Eye of the Storm

FIVE



Megan was jotting down vitals when she heard a watery sniff. She glanced toward the exam bed to find a tear caressing a clean portion of Kirstie’s smooth porcelain cheek with the trajectory of a falling star. It splattered on the thick fold of the blanket Megan had tucked around Kirstie after checking her over and treating her cut and bruised feet.

“Still hurting?”

Kirstie shook her head. “I’m fine.”

“Sure you are. You act fine.” Every vital number so far was within normal parameters, except the blood pressure was slightly elevated because of the pain.

“I want you to draw blood,” Kirstie said. “I think I may be getting poisoned.”

There, the subject had been brought up at last. Megan’s patience rewarded. Another tear trickled down Kirstie’s face. In that moment, she seemed younger than Megan by twenty years, not older. The chin-length curls of her blond hair nearly blended with the paleness of her skin. The hazel eyes, barely touched by evidence of the lines of laughter that had always been part of Kirstie’s life, seemed to have had their color depleted by the tears.

“Gerard mentioned that this morning,” Megan said.

“Good. He saved me some time explaining.” The normally warm tones of Kirstie’s voice sounded fragile, so unlike the way she’d sounded out in the waiting room moments ago. That was Kirstie, always strong for her daughter.

“I know I’ve asked you about this before, but is Dr. Kelsey positive that none of the chemo drugs would have had an effect on your memory? I can call him for a consultation.”

“The chemo ended two years ago,” Kirstie said.

“Delayed reaction, perhaps?” Megan asked. “The results of the initial trials may have a bearing—”

“They showed no kind of mental lapse side effects.” The misty green-gold of Kirstie’s eyes seemed to soften further as she looked up at Megan at last. “But thanks for asking over and over and over.”

“I’m not finished asking.” Megan sat down on the exam stool. “When Gerard mentioned poisoning—”

“I know, you thought about a possible metastasis to the brain or reaction to the chemo. We’ve talked about it. I have become adept at online searches.”

“I have access to physician sites, and I found nothing. I started the search as soon as I heard about the blackouts. You know this.”

“That’s why I think it’s time to try finding some other source of poison,” Kirstie said. “And by that I mean intentional.”

Megan closed her eyes as the words hovered. The prospects could be the beginning of yet another nightmare. She was in the eye of some kind of storm, and she could not escape. There seemed to be a killer or a wannabe murderer on every street corner.

“I know that nothing’s shown on any of my previous blood tests,” Kirstie said. “You and Lynley are the only ones willing to consider other options besides that awful A-word.”

“And Gerard.”

“Oh, bless that gorgeous man.”

“And Carmen.”

“Loyal to the end.”

“And Nora.”

Kirstie gave her a faint smile. “You’ve made your point. Yes, I have friends, but none of my other friends can help me the way you can, and none are so indomitable.”

“Oh really? You think Carmen’s a weakling? Nora?”

“I’m just saying, it feels to me that to the medical world I’m a middle-aged crazy woman who should be locked away.”

“I thought you wanted to be locked away.”

“I want to be kept safe until we find out what’s going on so things like this,” Kirstie said, holding up her feet, “don’t happen again.”

“I’ll need copies of all your medical files,” Megan said.

“You mean you’re actually taking on my case?”

“Not that I’m sure I can do a lot of good, but we can at least get started.”

Lines of anxiety touched the corners of Kirstie’s lips. “You mean that? You’re a smart woman, but you’re not going to find anything in those records the other doctor wouldn’t have found. I want a new series of tests.”

“I know. For poisons. But you know how hit-and-miss that’s going to be. It won’t hurt for me to study your medical file. Maybe I’ll find something there that’s been overlooked.”

Kirstie’s lids lowered. One more crystalline droplet escaped her eye.

In the thirty-two years Megan had known Kirstie, only twice had the life-loving, bubbly woman been caught crying in public. The first time was the day Lynley married Dodge Knowles. Megan suspected at the time that those tears of supposed joy were liberally mixed with sadness—not because Kirstie was one of those clingy mothers who resented anyone else in her child’s life, but because she had little faith in Lynley’s judgment when it came to men.

Kirstie had learned the hard way how to distinguish an honest man from a scoundrel, whereas Lynley still carried hope that her own father might one day turn out to be a good man after all.

The second time Kirstie cried in front of others was the day Dodge divorced Lynley, and she saw the heartbreak she had suspected, from the day of the wedding, that her daughter would endure.

