by Tamie Dearen
“Oh, the guy from Fifty First Dates?”
“How can you remember that, but you don’t remember who the president is?”
Brad rubbed his temples. “I think I need to sleep for a while.” He started to lie down again.
Josh pushed him back up. “Nope. No you don’t. Sit up. Stay awake, and I’ll tell you about Grace.”
“Grace? Why? Is something wrong with Grace?”
A gargled oath emerged from Josh’s throat. “Maybe I’ll wait and explain it after you come back from your CT scan.”
“Why am I getting a CT scan?”
“Can you tell me when a CT scan is necessary for patients who have or are suspected of having a concussion?”
“Sure. Suspicion of intracranial structural injury. Diploplia. Seizure activity. Loss of consciousness for more than a minute. Severe headache...”
“That’s enough. You were unconscious for more than a minute.”
“I was unconscious?”
“Yes, you were.”
Brad was quiet while watching Josh entering more data into the computer. “Can I ask you one question?”
“Sure.” Josh never looked up from the computer.
“Who are you?”
*****
Ben was accosted when he made his way into the outpatient surgery waiting room.
“Ben! Do you know how Brad’s doing? Have you heard from him?” asked Emily. He was surprised to see all of four of Grace’s siblings along with her mother and father.
“Brad? Did something happen to him? I just got a message from him that... that Grace was... that she had a... uhmm... medical appointment.” He coughed into his hands, attempting to hide the rush of blood to his face. He hadn’t understood Brad’s message, but he knew his brother was upset about Ben’s fabricated story. He’d arrived to do damage control, hoping to avoid having his cockamamie story leaked to Grace and her family. Grace would kill him if she found out.
“You heard from Brad?” asked Spencer. “Was it before or after the accident?”
“What accident?”
Emily explained. “The one where Brad was running away from the hospital while carrying Grace and fell and busted his head open. Josh took him to the emergency room, and we’re still waiting to hear how he is. I thought he would come tell us or call us or something.”
“Why aren’t you over at the emergency room?”
“We’re still waiting for Grace to come out of her biopsy,” said Olivia.
“Grace is having a biopsy? I didn’t know that.”
“Then why are you here, anyway?” asked Olivia, with a shrewd stare through lowered brows. “Do you know something about why your brother tried to kidnap our sister from outpatient surgery?”
“Yeah,” Emily tilted her head as she spoke. “He didn’t seem to know she was having a biopsy. He said something about ‘not letting her mess up her face.’ Do you know what he was referring to?”
Ben felt sweat trickling down his back. “Uhmm, no. I promise, I didn’t know she was having surgery at all. She didn’t tell me about the biopsy or anything. I thought she was teaching school today.”
Emily’s shoulder’s drooped. “I just don’t understand what could have happened.”
Hannah said, “Oh look! They changed the status on her number.” The family rushed to stare at the screen.
“In recovery,” said Spencer. “I thought this was a simple procedure. Why does she have to be in recovery?”
“Because she insisted on an IV. She has to recover from the anesthesia,” his mother explained.
“This spoils all our plans,” said Claire. “We can’t get Brad to come talk to her because he’s in the emergency room.”
Ben was still trying to decipher the meaning behind Claire’s comments, when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to face Olivia, who drew him to the side.
“I want you to know I’m on to you.”
He slapped his most convincing innocent expression on his face. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t think I didn’t notice you didn’t answer Emily’s question. You talked around it instead.”
“I have no idea—”
“Nope, that won’t work—I recognize word manipulation. I’ve honed that skill by necessity as a younger sibling with a bossy older sibling. I suspect you’ve done the same. Pushing buttons, making suggestions, influencing emotions, skirting the truth.” She lifted an eyebrow and leaned back with her hip cocked and arms crossed. “Am I right?”
His mouth twitched into a grin before he could stop it. “Sometimes I go a bit farther with Brad than skirting the truth. It’s possible this is one of those times.” He bent forward to lock his eyes with hers. “But you can’t let Grace find out. Brad, I can handle, but I’m a bit afraid of Grace.”
