by Molly Dox
Poppy scrambled. “I’m not leaving his side. He saved my life.”
“Ma’am, we’re going to have to ask you to sit in the front of the ambulance. Protocol and all,” he said.
“Fine.” She knew the drill. She was once a paramedic herself, not that any of her training wanted to kick in at the moment. She climbed in quickly and buckled up. Craning her neck, she tried to look to the back.
The driver got back in the ambulance and hit the sirens. A long, slow wail rang through the air. At the hospital, they made her sit in the waiting area until he was stable. She refused to leave. Every muscle in her stomach was knotted and twisted. Her shoulders felt like lead. With her hands still shaking, she called her father at the resort. “I’m okay. I’ll explain later. I’m over at the hospital with somebody. I need you to cover for me.”
“What’s going on? Should I come up there?” Martin Pepper asked.
“No, Dad. It’s okay. I’m not hurt. I’ll fill you in later. I have to go.”
A nurse finally came out. “Miss, you can come back now. You’re with the gunshot victim, correct?”
She nodded and scrambled to follow the nurse.
“They’re going to move him to a room after surgery. They’ll be taking him back shortly. He seemed unsettled, so I thought maybe if he saw you, he’d be better. Are you his mother?”
“Mother?” She wasn’t that old. “No.”
“Oh, only family…”
“I’m his sister,” she shot out quickly.
“Oh, good, maybe you can help us fill out some information on him while he’s in surgery. He wasn’t carrying identification. What’s his name, birthdate, and does he have any allergies to medications?”
Poppy stared at the nurse and stalled. “His name is Christopher. I don’t know the rest right now.” They stood in front of the curtain of the room he was in. “I’m sorry, I’m just not thinking straight. I’m shaken up.”
“I understand. We’ll get the information later.” She patted the woman on the shoulder and opened the curtain.
The man was barely conscious. His eyes opened and then closed.
Poppy spoke quietly. “Christopher, I’m Poppy. I won’t leave your side. As soon as you’re out of surgery, I’ll be waiting for you. It’s going to be okay. Can you hear me? What is your last name?”
He tried to talk, but it took too much strength. An oxygen mask over his face made it hard for her to hear. “Ca-ruth-ers. Can. Need can.”
She patted his hand. “I found it.” She had no idea how, but fate shone down on her when she most needed it. “You’re going to be okay. I’ll be here. You’re not alone. I told them I was your sister. Is there anybody I should contact? And what’s your birthday. You rest now.”
The man gave a half-hearted ‘thumbs up’ and then drifted off to sleep, not giving her any names.
Chapter 6
Poppy awoke in the chair beside his bed. She heard him trying to shift and move. “Hey, do you want me to call the nurse?”
He shook his head no and looked at the woman. He didn’t expect she would still actually be there.
“Do you want some water or ice chips? I’m not sure what you’re allowed to eat yet. Are you okay? Do you need more pain medication?”
He shook his head no. “Thanks,” he whispered. His throat was raw.
She gave him some ice chips anyway from a Styrofoam cup on the side table. They’d help his throat. “I’m grateful you’re okay. You pulled through nicely.”
“Why are you here?” His voice was scratchy.
“I didn’t want you to be alone,” she said, as if there was any other answer. “I had somebody get my truck for me. I came with you in the ambulance.”
“I need your help,” he said, and pointed to the cup.
She fed him more ice chips. Relief washed across his face as the cold soothed his throat.
“The chip,” he said. “There’s information that I need. A big deal is about to go down and the coordinates are on the chip.”
“You can’t go anywhere,” she said. “You were just shot. You have to rest. Do you want me to turn the chip over to the police to investigate?”
“No, we think someone high up is involved.” It was hard to talk still.
Poppy’s eyes went wide. “How do I get information off of it?”
“Scanner,” he whispered, his eyes slowly closing again. She watched as his head drooped to the side. Poppy sat back down.