Megan believed those tears of supposed sadness—though not touched by outright joy—may have been relief. Having one’s daughter dumped by one’s son-in-law for another woman was infuriating, of course. After watching that daughter suffer, however, through four years of a verbally abusive marriage with a self-righteous, strutting rooster who used God’s name and carefully edited verses from the Bible to emotionally beat Lynley into submission, the legal ending of the nightmare was a relief for all.

Megan had flown from Corpus Christi to celebrate with Lynley, Kirstie, Carmen and Nora at Calvin’s Pharmacy and Fifties Soda Fountain after Lynley’s day in court. Though there had been tears over the divorce, there had also been plenty of healing laughter among dear, longtime friends.

And now Lynley was faced with this. And handling it poorly.

“She’s ruining her life, cutting herself off from the world.” Kirstie accepted the tissue Megan handed her.

“She’s here taking care of her mother. That’s how she sees it.”

Kirstie held Megan’s gaze. “Is that how you see it?”

“I deeply admire what she thinks she’s doing, I just don’t agree with the way she’s going about it. She can’t be on guard 24/7, and that puts you at risk.”

“That’s what concerns me,” Kirstie said. “What if something happens to me the next time my brain unexpectedly plunges me into Capps Creek? Not that I’m afraid for myself, because I’m as sure of my afterlife as you are of that stethoscope you live with, but I’m mother enough not to want my daughter to endure that pain.”

“Something happened to you this time.”

“I wasn’t terribly maimed. Somehow, I almost wish I had been at least slightly more injured. I should’ve never given her power of attorney.”

“You can always check yourself into a care center. I know of a good one in Springfield.”

“I tried that. Didn’t Lynley tell you? I went to Scrieb’s Health Care, had most of the arrangements made, started to sign the papers and had a brain glitch, right there. Can’t remember anything but fear and loss. They called the emergency number I’d just given them, and wouldn’t you know, Lynley came, showed them her DPOA papers and brought me back home. I was, of course, back in my right mind by the time she arrived to pick me up, but would anyone listen to me? She warned them that she would see to it that they would not receive funds to care for me.”

Megan’s annoyance with Lynley dug a deeper groove as she prepared a syringe and tubes for drawing blood. Why was Lynley risking her own mother’s safety to defy a doctor’s diagnosis? Where was her brain these days? And what made her think she was the only one capable of caring for her mother?

“Don’t blame her,” Kirstie warned, reading Megan’s expression with obvious ease.

“We need to get you checked into a safe place before something bad does happen to you and her whole life is corroded by guilt,” Megan said. “We could at least hire someone to work nights and keep watch, or we could rig up some kind of alarm system on your door.”

“It wouldn’t have helped last night. I wasn’t inside the house. I apparently just walked off the front porch without my shoes or anything. And no one can watch me every minute.”

Megan handed her friend another tissue. “I’ll drive you to Scrieb’s myself.”

“I’m on their reject list.”

“Take back power of attorney.”

“I’d rather not do anything that drastic.”

“You can stand up to your own daughter, Kirstie.” Megan said it, but she wasn’t sure she meant it. Lynley was the darling of Kirstie’s life, her only child, the source of her joy. Just as Alec was to Nora. Kirstie and Nora had a lot in common. Perhaps that was why they’d been so close for so many years despite their conflicting personalities. Kirstie would do anything to keep Lynley happy and safe.

Wasn’t that what most mothers did? The defining term was most. Megan sighed and withdrew her thoughts from that old and aching sore spot.

“What’s to stop Lynley from threatening nonpayment to the next place you try to check into?” Megan asked.

Kirstie suddenly focused her attention on Megan. “I have some ideas. Meanwhile, tell me when that gorgeous man out in the waiting room showed up.”

For a few seconds, the subject change caught Megan off guard, though it shouldn’t have. Kirstie often did that when she wanted to take control of a conversation.

“You’re deflecting,” Megan said. “This office visit is about you, not me, and I’m not finished talking about you.”

“He drove all the way from Corpus Christi to see you, didn’t he? What did I tell you last week?”

“Give it up, Kirstie. It isn’t going to work.”

Kirstie’s grin, though strained by the effects of the night before, was genuine. “I warned you that your heart was in danger, but I can see the warning came far too late.”

Megan positioned the syringe. “I’ll have Carmen prepare a medical release form for you to sign before you leave today so I can get your records.”

“Not Carmen.”

“Why not?”

“I want you under the radar. No one needs to know you’re taking the case.”

“You’re talking crazy.”

“True to form, according to some.”

“That isn’t what people are thinking, Kirstie. Your friends and neighbors are simply worried about you, so why keep all this under the radar?”

“I have my reasons,” Kirstie said. “Let’s get back to the more interesting subject. Don’t tell Nora I said so, but I think her son has some formidable competition. Why is it you always seem to be dating your boss?”

