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He checked the time. He’d used up his entire lunch break. Not that he was hungry anyway—his stomach was lurching. He knew what he had to do. He had to be the bearer of bad news to Steven Gherring. He folded the newspaper to hide the picture and walked back to the office building. To the elevator. To Gherring’s office. Blood was pounding in his head, and his vision was blurry. He felt very much as though he were walking the plank. He raised his fist and knocked on the imposing carved wooden door.
Chapter Six
Spencer thought he heard a voice inviting him to enter, but his blood was pounding inside his ears so loudly, he couldn’t be certain. Tentatively, he opened the door and peered inside. Steven Gherring was sitting at his desk, simultaneously eating his lunch and reading something on his computer. He glanced up as Spencer entered.
“Hi, Spencer. What brings you here? By the way, thanks again for helping us get set up at home with your mother. Anne would’ve gone crazy if she’d had to stay in the hospital another day. What am I saying? I would’ve gone crazy.”
He fought the sudden desire to retreat back out the door. How was he going to break the news? What would Gherring say? What would he do? Would he realize Spencer had no prior knowledge of the picture? Surely he wouldn’t think Spencer was implicit. It didn’t matter. It was still his fault. He was the one who’d brought Candace on the hike. Ultimately, it was his responsibility.
“Spencer? Is something wrong?”
“I... Yes...” He moved stiffly to Gherring’s desk and placed the offensive paper in front of him. “I’m so sorry... I promise I had no idea.”
Gherring stared at the tabloid picture, his jaw flexing. His hands clenched into fists. He grabbed the paper and read the article, cursing under his breath. He wadded up the paper and threw it across the room and let his face fall into his hands, supporting his head with his elbows on the desk.
“It’s my fault. I should never have let them come with us. I take total responsibility—”
“Who was it? Becca or Candace?” He spoke between his fingers.
“Candace. I’m almost positive. I tried to call her, but—”
“Does Emily know?” Gherring looked up.
“I don’t think so.”
“It’ll make the six o’clock local news.”
“Surely not. It’s only a tabloid.” Spencer’s words were raspy, his throat dry.
“A television reporter called me and asked for a statement. I refused, because I thought it was based on the first picture. But now...”
“What can you do? Can you sue them?”
“I’m a public figure. I can’t sue them. Medical professionals are bound by HIPA. But I can’t sue somebody for taking a picture of me in public, even though I was generous enough to drive her to and from the hike in my vehicle. And even if I could sue Candace, what would I get from that? And the tabloids know what they can say and get away with it.”
“I’m so sorry.”
Gherring shook his head. “We were the ones who decided to go on a hike. I never really thought it was a good idea, but Anne can talk me into almost anything. I just wish we’d never gone. Don’t torture yourself. It wasn’t your fault. But I swear if I ever see Candace again, I might break her neck.”
He shivered at the fierce expression on Gherring’s face. “What are you going to do?”
“I’ve got to talk to Anne, and then I’ve got to do some damage control.”
When he left Gherring alone in his office, he heard loud cursing and banging through the heavy wooden doors. He was lucky not to be on the receiving end of Gherring’s anger.
*****
Anne was feeling pretty chipper for someone attached to an IV pole. She’d only thrown up once, and she’d managed to keep down an entire piece of toast. She was due to go back to the doctor tomorrow, and she hoped her lab report would be good. At least with the IV, she was well hydrated and her dizziness had eased.
She’d asked Connie all about her family, and was entertained all morning with tales of raising five children in a small New York City apartment. Connie’s husband, Joe, was a high school math teacher. They’d met in junior high and fallen in love. But their teen relationship had been stormy, with lots of breakups and fighting and jealousy. They’d broken up for good by their senior year. Then shortly after Connie had been licensed as an LVN and started work at a hospital, Joe broke his leg. He spotted Connie in the hospital hallway and chased her down in a wheelchair to ask her out. They got married a year later and had just celebrated their twenty-eighth anniversary.
“We enjoyed meeting Emily at dinner Sunday night. She must be very bright to already have her CPA license at such a young age.
“She’s smart, but she’s not great with relationships.”
“Because she’s shy?”
“Yes, she’s shy and cautious… afraid to lose control. I think it all goes back to losing her dad when she was eight. She was the big sister, you know. She tried to be strong for Charlotte. It broke my heart to see that little girl trying to be so grown up.”
