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  “What is it?” she asked, concern clouding her features.

  “The man that was killed… It was Anthony,” Eli revealed.

  “What? I don’t… How? Who?” Julie stammered.

  “I talked to a policeman that was still at the hospital. He said they are still investigating. He told me they think Anthony was robbing from the guests and then selling the merchandise, but something went wrong,” Eli recounted his conversation with the officer. Julie was dumbfounded.

  “Could that have been why he was in my room? Who killed him?” she questioned.

  “Julie, the police are questioning all the guests. They want to know if they have anything missing or if they heard anything. You are going to have to talk to them,” Eli forewarned.

  “No! I can’t!” Julie shouted, standing.

  “Julie, calm down,” Eli ordered.

  “I just can’t, Eli. They’ll figure out I’m not who I say I am,” she felt herself losing control. “He was in my room. They’ll keep questioning me. They’ll…” Julie’s rant came to an abrupt halt as Eli was in front of her, calming her.

  “Stop,” he whispered in her ear. Julie sobbed as the soothing feeling of his fingers and softness of his voice worked their magic. “I told you I’ll protect you, and I will,” he said, his lips brushing her cheek. “I know what to do,” his lips were on hers. Julie clutched his arms as the light brush of his lips lasted longer than before. The moment ended before she could figure out why this time was different than the last time. She rested her head against his chest as he spoke. “I’m going to go with you. We are going to say you spent the night here with me. There will be no speculation, and we will not mention that he was in your room. I’m going to be right next to you,” he explained, rubbing her back. “If we don’t do this, it will raise even more suspicion,” he added.

  “Okay,” Julie whispered, not lifting her head. She didn’t move. She felt safe in his arms. Eli was in no hurry to release her. He held her. He liked how she fit perfectly against his chest. It was a strange feeling for him, strange, but not entirely unwelcome.

  Finally, after about three minutes, Julie lifted her head. “You never did tell me how that works,” she said, stepping back.

  “You mean how I stop you from having a complete mental breakdown?” he teased. Julie rolled her eyes.

  “How does it work?” she asked, lifting his hands to look at them. Eli watched her examine them.

  “What do you feel?” he asked.

  Julie rubbed her palms across his. “It’s almost like a cloud descends over me. I feel safe. I feel I can say anything, and it will be okay,” she tried explaining. Julie looked at his lips. “When your voice and breath… when your lips…” she trailed off, blushing. “Now answer my question,” she commanded with a smile.

  “It’s just a calming technique, meant to relax you and free your thoughts,” he explained, brushing the hair back from her face.

  “You have to teach me how to do that sometime,” she said, releasing his hands. She closed her eyes. “When do we have to do this?” she breathed.

  “Better to get it over with,” Eli advised.

  “Okay,” she sighed, and collected the hotel key she needed to return. “Let’s get this over with,” she said.

  The two drove in silence to the hotel. Eli parked behind a cop car. He gave Julie’s hand a squeeze. “You okay?” he asked.

  “No,” she said and let out a nervous laugh.

  “Follow my lead,” Eli said, getting out of the car.

  The lobby was a buzz of activity as Eli and Julie entered. Julie instinctively pulled back, but Eli put his arm around her. “Let’s go to the desk. Stay with me,” he whispered.

  “Oh, Miss Miller,” Patricia addressed her as they approached. “The police were looking for you. I am sure you heard the tragic news. The police are taking statements from all the guests,” she informed. Eli nudged her when she didn’t speak up right away.

  “Oh, yes. That’s fine. Here is my room key. I’m checking out as well,” Julie managed to get her lines out.

  “I understand.” Patricia accepted the key.

  A policeman who had been watching the two walked over. “Hello folks. I’m Detective Hopkins with the Marion County Police Department,” he greeted, then recognized Eli. “Doctor Elsworth. How are you? I’m Peter Hopkins. I don’t know if you remember me, but you operated on my father, Frank, a few months ago,” the detective said.

  “Of course I remember you, Peter,” Eli greeted, shaking the cop’s hand. “How is your father doing?” Eli asked.

  “He is doing fantastic; already back on the golf course. You could never tell he was near death six months ago,” Peter told.

  “Excellent. I’m glad to hear he is doing so well,” Eli commented.

  “I hope you don’t mind, Doctor, but if you folks were guests here, I need to ask you a few questions,” the detective stated.

  “I understand. Actually, Julie was the registered guest here,” Eli said giving her hand another squeeze.

  The detective looked at the guest list he was holding. “Okay. Let’s see… Julie… Julie… Ah, here it is. Julie Miller, room 207. Is that correct?” he asked.

