“Hi,” Minka tugs me forward and shoots off an order for three different burritos. The third, with mild sauce and extra pico. “This is a good day.”
MINKA
Istep off the elevator on the ninth floor of the George Stanley Medical Examiner’s office at exactly two minutes to nine on Tuesday morning. I carry my bag in one hand, and an icy cold can of Pepsi in the other. A fresh dose of Factor in my veins means my brain is clear, my eyes are wide open, and my body still hums from the things Archer did to it between the hours of six and eight this morning.
We spent only four days apart, but I swear, they felt like months. And now that we’ve reunited, it seems Archer has months of anxiety-sex to work through.
I don’t mind one bit.
“I’m gonna make coffee.” Aubree drops her bag at her desk and trades a thin cardigan-esque layer for her white coat instead. She wears shoes withactuallights in the soles, like she’s six years old and heading off to kindergarten, and as she spins away from her desk and heads toward the break room, the little lights flash with every step. “I’ll meet you in your office in five. I’ll grab everyone for rounds, too.”
“Good. Thanks.” I lead with my shoulder and push the heavy glass door open, stepping into my office and doing as Aubree did: I dump my things at my desk, then I swing back and grab my coat. Shrugging it on, I make my way to the windows overlooking the city I’ve lived in for not quite two years. My view isn’t that of Central Park. It’s not even a particularly pleasant view, except late at night when the harsh exterior of everybuilding surrounding me fades away, and the houses perched high on the hill switch their lights on.
Then it’s almost pretty.
I carefully press my forehead to the glass and stare straight down at the sidewalk.
There he is: the formidable Mr. Harrison.
I have no clue how he can wear a suit all day long and stand in the sun like it isn’t trying to kill him, but he never seems to mind, and even after a blistering afternoon set amongst concrete, I’ve yet to spot a single errant drop of sweat on his skin.
Maybe he’s a robot.
But that robot isn’t alone today, because he converses with Archer. Nods his head. Shakes his head. The discussion lasts only another moment, then a midnight-black van pulls up at the curb, and with it, my stomach flips.
I think my delivery has arrived.
“Aw man. No skirt today.”
I turn with a raised brow and study Doctor Raquel’s gaudy stride through my door. She’s a bit like Aubree, I guess, in that she considers work an opportunity to model whatever trendy new outfit they’d acquired overnight, so while Aubree flitters about the break room in a camo-green, cargo-pocketed, thigh-length skirt, Raquel struts to the single couch my office boasts and plops down in shiny black leather shorts, ankle-high boots, a floating, fire-engine red tank, and her lab coat draped across it all. Her lips glitter red and match her shirt exactly, while blonde hair, not even the kind most pay to achieve in a salon chair, bounces with each movement. Smirking—she’s always smug for some reason—she studies my bottom half and exhales a dissatisfied sigh. “Shame, Chief. You rocked a skirt last week.”
“You’ll have to excuse me for not caring enough to run my daily fashion choices by you.” Pushing away from the window, I head back to my desk and drop into my seat. Scooping up my Pepsi, I bring it to my lips and glance left as, outside my office, my team begins stirring. “I’ll video call you tomorrow before I get dressed.”
Raquel sits taller in my peripherals. “Really?”
“No. I’d rather punch myself in the face with the front end of a Mack truck. But Idohave something exciting for you to do.”
“Drive the Mack truck?”
“No,” I drawl. “I need to pull blood samples at some point today. I want you to run them.”
“From a DB?” She glances around my office, like I keep dead people conveniently in the corner. “Why the special request?”
“Not from a DB. From me.”
I hate how her eyes grow wide. How they burn bright with curiosity and longing. I hate even more that my entire team is headed this way, and because they are, this conversation is over.
“Don’t make it into a big deal.”
Aubree pushes through my door first, then Doctors Kirk, Flynn, Torres, and Patten follow immediately after.
Raquel makes an entire show of zipping her lips and tossing away the imaginary key, but then she sits forward with sly, glittering eyes. “Not making it a big deal. But, since we’re discussing favors for one another, I just wanted to reiterate how much easier my workload would be to manage if I had another lab tech to boss around.”
“No.”
“They’re siblings! They’re single, childless, and share a grotty apartment to save costs. So honestly, they’re not even all that expensive. Doctor Campbell has proven to be an excellent addition to my lab, so hiring the other Doctor Campbell feels like an obvious choice to me.”
“It’s such a shame that having two Doctor Campbells on staff would simply be too confusing. I’m not sure I could cope.”
