Page 185 of Her Wicked Plan

Why the hell am I even considering running with her? Because I like her? A lot. When I shouldn’t.

It’s stupid. So, so stupid.

Leo . . . please tell me you aren’t going to tell her yes.

I stare at his words. Multiple emotions grip on my arms, tugging me back and forth. My thumbs hover over the letters on the keyboard, unsure which ones they want to use to form a response. Eventually, they type before it can catch up with my brain.

I’m going to tell her no. You’re right. Being with her how I have been is risky, but this? I’d be asking for the consequences.

Thank fuck! I thought I would have to keep an illegal situation a secret, and you know how I am with secrets. I miss your face. Let's get drinks soon. We both need it.

I miss you too, man.

I lock my phone, knowing now that the conversation is over and that he won’t text back because of the meeting he is in. Leave it to Myles to talk actual common sense into me.

I almost let my feelings for this woman, feelings that I shouldn’t have in the first place, override my sense of judgment. Those emotions almost made me listen to the devil that sits on my shoulder, shouting in my ear to drown out the angel opposite of it.

I inhale a deep breath, clearing my head before turning around to focus on anything but what I am going through. I sit in my seat, picking up the manilla folder Scarlet brought in for me.

Who knows if Dr. Bennett and Edith were in a meeting? Surely, they could have been, but I wouldn’t put it past Scarlet to offer to bring these files herself.

The thought of her entering the room while Veronica was on her knees. How I maintained a conversation with Scarlet while being jerked off is astonishing to me. I held my ground.

My face was probably flush, but Scarlet could have taken that as an expression of anger towards her being in my presence.

If I close my eyes, I can almost feel the warmth of Veronica’s mouth on me, but then my eyes shoot open when I realize I didn’t warn Veronica to stay away from our unexpected visitor.

Veronica had threatened her that if she came to me again, then Veronica would get physical.

Shit.

I pinch the manilla folder between my fingers and stare blankly at the patient’s name, neatly written in the upper corner. The letters blur together when my eyes lose focus.

I should get up and tell Veronica to keep to herself. Then again, she didn’t seem angry when she left my office. Scarlet was the last thing on her mind. I’m safe for now.

I hope.

With that thought in mind, I open the folder and start reading.

The patient's name is Olivia, and she has been in Ward R since she was first admitted. My eyes scan over some words that hold no importance until I find the space where it shows the reason she is here.

She has schizophrenia. Almost like Eliza’s diagnosis, who hears voices, but Olivia sees things too. In a statement, she describes the things she saw as monsters—scary, tall black figures with hollowed-out eyes. The image I’m giving myself sends a shiver down my spine.

Olivia told her doctor that these hallucinations would tell her what to do, and their orders were violent. She didn’t want to do anything the monsters told her to because even though she could see the wrong in them, they threatened her family.

If Olivia hadn’t held up her end of the deal and hadn’t gone through with the awful orders the creatures gave her, nothing would have happened to her family.

She didn’t know that. Those monsters rooted themselves deep into her mind, causing her to act out and hurt innocent people, even those whom she loved.

Olivia has been here for four years, and three years in, they have finally found the right medication. There have been no incidents with other patients, and nothing physical has happened with her doctors or nurses.

The medicine was doing its job right, and now it’s rewarding her to come to this ward. She will be fine here as long as she continues to take the medicine.

It’s nothing I can’t handle—she, Ruby, and Veronica. However, the latter will be upset that I’m taking on another patient rather than having free time for her.

Who am I kidding? Her being upset about this is no comparison to how frustrated she will be when I dismiss her offer.

How the hell am I even going to do that? I’ll take the time she told me to think about it to find a way to tell her I’m not running.