Chapter 24
While she worked, Angie sang along to the Frank Sinatra playlist that Gina had made for her.
It was five hours long and always helped get her through her shifts.
She was right in the middle of belting out “My Way” when she felt a tap on her shoulder that caused her to jump.
Angie turned around. Seeing Lorna, she pulled out her earbuds and put her hand on her fast-beating heart. “My, you gave me a startle.”
“Sorry to sneak up on you. You got some pipes there, girl.” Angie watched Lorna’s concerned expression.
“What’s wrong? You look upset.”
“I wanted you to know that the handsome fella you were talking to just got shot along with one of our cops, and they’re taking him to Northwestern. I thought you could hear all the sirens. I didn’t realize you were listening to your music.”
“Oh my God! I have to go. I was so mean to him. I told him never to bother me again. I’m a terrible person.” Angie took off her work apron, pushed Hazel to the nearest elevator, and pressed the button.
“Here, let me take your cleaning cart downstairs and clock you out. You go,” Lorna said.
“Thanks, Lorna, I’ll go down with you. I need to get my purse and coat out of the locker. What have I done? He’s a nice man. I don’t wish him any harm.” Angie’s hands were shaking; she needed to collect herself.
Lorna and Angie got into the elevator to go down. It seemed like it was moving way too slow.
“Girl, you need to take a breath; you’re white as a ghost. You don’t want to end up in the hospital too.”
Angie put her hand on her heart and took some slow, deep breaths. “Thanks.”
“What were you two arguing about? The little I heard before I got on the elevator sounded intense,” Lorna said.
Angie kept watching the numbers on the elevator panel move slow—too slow.
“Oh, I accused him of being a big jerk, banging the alderman’s wife at Vinnie’s funeral, then pretending like he was into me. Seriously.”
“Why would he come all the way down here to find you and try to talk to you? You can’t blame a man for wanting sex. That’s all men think about,” Lorna said.
“That’s true, and it’s not like we’re dating, although he did take me to Gibsons, which was quite lovely until that bitch Rebecca O’Brien walked up to our table, turned up her nose at me, and told me I wasn’t in his league.” Angie felt her face heating up as she spoke.
“Honey, honey. Rebecca has a reputation of sleeping with all the pretty boys; her husband couldn’t give a shit. He just wants the prestige and power of his position. I’ve been around here a long time, and this is basically standard practice for most of the aldermen.”
The elevator opened to the basement and Angie hightailed it to her locker, grabbed her stuff, and whisked past Lorna. “Thanks so much, Lorna. I’ll make up my hours tomorrow; I know there’s no overtime pay.”
“Don’t worry about that. Just go see if you’ve got a live body to make amends to. I hope he’s not badly hurt.”
Angie hustled outside, hailed a cab to the emergency room, and walked through the crowded waiting area directly to the desk.
“I’m Mrs. Conti. They brought my husband in with a gunshot wound. Can you tell me where he is?”
“One minute, ma’am.” The young ward clerk barely glanced up as she started to type things into her computer.
Please don’t let him be dead. Please don’t let him be dead.
Time was moving slowly; nurses and doctors were interrupting the clerk, and she was clearly trying to serve everyone.
“Mr. Conti is in the operating room. The waiting room for those patients is on the second floor. You’ll need to sign in, and when the surgeons are done, they can find you there.”
“Do you know anything?” Angie asked.
“I’m not at liberty to give you any information down here. You’ll have to go to the surgical waiting room.” The clerk started working on something else and didn’t even look up.
Angie found her way to the surgical waiting area and rushed up to the desk. “I’m Mrs. Conti. My husband was rushed to the operating room. Can you tell me anything? Please.”
The receptionist glanced up at her and then checked the computer. “All I can tell you is that he’s in the OR now; I don’t know anything else. You’ll need to sit down and wait. There’s coffee and tea over there.” She pointed across the room.
Angie poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down. A short, thin woman sat down next to her; she was dressed in a chic business suit. “Excuse me. I couldn’t help overhearing you. You’re Mrs. Conti?”
Angie leaned in and whispered, “Not really, but I just had a huge argument with him and then he goes and gets shot. If he dies, I just don’t know what I’ll do.”
“I’m Eunice, his office manager. Are you Angie Sortino?”
“Why, yes, however did you know?”
