruit someone to the Clinic. A man who attended Harvard when I was there. Dr. Logan Cunningham.”
“Proceed to the microphone,” Martin says.
I walk to the front of the room. My father is there, sitting in the first row. Leland Seymour is a few seats down from him. He’s giving me a smug grin, like he knows something he shouldn’t.
I glance away from Leland and direct my attention to the other members. “We have been saying for months that we need to add more physicians at the Clinic.” I continue, explaining Logan’s background and the research he did when he was in Europe. I mention the cancer treatment, but don’t specifically mention it benefitting my father because I know he’d be angry if I brought up the topic of his health in a meeting.
But then someone else brings it up. It’s Edward Milcrest, who is known for questioning everything. “Who else would benefit from this, besides Holton?”
“We would all benefit. As I said earlier, Logan has connections with top physicians and researchers all across Europe. He has access to treatments we can’t get through the normal channels here in the US.”
“Do you think he would agree to this?” another member asks.
“I’m confident I could convince Dr. Cunningham to work for us, but I would like to request something in return.” I’m nervous
to bring this up, but I have to. This is my one and only chance to save Shelby. “I request that you release one of our associates from her contract. Dr. Cunningham has been seeing her for over a year and would like to marry her. But she has declined his proposal because of her obligation to us. Despite that, he continues to pursue her. It is my personal opinion that he would be much more committed to his work if he were in a stable and permanent relationship with her.”
There’s silence, followed by chattering from the crowd.
Leland stands up and faces the members. “Quiet!” When he has their attention, he turns to me and says, “Which associate?”
“Sophia,” I say.
His grin appears again as he turns back to the other members. “Does everyone know Sophia? The feisty blonde?”
The men nod, some whispering to each other.
“Her real name is Shelby,” Leland says. “At least that’s what Pearce’s wife said when she introduced me to Shelby.”
Shit. I forgot he saw them together.
Leland looks back at me and smiles. “Perhaps Pearce is only suggesting this because he’s embarrassed that his wife’s best friend is a whore. Or perhaps it’s because he wants Shelby all for himself. I do believe you took her reservation card at one of our banquets. Isn’t that right, Pearce?”
I take a deep breath, trying to remain calm. “This is not a personal matter. This is for the greater good of the organization. I am offering to recruit someone who is highly intelligent and extremely talented who will bring new and innovative treatments to the Clinic. Will doing so benefit my father? Yes. In the short term. But in the long term it will benefit all of you.” I pause and wait for someone to respond. There’s silence, so I say, “I take that to mean you are not interested. Thank you for your time.”
As I walk back to my seat, I hear my father’s voice on the microphone. “I have investigated the treatments Pearce was referring to and found them to be quite intriguing. I am not solely referring to the cancer treatments, but other treatments as well. I think the research should be presented before we come to a decision.”
Martin appears beside him. “Let’s take an informal vote. Raise your hand if you’re interested in considering Dr. Cunningham for a position at the Clinic.”
More than three quarters of the room raises their hands. It’s only because of my father. They wouldn’t listen to me, but they’ll listen to him. I’m shocked that he stood up there defending me, but then realize it’s not about me. He’s trying to save himself. He thinks he’s dying and he’s grasping for a lifeline. And I offered him one. Now he just needs to convince the others to go along with it.
“Pearce,” a man behind me says.
“Yes?” I turn and see Spencer Turnbaum addressing me from the back row. He’s a banker and a brilliant businessman. He’s a few years older than my father.
“You said that Dr. Cunningham already works at a private clinic?” he asks.
“That’s correct.”
Spencer directs his attention to the room. “I propose we buy the clinic he works at, but only Dr. Cunningham will know about us.”
“Why would we buy it?” someone asks.
“We need more locations,” Spencer says. “And this would protect the identity of our members. If someone were to discover that we all go to just a handful of medical clinics, they could put the pieces together and see that we’re all connected. That would then lead to an investigation about us, as well as the Clinic itself and the treatments offered. It would be far less risky for us to own private clinics that cater to the wealthy, rather than just us specifically.”
“That is an excellent idea that warrants further discussion,” Martin says. “I suggest we continue with this topic for the time left remaining. Any objections?”
I watch to see if Leland will raise his hand to object, but he doesn’t. I don’t know why Leland is always against me. I know I was rather harsh with Katherine the last time I saw her, but I had to be. She almost spilled our secrets to Rachel. And I needed to put an end to Katherine’s delusions that she and I could someday be together.
For the rest of the hour, the members discuss the pros and cons of buying the clinic Logan currently works at. Dunamis wouldn’t be the one actually buying it. Instead, it would be bought by one of our members who is in the healthcare business and already owns several medical facilities. Dunamis would fund the purchase, but not be linked back to it.
