10. Reed
Chapter ten
Reed
Two Weeks Later
Adjusting to New York isn’t as horrible as I imagined it would be.
Taryn and I ended up in a mega-rich, privately owned hospital with chains that stretch across the US.
Langford Center of Medical Research and Technology is a grand headquarters with a campus that stretches for miles.
The collection of glass towers, beautifully crafted limestone pathways, and landscaped gardens with perfectly crafted statues and benches is surreal and overwhelming.
It’s breathtaking from the outside looking in, but all I see is money.
Burton Langford, the owner and founder of this healthcare corporation, has this facility pinpointed as his main office.
He made sure to stock the hospital with everything one might need.
Gyms, churches, a full-service hotel, restaurants as far as the eye can see, shopping centers, and everything else imaginable.
I’ve never been in a health center this flashy.
As I walk the polished hallways that smell of light disinfectant and morning-brewed coffee from the little shop that takes up the center of the first floor, none of the glamor can distract from the same thoughts that have plagued me for the last two weeks.
Where is Thalia?
How is her shoulder doing?
I hope she’s okay.
Does she still have my car?
Has she even thought about me once since her abrupt departure?
Every day leads to more unanswered questions. She left as if the night we shared, though I was drugged, meant nothing to her.
It shouldn’t mean anything to me, yet I can’t stop thinking about her. I mostly wonder if she’s treating her wound with care and practicing her stretches, but there’s still that lingering, whispered thought that wiggles its way to the forefront of my mind.
Who is Brooks and why did he shoot her?
Mystery Girl is just that. One big mystery, and sometimes I don’t even feel like it was real—meeting her and experiencing the passion and heat we shared. Taryn has brought it up a couple of times, and that’s the only way I can distinguish that it wasn’t just in my head.
Thalia Kingsley really did a number on me for the short time we knew each other.
I sigh as I trudge through the part of the hospital that’s currently under repairs.
There are clear tarps everywhere and ladders posted up under missing ceiling tiles.
Burton was boasting about the new wing additions only days ago before a crew swept right in, ready to turn his vision into a reality.
Of all the possible changes he could have made: expanding the research wing, adding more space for patients in long-term care, or even adding a daycare for patients who need childcare.
He chose a fucking movie theater.
Just walking through the construction zone makes my blood boil.
Taryn and I had a long discussion about the founder, rolling our eyes as we divulged he should have gone into owning malls or shopping centers instead of focusing on healthcare.
Burton is ridiculous with his visions, but he’s my new boss.
And as unfortunate as it is, the older man seems to gravitate towards me the most.
It started with a small run-in last week, an accidental chance of me rushing to the OR for an emergency surgery, and we had a small, curt conversation before I shouldered past him to get to my patient.
I had no idea who he was at the time, but a few hours after sowing sutures, he was waiting near my desk in the ER with a big, tight smile on his face.
“I like your attitude, Reed! You seem like a man who understands the vision!”
I had no idea what he was talking about.
Our previous conversation consisted of a quick chuckle before I dismissed myself to get to my patient.
But as with most top dogs in the medical profession, he enjoyed talking out of his ass.
Once he introduced himself to me, I could only mentally curse as I plastered on a cordial smile and nodded along with his rambling. He’s been seeking me out ever since.
As I leave the construction site, I enter the main floor of the west wing.
Patients and nurses are already bustling around, trying to get to appointments or grabbing a bite to eat at one of the many restaurants lining the walkways.
I tuck my hands into my white coat as I slow my pace to take in the morning.
It’s four in the morning, but I’ve always been an early riser. These shifts are the easiest to get through. I enjoy watching the sunrise outside the ER windows as the waiting room begins to fill for the day.
Someone darts in front of me, cutting me off as she pushes to get to the front doors of a coffee shop to my right. I do a double take at the long black hair that glides down the woman’s back, and my stomach flips as I move without thought.
I reach a hand out to her, gently grabbing her shoulder as the world slows. “Excuse me…” The words die on my tongue as the woman whips around.
There are snake-bite piercings in her lip and a large septum ring in her nose. She frowns at me with thick, electric-blue eyebrows. “Can I help you?”
My heart sinks. “Sorry. I thought you were…someone else.”
She shrugs me off before throwing the door to the coffee shop open, and I’m stuck in the center of the hallway as my hope fizzles out until I feel cold.
