“I raided the nurses’ station on ten. You wouldn’t believe the setup they have there,” Emily answered. “Three Keurig machines and one that can make the frappe-lappe whatever coffee drink you like. I hope I remembered all the flavor additives. They have that too. Why can’t we have that on our floor?”
She laughed and settled against the small window well, folding one arm as she blew on her coffee.
I took a swallow before answering her, nodding while the tasty liquid came close to burning a hole in my throat. The constant ache caused me to touch my neck.
Emily was like a hawk, catching everything. “Is it time for me to ask what in the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know what you want me to say.”
“The truth. You have bruises on your neck. There are two goons outside the door, more milling around the hospital in suits looking like guys straight out of a mafia movie, and if I’m not mistaken I could see the outline of weapons. You brought a man into the emergency room with an obvious knife wound to which you were forced to tell the medical team the weapon was likely laced with poison. That’s not normal, Viv. Now, why the police haven’t been contacted is beyond me, but at some point, you’re going to need to be prepared to face harsher questions than mine.”
I laughed, surprised at the sound. “If the police arrive, they’ll be handled.”
That much I knew.
Maybe by the two goons who were outside. I hadn’t left the room since he’d been admitted so I hadn’t realized he had security keeping him protected. Of course he would.
“Is he someone famous?”
With a smile threatening to give me away, I couldn’t help but laugh. “You could say that.”
Emily didn’t say a word. While she was well aware of my family lineage, since I’d never wanted to be a part of the McCarthy crowd, a discussion had never come up.
With her silence, I lifted my head. She sighed and looked away.
“Did he hurt you? This patient?”
“He didn’t mean to,” I answered. “You need to remember how high his fever had been. He was out of his mind.”
“Which begs the question, where were you before he had his attack?”
Attack. If only she could understand how significant her choice of words was. “We were at a house he rented while staying here on business.”
“Really? Where did you meet him?”
I took another sip of coffee, wishing the conversation hadn’t started. “You know there are a few aspects about my life that you don’t need to know about. Right?”
Emily tutted me as if I was making a joke. “I know you’re mafia royalty, bestie. I’m no fool. I watch the news and I’d overheard the conversations you’ve had with your father. I am also well aware that your family owns people in this town.”
We were having a discussion about my family’s unscrupulous acts of corruption while lingering in the hospital room of my Russian Bratva lover. Had this been under different circumstances, I might have laughed. “What are you trying to say to me?”
“That you can tell me anything. Plus, I don’t think anyone in the hospital believes you brought in a John Doe. For once you weren’t creative. Okay?”
She cracked up first, which caused me to do so as well. “Maybe not but I can’t divulge his real name. Not without his okay.” I hadno idea how to handle the situation other than realizing I was being watched. At first, it was only a feeling, the pricklies that I’d always gotten when one of my father’s or uncle’s men had been assigned to keep me safe.
I’d even taken his wallet, hiding it in my purse in case someone snooped in his things. That someone had been me, finding nothing other than his legitimate identification. At least I knew he hadn’t lied to me. Like he’d accused me of doing. Was keeping my full identity akin to lying?
Someone was watching. Even I felt it.
While this wasn’t a place of business for the Irish mob, that didn’t mean my uncle didn’t keep a close eye on every business where he’d spent cold, hard cash.
“Then answer me this. Who is he to you?” Her questions wouldn’t stop, not until I gave her something, but I didn’t know what to say.
“He saved my life. Now, I did the same for him. He’s just someone I met.” Technically, he very well could have saved my life. If he’d been truthful in leaving the other two men alive, they’d caught a good look at me.
While my best friend knew all about me, given we didn’t keep secrets from each other, that didn’t mean everyone in the city was knowledgeable about my family and who I was in relation.
The assassins could have easily passed me off as another hospital worker who’d seen too much. What kept me unnerved was Kirill’s insinuations that maybe the wild goose chase he’d been led on was in part due to my identity. I’d thought more than once about how the ticket had been changed at the last minute at my brother-in-law’s insistence.