“Spill it.” She didn’t flinch at his intense stare.
“I may have... sort of... suggested Grace was considering plastic surgery.”
“What?”
“Shhhh! Keep your voice down—they’re all staring.”
Olivia threw a look over her shoulder and smiled at her siblings. She spoke without moving her lips. “Why would you suggest such a thing?”
“I only said she’d considered it, but I had talked her out of it. It was to protect her from her stalker.”
Olivia’s whisper was strident. “Grace had a stalker?”
“No. Actually, Jasmine Colter’s client had a stalker on Colt 57. Have you seen that show? And her client had plastic surgery to hide from her stalker. I used the plot to convince Brad to tell Grace he was willing to move away from New York City. I was only trying to help them get back together where they belong.”
Her mouth was hanging open. “And Brad believed you?”
He rolled his lips in across his teeth in an effort to stop his smile. “Brad and Josh both believed me.”
“Oh... my... great... grandma. You are in so much trouble.”
“But everything’s okay, right? I mean, Grace doesn’t have to know. And it’s not my fault Brad thought she was having plastic surgery instead of a biopsy. I told him I’d talked her out of it. I’ve just got to talk to Brad and Josh before she wakes up. I haven’t quite figured out my story yet. Have you got any advice? You know, as a younger sibling with years of experience? Can you help me come up with an explanation for Josh and Brad? Or maybe I should fly back to California before Josh comes out of the ER.”
“Uhmm...” Olivia’s wide eyes were fixed over his shoulder.
The hair stood up on the back of Ben’s neck. “Josh is standing behind me, isn’t he?”
“Yep! Nice knowing you.” Olivia melted away like butter.
He felt an iron hand clasp his bicep. “Ben, I hope you’re working hard on that explanation.”
“Josh!” Emily cried out, rushing to join them. “What happened? How’s Brad?”
Josh leaned over to speak in his ear. “This conversation isn’t finished.” He emphasized his words with a vice-like compression on Ben’s arm before turning to Emily and the rest of Grace’s family.
“He’s got a concussion, but he’ll live. The CT scan was clear of intracranial bleeding. I’m not sure he’s ever going to remember the details very well.”
His scowl deepened. “So why are all of you here? And what’s Grace doing here? She had some kind of biopsy?”
Connie answered, “She had a breast biopsy—a needle biopsy on a couple of cysts. And yes, I know most people don’t have sedation for that procedure, but Grace is a little spastic about these things.”
“She told all of us the wrong time for the procedure—two hours later than the real time.” Hannah pressed her lips together.
“She texted me with the right time,” Connie defended.
“But not me,” said Hannah. “Or any of the rest of us. If you hadn’t told us, we wouldn’t even be here yet.”
Josh shook his head. “I know this is a supportive family, but still... All of you here for a needle biopsy? Is ther
e something you’re not telling me? Do they think it’s cancer?”
Emily said, “I was supposed to be here early to sit with her so she wouldn’t be nervous, but I didn’t find out about the time change until eleven thirty.”
“I was coming for the show,” Claire chuckled. “Ow!” Olivia elbowed her ribs.
“What show?” Ben asked.
Connie seared Claire with a ‘we’ll-talk-about-this-later’ look. “I assume Claire is referring to the fact Grace will probably be a little loopy when she comes out of surgery.”
“I can’t believe her own sisters would take advantage of her compromised state,” Spencer declared.
Emily raised an eyebrow. “Says the brother who has a flip-video in his rear pocket.”
“Ha! I knew it.” Olivia stabbed her index finger at Spencer’s chest. “You’re itching for a chance to get her back for making that video of you after you got your wisdom teeth out.”
He chuckled. “I do owe her big time. After all, she posted it on Facebook.”
Ben rubbed his tongue over a sharp tooth. “Speaking of teeth, I’ve got a chipped molar that needs fixing. Brad shook me senseless and made me break it. You know a good dentist?”
