Dr. Do-Right (Occupational Hazards)

10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

I was on edge Sunday, dreading having to call my mother during my lunch break. Mal had promised he’d come with me to the dinner she’d been texting me about all week, but I couldn’t do that to him. I’d stick with my original plan: tell mom something came up with Mal’s work, and weather the storm tonight, solo.

I wasn’t looking forward to it, but I’d handled my parents’ disappointments countless times now. Besides, the thought of coming home and cozying up to Mal and Siggy afterwards made it seem less daunting. Somewhat.

I never enjoyed getting on my mother’s bad side, and I already had a pit in my stomach when I stepped out of the scrub room.

“Sanchez, I need you to come with me.” My sneakered feet stumbled to a halt in the hallway outside of the OR. Dr. Caplan, the director at Cedar’s cardiothoracic surgery unit, stood in front of me looking serious.

The pit in my stomach ripped open into a chasm.

“Is everything alright?” I gulped, mind racing over the last few days. Had I done something wrong? In my Mal-induced haze, had I made some horrible mistake?

The look he gave me didn’t ease my sudden spike of anxiety. He seemed apologetic, but uneasy? “Let’s discuss it in my office.”

Adrenaline rushed through my veins. Megan, one of the surgical assistants, passed by, her eyes asking if everything was okay. I shook my head, unsure of the answer. “Well, I…I have to eval this patient…” I looked back at the OR, where just minutes ago, I’d been going about my regular day, assisting with a bypass surgery.

“I’ve already asked LeeAnn to step in on that.” Caplan motioned me forward. “Come with me, please.”

It was surreal, riding in the elevator silently with Caplan. Despite what my parents might think, I’d always been good. Good student, good worker. I’d never once been called into the principal’s office, or anything.

I didn’t know what to say. Was I supposed to say something? I continued to wrack my brain. What was going on? When I asked again, Caplan just shook his head and told me we’d discuss it in his office.

We walked down the hallway in a grim silence, my palms sweating. Fuck, I’d have to cancel dinner plans with my parents. There was no way I’d be able to face them if I was getting fired. My mouth dried out.

Was I getting fired ? Usually, when they fired people, they called security in to watch them clean out their lockers while we all whispered about it in the hallway. Was this a precursor to the locker clean out?

My heart tripped in my chest when I walked into Caplan’s office to see a tall, black-clad security guard standing in the center of the room. Bile rose in my throat. Oh fuck, oh fuck. This was it. I was getting fired today. For what? What had I done?

The guard turned as we entered, and my grip on reality started to slip.

“Asher?” I stared, my brain struggling to comprehend what I was seeing. The hot security guard from the gala was standing right there in front of Caplan’s desk, arms crossed and looking grim.

“Hello, Miss Sanchez.” He gave me a small smile that only curved up the corners of his mouth. “I wish we were meeting again under better circumstances.”

“What?” It was the only thing that came to my mind as my heart thumped faster in my chest. I tried to slow my breathing. When had it gotten so fast? “You… you work for the hospital?”

“No, ma’am. I apologize, I know this must seem abrupt—”

“Am I being fired? Are you here to escort me out?” My head swiveled back and forth between Asher and Caplan.

My director winced, padding over to a pitcher of water on the sideboard. “Of course not, Rija. You’re integral to our team. This is a matter of your personal security.” He poured a glass and handed it to me with a bracing look. Like I was going to need something to hold on to for this conversation.

“Ma’am, perhaps you’d like to sit down? I can explain a few things before we head out.”

“Head out?” The water in my cup rippled. I had a sudden, impeccably clear mental image of it slipping out of my hand and cracking open on the floor. I squeezed it tighter, holding it with two hands. “I still have to finish my shift. And then I have dinner at my parents’ house…”

I trailed off. Asher was already shaking his head. “I’m afraid not, ma’am. We need to get you to a secure location ASAP.”

“Secure…” I trailed off again, tired of just repeating everything he said. I took a breath and a sip of the water. It eased my dry throat enough that I started over. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand what’s happening.”

Asher nodded gravely. “Yes, ma’am. I understand. Maybe you’d like to take a seat for this. I’m aware this might come as a shock.” He waited for me to perch on one of the leather chairs facing Caplan’s desk before he continued. “My company, RISI Securities, provides personal security services for Dr. Dobrev. Recently, he’s received several threats to his life, and this morning, we received one targeting you—”

“Death threats?” I sprang to my feet, water sloshing around me. “Is Malachi alright?”

