Best Foot Forward

by Tamie Dearen

  Josh stuck a phone in front of Ben’s face and shook it with such ferocity Ben dodged backwards. “Because he left his cell phone! That’s why! He took everything else he owned, but he forgot his cell phone.” He began to pace. “I can’t believe he’s breaking all these rules today—I hadn’t signed his release papers.”

  “Excuse me, Dr. Branson?” the timid girl interrupted, flinching when he turned his gaze toward her. She indicated her computer screen. “It looks like Dr. Dickson signed him out.”

  The veins on the side of Josh’s red face were bulging. “Kara Dickson signed his release form?” His next words were unintelligible, but delivered with venom. He pulled out his cell phone and punched a few buttons, listening while it rang. When forced to leave a message, he ground out the words.

  “Dr. Dickson, this is Dr. Branson. You’d better have a really good explanation for why you signed a release for Dr. Gates without my permission. And if you have any idea where he went, I expect you to let me know immediately.” Josh stomped down the hallway, sticking his head in the unoccupied rooms, muttering about how Brad was “probably lost somewhere.”

  “Did Dr. Dickson hear about how the accident happened? Does she know Grace is in outpatient surgery right now?”

  “I don’t think so,” said Josh. “I tried to keep that detail out of the accident report, and smooth things over with Grace’s nurse. He wasn’t quite as angry after Brad fell and knocked himself out.”

  “Would Brad have gone home with her or maybe home to your apartment?”

  Josh pressed his fingers to his temples. “He could have gone with Kara, I guess, but she didn’t answer when I called. I don’t think he could find our apartment. He could be anywhere. But I guarantee he’s looking for Grace—she’s the only thing he’s talked about since he woke up.”

  “So maybe he’s at the outpatient surgery waiting room.”

  “One—we just came from there and we didn’t pass him. And two—he had no idea she was having a biopsy today.”

  “But he knew she was having some kind of surgery. Didn’t I hear he tried to kidnap her from her biopsy?”

  “Yes, but he didn’t remember any of that after the accident. I tried to explain it to him. But ten seconds later, he’d give me this blank expression and forget everything I’d just told him.”

  “But maybe he remembered more than you thought. We should check there first in case he circled around on the outside of the hospital somehow. And then we’ll split up and check all the places you can think of. Maybe some of the Marshalls will help us look. And really, what’s the worst that can happen?”

  Josh tilted his head down, glaring at Ben from beneath pinched brows. “Really?”

  A chill rippled down his spine. “Uhmm... Forget I asked that.”

  Chapter Twelve

  “Why don’t you come sit down? You know you shouldn’t move around so much after a concussion,” Kara reasoned.

  Brad ignored her, continuing to pace the floor. “What time is it?”

  Her sigh was labored. “It’s five minutes later than the last time you asked. It’s way too early to go to Grace’s house. Come sit down and I’ll get us a drink.”

  After she disappeared into the kitchen, he perched on the edge of the couch, leaning his elbows on his knees and burying his face in his hands. He couldn’t think. He was feeling more agitated with each passing moment. He battled nausea as another dizzy wave swept through his head.

  He felt hands on his shoulders, kneading his muscles. “This should help. Are you feeling tense?”

  He melted under her ministrations. “Yes. That feels great. But my head... I’m so dizzy.”

  “Why don’t you come lay down for a bit? I’ll wake you up when it’s time to go see Grace.”

  The room swirled around his head as she helped him to his feet. Leaning heavily on her shoulder he stumbled to the bed and collapsed. “What did you say your name was?”

  “I’m Kara. You don’t remember me?” Her voice was petulant, but Brad kept his eyes closed against the light shining in his eyes.

  “Could you turn the light off? It really hurts my eyes.”

  “Fine. Here, let me help you. Do you want to take your shoes off?”

  “My head is spinning.” He squeezed his eyes shut, and blessed darkness filled his mind.