Megan tightened the tourniquet around Kirstie’s arm, thumped for a vein, held the needle up and wiggled her eyebrows in a gesture of lighthearted teasing that she hoped reached her eyes.

“Don’t even try to threaten me with pain, Megan Bradley.” Kirstie made as if to reach for the syringe. “I can draw my own blood if you’re going to tease like that.”

Megan fixed the needle tip in a healthy vein and started the draw. “I’m not dating the boss now and I never dated Gerard.”

“But you spent a lot of time with Gerard, right?”

“Naturally. He runs the mission.”

“But you ran the clinic, so why did you spend so much time with him?”

“The clinic is inside the mission. He was in the clinic a lot. He cared about the people who came in.”

“And about the doctor who treated them.” Kirstie’s voice turned gentle. “He cares a great deal about you.”

“We live in different worlds.”

Kirstie sighed. “Have it your way. Carmen saw you with Alec at the drugstore lunch bar Friday, and Nora just happened to mention it several dozen times when I had coffee with her yesterday. She’s always had her sights on you for her son. You think she’ll welcome Gerard to town?”

“Alec’s married.”

“That was a spur-of-the-moment decision he’s regretted ever since. Did he tell you they knew each other three weeks before they got married? Too sudden and too short. Nora barely met Zoe before the separation.”

“But there’s been no formal divorce yet.”

Megan felt bad for Alec, but he would never be more than her boss. Not now.

“The girl’s been gone for a year. It was a nonmarriage as far as Nora is concerned.”

“Anyway, it wasn’t a date, Kirstie. Alec just wanted to catch up. We hadn’t seen each other for a while.” Megan kept her focus on what she was doing and didn’t look up.

“Nora also mentioned in as many casual ways as she could that you had lunch with him at Corinne’s Café Monday. I’m telling you, she’s got her hopes up.”

“He and I are friends, okay? We do have history, and I guess he just needed to talk about things. I was always a good listener.”

“So no romance this time around? No kisses exchanged?”

Megan sighed. “He started to kiss me and I turned my head, so he caught me on the nose. Real romantic.”

Kirstie laughed out loud.

“I think we both proved to ourselves that there was no lasting romance there.” Megan hadn’t meant to make any comparisons, but it had happened despite her intentions. Even after returning to Jolly Mill, after knowing Gerard Vance and seeing the ocean depth of his heart, becoming reacquainted with Alec was, for her, like dipping toes into the kiddie pool. Though she knew he had matured since their breakup, she also knew his depths weren’t for her to plumb.

“To hear Nora tell it, he broke your heart and didn’t realize until afterward that you were the one for him,” Kirstie said. “Besides, you two were kids when you were dating.”

“We dated for two years. We had other classmates who were dating then and are still together now. It wasn’t meant to be.”

“Things change when you’ve lived life for a while.”

Megan took a long, deep breath. “That’s right. An adult learns to take things slowly and grow a friendship.”

“You mean the way you and Gerard did.” Kirstie fiddled with the pillow under her head. “Nora will press the issue, of course. You know she will. She’d like her son to see a lot more of you. I hope you realize that’s why you’re staying for free at their cottage. Nora hears wedding bells.”

“Nora hears the patter of grandchildren feet.”

“She dotes on Alec too much. That concerns me because a doting mother does not a good mother-in-law make.”

“Never underestimate Nora Thompson.”

“Not that you can repeat this,” Kirstie said, “but after Alec’s marriage went south, Nora pretty much decided he needed help with his next choice.”

“Parents should never play matchmaker for their kids.” Megan shuddered at the thought of her own parents doing that to her. She would rather remain single the rest of her days than let Griselda Bradley choose a pair of shoes for her, much less a man. Not that Griselda would ever do that kind of shopping with her daughter. They could never spend quality time together as mature adults without allowing sewage of a dirty past to come between them.

“Now that we’ve caught up on the vital gossip and I know you won’t explode with it,” Megan said, “why don’t we refocus on your health right now? You’ll be helping Lynley if you help me.”

“I want a complete toxicology screen on this blood you’re drawing,” Kirstie said.

“Got it. But you know that won’t cover every possibility.”

“I know. We can test for more later if we don’t come up with anything this time around. And I don’t want Carmen to know. Under the radar, remember?”

“But that’s impossible, Kirstie. For goodness’ sake, Carmen’s in the other room.”

“So is Lynley. Probably checking out your new suitor.”

“He’s not my—”

“Don’t you dare try to lie to me, Megan Bradley.”