Asher reached his hand over, plucking the glass from my grasp and setting it lightly on the desk beside him. “Dr. Dobrev is fine. Safe at his apartment. I assure you, he is completely unharmed and will remain so for a very long time, if we have anything to say about it. Please.”

He gestured again at my chair. Something about the soothing tone of his voice and the hint of his wry smile settled some of my nerves. Malachi was okay. That was good. But my head was still spinning. “He’s been receiving death threats? How long has this been going on?”

Asher watched as I sank back onto the edge of the seat. I couldn’t fully commit to the backrest right now, and he seemed fine with that. “Dr. Dobrev has had a stalker for some time. It seems his move to Chicago triggered something, and the threats began in earnest a few weeks ago. This morning, we received intelligence indicating that his aggressor is getting more serious, and is now focusing on you.”

“I…but he’s safe?” My palms weren’t just sweating now, they were shaking. Hurting. I realized I’d clenched my fingers so hard there were little half-moon imprints in my skin.

“Yes, ma’am. Completely safe, I assure you. According to his personal protocols, once he is secure, our team has orders to likewise secure Sonia Dobrev, Joanne and Richard Dobrev, and you.” That dry, unexpected smirk made an appearance. “I’m on Rija duty.”

“I’m…on his security protocols?” Something about the concept overwhelmed me. I buried my face in my hands. Out of nowhere, a flood of tears prickled my eyes. I still didn’t fully understand what was going on. All I knew was that Mal was in danger and had somehow still found a way to look out for me, even though he was miles away, across town in some sort of security lockdown.

My breath shuttered in and out, mind spinning to keep up. This was bad. Horribly, ridiculously bad, like something out of a movie. I pressed my hands harder against my face. Focus, Rija. I was trained in emergency response and triage. I could do better than this.

I bit my lip, the pain helping to center me. “How long has this been going on? The threats? The stalker?” I glanced up, hastily smearing tears away from my eyes. I could cry later, like maybe when I had Mal and Siggy in my arms and we were all a safe distance away from windows.

Asher nodded, his eyes warm and understanding. “That might be a conversation you have with Dr. Dobrev yourself. Would you like to speak to him? I’ve got strict orders to call him as soon as you’re secure. Now that you’ve been briefed, we can exfiltrate.”

“Yes, please, I’d like to talk to Malachi.” My shoulders eased a centimeter at the thought. While Asher pulled out his phone, I glanced back at Caplan, who was still hovering by the water pitcher. My stomach lurched again. God, how must this look to him? I was a hard worker and always tried my best to conduct myself professionally. And now, suddenly, I was using his office as a refuge from my boyfriend’s stalker? It was ridiculous.

“Director Caplan, I’m so sorry you’re getting dragged into this.” My fingers twisted in my lap. He shook his head, reaching over to give me a careful pat on the shoulder, like I could fall apart at any moment. I swiped my hands at the tears under my eyes again.

“Rija, really. Don’t worry about a thing. Your safety is my priority here. Let us know what you need and we’ll make it work, alright? Your job will still be here when all this has blown over. You understand me? That should not be your concern right now.”

It hadn’t been my concern until he’d said something about it. Double fuck. What would happen next? Tomorrow? This week? How long did it take to apprehend a stalker?

I didn’t have any answers. Instead, I just gave Caplan a trembling smile, falling back on the etiquette my parents had drilled into me since before I could speak. When in doubt, just smile and nod . “Thank you, sir. That means a lot.”

“Here you go. Answered on the first ring.” Asher handed me a phone. I grabbed at it with both hands.

“Mal?”

“Rija! I’m so sorry. I swear, I thought we had it under control.” His words rushed out of the speaker like they’d been bottled up for hours. The sound of his panicked voice sent a fresh wave of tears to my eyes. He sounded frantic.

“Are you okay? You’re sure you’re alright?”

His response was instant. “Yes, Ri. I’m absolutely fine. Are you?”

I glanced around, a surreal vertigo feeling ringing in my ears. “I’m not sure. I guess this all just feels so sudden and crazy. Mal, how long has this person been threatening you? Why didn’t you tell me?”

He blew out a long breath. I could practically see him hunched over on the couch, scrubbing his hand down his face. “A long time, Kitten. Too long. I should have…done more for her. And now it’s too late.”

I sniffed, the regret in his voice not doing anything to help the tears that wouldn’t stop running down my cheeks. “Her? Your stalker?”

