Feel the Heat

by Desiree Holt

  “Oh no, not at all.” Gayle’s voice was breathless with desperation. “I was just waiting a little bit to call you again myself.” She paused. “Is this good news? Are you calling to tell me you’ll visit my husband? That you’ll help him?”

  “Yes. I called to discuss it with you.”

  “So your stalker has been caught?” The woman’s uneasiness was evident in her tone of voice. “As much as I need you, I don’t want you to put yourself in danger.”

  “No, everything is fine,” Lauren assured her. “I’ll still take precautions, of course, but the danger is past. Can you answer some questions for me about your husband’s condition?”

  For the next ten minutes she made notes on her iPad as she asked Gayle Hauser about Clark’s medical situation. What kind of infection did he have? What had the doctors tried? How had it begun and when? And on and on until she felt she had everything she needed.

  “All right,” she said at last. “I’ll come this afternoon.”

  “Oh. Not until then? Can’t you come here any sooner? I worry every minute that he could be taken from me.”

  “This afternoon,” Lauren repeated firmly. “Trust me, it’s the best time for me to be there. And I’ll be bringing someone with me, but other than that there should be no one else in the room except you and Clark.”

  “Whatever you want,” the woman assured her quickly. “Anything. As long as you agree to help us.”

  Lauren checked her watch. “Give me the room number. We’ll be there about one thirty. Why don’t you go back to Clark and tell him? You may think he can’t hear you but I bet he can. The sound of your voice will help him until I get there.”

  “All right. Yes. I’ll do that. I sit with him all the time.”

  “Then that’s what you need to keep doing. We’ll see you this afternoon.”

  “Why not go now?” Troy asked when she’d disconnected the call.

  “Doctors tend to get really funky about what I do.” She sipped her coffee. “By one thirty the lunch trays have been served and collected. Even though I’m sure Clark Hauser is only being fed intravenously, the nurses may be in and out of his room for something. By one thirty they’re finished, meds are taken care of and we won’t be interrupted until the shift change at three.”

  He nodded. “Makes sense when you think about it. Do you want to stop somewhere and have lunch first?”

  “I’d like that. But just something like a salad, maybe. And there are some things you need to be aware of.”

  “Okay.” He reached for one of her hands, rubbed his thumb across her knuckles. “Lay it on me.”

  “Mrs. Hauser knows I’m bringing someone with me, but your primary job will be to hang out by the door and make sure no one comes into the room. I’ll insist Gayle Hauser stand away from the bed so I’m the only one in the immediate space with the patient. That way my energy doesn’t get diffused.”

  “Sounds pretty simple to me.”

  She shrugged. “You never know. Sometimes the family members insist on practically throwing themselves on the patient and it interrupts the connection.”

  “Anything else?”

  She nodded. “Sessions like this exhaust me, and I have to rest immediately afterward. There won’t be anyplace in the hospital for me to lie down without calling attention to the whole thing. I’m depending on you to get me out quickly and quietly, into the car and away from the hospital right away.”

  “Will I need to carry you?” he asked. “I just want to be prepared.”

  She shook her head. “No, but I’ll need your strength to help me make it out of there.”

  He pushed back from the table, came around to her side and lifted her out of the chair. His large hands framed her face and his gaze locked with her. The kiss he gave her was deep and searching, but strangely not sexual in nature. More emotional. And a deep emotion at that. He raised his head and locked his gaze with hers.

  “Whatever you need from me, you’ve got. Now or any time.”

  Her heart cracked open and swelled. No one had ever offered themselves to her so completely as this man was doing. How had she gotten so lucky? People said everything happens for a reason. Maybe the latest media frenzy had occurred to bring her and Troy together.

  “Thank you. You have no idea how much what means to me.”

  He kissed the tip of her nose. “I think I do.”

  * * * * *

  Reid was just finishing his breakfast when his cell phone rang. Looking at the number on the readout, he smiled. This had to be good news.

  “Did you talk to her again?” he asked without preamble.

  “Yes.” Gayle Hauser sounded slightly out of breath. “Yes I did. She called me just now.”

  “And?”

  “She’s coming to see Clark at one thirty this afternoon. Isn’t that wonderful?”

  Reid frowned. “Why is she putting it off until then? Why not this morning? Didn’t you make her understand how urgent this is?”

  “Yes. Absolutely. But she insisted that was the best time for her to be there.” She sounded on the verge of tears. “She’s coming, isn’t that enough?”

  Reid let out a slow breath. “Sure. Fine. That’s okay. I’ll get there in plenty of time. And don’t freak out when you see me in scrubs. I need to blend in with the environment.”

  “Oh no!” The fretfulness was back. “She was very specific that only she and the man she’s bringing with her can be in the room with Clark and me.”

  “That won’t work. I need proof for my employer that this woman is the real deal.”

  “But if she makes him better won’t that be enough?”

  He wanted to wring the woman’s neck and shout, No, I need proof of what she did and how she did it. He drained his glass of water, taking a minute to pull himself together. It wouldn’t help anything if he pissed this woman off and everything turned to shit because of it.

  “Let me think a minute,” he told her, rubbing his forehead.

