Chapter 2 - The Seventh Nurse
“Lock the door.”
Dominic’s voice had changed.
Five minutes earlier, he had been an impossible patient running a dangerous fever.
Now his body was still weak, but his mind seemed completely awake.
I locked the bedroom doors.
“Curtains too.”
I closed them.
“Phone.”
I looked at him.
“What?”
“Your phone.”
I pulled it from my scrub pocket.
He held out his hand.
I hesitated.
“That’s expensive.”
“You arrived in a car that sounds like it's being held together by prayer.”
“It is.”
“Phone.”
I handed it over.
Dominic opened the settings, turned off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and location services, then set it on the table.
“You think someone is listening?”
“I think assuming they aren’t would be stupid.”
I folded my arms.
“You're remarkably paranoid for someone who apparently let people inject mystery fluid into his veins.”
His eyes flashed.
“You enjoy irritating me?”
“More than I expected.”
For the first time, he actually smiled.
It lasted less than a second.
Then his expression tightened with pain.
I moved closer.
“Lie back.”
“I’m fine.”
“You have a fever high enough to cook an egg.”
“I said—”
“Dominic.”
Something in my tone stopped him.
Maybe because I wasn’t afraid.
Maybe because he was too exhausted to continue fighting.
He lowered himself onto the pillows.
I began establishing a new IV line using supplies from my sealed bag instead of anything already inside the room.
“What are you doing?”
“Fluids.”
“No medication?”
“Not until I know what’s safe.”
“How long?”
“If I can reach someone I trust, maybe an hour.”
“Who?”
I stopped.
There was one person.
Dr. Evelyn Park.
Former ER attending.
Brilliant, impatient, and one of the few doctors who had defended the nursing staff when our hospital began making cuts.
She also ran a small independent laboratory.
“I know someone.”
“Can she be bought?”
The question irritated me.
“Not everyone can.”
“In my experience, everyone has a number.”
“Maybe that's because of the people you surround yourself with.”
His stare became colder.
I immediately wondered if I had gone too far.
Then Dominic looked away.
“Perhaps.”
That single word told me more about him than any threat could have.
He reached toward the nightstand.
“Second drawer.”
I opened it.
Inside was a black phone.
No case.
No contacts visible.
“Call this number.”
He recited ten digits.
I dialed.
Leo answered after one ring.
“Sir?”
“Come upstairs alone.”
A pause.
“I’ll be there immediately.”
Dominic disconnected.
I looked at him.
“You trust Leo?”
“As much as I trust anyone.”
“That isn't comforting.”
“It wasn’t meant to be.”
Two minutes later came a knock.
Three taps.
Pause.
Two taps.
Dominic nodded.
I unlocked the door.
Leo entered, saw me standing with the bagged syringe, then looked toward Dominic.
“What happened?”
Dominic didn't waste time.
“Nora believes my medication has been altered.”
Leo’s face emptied.
He didn’t gasp.
Didn't argue.
He simply turned toward me.
“Why?”
I explained.
Incorrect concentration.
Broken vial seal.
Unexpected lack of improvement.
Leo listened without interrupting.
When I finished, he looked at Dominic.
“Mercer administered every dose personally.”
“Every dose?”
“Except yesterday morning.”
“Who did that one?”
Leo hesitated.
“Anthony.”
Dominic went still.
“Why?”
“Mercer was delayed.”
I could feel the atmosphere change.
“Who's Anthony?” I asked.
Neither man answered immediately.
Finally Leo spoke.
“Mr. Rossi's cousin.”
Dominic’s jaw tightened.
“My father's sister's son.”
“And does he have a medical license?”
“No.”
“Then why was he giving injections?”
Dominic looked annoyed.
“He grew up around the family physician.”
“That isn’t medicine.”
“Nora.”
“Fine.”
Leo moved toward the cabinet.
I blocked him.
“Don't touch anything.”
He stared at me.
“Excuse me?”
“If someone altered those vials, fingerprints could matter.”
Leo looked toward Dominic.
Dominic nodded once.
“Do what she says.”
Leo’s eyebrows rose almost imperceptibly.
Apparently that sentence had never been spoken before either.
I called Dr. Park.
She answered on the fourth ring.
“Nora?”
“Hi.”
“It’s been months. Are you okay?”
“I need a favor.”
“That sentence never ends well.”
“I need a medication sample tested.”
“How soon?”
“Tonight.”
Silence.
“Nora, it's Saturday.”
“I know.”
“What exactly are we talking about?”
I looked at Dominic.
He nodded.
“Possible substituted IV antibiotics.”
Evelyn became instantly serious.
“Patient stable?”