“Carmen is bound to know if I run the tests you want me to run. And she’s one of your best friends. What’s she going to think—”

“She won’t think anything I don’t want her to think.”

“Ha!”

“Don’t forget I know my way around this clinic. I can file the forms I need for my medical records from Springfield. And I don’t want you telling Lynley anything either. This is strictly between you and me and one other person.”

The drop in Kirstie’s typically bright voice put Megan on edge. “And who would that other person be?”

Kirstie fixed her with a firm, Kirstie-knows-best glare. “You won’t like it, but you’re my doctor, and unless you fire me from your service—”

“How can I fire you from my service if no one even knows I’m doing this?”

“I need you to keep this quiet.”

“Kirstie…”

“Other than the three of us, I’m demanding strict confidentiality.”

“The three of us would be you, me and…?”

“Gerard. I want you and Gerard Vance to work together to figure this thing out.”





Gerard was on his second cup of coffee, deep into an explanation about his plans for the rehab center and manufacturing plant, when Carmen took a sudden breath, nearly choked on her coffee and waved her hand in the air.

“Oh my goodness, Lynley, I know just the place he needs, don’t you?”

Lynley placed her mug of tea on the table beside her and leaned forward, elbows on her knees. “You’re talking about Uncle Lawson’s property, right?”

“For the rehab center,” Carmen said. “Wouldn’t it be perfect?”

“It would need some refurbishing.” Lynley narrowed her eyes, obviously considering Carmen’s suggestion. She turned to Gerard. “You would have passed the place on your way into town from Megan’s cottage this morning. It’s a huge rock and wood structure on the side of the hill to your right, across Capps Creek.”

Gerard felt his eyebrows rise. Lynley had thawed.

“It’s called The Barnes Lodge and Resort,” Carmen explained. “Kirstie’s uncle used to operate it, and he was so successful that he entertained dignitaries from across the country. It’s gorgeous, with beautifully appointed suites, a ballroom, banquet hall, restaurant, a conference area, grand staircase, the works.”

“I see there’s an airport not ten minutes from here.”

“You’ve been doing your homework then.” Carmen sat back. “You’ll need to check that out. So,” she said, crossing her legs and getting comfortable, “what happened between you and Megan anyway?”

“Carmen.” Lynley rolled her eyes and shook her head at Gerard. As if she hadn’t recently asked the same question. “She gets like this sometimes. You know how small towns are, don’t you?”

“Of course he does,” Carmen said. Her green eyes sparkled with undeniable mischief. Friendly mischief. “Megan said he grew up in one. Gerard, Megan’s told us so much about you, it’s like finally meeting a movie star. So are you and Megan going to make things work between you?”

It was Gerard’s moment to nearly choke on his coffee. “I don’t think there’s anything Megan and I can’t work through.”

“I still don’t see Megan moving back to Texas,” Lynley said.

“You say Kirstie’s uncle owns this resort?” Gerard placed his cup on the table and gave up trying to finish it. He had, indeed, forgotten what it was like to live in a small town, but he was quickly recalling a few things.

“That’s right. Lawson Barnes,” Carmen said. “He’s wealthy and he likes to spread the wealth around. If he knew what you were doing, he might even donate at least part of the property. Don’t you think so, Lynley?”

The younger woman hesitated. “You’d have to talk to him while he’s still alert enough to understand.”

“Lawson has lung cancer,” Carmen told Gerard.

“He’s been in long remissions twice over the years, and he’s fought a good fight.” Lynley’s voice wobbled. She swallowed and took a breath. “But he’s been advised by his oncologist to get his affairs in order.”

“I’m afraid I’d feel like a vulture if I approached him about it now,” Gerard said.

“I think he’d be interested in doing business with you,” Lynley said. “He’s still carrying on as usual, and he really is trying to get his affairs in order. He’s a wonderful person with a huge heart. A rehab center sounds like something Uncle Lawson would want for the resort.”

“You wouldn’t be the vulture, believe me,” Carmen said, with a meaningful look at Lynley.

Lynley grew still for a moment. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again they were silvered with tears.

“Sorry,” Carmen said softly.

“Does he have any kids?” Gerard asked.

Lynley shook her head and dabbed at her eyes with her fingers. “Just a niece and a nephew, Mom and her brother, Arthur.”

Warning bells went off in Gerard’s head. Kirstie was set to inherit apparently a lot of money and she suspected poisoning, and it was just now being mentioned? Why hadn’t Kirstie said something earlier? “If your great uncle were to donate the property, or part of it, that would mess with your mother’s inheritance.”

“Mom always believed that too much money could ruin a person.”

“And you?”