I’m a fucking idiot for thinking…
I shake myself out of it before another person steps directly in front of me.
Burton Langford is a stout man, with silver, thinning hair.
He carries the air of someone who’s confident and refined with his tailored suits and expressive pocket handkerchiefs that change with every passing day.
Today’s color is a bright red, like a blaring alarm to his approach for anyone in his warpath.
Like me.
“Reed, my boy!” He slaps a hand on my shoulder roughly.
My jaw twinges. Eleven years of medical school to be called ‘my boy’ rather than Doctor. “Good morning, Mr. Langford.”
He chuckles deep and heartily, the sound of a man with money ringing through the air. “Now, I told you to call me Burton! We’re on a first-name basis.”
“I would prefer if you referred to me as Dr. Bellamy.”
Burton stares at me before throwing his head back and guffawing loudly. He draws a few stray side-eyes as he slaps a hand on my shoulder. “Oh! You have quite the sense of humor, Reed, but I need you to be serious for a moment.”
I frown. “I wasn’t joking.”
He waves a hand, already forgetting about the boundary I tried to place as he guides me toward the ER with wide, purposeful steps. “I have a gala coming up this weekend, and I would love it if you and your colleague, Taryn, would join me as my guests of honor.”
My lips thin. “We’ll have to think about it.”
Do I want to spend a whole evening mingling with socialites and CEOs? No.
Will Taryn still try to convince me to go for the free drinks? Probably.
“Just consider it!” He flicks some dust off his elegant suit before smiling. “I have something major in the works, and I would love your easy attitude to smooth over these potential clients.”
That piques my interest. “Is this for a merger?”
It isn’t unusual for bigger companies to take hold of smaller ones with the hopes of expanding. It’s happened to a few hospitals I was contracted with, and it helped to create jobs and give more resources to the patients in need.
Burton smirks. “Now I’ve got your attention. It’s no merger, but it is…” He looks around for any wandering ears before leaning in and whispering, “different.”
My brow furrows. “Different how?”
He motions for me to follow him into a side hallway that’s vacant before getting an excited gleam in his eyes. He slaps his hands on my shoulders, making my mouth twist as he leans close. “What I’m about to tell you, Reed, cannot leave this hall. Do you understand?”
I draw back slightly. “Sure?”
His expression becomes secretive and alight with wonder. “What if I told you there is a whole underground network of assassins—hitmen who take money for eradicating targets?”
There’s a thick silence that follows as I blink at him. “Come again?”
Surely I didn’t hear him right…
The man nods quickly. “Assassins, Reed! Can you believe that?”
My filter to mouth ratio often fails. Like right now. “No.”
Burton’s expression falls a fraction before he rests his features into something calm and collected. “I know it’s hard to believe, but one of them reached out to me!” His eyes are wild as they bounce between mine, and I’m beginning to feel uncomfortable with his unsettling gaze.
I remove his hands that are biting into my shoulders, stepping away from him. “Mr. Langford—”
“Ah, Burton!” He corrects with a tilt of his head.
“Burton,” I grind my teeth. “You can’t expect me to believe you’re connected with assassins. Have you ever heard of a pyramid scheme?”
The lengths these scammers are going to now is just ridiculous. I mean, assassins! Come on.
He makes an egregious sound as he snatches my shoulders tightly. “You’re not listening to me, Reed.”
“I am,” I shrug. “And I think I’ve heard enough—”
Before I can pry his hands off me for a second time, he releases me to dig his phone out of his jacket pocket. “I’ll prove it to you!”
I rest my head back against the wall as I wait for him to finish what he’s doing. He presses a number in his call log, and the sound of the dial tone fills the hallway as we wait for someone to answer.
On the second ring, a rough, southern voice fills the speaker. “Hello?”
“Brooks!” Burton greets boisterously, but their conversation is lost on me as the name of the person on the other end makes awareness tickle at the back of my neck.
Brooks?
As in…
Oh, there’s a normie here, so that’s why I’m whispering. In a hospital. Brooks shot me.
Thalia’s conversation from the supply closet slams into me as I force myself to tune into the conversation. My brow furrows as a flurry of emotions flips through my psyche.
Maybe it’s another Brooks?
What are the odds of this being the same person who shot Thalia?
I’m overthinking things…