“Not really.”
“How unstable?”
“Fever one-oh-three point eight. Infected penetrating shoulder injury. Tachycardic. Dehydrated.”
“You need a hospital.”
Dominic shook his head.
“He refuses.”
“Of course he does.”
“I can manage him temporarily, but I need to know what's in this syringe.”
“Bring it.”
“I can't leave.”
Another pause.
“I’ll send my assistant.”
Dominic mouthed, No.
I shook my head.
“I need you personally.”
“Nora, what are you involved in?”
I looked around the mansion.
“A complicated private-care case.”
“That sounded criminal.”
“It probably is.”
Dominic raised an eyebrow.
Evelyn sighed.
“Text me the address.”
“I’ll owe you.”
“You already owe me dinner from 2024.”
“Add it to the list.”
I ended the call.
Dominic studied me.
“You told her too much.”
“I told her enough to save your life.”
“You don't know her well enough.”
“I worked beside her for five years.”
“You don't know anyone well enough.”
There was something personal behind those words.
A wound deeper than the one beneath his bandages.
I didn't ask.
Not yet.
By early evening Dominic’s fever had climbed.
I used cooling towels and IV fluids while monitoring his breathing.
He hated every second.
But he let me work.
Mostly.
At one point he tried to stand.
His legs buckled.
I caught him around the waist.
He caught the dresser.
For a few seconds we stayed that way, too close, his weight partially against me.
“You’re going back to bed.”
“No.”
“You nearly collapsed.”
“I stood.”
“For approximately three seconds.”
He glared.
I glared back.
Leo appeared in the doorway.
His eyes moved from Dominic to me.
Something like amusement flickered across his face.
“Do you need assistance?”
“No,” Dominic and I said simultaneously.
Leo disappeared.
Eventually I convinced Dominic to lie down by threatening to put the bed alarm on him.
“I’ll tear it off.”
“Then I'll tape bells to your ankles.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“Try me.”
He stared at me for several seconds.
“You’re insane.”
“You hired the cheapest nurse you could find.”
“I didn't hire you.”
“Who did?”
“My lawyer.”
“Then your lawyer has excellent judgment.”
“Debatable.”
At 9:17 p.m., Evelyn arrived.
Leo searched her medical bag before allowing her upstairs.
She was furious.
“Nora, what kind of patient requires armed guards?”
“The difficult kind.”
When she saw Dominic, recognition hit immediately.
“Oh.”
Dominic gave me an accusing look.
“You didn't tell her?”
“I didn't realize I needed to send your résumé.”
Evelyn ignored him and took the samples downstairs to a private workspace Leo arranged.
Forty-three minutes later, she returned.
Her face told me the answer before she spoke.
“This isn't the antibiotic on the label.”
Dominic’s eyes darkened.
“What is it?”
“Mostly saline.”
My stomach dropped.
Evelyn continued.
“There are trace amounts of something else. I need proper analysis before I identify it.”
“Could it worsen an infection?”
“Depending on what it is, yes.”
Dominic looked toward Leo.
“Find Mercer.”
Leo left immediately.
Evelyn checked Dominic herself.
“You should be hospitalized.”
“No.”
“You may not survive if this infection progresses.”
“I’m aware.”
She looked at me.
“He's impossible.”
“I noticed.”
Evelyn prepared a fresh antibiotic directly from sealed supplies she had brought.
I checked the vial.
Then she checked my work.
Dominic noticed.
“You trust her?”
“Yes.”
“Completely?”
“As much as anyone should trust another human being.”
His eyes lingered on me.
“That’s a smarter answer.”
By midnight, his fever finally began dropping.
Evelyn left.
Leo hadn't returned.
Dominic slept for twenty minutes before jerking awake.
I was sitting in the chair beside him.
His eyes found mine instantly.
“You stayed.”
“It’s my shift.”
“They all left before midnight.”
“I'm not them.”
“No.”
His gaze remained on me.
“You're not.”
A knock came at the door.
Leo entered.
His suit was damp from the rain.
His expression grim.
“Mercer’s gone.”
Dominic became completely still.
“What do you mean, gone?”
“His apartment is empty. Phone disconnected. Vehicle abandoned at the airport.”
My stomach tightened.
“When did he leave?” I asked.
Leo looked at me.
“Security footage shows him leaving this estate at 4:12 yesterday morning.”
Dominic frowned.
“That doesn't make sense.”
“Why?” I asked.
His gaze moved slowly toward the used syringe sitting inside my evidence bag.
“Because Mercer was standing beside this bed six hours ago.”
May you like
And somewhere inside the mansion, a floorboard creaked.
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