Chapter Three

 

A few days later the abdominal pain returned with a vengeance.

The pain was so excruciating I was forced to call 911. By the time the paramedics wheeled me through the emergency room doors of Johnson Memorial Hospital, I was beyond caring if I lived or died. I just wanted the pain to stop. Sweat slicked my face, and my abdomen felt like someone was stabbing me with an ethereal firebrand.

“Stay with us, buddy,” one of the paramedics addressed me.

“I’m gonna be sick,” I mumbled, trying to sit up and use the bag one of them had given me in the back of the ambulance. I hadn’t eaten in days because the pain had been debilitating, so nothing came up.

I flopped down and writhed on the stretcher as a nurse and doctor in a white coat approached. His voice was distracted as he pressed his cool hand to my hot forehead. “Can you tell me your name?”

“Lorenzo,” I whimpered, clutching my searing gut. “Lorenzo Winston.” While I was burning up, the air around me was chilled and smelled of body fluids mixed with antiseptic.

“Loren—” Something about the voice seemed vaguely familiar. “I’ll be damned.”

“Something’s wrong,” I whispered, biting my lip so hard I tasted blood. “Help me.”

“I will.” The doctor pushed my shirt up and pressed gently on my lower abdomen. “Does it hurt when I press right there?”

I nodded, humiliated when a hot tear slipped from my eye. I didn’t usually cry. I wasn’t emotional like that. But the pain was so intense I had no control over my reactions. “Please make it stop,” I begged. “Please.”

The doctor barked out orders to the nearby nurses, and then he was beside me again. “You’re going into surgery immediately, Lorenzo.” His voice was tense, and I tried to focus on his angular features.

“Okay.” I grunted as another jolt of pain slammed through my abdomen. “What’s wrong with me?

“I suspect it’s your appendix.”

“Oh, God. That’s bad, right?”

“We have the best trauma surgeon in the county on tonight. You’re in good hands.” His voice was soothing as he leaned over me.

The edge of my vison was dark and blurry, and I could feel myself losing consciousness. “Do you think he’s forgiven me?” I was caught somewhere between the real world and a dream as my younger brother’s face swam before my eyes. I panted against the pain, guilt eating at me.

“Who?”

I clenched my jaw against the agonizing pressure in my lower stomach. “I don’t want to die. Not yet. Not until he’s forgiven me.”

“You’re not going to die.” The doctor sounded firm. “We’re going to take care of you, Lorenzo.”

Struggling, I focused my gaze on his face, taking in his strong jaw and angular cheekbones. But it was the honey-brown eyes that sent a shock wave of recognition through me. “You?” I frowned.

Ian gave an awkward laugh. “We meet again.”

“How’s Princess?” I slurred, wincing as sharp pains stabbed me again.

“Alive.” He looked a bit sheepish as he pressed his cool hand to my hot forehead.

“Told ya so,” I mumbled, wishing it was anyone but Ian witnessing my pathetic state.

“Yeah. You did.”

Two nurses grabbed either side of my gurney and pushed me down a brightly lit hallway. Somewhere nearby a baby screeched and a recorded voice crackled over the intercom system. The last glimpse I had of Ian was of him standing at the end of the hall looking perplexed.

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty.” A nurse beside the bed was hanging an IV bag. She was thin with short gray hair and wearing a smock with teddy bears on it. She finished what she was doing and faced me. “You’re one lucky guy.”

I cleared my throat, attempting to speak, but all that came out was a croak. My brain was foggy, and I half-wondered if I hadn’t imagined running into Ian in the emergency room.

“Against all odds, you should make a full recovery. Your appendix was on the verge of rupturing.” She poured me a glass of water from a plastic pitcher next to my bed and handed it to me.

I took it with shaking hands and sipped the cool liquid gratefully. Once I’d drained my cup, I met her gaze. “I thought I was going to die.”

“From what I heard, if you’d stalled even a couple of hours, you probably would have.” She shook her head. “You must have been in excruciating pain. Why didn’t you come in sooner?”

I set the cup down on the tray to the side of my bed. “I don’t know. I kept hoping it would go away.” I avoided her prying gaze.

She laughed. “Classic denial.”

Her words made me once more think of Ian. I really didn’t want to run into him again. “When can I get out of here?”

She frowned. “Uh, you just had surgery. You’re not leaving today.”

“Okay, but when?” A loud snore caught my attention. I hadn’t noticed immediately, but there was another patient sleeping in a bed across the room. He was an older man, mostly bald but with patches of unnaturally black hair still clinging to his white scalp.

“That’s up to your doctor and your insurance.” As she spoke, she carefully wedged another pillow behind my shoulders. “These darn pillows are like pancakes. One is never enough.” She smiled down at me. “Is that better?”