Following that discussion, my father spends a few minutes explaining the research he referred to earlier. By the time the meeting ends, the members decide to make an offer to Logan. Actually, I will be the one making the offer.
“If he accepts our offer,” Martin says to me, “you will be his handler.”
A handler is someone who keeps watch on the people who work for us. Usually, the older members act as handlers, but since I suggested Logan, it makes sense that I would be his handler, which means that if he screws up, he and I will both be punished.
“That’s fine,” I say, agreeing to it.
“What about the whore?” someone in the back of the room asks.
Martin nods. “Yes, what do people think about Pearce’s request to release the associate?”
I use my body language training to hide all emotion; keeping my face blank, my body relaxed. If the members think this is going to benefit me in any way, they won’t allow it. I’m still a “problem” and I will be given no favors.
“I vote no.” I hear the voice and know it’s Royce without even looking. “As a member, it’s Pearce’s duty to recruit this man without asking for anything in return. In addition, his request is something we have never done. Before we can even entertain the idea, we need to bring it to the higher level members.”
I’m not surprised Royce is going against me. He’s angry with me because I’ve been avoiding him ever since he forced that assignment on me. He thinks we should remain friends, even though his little stunt almost killed my family.
“What do the rest of you think?” Martin asks.
I hear Jack’s voice behind me. “If Dr. Cunningham is as enamored with the girl as Pearce says he is, then I say we release her. We all know how a woman can get in your head and disrupt your focus on work. We’ve agreed that we want to hire this man and I don’t want some stupid associate standing in the way of that, or interfering with this man’s performance on the job.”
Jack said ‘stupid associate’ to convince the members that he doesn’t care about Shelby. But I know he does. He has all along. Every time I told him how she was being abused by Royce, I could tell Jack wanted to help, but couldn’t. But now he is.
“I agree,” Martin says. “We’ll bring this matter to the higher level members, but for now, who agrees with the decision to release the girl?”
More than half the room raises their hands.
“Then it’s settled,” Martin says. “I’ll inform the higher level members and they will make the final decision. This concludes today’s meeting. We will meet again next month.”
My father finds me as we’re leaving the room. “You need to hurry up and get this done.” He holds onto my arm, looking like he might pass out. He doesn’t look good. He’s pale and his breathing is labored.
“Father, why don’t I take you home? I don’t think you should be driving.”
He lets go of my arm. “I can drive just fine! Now take care of this and tell me when it’s done.”
I go back to the office and call Logan. “Could you meet me for dinner tonight?”
“I suppose I could. Why?”
“I have an opportunity you might be interested in.”
We meet, and he accepts the offer. He doesn’t know everything yet, but I told him that we’re a secret group and he didn’t find it odd. He said the physicians he worked with in Europe have associations with similar groups. I knew such groups existed, but I had no idea Logan knew about them. I guess it really is a small world.
CHAPTER TEN
One Year La
ter
RACHEL
“I don’t know when I’ll be home,” Pearce says. “Go ahead and eat without me.”
I close my eyes and inhale a breath, trying to remain calm. “This is the sixth night in a row you’ve missed dinner.”
“I know. But we’ll have dinner together tomorrow. I promise. Sweetheart, I need to go. I have a meeting starting in a couple minutes.”
He hangs up and I set the phone on the kitchen counter.
“Mama.” I look down and see Garret holding onto my leg, looking up at me.
I pick him up and hug him. “Daddy’s going to be late again. It’s just you and me for dinner.”
He lays his head on my shoulder like he’s sad about the news. I know he’s not. He’s too young to understand, but in a year or so he will, and he’ll wonder why his daddy is never around.
This was my biggest fear when Pearce went back to work for Kensington Chemical. He stayed late on his first day back and has continued to work late ever since. He’s there on the weekends too. It’s just like when we were dating, but at least then he’d get home in time to have a late dinner or snuggle with me on the couch and watch some TV before bed. Now he doesn’t even do that. The past few months¸ he’s been getting home at eleven or midnight and then he’s gone by six the next morning.
His father is partly to blame. Holton recovered from cancer and went back to work four months ago, but only part-time. A couple months later he resumed his regular hours and took over as CEO again, and since then he’s been making Pearce work nonstop.
Pearce could refuse to work all those hours but he hasn’t, and I think it’s because he actually likes what he’s doing now. During his father’s absence, Pearce was able to make decisions and make things happen. He liked the feeling of accomplishment and wanted to keep it going. He’s a very competitive, goal-oriented person, which I love about him, but he’s taken it to the extreme. His life has no balance. It’s all work and nothing else.
This can’t continue. It’s bad for our marriage, but it’s also bad for Garret. He needs his father. And Pearce is missing all of Garret’s milestones. He missed seeing Garret take his first steps and wasn’t around when he said his first word.
Protecting Her Page 10