“I’ve got a friend who just graduated from dental school,” said Olivia.
“Is he any good?” asked Ben.
“He’s a she—Shanna Williams.”
“Is she cute? Is she single?” asked Ben.
“Yes and yes.” Olivia laughed. “Suddenly you don’t care if she’s good or not?”
“Hmmm... I don’t know. How cute is she? In this case the cute factor could really make up for the skill factor.”
“Well, you’re in luck. She’s cute and she’s a great dentist. I’ll hook you up.”
“That’s what I’m hoping.” He winked at her.
“Eh-hem!” Josh cleared his throat and grasped Ben’s arm.
“Right now, I think Ben wants to go see his brother in the ER. Isn’t that why you came here, Ben? Brad’s really confused right now. I’m hoping you can straighten some things out.”
Ben mouthed a silent “Help me!” toward Olivia as Josh dragged him away. He spoke aloud. “Maybe I should wait until Grace is out of recovery.”
“Oh no, Ben.” Olivia stifled a giggle. “We’ll take care of Grace. You can go with Josh to check on Brad.”
Ben pantomimed having his throat slashed before he disappeared around the corner. He heard Olivia’s laughter tinkling and one of the sisters asking, “What was that about?”
“I’m glad you think this is so funny.” Josh’s humorless eyes were full of contempt.
“Look. I have no idea how this got so out-of-hand. All I meant to do was convince Brad to tell Grace he was planning to leave New York City. She wouldn’t let me tell him the truth—she swore me to secrecy.”
“And what was the truth?”
He hesitated. “No, I still have my honor. I promised her I wouldn’t tell anyone, and I won’t betray her confidence.”
“Honor? How can you have honor after lying about Grace having plastic surgery?”
“But that’s not what I said. I said she’d considered it and I’d talked her out of it.”
“What about the stalker? You said she didn’t have any idea of his identity, but Brad said the stalker had located Grace’s school.”
“I don’t know where that came from. There is no stalker.”
“So the entire thing was a lie?”
“I wouldn’t exactly call it a lie.”
“What exactly would you call it?”
“A slight departure from the absolute truth with completely honorable intentions.”
“A slight departure?” Josh’s jaw and neck muscles were flexing. “What part of your story was truth?”
“Uhmm... the part where I told you Grace wanted to leave New York City.”
He muttered a few unintelligible words. “Why did she want to leave New York City?”
“Yes. That’s the million-dollar question only Grace has the right to answer.” Ben pulled Josh to a stop before they entered the next hallway. “Look. I know you may not believe this, but I love my brother. I was only trying to prevent a huge tragedy. I’ve never seen him like this about a girl before, and I think Grace is really good for him. So I took a few liberties with the truth. As long as they end up together, that’s all that matters. Right?”
Josh grunted. “That remains to be seen—they’re not back together yet.” He shook off Ben’s arm and marched onward. “They were together again... in a way. But I doubt either of them will remember.”
*****
Brad’s head was pounding, but the pain didn’t bother him as much as his muddled brain. He was really upset about Grace. But why? Something was wrong. If only he could remember. He had to find Grace, and he was wasting time sitting in this room. He’d already heard his CT scan was clear. So why were they making him stay? If he could hide his confusion, he could stop wasting time and find Grace.
He was pulling on his shirt when a female doctor opened the curtain. “Hi, Dr. Gates. How are you feeling?”
He frowned at her. She seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t quite place her. He read her ID tag. “Hello, Dr. Dickson. I’m fine, thanks. CT scan showed no intracranial bleeding. In fact, I’m ready to go.”
“That’s great. Hey, I just got off my shift. Can I walk out with you?”
He shrugged his shoulders as he buttoned his shirt. “Sure. Let’s go.”
“Do you have your release papers signed?”
