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Chapter 13
Lori had been exhausted, yet she had stayed awake for hours after her brother’s unexpected visit. The sensual kiss had been interrupted and Gunner had shifted back to being her protector. His kisses showed that his desire was as strong as hers.
Yet Gunner held back, and Lori understood. He didn’t want to take advantage of her. He wouldn’t be living with her if she wasn’t in so much danger. The arrangement wasn’t meant to be as friends with benefits. Lori had to keep things in perspective and not act impulsively.
But Lori’s resistance crumbled when Gunner was so close. The movies had been romantic, and it wasn’t easy to remember that they were only friends. But she didn’t see how to spend so much time with Gunner and keep from falling for him.
Lori feared that she had already opened her heart. But that didn’t mean that things would work out. She finally drifted to sleep that night feeling comforted and safe. For the rest of the weekend, Gunner had been the perfect gentleman—which didn’t subdue Lori’s desire at all.
On Monday, it was good to get back to work. After Gunner made her promise not to be alone with Matt, he left to go to Stealth, but assured her that he would return at the end of the day. Lori didn’t venture outside the clinic. She ate lunch with Sarah in the employee lounge and was back to work within an hour.
Staying busy kept Lori’s mind off upsetting issues, but she still had much to deal with. The incident with Nick bothered her, since it confirmed her suspicion that he was back on drugs. One of Gunner’s teammates had stayed with her brother through his withdrawal until he fell asleep. A symptom of a cocaine crash was excessive sleeping, but she didn’t know what would happen when he finally woke up. Her brother was an adult, so there was only so much that Lori could do.
At the clinic, she managed to avoid Matt for most of the day. He didn’t seek her out either, as he probably felt awkward about what he’d done. The cut on her neck had been minor, and Lori had removed the bandage before going to the movies that night.
But she needed to figure out what to do, so she met with Adam. He knew Matt’s personality, yet he was surprised to hear about the violent outburst.
“I need to fire him,” Lori said. “But it’s really bad timing.”
“I suppose I’m stating the obvious,” Adam said, “but what you’ve discovered about the medical supply orders is disconcerting. I’d guess that Matt is making money on the side. Medicine isn’t accidentally over-ordered, and painkillers don’t go missing. He must have a buyer.”
“I haven’t wanted to face that,” Lori said. “I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. But the situation has progressed beyond that.”
Late in the day, Lori’s attorney called. The autopsy report was ready, so he wanted to set up a meeting and go over the findings. Lori agreed to meet at his office, but she wanted the family with her. She didn’t want to hear the results in advance.
When Gunner picked her up, she told him about the upcoming meeting. She had scheduled it for the following afternoon. Uncle Sheldon would leave his office early and give Nick a ride to the attorney’s office. She set the meeting soon, as she didn’t wish to delay hearing the results.
“I’ll drive you there and wait outside,” Gunner said.
“I hope so, because I might be a wreck afterwards,” Lori said. “But I couldn’t tell what to expect. It might have been needless to go through all of this. My attorney sounded calm like he usually does, so I don’t have a clue.”
“I’m not an expert in poisons,” Gunner said. “Remind me what we’re looking at here.”
“I’m expecting that respiratory failure will be confirmed,” Lori said. “But if thallium was in my father’s system, the poison could have affected the muscles that assist in breathing.”
“Meaning that poisoning was the cause of the respiratory failure.”
“Exactly,” Lori said. “The autopsy report might document damage to internal organs or indicate other signs of physical distress. But an examination of my father’s hair was done to determine whether thallium was present—that’s the most important thing.”
Gunner stayed up late with Lori, talking things over and discussing possibilities. It was good to know that she wasn’t alone. Whatever the autopsy showed would determine her course of action, and she prayed that she was wrong. She would be relieved if she learned that the cause of death had been correct all along.
*****
Lori woke early the next morning. She had coffee with Gunner but didn’t have much of an appetite. After she dressed, Gunner drove her to the clinic to check on things and then hung around to wait for her. Matt was conspicuously absent, but Lori didn’t ask about him.
Glenn Samuels’ law office was downtown, so it didn’t take long to get there. Lori spotted Sheldon’s car in the lot, relieved to know that he was already there with Nick. She hoped her brother was lucid enough to understand the proceedings.
Butterflies fought in Lori’s stomach as the elevator slowly rose to the attorney’s floor. Gunner gave her a reassuring look, and she took a deep breath to calm her nerves. The door slid open and Lori stepped onto the marble floor, her heels clicking on the polished surface.
Gunner opened the etched glass door for her, then took a seat in the waiting room. The receptionist greeted Lori then escorted her to the conference room. When Lori entered, Uncle Sheldon stood and gave her a hug.
Nick nodded at Lori but didn’t bother to get up. He looked pale and unhealthy, despite days of sleep. She wondered how he would react to all of this, considering that he had been against it. But it was too late to call it off.
Lori sat next to her uncle. Her brother was on the other side of the table. The attorney stood at the end near the window. He had handled legal matters for Lori’s father for years, so he had become a friend of the family, which made this easier.
“We’re ready,” Lori said.
“I appreciate all of you coming today,” Glenn said. “I’m going to read the autopsy report. If you’ll hold any questions until I’m finished, I’ll address your concerns then.”