“Yes, it’s…” He paused, and I heard a low murmur in the background. “Rija, we’ll have to talk about this when you’re here. But you need to go.” His words reached me right as Asher knelt down beside me.

“Miss Sanchez, we need to move out now. It’s a lot easier to secure your apartment than it is to lock down the whole hospital.” His warm green eyes didn’t seem overly flustered or concerned, but his hand on my arm, urging me out of the chair, spurred me into action. I tried not to sway on numb feet when I stood.

“Right, I have to go. Crap, I don’t have any of my stuff.” Even as I spoke, Asher lifted my work bag from the floor at his feet, offering it to me. I took it automatically.

“We took the liberty of retrieving your things from your locker to speed things along.”

His hand on my upper arm pushed me gently to the doorway while I stared down at the bag in my hand. I hadn’t even noticed it sitting there. My other hand was still clutching Asher’s phone to my ear, where I could hear Mal breathing softly. I shook my head to clear it.

“My locker was locked.”

He fished in his pocket before pulling out the familiar hot pink combination lock. “No sweat.” I blinked as he slid it into the outside pocket of my bag.

“O-okay. I—Director Caplan, I have to—”

Caplan nodded, waving me on. “We’ve already started calling people to handle your shifts this week. Be safe, Rija. We’ll see you soon.” He sounded more confident than I’d ever been in my entire life. I wanted to take comfort in his optimism, but I still felt like I was scrambling for a foothold.

It was a struggle to keep my legs and breath steady as Asher led me back down the hall. He murmured something into his earpiece. The same one I’d seen on my driver on my way to the gala. I sucked in a breath.

“Rija?” Mal asked in my ear, still on the line.

“All that security at the gala. That was for you? For this?” I remembered the security guards at the apartment that night, too. The ones I’d seen around the lobby over this past week. We used to only have one night guard. Why didn’t I realize it before now?

In the two beats he paused before responding, my heart sank into my stomach. I knew his response before he even said anything. “Yes.”

A burst of air left my throat. Like a sob or a cry or a shout. Maybe all of them put together. Asher’s hand on my shoulder squeezed. “Why didn’t you tell me, Mal? You’ve been dealing with this all by yourself? Has this…have all those ‘work emergencies’ really been about your stalker?”

“…Yes. I’m sorry, Kitten.” My chest squeezed, more tears rolling. Just a few minutes ago, I’d been worried about my mother sniping at me, and for the last few weeks, Mal’s life had been in danger? I could have lost him and never even known there was anything to be worried about.

“It’s really not that big a deal,” Mal assured me. “I received a threat that she’d try and get to me at the gala. It was quick work to put a screening team out front.”

“Not a big deal?” I sobbed again, air trapped in my lungs. I could have lost him .

“It’s their job, Ri. I know…it seems like a lot. But I promise, everything is fine. This is…completely routine.”

He was lying. I could tell he was. He was minimizing this situation and the danger he was in to make me feel better, to ease my struggling, sawing breaths.

I needed to get to him, right now, to see that he was alright with my own two eyes, and then shake him until whatever had come loose in his brain popped back into place.

Everything else seemed so insignificant now: My parents’ disapproval, Sonia’s reaction to our relationship…none of it mattered. Mal mattered. Sonia mattered. I needed to be with them, right now. We’d figure everything out, together.

“Where’s Sonnie?” I asked, refusing to address his absurd claim that this was all routine. We’d discuss that later, in person, in private.

Asher ushered me through the door to the stairwell, pausing when I did. When I gave him a questioning look, he just pointed down.

“On her way to the airport. She’s safe, I swear. She’ll be here tonight.”

“Okay. Okay,” I repeated, eyeing the stairs, unsure if my shaky legs were up to the task. I turned back to Asher. “No elevator?”

“Exfiltrate,” he nodded with a smirk. “We’re going to be a bit sneaky.”

“Okay.” I started down. “I’m coming, Mal.”

“Yes, good, just get here and we’ll talk. We’ll figure everything else out, Ri, I swear.”

I gulped, gripping the phone so tightly I could feel the ridges of the case on my finger pads. Next to me, Asher eased the duffel bag out of my hand and tossed it over his shoulder. I hadn’t even noticed I’d been struggling with it. Now that it was gone, I realized it had been heavy. Had they emptied my whole locker in there?

I had too many questions and hardly any answers. Just stairs. Ten floors’ worth of them.

“Mal, will you stay with me? While I get there?”

“Always, Love. Always.”