“He’s spoken about you, and I knew Vinnie. He also spoke very fondly of you. I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Let’s hope this isn’t another loss. This is all my fault. If Ralph hadn’t come to see me at City Hall, he would never have been shot.” Angie finally allowed herself to break down and cry.
Eunice gently patted her back. “You should know that he is fond of you, and of course, he loved your husband. It wasn’t your fault. Ralph is a strong man; he’ll make it through.”
Angie wiped her eyes. “Do you know how bad the gunshot wound was?”
“All they told me was that there were multiple shots and that Ralph and the police officer were both rushed to the OR. I’m on record as his next of kin ever since his wife, Alice, died. You know, you favor her a little.”
Angie’s eyes widened. “Really? I thought for sure he was married to a real glamour girl. I remember Vinnie went to Alice’s funeral; I had to get his black suit pressed.
What did she die from, if I may ask?” Angie sipped her coffee.
It was bitter even though she had put cream and four packs of sugar in it.
“She had ovarian cancer that spread throughout her body; it happened so fast there was not a lot they could do but keep her comfortable and put her in hospice. Ralph was very dedicated to her. They never had children and he lost his mother at an early age, so this was a big blow. I was really worried about him. All’s he did was work day and night. ”
Angie closed her eyes. “I’m a terrible person; I had him pegged for a real playboy. He’s so handsome and dapper, could probably get any lady he wanted.” She shook her head. I’m always judging people without knowing them.
“Mrs. Conti, please come to the reception desk,” said the clerk at the front desk.
Angie stood up and Eunice joined her at the reception desk.
“The surgeon said it’s okay for you to go up to the recovery room waiting area and he’ll give you an update on your husband’s condition. Take the elevator up to the fourth floor and follow the signs.”
Angie and Eunice briskly left and found their way. They were greeted by a nurse who escorted them into a small room with four chairs and a small round table. She closed the door behind her and joined them at the table.
“Please sit. I’m Patti Bumby and I work with Dr. Belman, who operated on your husband.” She looked back and forth between Eunice and Angie.
Angie chimed in, “I’m his wife.”
Patti looked over at Eunice. “And you are?”
“I’m his emergency contact,” Eunice said.
“Okay, well, Mr. Conti did sustain a chest wound and a wound to his left arm. He lost a lot of blood. Thankfully, the bullet missed his heart, but the bone in his upper arm was shattered. Dr. Bailey, our orthopedic surgeon, is finishing that surgery up now. He’ll be in the recovery room soon, and once he’s alert, you can both come for a brief visit.
Then he’s going to be transferred to our surgical ICU. ”
A tall, thin man entered the small room. “Hi, I’m Dr. Belman.”
“I’m Ralph’s office manager, and this is his wife,” Eunice offered before Angie could speak.
He sat down across from them. “Mr. Conti lost a great deal of blood at the scene. The EMTs were able to slow it down, but we’ll need anyone in your family who’s willing to donate to come into our blood bank.
I repaired his chest wound and put a tube in his collapsed lung.
A few more inches closer and the bullet would have hit his heart.
The ortho team is finishing up; his left arm will be out of commission for some time. ”
“Is he going to be all right?” Angie asked. She pulled a used tissue from her pocket and did her best to dry her eyes, then blew her nose.
“He’s in excellent shape. Once we were able to give him blood and fluids, he stabilized quickly. His vital signs are normal. He will be in quite a bit of pain, so after they make sure he’s comfortable in the recovery room, you’ll have a few minutes with him, but he’s going to need a lot of rest.”
Dr. Belman stood up. “If he’s stable enough tomorrow, they can transfer him to the floor. I have another case, so I’ll need to go; Patti can answer any other questions.”
Both Angie and Eunice nodded. “Thank you, Dr. Belman,” Angie said. Relief washed over her as Dr. Belman left the conference room.
“I think you should both go downstairs to the cafeteria and get something to eat. He’ll likely be in the recovery room for about an hour. If you give me your cell number, I can call you when he’s ready to see you,” Patti said.
Eunice jotted her number down and gave it to Patti, and they made their way to the cafeteria in silence. After they selected their food—chocolate pudding for Angie and a bowl of soup for Eunice—they ate.
Eunice finally spoke. “So what happened when you saw Ralph at City Hall?”
Angie described their conversation; the more she told Eunice, the guiltier she felt. “I should have offered to help him with this Mario thing. I have solid evidence that could put Mario behind bars and I didn’t even offer that. I was just an angry, old woman acting like a teenager.”