Page 64 of The Stalker Snafu

It turned on its own underneath my grip, and someone from the other side pulled the door open.

Julian’s equally startled gaze met mine, and a brown fluffball of a puppy wiggled in his arms.

“Julian!” I cried in relief, barely refraining from throwing my arms around both him and the little dog.

A baffled smile spread across his face. His hair was as rumpled as his scrubs, and the bags under his eyes made me wonder when he last slept. “Hey, look at that. What brings my favorite patient in for a visit? If this is about the snails last night, I apologize⁠—”

“I need to talk to you,” I said, eyeing the adorable ball of fur in his arms and hoping my eyes weren’t bugging out too much. “Do you know anything about what’s going on?”

Julian’s smile faltered, and he resituated the puppy in his arms before studying my forehead. “What’s going on is your wound is healing nicely, and there’s almost no sign of the glue,” he observed, turning pensive. “Maybe I should go into Plastics. I’m pretty good.”

“Is Biscuit okay?” a tentative voice asked behind me. I turned on my heel to find the man without the cat hobbling over to us. He leaned heavily on a cane, eyes focused on the tiny dog.

“Your little Biscuit is more than okay.” Julian beamed, stepping around me and handing the dog to his owner. “He passed his exam with flying colors and handled his shots like a champ.”

The man’s worried face morphed into a smile, and he bounced the little fur nugget in his arm. My eye twitched with impatience.

“Now just take sweet little Biscuit over to Brenda, and she’ll take care of you.” Julian directed the man toward the lady at the desk, who was now giving me the stink eye.

I offered her a sheepish smile and a wave.

The man hobbled away with his puppy, and Julian turned back to me. “Now, back to business. I wasn’t aware you had any pets⁠—”

“Julian.” I forced his name through gritted teeth and took hold of his rumpled teal scrubs. Yanking, I dragged him through the doorway he’d come out of, and stopped just short of shoving him against the wall. “I need to talk to you privately right now.”

The room was small and yellow, with an exam table jutting out from one side and a few rickety chairs lining the wall opposite. The mixed smell of animal dander and disinfectants overpowered me. And… was that urine?

Julian’s brows flew up as he gently removed my fist from his sleeve, and he adjusted his wrinkled shirt before brushing his hands down the front. “Where’s the fire? I warn you, I’m just finishing up my shift and I had a long night after that party—a pony gave birth. Whatever’s going on, please dumb it down for me.”

My heart ricocheted in my chest. I decided to just blurt it out. “Noah’s in trouble.”

Any hint of Julian’s smile vanished.

“What kind of trouble?” he asked. “Where is he? Is he hurt?”

I shook my head, a little lightheaded. “I don’t know where he is, but there’s been some sort of misunderstanding. A giant, huge, really big misunderstanding, and I have no idea what to do. I can’t get ahold of him and he wasn’t home and this is just so big, Julian!”

I flung my arms out wide for emphasis while my chest heaved.

“Emma, breathe,” Julian told me calmly, stepping closer and gripping my shoulders. I barely felt his touch. “Deep breath in, right now. Match my breaths.”

I stifled a frustrated growl, forcing myself to copy each of Julian’s deep inhales and exhales. It felt like I had no control over my lungs, but Julian exaggerated his breaths—opening his mouth for an inhale and pushing out his lips when he exhaled.

It… helped.

The panic slowly ebbed, which opened the gates for my breathing to relax. I wrapped my arms around my middle, nodding at Julian in thanks. His answering smile was grim.

“Now what kind of really big misunderstanding are we looking at?” Julian asked, squeezing my shoulders before letting go. “What’s got you so freaked out?”

I took out my phone, and my fingers shook as I pulled up the FBI’s website. “It’ll be easier if I show you.”

I zoomed in on Noah’s picture before shoving the screen in Julian’s face and drawing another measured breath.

Julian stared at the screen for a good ten seconds before he sighed. “Shit.”

I didn’t hide my own shock at his lack of shock, and I wiggled the phone in front of his face as if he’d missed the FBI’s Most Wanted List at the top of the screen. “You don’t sound very surprised, and that scares me.”

Julian groaned and rubbed a hand over his eyes. “This cannot be happening again. We really don’t need this right now.”