Page 52 of Fight or Flight
Katherine slid out from beneath the blankets, leaning against the headboard. “Yes, I’ve been up. I had a wave of dizziness hit me when I was in the closet, and I figured I was safer in bed.”
Tyler placed a cup of coffee and a plate of toast on her night table. “No sneaking around just yet. Doctor’s orders. I wasn’t sure if you’re a breakfast person, but you need to eat something. It’ll help absorb the drugs in your system. When you’re ready to start moving, that will also help. Drink lots of water, too.”
“Yes, Doctor.” Katherine couldn’t help herself, despite her circumstances. She took a sip of coffee. “This is good. You found my special assortment of Keurig pods.”
“I did. I’m somewhat of a coffee connoisseur. It’s what I live on some days,” Tyler told her.
“I like that. I’m a bit of a coffee nut myself,” she said, then realized she’d used the wordnut. Had Tyler caught that? He probably thought she was nuts anyway, so what did it matter?
“I figured as much when I saw that swanky coffee machine. I wasn’t sure how to use it, so I went with the Keurig.”
“The JURA? Late-night shopping. It’s nice, though. Makes two espressos at the same time. I have four coffee machines,” she teased. “Three too many.”
Katherine knew this small talk about coffee was just to avoid the elephant in the room. She needed to get her act together and find out who had broken into her home, who had her notebook, and how they were able to get inside her house. This was nice, though. She hadn’t been this relaxed in such a long time. She hesitated, because right now, in this moment, she actually felt at ease.
“Don’t you have work to do today?” she asked. Anything to prolong the inevitable.
“I had my secretary Liz send my appointments to a colleague of mine. Rose is a good friend. We’ve had to do this many times over the years, so it’s not a problem.”
Katherine wondered just how good a “friend” this Rose was. “I wish you wouldn’t have. I don’t want to mess up your day . . . your week, your life. I’m good here. I promise.” That was a lie, and she knew it. She wanted him here, though she hated that he’d had to change his work schedule to babysit her.
“It’s fine, Katherine. None of my appointments were matters of life or death. Rose can handle them. She’s an excellent doctor.”
Again, Katherine wondered if Tyler and Rose’s relationship was more than that of just professional friends. It wasn’t her business, but this was the first man she’d been around, other than Doc, in more than seven years. When she actually thought about the number of years she’d purposely locked herself away from the world, it was shocking. She didn’t have any friends, no family, unless there were distant relatives from generations back that she was unaware of. Her choices had placed her in this insane life. Looking at it now, she could see why the folks from the community website called her “the crazy lady on the mountain.”
“I’m so sorry you got caught up in this mess,” she said, reaching for a piece of toast.
“I’m a big boy. If I didn’t want to be here, I wouldn’t be. I spoke to Doc earlier. Detective Davidson called and said they got a good set of prints from your desk last night. They’re running them through IAFIS, so whoever was in your home, if they have any type of criminal record, they’ll find out.”
Katherine knew any hope of keeping her identity secret was most likely futile. She would have to deal with it one way or another. “What is that—the letters, what do they stand for?” She should know, but she didn’t.
“Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System.”
“I’ll stick with the acronym,” she said. “Do you know how long it will take for the police to have a name? I’ve never personally been involved in a criminal investigation.” She reached for a second slice of toast. Katherine realized just then how protected she’d been her entire life, even before she’d decided to lock herself away from the world. At thirty-seven, she was as naïve as she’d been in college. She had been the only virgin in her graduating college class. Not that it was a bad thing, but it was unusual in this day and age.
“No, I’m sure they’ll call when they have any information. For now, you need to relax and get the Ativan out of your system. I’m going to get you another coffee and some water.” Tyler took her empty cup and plate, leaving her bedroom without giving her a chance to respond. Katherine decided she liked that about him. He took charge without being overbearing. Unlike her dictatorial father.
He had not been a kind man. Not once did he ever put her on his knee, take her to an outing, or tuck her into bed at night. Nothing. In his words, he simply “bled oil.” Katherine could almost believe it, because he had no heart, nothing to pump blood through his veins like any normal person. His death had been tragic, but fitting for a man like him. She hated herself when she had that thought, but it was her true belief. Her mother had been cold, too. She could be nice when it suited her, but that was rare. Though she didn’t deserve to die the way she did. Katherine despised these memories. It made her remember the other bad things she did not want to remember.
“Piping hot,” Tyler said, as he held the mug of steaming coffee. “You’ll have to teach me how to use that fancy machine sometime. I like an espresso now and then.”
“I’d love to,” Katherine said, then wished she could take the words back, or at least thelovepart. “It makes a regular old cup of coffee, too,” she quickly added.
“Good to know. How are you feeling?” Tyler asked.
Katherine thought for a moment before answering. “Honestly, I feel better than I have in years.” And that was the truth. Maybe it was the aftereffects of the drug, or having Tyler there; maybe a combination of both. Whatever it was, she wanted it to stay.
“That’s great, K,” Tyler said, using Doc’s nickname for her.
“I’ll finish this cup, then I’ll clean up and come downstairs,” she told him. “I can’t remember a time that I stayed in bed this late.”
“I slept late for a week after I finished medical school.”
“Tell me about that. Where did you study? Why did you choose psychiatry?”
“I went to Duke for four years, then Yale Medical. After I finished medical school, I did a two-year fellowship at Yale. Fourteen years of books, no sleep, and no social life. Sounds fun, huh?” he joked.
“No, it sounds like you knew what you wanted to do, and you were dedicated. Adding another two years, that’s tough, but I think you’re a tough guy.” She truly did.