  “You won’t change your mind about the money, will you?”

  God, he hated needy people.

  “No, Mrs. Hauser. If we work this out right, the money will be in your bank account tomorrow morning.” He thought for a moment. “All right, let’s do this. I’ll call you in a little bit and have you come outside to meet me. I’ll have a pin for you that is also a camera. Just wear it on your blouse and sit right next to your husband while she’s working on him. It will catch everything.”

  “B-but she said she’s the only one who can be next to him. I have to stand against the wall.”

  Reid wanted to pound his fist on the table. If he got any angrier, he was afraid he’d have a stroke.

  “Fine. Fine, fine, fine. Just position yourself so you can see everything and it feeds directly into the pin. Can you do that much?”

  “I—I’m sorry.” He could tell she was on the verge of tears. “I’m doing the best I can. I want her to help Clark. And you promised if I got her to do that you’d give us the money. Otherwise we’ll lose our house and everything else. Oh my god. What will I do?”

  Reid used every bit of self-control to tamp down the rage and force a note of calmness he didn’t feel. They were too close to screw this up now. Besides, he didn’t want to face Olberman if this thing went south.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you,” he soothed. “Just calm down and everything will be fine. Lauren Cahill is coming to help Clark and tomorrow the money is yours. Everything’s fine.” He blew out a breath. “I’ll call you when I’m in the parking lot so you can come outside. I’ll fix the pin and show you how to stand and move so it captures as much as we need. Okay?”

  “Yes.” He heard her sniffle. “I’m sorry to be such a basket case. I’ll be waiting for your call.”

  Bonner, who had been eating silently across from him during the exchange, raised an eyebrow at him. “Trouble? You know the boss doesn’t like problems.”

  Reid gritted his teeth. “Nothing to worry about. It’s
all taken care of.”

  Bonner swallowed the rest of his coffee and wiped his mouth with his napkin. “Didn’t sound like nothing to me. Maybe you should let me handle the woman.”

  Yeah, right. Fuck this up and we’re both dead.

  The reason he always brought Bonner along was he was good for grunt work and left Reid free for other things. Like testing the pin he’d told Gayle Hauser about and making sure it was working. Good thing he always carried some toys with him on a job. It never hurt to be prepared.

  “I told you we’re good.” He waved his hand at the waitress. “Let’s get out of here. I’ve got things to do and I have to call the boss.”

  * * * * *

  “Clark?”

  Gayle Hauser had stopped only to get a fresh cup of coffee on her way back to her husband’s room. Her hands shook so badly she nearly spilled it and she took a few minutes to get herself under control. That man didn’t have to be so hateful. Didn’t he know she’d do anything to get Lauren Cahill up to this room and let her work her magic?

  “Clark?” she repeated.

  She thought he’d gotten a little paler just in the short time she’d been gone. She looked up at the nurse who was changing one of the IV bags.

  The woman smiled as if reading her mind. “No, he’s not worse. He’s actually holding his own. Better than we expected. Keep the faith, okay?”

  “Working on it.”

  And working hard. What if this didn’t work? She’d be out of options. Not to mention the fact she suspected if Clark didn’t get better after a session of psychic healing the money wouldn’t be forthcoming either. She didn’t think things could get much worse.

  Sighing, she reached for Clark’s hand and closed her fingers around it.

  “I’m praying, sweetheart. Praying real hard. If heaven smiles on us, by tonight our lives will take a definite upturn.”

  She leaned her head against the bed rail and closed her eyes. One thirty couldn’t get here fast enough for her.

  * * * * *

  “You’re sure everything’s all set?” Olberman asked. He was doing his best to control the wave of excitement rushing through him. Things were finally coming together.

  “No problems,” Reid assured him. “I’d rather be in the room when whatever this woman does is going on, but we’ve got the next best thing. And you’ll have hard copy of it.”

  “Good, good.” He actually wanted to rub his hands together. “And your plans after that?”

  “Bonner and I will take turns scoping out her house. They may still have someone watching her after the debacle of the last week. We need to be slick about doing this.”

  “What about the man who was staying there?”

  “As far as we can tell, that hasn’t changed.” Reid paused. “I think he’s the one coming to the hospital with her today.”

  “That could be a big problem.” He rolled his cigar between his fingers. “I’m not afraid to take on the Phoenix Agency, but I’d rather not if I can avoid it.”

  “I’ve never known you to shy away from anyone or anything. What can they possibly do?”

  Olberman gripped the cigar so hard he nearly snapped it in half. “That thinking is one of the reasons I sit in this chair and not you,” he growled. “The Phoenix Agency is owned by men who have every skill known to man as far as security and defense and every gadget to support it. My edge against them is I have more men and more money. But I’ll never underestimate them, and neither should you.”

  For a long moment there was silence on Reid McFadden’s end of the connection.

  “Did you hear me?” Olberman prompted.

  “I heard you.” Reid sounded properly subdued. “Sorry. I’ve just never known you to worry about anyone before.”

  “These men are a different breed from any I’ve ever faced. When you take the girl, it has to be a clean grab with nothing for them to find. No trail to follow.”

  “Got it.”