When he stirred again an hour later, he was surprised to see the woman still sitting there.
Poppy stood and moved to the side of his bed. “How are you doing, champ?”
The pain on his face said a lot.
“I’ll call the nurse. It should be just about time for your pain meds,” she said.
“No. I’ll be alright. They’ll make me groggy. I need to get out of here.” He grimaced as he shifted.
“Oh, no you don’t! You’re not going anywhere. You just went through a traumatic incident. You need rest,” she insisted.
“I’ll rest when I’m dead. This is too big,” he said, letting out a tiny yelp as he tried to move.
“I’ll find a scanner. My neighbor used to be a vet. Well, she died, sadly, but her ex-husband still lives in the home. She probably had a scanner. Do I need a certain kind?” She didn’t know what to do with the thing. Just beep the scanner at it and read out information?
“No. Go to 24th Street, 2nd floor. There’s a dentist named Wilson. Go to him. Tell him I sent you, and that you need help. Tell him it’s confidential, and you need to read it alone.” He cringed. “I think I need the meds after all.”
“Is he going to just let me in?”
“Tell him Chris Caruthers sent you. Tell him no questions. And you need to read a microchip, and then send him out of the room. He’ll cooperate. He owes me a big favor. I saved him from an ugly public mess.” It was too much. He was wearing down already after just talking. “I need to sleep.”
“I’ll come back as soon as I get the information.” She pushed the nurse’s call button to get him more pain medication and then left the hospital. She had to go visit a dentist. Could she pull it off? What would she find? He trusted her with crucial information. She’d just go take care of this one little thing, and she’d be finished with it. She had no idea what they were mixed up in, but it sounded like something big and important. If it meant getting bad guys off the street, she was all for it.
***
With her insides trembling, she climbed the stairs to the second floor walk-up. Looking around, she found the door Chris mentioned. Taking a deep breath, she rang the bell. The door buzzed, unlocking. Walking inside, she looked around. There was a small waiting area and a woman behind a glassed in section.
“Can I help you with something? Do you have an appointment?” The woman looked Poppy up and down.
“I’m supposed to talk to Wilson. Please tell him that Chris Caruthers sent me.” She wasn’t sure it would work, but soon enough the door opened and she was brought to room that looked to be the dentist’s office. “Have a seat here.”
She sat down and looked around. When the man walked in, he looked squirrely, like he had too much energy. “Can I help you?”
“I need to scan a microchip. Chris told me to come to you and tell you it’s confidential.” She tried to remember if there was anything else she was supposed to say.
He arched an eyebrow. “Confidential?”
“I need to read it alone,” she held her ground.
“Why didn’t he come himself?” He quizzed the older woman before him.
“He’s unavailable. He said you wouldn’t give me any trouble,” she nudged.
“No, it’s fine. I owe him. We’ll go this way. He showed her to a room and pointed to the counter. When you’re finished, close the door behind you.” He hated closing the door, and hated that he couldn’t be witness to whatever the lady was up to, but it didn’t really matter. The scanner would retain the information unti
l it was deleted. He’d know what she was up to soon enough.
Poppy wasn’t sure how it worked. She figured she’d just click the button over it. She crossed her fingers and dug the can and microchip out of her purse. Wedging a finger in the can’s opening, she pried out the microchip.
Poppy pulled the plastic trigger on the scanner. A list of numbers came up. She dug through her purse looking for a pen and paper. She jotted down a sequence of numbers that she hoped Chris would be able to translate it. There were only a few words, and they made no sense. She looked around for a button to delete it, but didn’t find one. Instead, she took the thing apart and pulled the battery out. She hated doing it, but she didn’t want anyone to gain access to the information. Hopefully when it turned back on, it wouldn’t have a memory.
She quietly tucked everything back into her purse. Closing the door behind her, she headed back to her truck. She was happy when she didn’t run into the weasel-like dentist before leaving.