  *****

  Kara flipped through the channels on the television. Nothing was going according to plan. She had Brad in her bed, but a fat lot of good that did. He’d been asleep for an hour. Her cell phone rang... Again. Josh was calling... Again. And she ignored it... Again. She needed to return his call, but she had to make some headway with Brad, first.

  The idea came to her like a flash. She had an amazing opportunity—a gift. And she wasn’t about to waste it.

  She tiptoed into the bedroom where he lay sound asleep on his back. Even in sleep, his face held an expression of pain. She made quick work of the buttons on his shirt, opening it and admiring the view presented. He looked even better than she’d imagined. She considered attempting to remove his pants, but she couldn’t take a chance on waking him. Unbuttoning her own shirt and stripping off her pants and shoes, she eased into the bed beside him.

  “Hey, Brad! Wake up!” She shook him until he opened his eyes. “Come on, it’s time to wake up.”

  He pushed up on his elbows, blinking his eyes at her. “Who are you? Where am I?”

  “Brad! Are you kidding me? I’m Kara—Kara Dickson.” She turned it on—batting her eyes against sudden tears and allowing her lower lip to tremble.

  “Why am I here? Did I sleep with you?”

  “Yes, of course you did. I mean, we did. I can’t believe you don’t remember.” She sniffed.

  “I don’t... I’m sorry... Who are you again?”

  “Brad. We just made love. How can you not remember my name?” A tear slid down her cheek.

  He slid out of the bed onto his knees. “Where... Where is the bathroom?” Oh no—he was going to be sick.

  “In here. It’s right here.”

  He crawled behind her and made it to the toilet before he threw up.

  Great—so much for her big plan. “It looks like we’re going back to the emergency room.” She was startled by a loud banging on the front door. “Just stay here.” As if he could do anything else. She threw a towel at him and made for the door, fastening her shirt on the way.

  “Hello, Dr. Dickson.” Josh pushed his way inside when she opened the door. “Is something wrong with your phone?”

  “I... I didn’t hear it. I’ve been rather preoccupied.”

  “So you didn’t get my message?”

  “Uhmm... No, I’m sorry. But actually it’s good you’re here. I think Brad’s gotten worse.”

  “So he’s with you? We’ve been looking for him.” For the first time he noticed her state of undress.

  “We were... This is strictly confidential, of course. We were in bed, and well... Afterwards, he started feeling nauseous.”

  “You were in bed? With Dr. Gates?”

  “I don’t know what came over us. It was a moment of weakness, I guess.”

  Josh’s eyes were hard as flint. “Where is he?”

  “In here.” She led him into the bathroom.

  Josh took in the scene and mumbled something before bending to speak to him where he lay on the floor. “Brad! Let’s go. Can you get up?”

  His eyes fluttered open. “My head. Stabbing.”

  Josh said, “Dr. Dickson. Help me get him up.”

  She pulled her pants back on, and together they got him to his feet.

  “I’ve got him from here,” said Josh. “You go get a cab.”

  She dashed to the street, still in bare feet, to secure a ride, hoping Brad wouldn’t vomit on her carpet before Josh got him outside.

  “Do you want me to come with you?” Kara asked as Josh deposited Brad’s wobbly, moaning form into the cab, his shirt still flapping open.

  She couldn’t help wincing at
his ferocious tone. “No, Dr. Dickson. I don’t want you to come to the hospital with Dr. Gates.”

  “Look, I’m sorry about sleeping with Brad. But these things happen, you know. He may want me with him when he comes back out of this.”

  “I doubt that very much.” Josh’s jaw was clenched as tight as his fists. She hadn’t foreseen his virulent reaction to her revelation. But no matter—she should be able to manipulate both of them with her claim. After all, no one could refute it.

  *****

  Both Hannah and Claire regarded Grace with rather triumphant expressions when she opened her eyes, blinking against the bright lights.

  “Is it over?” Her voice sounded as raspy as it felt.

  “Here Gracie.” Connie placed a straw to her mouth. The cool water soothed its way down her parched throat. “Yes, it’s over. But you need to wake up a little more before we can take you home.”