“Um, sure. Thanks.”

“My pleasure.” She headed toward the door. “If you need more pain meds just push the green button on the side of your bed. But it’s a set amount, so don’t blow it all in one go. Pace yourself.” She disappeared out of the room.

I adjusted my position, wincing as the skin tugged around my abdomen. I lifted one edge of the flimsy hospital gown, taking in the two small puckered incisions on my lower abdomen. I’d been expecting a huge incision, and was relieved that wasn’t the case. Hopefully the healing time would be less with smaller cuts in the body.

With a tired grunt, I lay back against the pillows. I felt rattled at how close I’d come to dying. I’d already suspected I was pushing my luck by not coming in sooner, but the nurse had confirmed my stupidity. The pains had been incapacitating. I hadn’t even been able to work. Of course I should have come to the hospital sooner.

But I hated hospitals with a passion.

Hospitals were a nightmare for me. They were a cesspool of whiny, bitter spirits who often wanted to settle a score. They’d see me and latch on en masse, and that was when the real fun began: migraines, vomiting, the shakes.

It wasn’t pretty.

So far during my hospital stay, I’d been lucky. No spirits had come calling as of yet. The drugs were most likely numbing me to their presence. I had little doubt they were there, hovering. Nagging. Hopefully I’d stay drugged long enough to escape the hospital without being bombarded by spirits. I wasn’t in the habit of taking messages from beyond the grave for free.

There was a knock on the doorjamb, and when I looked up, I found Ian standing there. My gut churned at the sight of him. He still wore his white doctor’s coat, and while he looked tired, he had a sort of disheveled sexy vibe. I wasn’t a vain man, but I immediately felt self-conscious about what I must look like. I probably looked like I’d been run over by a truck. I ran a shaky hand over my hair, trying to smooth down my stubborn cowlick.

“You’re awake,” he said.

“Yes.” I felt tongue-tied, which just annoyed me even more. I didn’t even like the guy. What did I care what he thought of me?

“You gave me quite a scare last night.” When he was near enough, he took my wrist. The touch of his firm fingers on my flesh had my arm tingling. I noticed the only ring he wore today was the silver one with the green stone. He looked at his watch distractedly, and after a few seconds he said, “Your pulse is good.”

I carefully pulled my arm away but still felt the warm imprint of his hand on my skin. “I’ve never been in that much pain in my life.”

“How are you feeling now?”

“Drugged.” I touched my tender abdomen. “Maybe that’s why I feel surprisingly good.”

“Yeah, when they wear off, you’ll be uncomfortable. But it won’t be anything compared to the pain you were in when you got here.”

“Thankfully.”

He studied me. “I was shocked to see you in the ER.”

“It was mutual.” I avoided his gaze and tugged at a string on the thin hospital blanket. “If I’d known you were on duty, I’d probably have tried to wait out your shift.”

He scowled. “I hope you’re kidding.”

I laughed weakly. “Not entirely.”

“Oh, really?”

“You were kind of an ass when we first met.” I suspected the drugs were loosening my tongue. But it felt nice to tell him what I thought of him. He truly had been a colossal ass when we’d first met.

He shrugged. “I didn’t mean to be an ass. I was just protecting my friend.”

“Pfft. I’m sure you’d prefer to see it that way.” I frowned at him. “You were out of line. You were mocking. It was rude. I’d never come to your place of work and mock you.”

A muscle jerked in his cheek. “Okay, fair enough. I should have been nicer.” My roomie gave a loud snort, and Ian glanced over with a concerned expression. “I was simply worried about Sylvia,” he murmured. “She’s very gullible.”

“I’m not the one you need to worry about. Just keep her away from my competitor, Weston Bartholomew. He really will make a ding in her check book.”

“Good to know.” Curiosity glittered in his eyes as he murmured, “Perhaps the spirits led you here last night, knowing I’d be here to save the day.”

I narrowed my eyes. “There you go mocking me again.”

“No. I’m not mocking you.”

I wasn’t sure I believed him. “Technically, isn’t it the surgeon who saved me?” He was so close, I couldn’t help noticing the silky blond hairs on his wrist and the glossy sheen of his manicured nails. I slipped my hands under the thin sheet to hide my ragged cuticles. “You were simply there when they wheeled me in.”

“Hey, I’m the one who diagnosed you and sent you to surgery. Give me some credit.” He gave an exaggerated sigh. “I get no kudos at all.”

Last night was hazy, but he had moved quickly to diagnose my problem. I suppose I owed him some thanks. “Fine. Thank you. You’re my hero. There, you’ve gotten your accolades. Now you can go.”