Heading back to the hospital, she played with the words and numbers. None of it made sense. She hoped it meant something to Chris.
Chapter 7
“Do you know what it means?” she asked.
“Some are coordinates. Some are post office boxes. Lastly, it lists the names I needed. Only, he did it in code in case somebody found the chip, it would look like gibberish.” He was sitting up, the pain meds helping him. “Thank you.”
“I’ll be back. I need to check on my father. I don’t like to leave him alone too long. Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“No, but thanks for sticking around here while I was in surgery, it was nice to have somebody waiting on me,” he admitted.
“Do you have family local? Do you want me to contact somebody?”
He shook his head. “They’re on the other side of the country. I don’t want them to worry. They already worry enough because of my line of work.”
“I bet your mom would want to know what happened and that you’re okay.”
“It’s better not to say anything,” he said. “Take care of yourself.”
“You too,” she said. Poppy hesitated before walking out. She didn’t like that he was all alone. She turned around. “I’ll be back later. Do you want me to bring you anything?”
A small smile slid across his lips. “Are you a mom? You’ve got that mom vibe.”
“Only to a stray cat named Chopper,” she said, shrugging. “I’ll be back.”
When she came back a few hours later, he was gone.
Poppy went to the nurse’s station. “Caruthers, room 612, did they move him?”
A nurse glanced at the chart. “Not that I see. He’s still listed in 612.”
“Did they take him for tests?” She already knew the answer. Her stomach was twisting in a knot.
“No, I don’t see him being schedule for testing. Why?”
Poppy sighed. “He’s not there and his things are gone.”
“Are you sure? We just checked on him at the top of the hour,” she said.
Poppy glanced at her watch. Twenty minutes. He couldn’t have gotten far. She scrambled heading for the exits to ask security if they saw anything. A cab? A man that looked like he needed help? Did you see anything? Not at this entrance, try another. She made her way to the emergency room exit. Panting to catch her breath, she finally got out the words.
The guard shook his head. “Yes, about ten minutes ago. A guy got into a cab. It looked like he was still hurting.”
She described him, and the guard again shook his head. “That sounds about right.”
“The cab company, do you remember which one?” She was desperate to stop him. He’d only end up hurt.
“Sure lady, it’s the Florida Line Cab Company,” he answered.
Poppy dug out her phone and searched for the number. On calling them she pleaded with the dispatcher. “I need to know about a cab that was dispatched to the emergency room. My friend left the hospital before he should have. I’m afraid he’s going to be in trouble.”
“Ma’am, I’m sorry, but we don’t give out that information.”
She vented. “It’s a matter of life and death, please.”
“Hold on, please.” The woman put her on hold. The pleasant music playing in the background didn’t make her feel any better. “I spoke with my driver. The address is 652 Grover Street. I really shouldn’t be telling you this. I hope your friend is okay.”
Poppy thanked the woman over and over again before heading to the parking garage. Getting in her truck, she headed toward the address she was given. She had no idea what she’d find when she got there, but she needed to stop him before things went sour.
She’d already become protective of the man…the man who stole the body from the morgue, the man who was an undercover cop, the man who almost got her shot, the man who needed her help. He couldn’t do it alone. He had nobody. He had no family nearby. Someone had to care.
It was the trauma. She knew it was. It connected them.
Pulling onto Grover Street, she slowed her pace, reading the numbers. They were mostly one story houses, plain cookie cutter homes in different shades of brown and beige. Why did he come here? Was this his home?
Poppy hesitated and then parked alongside the curb. Getting out, she thought of thirty reasons to turn around and leave. She bit her bottom lip and walked up the sidewalk. Pushing the doorbell, she heard it chime.
Christopher opened the door. Shaking his head, he scolded the woman. “Are you kidding me? What are you doing here? You shouldn’t have followed me.”
“You shouldn’t have left the hospital,” she scolded in return. “Do you even have pain medication?”