  “Are you surprised to see Hannah and me?” asked Claire, with one corner of her mouth twitching in a smile. “You thought you could get away with it, didn’t you? You sent Mom a text about the biopsy time, but not the rest of us.”

  “It was an accident.”

  “You accidentally forgot to send a text to a single one of your siblings? And you accidentally told Mom not to tell the family? Ha! Right. But your little ploy failed anyway—I’ve got the video right here.” Hannah held up her phone.

  “But I just now woke up.”

  “Yes, it was the stuff you said before you were really awake that made it all worthwhile.” Hannah chuckled.

  “Mom, why didn’t you stop them?”

  “Me? I can’t control your sisters. I thought you were the sister president—at least that’s what you’ve told me in the past. It sounds like you have a small insurrection going on, but that’s not my problem. I’m Switzerland.”

  “What about Brad? Was he here? Did you make me say something embarrassing to him?”

  Claire said, “Hmmm... Brad? Let’s see. Are you talking about the guy you broke up with and refused to talk to for a couple of months? That Brad? The one you were supposed to talk to immediately after your biopsy because you agreed to take the dare? Is that the Brad you’re talking about?”

  “Please don’t torture me any longer. Did you or did you not totally embarrass me by letting Brad talk to me while I was under-the-influence?”

  Hannah’s cell phone buzzed. “It’s Olivia! Hey Olivia, did you find him? What? Yes, she’s pretty much awake now. Sure... Here she is.”

  Hannah’s eyes were wide as she handed Grace her phone. Olivia’s excited voice rang out in her ear. “Grace, did you really tell the receptionist at your school you were having plastic surgery?”

  “What? No, of course not. I mean, I joked about it, but I wasn’t serious. She couldn’t possibly be that dense.”

  “Well, she evidently took you seriously. And then, when Brad came to the school—”

  “Brad came to my school? When? This afternoon?”

  “No, he came looking for you this morning. And that’s when he found out you were having plastic surgery. And that’s also when he told her to call the police about your stalker.”

  “My stalker? Brad said I had a stalker? I didn’t even know I had one.”

  “Well, this stalker turned out to be an innocent substitute teacher who didn’t appreciate getting handcuffed at the elementary school. I think you may have to find a different sub next time you need one.”

  “It sounds like I may have to find a different job.”

  “We’ve got quite a few things to ask Brad about when we finally find him. I don’t suppose you’ve heard from the others.”

  “What others? What are you talking about?”

  “Didn’t they tell you Brad was missing?”

  Her stomach began to churn. “No. No one said he was missing.”

  “Yeah, he disappeared from the ER.”

  “Before his shift was over?”

  “No, he wasn’t working. He was recovering from busting his head on the concrete when he was rescuing you from your biopsy, which he thought was plastic surgery. So everybody else is out looking for him. Emily and Spencer, Pop and I, Ben, Josh... Wait! That’s Josh calling. I’ve gotta go.”

  “What are you talking about?” Grace’s voice raised an octave. But Olivia was gone.

  *****

  “Yes, I found him. We’re headed back to the ER,” Josh told Olivia. “Can you let the others know?”

  “How is he? I assume he’s not too good if you’re going back to the hospital.”

  “He’s...” Josh glanced toward Brad, but his eyes were glassy. “Honestly, I’m worried. But I need to go.”

  Stashing his cell, he tapped the taxi driver on the shoulder. “I know the traffic’s bad, but if there’s any way we can get there faster...”

  The cabbie answered with an outraged explanation of the impossibilities of his request, complete with a few expletives.

  “Sorry. I just thought it might be bad for business if he died in your back seat.”

  “Why are you in my cab and not an ambulance?” Josh ignored him as he tended to Brad, but he noticed the driver was honking and changing lanes more often as he weaved his way down the busy streets.

  “Brad. Hey, how are you feeling?”

  He answered with a foul word Josh had never heard him utter.

  “Still nauseated?”

  He turned his head and focused his eyes on Josh, blinking rapidly. “I can’t find Grace.”