“I can make my own way. I’m not like my father. I don’t pretend to be friends with the rich uncle and then wait around for him to die so I can inherit.” Lynley’s voice took on a bitter heaviness.

“Your father’s named in the will?”

Lynley nodded. “Mom doesn’t want to tell Uncle Lawson that Dad’s left her. He and Dad were hunting buddies for a lot of years, and Mom doesn’t want to break Uncle Lawson’s heart right here at the end.”

Carmen shook her head. “Kirstie’s too good-hearted. She’s more interested in protecting everyone but herself.”

Gerard felt himself clenching and unclenching his fists. How true Carmen’s words were. He may be a newcomer to this mess, but from his first meeting on the phone with Kirstie he’d realized Barry Marshal never deserved his wife.

“I’d like to take a look at this place,” he told Lynley. “Where is Mr. Barnes? How would I contact him?”

Lynley got up. “I’ll go write down his information for you, but Mom has keys to the place. I know he won’t mind at all if you take a look at it.” She entered the glassed-in office.

“Count yourself an honored man,” Carmen said softly. “After what she’s been through, I wouldn’t expect her to trust another man to tell him that much about her struggles.”

“You do know I can still hear you, don’t you?” Lynley asked, sliding the reception window open.

“Sure do, sweetheart.”

Before the two women could exchange more friendly fire, two car doors closed in the parking lot.

Gerard glanced out the plate-glass window to see a dark-haired, exotic-eyed woman in a dress of emerald silk. She carried a large leather bag over her shoulder. She turned from a champagne-colored Cadillac Seville and strode toward the doors. The heels she wore were at least four inches high. Gerard imagined a model on a runway would envy the graceful movements.

A younger man with those same dark eyes slipped ahead of her to get the door. Mother and son. This would be Nora and Alec Thompson. They both looked friendlier in person than online.

Gerard rose to his feet as the woman stepped inside.

Carmen rose with him. “Nora, tell me you brought them. You promised.”

Nora nodded and pointed to her bag as her attention settled on Gerard. “Can anyone tell us how Kirstie is?”

“Megan’s patching up her feet,” Carmen said. “She’s back in her right mind. Nora and Alec Thompson, meet Gerard Vance. He’s—”

“I know who he is.” Nora stepped forward and held her hand out. “He’s definitely a Texan.”

Gerard took the hand. She had a solid handshake, a level gaze, a husky voice. She was another of Kirstie’s trusted friends, and she was an impressive woman who seemed capable of handling multiple enterprises successfully.

Alec followed in his mother’s wake. So this was Megan’s new boss in person. His grip was no less solid, and his smile seemed genuine. He made no attempt to display machismo by squeezing too hard. “We’ve heard a lot about you since Megan went to work in Corpus Christi.” He had a gentle baritone voice. “We’ve all admired what you’re doing down there. A man’s got to have a calling for that.”

Gerard nodded. “It’s good to finally meet some of the friends Megan always spoke of with so much fondness.”

“Megan tells me she still owes money for her loan since she left the mission early,” Nora said. “We’re hoping her salary here will help pay that off.”

“She doesn’t owe me anything,” Gerard said. Why did she have to make him the bad guy in this? “She never has. That was a government loan with the agreement that she would work with the underprivileged and underserved for two years after her residency. The government could require she pay back every bit of her loan if she doesn’t complete all her time. I’m concerned she may also incur penalties for leaving early.”

Gerard could almost hear the internal gasps of the people in the room. There was so much Megan hadn’t told anyone.

“How much could that amount to?” Alec asked.

“Let’s just say she could be several years paying it off by herself, even with the efforts her friends here are making on her account.”

“So then why would she leave with so little time left to complete the requirements?” Nora asked.

“Working health care at a homeless mission is a burnout job,” Gerard said. “She’s worked long hours to help people who end up back out on the street. So many people she treats are drug addicts and alcoholics with no interest or ability to improve their situation. They’ll die early and she can’t do anything about it. Many homeless people have mental illnesses and can’t help themselves.”

“Didn’t you tell her what she was getting into before she accepted the loan?” Alec asked.

“I told her.”

Nora placed a hand on her son’s arm. “You know our Megan. She wouldn’t have listened. She thinks she can change the world if she only has a chance.”

“Until she’d had a taste of the frustration,” Gerard said, “she had stars in her eyes about helping those most in need of help.”

“The stars are gone.” Nora shook her head. “It seems she’s lost something vital. I just don’t want to see her in debt for years.”

“I have a plan,” Gerard said. “If it works, she’ll be okay.” He glanced in the direction he’d seen Megan disappear. Was it his imagination, or was she taking an extra long time with Kirstie back in that exam room?