“I don’t know if he remembered to sign them,” Brad lied. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Are you kidding? Dr. Branson is a stickler for the rules.” She chuckled. “Usually, you’re pretty uptight about the rules, too. I guess that concussion made you a little more relaxed. I’ll do the release for you.” She brought up his information on the computer while he paced.
“I think I’ll go on outside.”
“What’s your rush? Hang on just a minute—I’m almost done. Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about my application to Physicians Across Borders. Do you think it’s a good idea?”
The topic didn’t ring a bell, but he could cover his lapse. “I think it’s a great idea. You’ll be wonderful, Dr. Dickson.”
“Aren’t you surprised at all? I mean, would you have pictured me doing something like that?”
“Absolutely. You’ve always been self-sacrificing and giving with all the patients.” Were his words true? For all he knew this woman was a selfish shrew. Oh well—it couldn’t hurt to say something nice. Her beaming smile indicated he’d spoken the right words.
“There. It’s done.” She signed off the computer. “Now we can leave without ticking Josh off. I’m so glad you’re excited about the Physicians Across Borders application. Maybe we could go to dinner and talk about it. I want to get your advice about asking for recommendations.”
He was already out the door and hurrying toward the exit. “Uhmm... I think I should go home and rest.”
“But you have a bad concussion. You’re not supposed to be alone tonight.”
“Oh, right. Well, I’m not going straight home.” They’d almost made it to the exit when he spotted Josh making a beeline for his vacated room. He ducked his head and slipped outside.
She followed him through the door. “Wait up! What’s your hurry?”
“I need to get somewhere.” He was almost running down the sidewalk, but she kept pace with him.
“Where are you headed?”
He slowed as the pain in his head swelled to a crescendo.
“I’m going...” Where was he going? He needed to find Grace but he couldn’t quite remember where she lived. “I’m not really sure.”
“Let me help you. I’ll go with you—just tell me where you want to go.”
“I need to find Grace. Something’s wrong, but I can’t remember. Do you know her?”
She paused, tilting her head as she regarded him. “I know her
, and I know where she lives. Let’s catch a cab.”
Brad was squinting against the bright afternoon sunshine that sent another ache into his thumping head. Grateful for her help, he let her hail a cab and guide him inside. She gave the cab driver an address.
“Grace teaches first grade, right?” she said.
“Right.” He hadn’t remembered that fact, but he didn’t want Dr. Dickson to know.
“Well, she won’t be out of school yet. I live fairly close to her house. Why don’t we go by my place for an hour or so until she gets out of school?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I’ll just wait outside her place. Where did you say she lives?”
She cleared her throat and chewed on her lip. “Uhmm... Brad, did you remember you and Grace are broken up? I think it’s been a month or two.”
A sharp pain shot through his head causing a wave of nausea. He and Grace weren’t together. Could that be the thing that had him so worried? He must have forgotten. He tried to remember the last time he’d seen her. He could picture it in his mind—holding her close, kissing her soft lips. Had it really been months since that had happened? Anything was possible—he couldn’t even remember where his own apartment was located.
“I still think I need to see her. It’s important.”
“Okay. We’ll just wait at my apartment until she gets out of teaching, and then I’ll walk over with you.”
He couldn’t think of a valid reason to object to her idea. But the nauseated feeling hadn’t subsided. Was it the concussion? Or was it knowing he was no longer with Grace?
*****
“Wow, Josh. You lost him?” Ben grinned at Josh who hadn’t stopped yelling since they’d arrived to find Brad’s empty room.
“Shut up, Ben.” Josh marched out to the nurse’s station. “Where did Dr. Gates go?”
Ben couldn’t help but sympathize with the slight girl with pale skin that grew even whiter at Josh’s fierce tone.
“I don’t know, Dr. Branson. I didn’t see him leave.”
“You didn’t see him leave? He had to walk right past here to go anywhere.”
Her lower lip began to tremble. “But I was gone part of the time, checking on another patient. I didn’t know I was supposed to watch him.”
“Why don’t you call his cell phone?” Ben suggested, attempting to divert Josh’s attention from the timorous nurse.
