Chapter 37 Cami
CAMI
“Doctor, I’ll get some forceps since we don’t know what we’ll see in there,” Gina said. She checked through a few cupboards, putting on a good show. “We need to have another talk with Vera. She’s still not restocking the OR correctly,” she lied.
She palmed the syringe, then angled her body between Scott’s sightline and her hand. She’d nearly reached me and was about to slide the syringe into my pocket when a noise in the hallway made us jump.
“Doc,” we both whisper shouted.
I’d hoped he would stay in his office until the surgery was over and Scott was gone, but of course that had gone wrong as well.
“Kramer!” Scott pushed open the OR door and motioned to Doc. “Come in,” he said as if they were old friends.
“Scott, what are you doing here?” Doc hesitated, then shuffled into the room.
“Sit down, Doc, you look tired.” Scott pulled his gun and used it to indicate a chair along the wall.
I went lightheaded for a minute when the glint from the silver barrel hit my eyes. But finally, something went right as Gina used Scott’s temporary shift in focus to slide the syringe into my pants pocket.
“Doc,” Scott continued, “why don’t you tell these girls what we’ve been up to?”
Doc looked terrified. I didn’t blame him. We all felt that way. But Gina and I needed to keep up a brave facade to keep all of Scott’s hostages alive.
“Doc was supposed to help me out Saturday, weren’t you, Doc?” Scott asked. “Then his wife had issues and he wouldn’t leave her, and I got a little desperate.”
“Are you talking about taking Ally?” I asked.
“Well,” he casually swung the gun in our direction and Gina and I gasped and grabbed each other’s hands, “I was hoping to get one of you two, but with your fancy new security,” he glared at me, “and your fancy new boyfriend, it didn’t work out.”
“Poor Ally,” Doc muttered.
Scott slammed his hand against the wall and we all jumped. “That’s right! Poor girl, and it’s all your fault because you weren’t where you were supposed to be. I owed those drugs to my guy days ago, but you bailed, and the girl was useless, and then I had to go on the run.”
His agitation was a bad sign. I wasn’t sure whether he believed his own story, but if he did, his delusion might be indicative of disordered thinking from withdrawal, despite his denials. It was also possible he was trying to pit us against each other for some reason.
“The prescriptions were one thing, but then he told me he needed me to operate.” Doc stared down at his tremulous hands. “I didn’t want to hurt them. I tried, Cami, I tried. But my skills... They’re just gone.”
I fought hard to swallow down the vomit that burned up my esophagus as understanding dawned on me.
Bella’s stitches hadn’t been done by an amateur.
The work had been a little too good for that.
But they hadn’t been sewn by a skilled practitioner, either.
Doc, my mentor, my friend, had done that to her.
He’d betrayed me, had betrayed our profession, and had betrayed the animals we were supposed to protect.
The prescription fraud alone could destroy the practice, but that paled in comparison to the nightmare he’d visited on helpless dogs. I didn’t understand it. I didn’t know who he was or how he could have done it
I couldn’t cry, I couldn’t scream, I couldn’t throw things in rage. I was numb. All I could do was utter that one word. “Why?”
“Because he was going to destroy you, Cami,” Doc answered. “With that video. He was going to humiliate you and destroy the business. I did it for you and for all of us.”
Scott had found a weak link and exploited it. I’d been terrified to have that video released, but I would have allowed that over choosing to help him abuse dogs or break controlled substance laws. But Doc was fragile, easily confused and influenced. And he’d been trying to protect me.
My heart broke for Doc. But it broke more for those helpless dogs. He’d had choices, no matter how difficult they’d seemed. Those animals had had no options.
I turned my back on him. Later, I knew I would break down, sob, spiral into grief. But right now, I had more important tasks at hand. First, I would deal with Scott. Then I would do everything I could for the dog.
“Gina, are we ready?”
“Ready.”
We ran through the pre-surgery checks. Working together was seamless. But we were pretending. I wouldn’t make a single incision until we were safe.
“Scott, if you come over here, I’ll hand you the packets as I remove them.”
That brought him right up into my personal space. I instinctively recoiled, then breathed through it. He wouldn’t be here for long.
“Gina, I’ll need these forceps.”
I reached out with my left hand, turning my body to the right, in Scott’s direction. I slid my hand into my pocket and eased out the syringe. I pivoted, thrusting my weight toward Scott, plunged the needle into his side, and felt the auto-injector engage.