He pursed his lips. “Maybe I don’t want to go just yet. Maybe I also want to thank you.”

I frowned. “For what?”

He hesitated. “You were right about where Princess was.”

I held his gaze and slowly nodded. “Yeah, I know. I knew I’d be right. But to give credit where credit is due, it was Aunt Agatha who knew where Princess was. I simply relayed the message.” While I was brushing off his thanks, it actually was nice to have him acknowledge I’d been right. I liked that he was bothering to give me some sort of mea culpa.

“Yes. That’s right. Aunt Agatha told you where the cat was.”

“She did.” I squinted at him. “Now you’re a believer?”

“More than I was.” Ian smirked. “Which is why I’m willing to believe you were psychically drawn to me last night. So that I could save you.”

I laughed gruffly. “You don’t seem to understand what I do.” I relaxed against my pillows. Why was I enjoying talking to him? Was it the drugs that made him seem less annoying? I glanced at my comatose roommate. Maybe it truly was the drugs. “I talk to dead people’s spirits. That’s it.”

“Right. And they brought you here. To me.” Ian’s lips twitched.

“My gift doesn’t pull me to people like a magnet. I had no idea you were here. I can’t see through walls. My gift doesn’t give me x-ray vision.”

“Thank heavens. I wouldn’t want you to see my whitey-tighties.” He hugged his body as if trying to hide himself and batted his lashes.

I couldn’t help smiling at his fake modesty. I hadn’t expected him to have a sense of humor. He’d been too judgmental and uptight when we first met. Now I could see that he had another side to his personality. I wasn’t sure why he was bothering to show it to me though. “You’re safe. I have no interest in seeing your whitey-tighties.”

He didn’t react to my comment, and instead he changed the subject. “Can you read living people’s minds?”

“Sometimes.” Outside the room an orderly pushed a big rattling food cart past. “I occasionally get snippets.”

“Oh, dear.” He lifted his brows. “That could be awkward.”

“Don’t worry. I’m not interested in what you’re thinking.” My roomie made a bear-like growl and he rolled over, facing away from us. Unfortunately the back of his hospital gown fell open, showing his naked buttocks. I quickly averted my gaze.

Ian winced at my tone. “Ouch. You’re not good for my ego, Great Lorenzo.”

I studiously avoided looking in the direction of my bare-assed roommate. “Sure. Because that’s what we’re all here on earth for, right? To flatter your ego?”

“Damn. You’re really not pulling your punches.”

I gave a sheepish laugh. “Sorry.”

He sighed. “No. It’s okay. I probably deserve it after how I was when we first met.”

“Does it really matter what I think of you? It’s not like we run in the same circles.” I was right about that too. While he was attractive, I had nothing in common with a man like him. He was a doctor. His social life probably consisted of fancy cocktail parties where people sipped champagne while discussing the health of their stock portfolios. I spent most my nights at home microwaving Lean Cuisine mac and cheese and answering messages from depressed people online.

“We should be friends. I mean, after all, fate has thrown us together,” he said.

I laughed. “Why are you trying to charm me?”

He lifted one shoulder. “Well, it’s obvious you don’t like me. People usually do.”

“That’s probably because you’re a doctor. If you worked at Jack in the Box, no one would put up with your ‘charm.’” I used air quotes.

“There you go again.” He shook his head, but he didn’t really look put out by my sarcasm. “Maybe I’ll come see you when my shift is over in an hour.”

“What? No. That’s not necessary.” Why in the world would he want to come see me? That was the last thing I wanted. He made me nervous and I didn’t have the energy to deal with the weird feelings he brought up in me.

“But I want to come check on you.” He appeared shocked that I wouldn’t want him to come back again. “I need to make sure you’re healing nicely.”

“Please, you really don’t have to do that,” I insisted. “I don’t want to put you out.”

“It’s no trouble. I’m a doctor.” He looked like he was having trouble keeping a straight face. “I live to serve.”

“Oh, brother.” I smiled in spite of myself. It absolutely had to be the drugs that made him seem almost charming. “Aren’t there any other patients you can go bother?”

“You’re the only one that hasn’t succumbed to my charm.”

“I doubt that,” I said.

He glanced at his watch and sighed. “Damn. I have to go back to work now.”

“Okay.”

He didn’t move.

I said, “Don’t let me keep you.”

Ian narrowed his gaze and his expression became serious. “You know, I’m sorry that I didn’t believe you the other day. I thought you were a huge fake and . . . a crook.”

His heartfelt apology caught me off guard. “Uh . . . don’t worry about it. I’m used to people doubting what I do or thinking I’m a shyster.”