  “I know where she is. I’m taking you to her right now.”

  “I’m going to see Grace?”

  “Right now, buddy.”

  He squeezed his eyes tight as both hands raised to hold his head. “My head hurts.”

  “I know it does. Brad, I need to know. Did you sleep with Kara Dickson?”

  His brows furrowed. “No. Who is that?”

  “Dr. Dickson. You were at her apartment just now—in her bed.”

  He shook his head, squinting his direction. “I don’t know her. I know you, but I don’t remember your name.”

  “Josh. I’m Josh. We’re roommates. So you didn’t sleep with her?”

  “Who? Grace?”

  “No, Kara Dickson.”

  “Excuse me.” Brad rolled his window down, hanging his head out before retching.

  “Yeah, that’s how I feel about her, too.”

  *****

  “Why am I getting a spinal tap?” Josh tried not to show his exasperation at Brad’s continual barrage of questions. Brad was lying on his side, while Josh worked behind him with a resident assistant.

  “You tell me. That seems to be the only part of your brain that’s still working right. Of course, that was true even before you hit your head on the sidewalk.”

  “I hit my head?”

  Josh bit back a smart response. “You fell and hit your head. You were unconscious for about seven minutes.”

  “Did we do a CT scan?”

  “Done. No ICB detected. Continued worsening headache, dizziness, and nausea with emesis.”

  “So I need a tap to see if there’s bleeding missed by the CT.”

  “And we’re doing that now.”

  “You shouldn’t have released me.”

  This time an expletive slipped out before he could stop it. “I didn’t release you—you left and I wasted an hour looking for you!”

  He noticed Brad’s shoulders shaking and repented of his harsh words. Now he was crying, an emotional response from his worsening condition.

  “I’m sorry, Brad. It’s okay, man.”

  But Brad broke out laughing. “Ow! It hurts to laugh.” He breathed rapidly through his mouth. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist teasing you. I know you wouldn’t have released me.” Teasing? Was he coming back to his senses?

  “That was a joke? Don’t move. Big pinch.”

  “Sorry, Josh. Ow!”

  “You know who I am?”

  “Do I know who you are? What are you
talking about? Are you trying to remind me of the fact you got promoted over me? Because you’re not really my boss, you know. You’re not my attending.”

  “No... How do we know each other?”

  “Are you asking about being roommates or about doing our residency together?”

  “What’s your brother’s name?”

  “I can’t say it in polite company.”

  Josh chuckled as he sealed the last vial of fluid. “Okay, done.” Josh handed the vials to the resident. “Get these to the lab right away.”

  He turned back to Brad. “I’m glad you’re a bit more lucid, but you’re not out of the woods yet. What do you remember?”

  He grimaced. “I think my head hurts too much to remember anything.”

  “Do you remember riding in the taxi with me?”

  “Fuzzy.”

  “Do you remember going to Kara Dickson’s apartment?”

  “No way. I would never do that.”

  “Well, you did. That’s where I found you.”

  “Ughh! Why did I do that?”

  “How about throwing up?”

  “Sounds like a good idea.”

  “No, do you remember throwing up?”

  “Not so much.”

  “Leaving the ER with Kara?”

  “Nope”

  “Sleeping with her?”

  “What! I didn’t sleep with her.” Brad started to sit up, but Josh held him down.

  “Don’t move—you just had a spinal tap. You’re head’s going to hurt even worse if you don’t lie still. You know that.”

  “But I didn’t sleep with her.”

  Josh lifted his eyebrows. “She claims you did.”

  “And you believe her?” His voice was miserable.

  “I didn’t say I believe her, but there’s no way to prove it didn’t happen.”

  “This is ridiculous. Why does God hate me?”

  “Let’s drop it for now. What else do you remember?”

  His face creased in concentration. “I remember looking for Grace... And you were helping me. But... but I was looking for her here at Mercy General. Why would she be here?”

  “What else? Do you remember falling and hitting your head?”

  “No. Just bits and pieces of being in the emergency room. What about Grace? Did we find her?”