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I glanced around my tiny space in the emergency room while I waited for the nurse to return, or better yet, for the doctor she’d promised to arrive. Through the gap in the curtain at the end of my exam space, I could see people walking by. I could hear other patients complaining, some in obvious pain, and several nurses.
Then, a man in a black leather jacket walked by.Beep, beep, beep, beep. The machine announced my distress.It’s him. Black Jacket Guy was here.
I had to get out of here. I was a sitting duck. Why hadn’t I recalled all the movie scenes before? The assassin who missed his target always went to the hospital to finish the job. If the victim couldn’t tell him what he wanted to know, a syringe of something went into the IV line, and the machines stopped beeping—game over.
He hadn’t found me yet, but as soon as he did…
The curtain opened.Beep, beep, beep, beep. The nurse entered. “X-ray has an opening for you now.”
That was my chance to get past him. I nodded and used the breathing technique that had gotten me through worse than this.Beep… beep. My heart rate slowed.
“Oxygen mask, please.” I held my hand out. “I feel a little faint.”
The nurse obliged and started the oxygen flow.
I held up a thumb and secured my hair behind my head, adjusting the pillow to hide as much of it as possible.
After unhooking the monitors, the nurse unlocked the wheels and split the curtain to wheel me out.
I draped my arm over my face.
“Are you all right?” the nurse asked.
“The lights are bright.”
Eventually, she stopped the gurney and set the brake. “The technician will be right with you. You’re next.”
I removed my arm and looked around—no sign of Black Jacket Guy.
She handed me a hospital gown. “They’ll want you to take off your top for the x-ray. You can put this on after.”
I nodded and accepted the gown.
As soon as she turned the corner, I ripped the tape off my wrist and yanked the IV needle out of the back of my hand. I didn’t care that it hurt, or that it bled.
My heart thundered as I hurried down the hallway, hoping I’d picked the right direction and wouldn’t run into Black Jacket Guy.
Ignoring the technician who called after me, I escaped through the ambulance entrance and took off in a painful run toward the street. When I reached it, nobody was following, soI slowed to a walk, although my pounding heart didn’t get the message.
I turned left and walked with my head down. No phone, no purse, no money, and no plan. I was fucked ten ways from Sunday. The TV episodes I could remember were my only guide. I couldn’t go home. I needed some place safe.Then what?
“You okay?” a man asked.
When I looked up, he wasn’t Black Jacket Guy. “Yeah,” I rasped. Realizing my appearance said exactly the opposite, I improvised. “Being the victim in acting class sucks.”
The man nodded and walked on. That’s when I saw the answer. The Covington Industries building rose up ahead. I’d find a friend there—and safety.
Once inside the tall building, I did my best to compose myself. But the looks I got said that bloody, dirty, and having peed on myself, I didn’t belong here. If they kicked me out, I was really up a creek.
I straightened. “Gus—” I addressed the security guard at the desk by his name tag. “—I need to see Bill Covington.”
“Sure you do.”
Yup, the dirt and blood on my shirt and the wet pants screamed more homeless than heiress.
I sighed. “Look, I didn’t have time to change after acting class. Tell him Serena Benson is here to see him.” I normally avoided throwing my family name around, but this was not one of those times.
He didn’t move for the phone. Instead, he pulled out his wallet and offered me a five. “Promise me you’ll use it for food.”