“It’s just that Sylvia has been taken advantage of many a time. She’s got a soft heart and she’s easily suckered. I wanted to prevent that happening to her again. But it turns out you weren’t doing anything wrong.” He grimaced. “You really were just helping her.”

I felt a little twinge of guilt, seeing as I planned on getting more sessions out of Mrs. Beckom. “It’s fine. I know plenty of fake psychics.”

“You mean your competition across town?”

“He’s not the only one, but yes, as I said earlier, Weston is a fraud. He has zero actual psychic ability. Make sure Mrs. Beckom doesn’t go to him while I’m out of commission. He’ll do his best to clean her out.”

“I’ll make sure she steers clear of him.” He looked at his watch and frowned. “I really do have to go. I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

“Me too. Do you by any chance know when I can get out of here?” The sooner the better. I was beginning to sense spirits in the room. I’d known it was only a matter of time before they sought me out. There was one particularly curious spirit hovering near my roomie. While I couldn’t see her clearly, her shimmering form seemed to be that of an older woman dressed in a 1940s era nurse’s uniform. She swirled around my roomies bed, apparently fascinated with the gurgling snores emanating from his open mouth. “I really would like to get out of here,” I said.

“Chomping at the bit to escape?” Ian asked.

“It’s a lovely hospital and all, but I don’t like hospitals.”

“Few people do.” He grabbed my chart off the end of the bed. “You had a laparoscopic appendectomy, so your hospital stay should be about two days, I believe.” His expression brightened. “Hey, that means I get to see you again tomorrow.”

I didn’t really want to get to know him better. He was charming, but I wasn’t interested. I didn’t have the energy to invest in the living. “As I said before, you don’t have to come see me. I’m fine.”

“Lorenzo, Lorenzo, Lorenzo.” He rehung the clipboard on the bed. “You won’t be able to fight my charm forever.”

“I can try though,” I murmured.

“It’s probably futile, but you do what you need to do.” He headed toward the door. “I’m pretty irresistible.”

“Should we be fraternizing? Isn’t there some sort of doctor-patient rule-thing against that?”

He stopped, and his shoes squeaked on the vinyl floor as he turned to face me. “There might be. But we’re safe.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because, while I’m an amazing doctor, I’m not officially your doctor.” He grinned. “So I can annoy you all I want.”

“Awesome?”

He pointed at me. “See ya tomorrow, Lorenzo.”

Shaking my head, I watched him leave. I was confused about what he hoped to get out of this acquaintanceship. Was he like this with all of his patients? Maybe I was taking him too seriously. Odds were, he wouldn’t come see me again. A guy like him had more important fish to fry.

My cell buzzed on the table next to my bed, and I groaned. I didn’t want to talk to anyone, but my business calls were routed to my cell. If it was a customer calling, I couldn’t afford to miss the call. I was already broke, and now I’d also have medical co-payments to pay. Gritting my teeth, I stretched my arm to grab the phone, wincing when the movement pulled my stitches. “Hello?”

There was some labored breathing, and then an agitated male voice said, “I need help. I don’t know who to trust.”

“Who is this?”

The person sighed. “It’s been so long. I suppose it’s only natural that you don’t remember me.”

I wrinkled my brow, and the hospital bed squeaked as I struggled to sit up. “We know each other?” I didn’t recognize the voice but that didn’t mean we’d never met.

“Yes. From before.”

I hesitated, gripping the cool metal of the bed railing. “If you feel you’re in danger, you should go to the police.” I wasn’t sure why this person was calling me. What help could I be on the phone? I was picking up waves of fear, although it didn’t take a psychic to know he was scared. There was obvious panic in his tone.

“I’m not sure how far he’ll go to stop me.” His voice was hushed.

“Stop you from what?” I had to strain to hear his voice as an announcement about the hospital’s vegetarian meal offerings came over the speaker system.

He exhaled tiredly. “Maybe I should have kept you in the dark longer. I just know he’s coming soon. Be very careful, Lorenzo. He’s well aware of the prophesy.”

“The prophesy?” I scowled. “Look, why won’t you tell me who you are?”

The line went dead.

“Hello? Hello?” Blinking at my phone, I tried hitting redial but the phone just rang and rang. I set the phone back on the side table, feeling uneasy. If I called the police, there probably wasn’t much they could do. I didn’t know anything about the caller. The cops might assume it was a prank. Perhaps it had been a prank. People often felt threatened by my psychic abilities. They didn’t understand them, so they mocked them.

I sat back against the pillows, trying to still the disquiet I felt. The caller had implied we knew each other. I definitely hadn’t recognized his voice. Was he a past client? I closed my eyes, feeling drained. The pain meds were kicking in and I was drowsy. If the man called again, I’d do my best to get more information out of him. For now, healing was what I needed to concentrate on.