“I don’t have time to sit around there. I have an important meeting I need to get to.” He took his job seriously, and not just anybody could jump into a sting they’d been running for a long time.
“I’m coming with you,” she said, not even thinking about the consequences.
“Umm, no, you’re not,” he said. “Do you not get that I’m dealing with dangerous people?”
“I either take you or follow behind you. The choice is yours.” She stood her ground.
“Look, I know you mean well, but you can’t get involved. I’d hate to have you arrested for interfering with the law.” He hated to go there.
“Arrest me. I dare you to. I know too much. I know about the body, I know about the microchip, I know about the shooting.” She dared him to respond.
Christopher shook his head. “Just come inside. People are going to start talking.” He closed the door behind her and pointed to the sofa. “Wait there.”
“If you try to slip out a back door, I’ll follow you.” She wasn’t born yesterday.
“I’m in no shape to be hopping fences. I need to arm myself.” He looked away. “I’ll be right back.”
Poppy’s heart was racing. Was she really driving him to a crime scene? It had to be the stupidest decision she’d ever made. She got up off the sofa and walked over to the bookcase. Two pictures, one of his parents, and one of him with a woman. Who was the woman? She called out to him. “Who is the woman in the picture?”
“Didn’t I tell you to stay on the sofa? Stop nosing around.” He was obviously annoyed.
“Girlfriend?” she called back.
“Sister,” he finally answered. “Now sit back down, and stop poking around.”
“Fine. Whatever. I just saw the pictures; I was curious.” She felt snubbed.
Christopher came out of his room in a fresh t-shirt and a pair of jeans. He wore a holster across his chest.
She pointed to his gun. “Won’t they see the gun? Will they think you’re a cop?”
“It’s beyond that point. They fingered my partner and then killed him. They already shot at me. Who do you think will be next? The only reason I’m still alive is that they didn’t hit any vital organs. I’m going to put an end to things tonight. I’ve got the information I need. Still want to ride along?” He glared at
her. She was not part of the plan.
“Ride along? I’m driving,” she said, refusing to look away.
He rolled his eyes. “You can’t take your car with your license plate showing. You’ll drive the car I use for the buys.”
“What kind of buys? Drugs? Are they drug dealers?” Whatever it was, it was scary and dangerous if they were shooting to kill.
“Weapons. Assault rifles. They’re huge on the black market.” He wasn’t fooling around, this was serious stuff. She had to understand. This was no place for a civilian. He was a trained officer and had been working undercover for a while. “We knew who the locals were, but we wanted to find out who their supplier was. He’ll be at those coordinates tonight. I offered a massive buy, but only from the man at the top. When I say massive, we’re talking an entire truckload of weapons to be deposited in a trailer down at the loading docks. The container will blend in with all of the others, but I’ll be the only one to access it. So, here’s the problem. They’re clued in to the cops being on them. I’m sure they’ll show tonight, but it will be to finish me off, not to sell me weapons. Since they’re hard to transport without too much distraction, we’re guessing the weapons are already where they were supposed to be for the buy. It’s a gamble, but we need the guy at the top. He rarely makes an appearance. We’ve been working on this sting for almost a year. I think somebody sniffed my partner out, and that ball of wax rolled downhill. It turned into a giant snowball of trouble. With the information on the chip, I can finally dismantle it tonight. We’re almost there.”
“Wow. Thank you for trying to make the streets safer. That’s a big deal to risk your life like that. Don’t you want back-up?” She was trying to drink in all the information.
“I have it covered. I need to be careful or it could risk the entire operation. Some of the locals may have turned a blind eye on deliveries. We’re still tapping into who is involved on the force and who isn’t. There’s big money involved to turn the other way. I have a few people watching my back tonight. The bad guys know who I am now. I’m sending in an old friend in my place. Not many people I trust with this kind of stuff, but this guy is solid. We have history. You sure you want in?” He was certain she’d back out on hearing the details.