  “I mean it, Reid. The word will get out fast enough when I start contracting out her skills. At least by then I’ll have her secured here and can control the situation.”

  “I’ll let you know when we have it set up.”

  “You do that. And make it soon.”

  He was tempted to throw the phone across the room but instead set it carefully on the little table next to him. Reid McFadden had been with him for years. Olberman trusted him completely and sent him to take care of tasks he wouldn’t assign to anyone else. But at times like this it was very clear to him that he, Kurt Olberman, was the only one with vision here. He’d built his empire by always paying attention to details and always being a step ahead of everyone else. He was fully aware of his enormous abilities, but he never let himself get so comfortable as to underestimate anyone.

  If this thing got fucked up, Reid McFadden’s ass was definitely grass.

  * * * * *

  Because Lauren timed their arrival for the period just after lunch and before the afternoon shift change and the dispensing of meds, no one stopped them as they moved easily down the hall to the room Clark Hauser was in. The door was shut partway but Lauren eased it open and slipped inside.

  “Mrs. Hauser?”

  Troy, right behind Lauren, saw a slender woman hurry to the door. She was dressed in a simple slacks and sweater outfit but her graying hair was escaping the clip she used to hold it back and her face was devoid of makeup. Although he was sure all the makeup in the world couldn’t hide the combination of worry and fear lining her face.

  “Come in.” Her voice was almost a whisper. “I’ve been watching for you.”

  As soon as they were in the room, Lauren closed the door and put her arm around the Hauser woman’s shoulders. Troy leaned against the door, his posture casual but every nerve on high alert. The door was his. No one was getting in until Lauren gave him the word.

  His eyes took in everything in the room. Clark Hauser lay in the hospital bed, his color paler than the sheets. Two different IV lines fed medicine and nutrition into his veins, and machines measuring his pulse and heart rate beep with a regular rhythm as he watched Lauren walk the woman over to the hospital bed. The Hausers were her focus. “I thought you said no one else could be in the room.” Gayle Hauser’s whisper was loud enough for Troy to hear. “I know you said someone would be with you, but are you sure it’s okay?”

  “Troy won’t interfere,” she assured the woman. “He’s aware of what I do. He’ll also make sure no one interrupts us. And I need him to help me afterward.”

  “Oh. Of course. All right.” Gayle was nervously wringing her hands. “How do we begin? Since your friend can stay, that means I can too, right? Can I stand beside the bed?”

  “Let’s get this set up so it gives the most benefit to your husband and still gives you what you need.” Her voice was low and soothing. “How about if you stand against that wall? That way neither you nor our friend will be in my energy field.”

  “Well.” She pointed to the wall where the window was. “Can I stand over there?”

  Lauren shrugged. “Certainly, if that’s what you want. You’d just be farther away from your husband.”

  “But I can see better.” She scuttled over to the wall as if afraid Lauren would change her mind.

  Lauren lifted Clark Hauser’s chart from the rail at the foot of his bed and studied it carefully. Troy watched her wrinkle her forehead in concentration, then nod as her fingers trailed down the pages. Finally, she took one of the small, hard visitor’s chairs, moved it to beside the bed and let the side rail down. Closing her eyes, she placed her hand palm down on Clark’s chest and let out a slow breath.

  On the drive to the hospital, Lauren had again explained to Troy how the process worked.

  I place my hand over the patient,” she explained, “and call up the healing energy from my own body. That gives a much-needed boost to the patient as the energy flows from my hand into his or her body. Some sessions take longer than others, depending on how critical the patie
nt is and the nature of the illness.”

  Now she sat that way for a very long time, periodically moving her hand, now lower then higher, then back to its original place. The room was so quiet Troy could hear his own breathing.

  He watched Lauren carefully as the minutes ticked by. Very slowly, the color leached from her face and her breathing grew more shallow. He could almost see the energy flowing from her into the sick man lying flat on the bed. He knew the process was called body scanning. In her mind, she was seeing the patient as if he was on a television screen so she could assess the needs of each affected part of the body.

  It went on for so long, and Lauren became so pale, he was tempted to interrupt the process. Knowing she’d be furious with him, he clenched his fists in his pocket to keep himself under control. She had carefully explained more than once to him how she gathered her internal energy and focused on one particular spot on the patient. That energy would be the source of the healing. He was peripherally aware of Gayle Hauser still wringing her hands by the window, and hoped the woman didn’t blurt something out and break the connection between her husband and Lauren.

  He was concentrating so intently on what was happening that he lost track of the passage of time. A slight moan coming from the patient snapped his brain out of park and his eyes tracked over to the bed. Clark Hauser had color in his face, a healthy pink that replaced the terrible pallor. The man’s breathing had noticeably improved, and the rasping sound was gone, replaced by a slow, even inhale and exhale. Lauren kept her hand placed on his chest, watching his face, waiting for him to wake up. When he opened his eyes Troy wanted to shout with relief.

  “Hello, Mr. Hauser.” Lauren smiled at him. “Feeling better?”

  He wrinkled his forehead as if trying to place who she was. His eyes darted around the room until he spotted his wife.

  “Gayle?” He held out a hand to her. “Honey? Who is this person? What’s going on?”