  “Yes,” Julie replied, her voice cracked from nervousness.

  “She is a little shaken up by the whole event,” the doctor explained.

  “Understandable. Why don’t we go have a seat over here?” the detective gestured to the sitting area of the lobby.

  Once the three were situated, the questions began. “Miss Miller. How long have you been a guest here at the hotel?” he asked.

  “Um, I checked in Saturday, so about six days,” Julie answered, keeping her nerves in check.

  “During that time, did you have any contact with an employee by the name of Anthony Wolenza?” the detective asked.

  “I didn’t know his last name but, yes, I did see Anthony behind the desk a few times,” Julie stated, glad that the questions seemed easy thus far.

  “Did you have any conversations with Mr. Wolenza?” he asked.

  “Other than asking for directions, no, not really,” she said.

  “Are you currently a guest here?” the detective questioned.

  “I just checked out officially now,” Julie informed him.

  “What time did you come back to your room last night?” he asked. Julie looked to Eli for help on this one.

  “Detective, Julie stayed at my place last night. We stopped by here around ten PM to pick up her things. She would have checked out last night, but no one was at the desk when we left. We heard the news this morning. Needless to say, I was glad she was not here last night,” Eli explained.

  “So, the last time either of you were here was around ten PM last night. Did you see anyone?” he continued the questions.

  Julie and Eli looked at each other and shook their heads. “No, no one,” Julie confirmed.

  “Miss Miller, during your stay here, did you notice any unusual behavior in any of the guests or staff?” he asked.

  “Not that I recall,” Julie replied.

  “One final question then, did you ever notice anything missing from your room?” he questioned.

  “No,” she answered.

  “Okay. That’s all the questions I have. If you remember anything that you think would be helpful, please don’t hesitate to call,” he instructed, handing Julie his card. “Doctor Elsworth,” he addressed, holding out his hand.

  “It’s good to see you again, Peter. Give your father my best,” Eli said.

  “I certainly will, and thank you both for your time,” the detective smiled and walked away.

  Eli looked at Julie. She was staring down at the card she had been given. “You okay?” he asked.

  “Hmm? Oh, yeah. I’m fine. Can we go? This place gives me the creeps,” she replied.

  “Yes. C’mon,” Eli agreed. Julie slipped her hand into Eli’s as they exited.

  Once outside, “Why don’t you go home and rest?�
�� Eli suggested.

  “No. I’m fine really. I wanna go see Michele. Besides, I have work,” she replied, smiling.

  “I’m concerned about you. You don’t seem yourself,” Eli said, placing his hand to her face.

  “I’m just tired. I’ll be fine. Work will be therapy for me,” she smiled, then tugged his hand. “Come on. I’m hitching a ride,” she pulled him toward his car. Eli smiled despite himself and opened the door for her.

  Neither saw the man, who eyed them with keen interest, smoking a cigarette a few store fronts away. Enjoying yourself, Laney? the man thought. Time’s almost up. The man wrote the number four in a notebook and copied down the license plate as they drove by. Let’s see how many other lives you can ruin. He laughed to himself and crushed out his cigarette.

  Back at the hospital, Julie changed into her uniform. Eli had told her that Michele had been moved back to pediatrics and that they would be reducing her sedatives. She was sad to see she wasn’t scheduled for that floor. Eli promised to come find her if Michele woke up. She was glad for the hustle and bustle; it kept her mind occupied. She refrained from doing any healing. The fatigue she felt was still dragging her down, but she hid it well.

  She was heading for the supply closet for some clean sheets when a familiar voice called out to her. “Julie!” Austin shouted, practically running up to her.

  “Austin! Hi,” she greeted then saw the troubled look on his face. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “What’s wrong? How can you ask that? I was crazy with worry when I heard the news about the murder. I went there looking for you and they told me you checked out. I thought… I thought…” Austin said, but did not finish his thought.

  “Oh, Austin, I’m so sorry. I haven’t had a moment to call you,” Julie apologized. She looked down the hall and saw some of the nurses spying on their conversation. “Come on, lets go somewhere more private,” Julie suggested and lead Austin to the supply closet she had been heading to. Once inside, she could tell he was upset with her. “Austin. It’s been so crazy, I was going to call you after work,” Julie tried to explain.

  “I thought you left,” Austin said, finishing his previous thought. “I thought you just left… and I was never going to see you again,” he said leaning back against a shelf.

  “Austin,” Julie said softly, putting her hands on his face. “I’m not going anywhere. I got an apartment. I move in tomorrow. I’m staying,” she reassured. Austin looked into her eyes, looking for even more confirmation.

  He placed his hands on her waist. “I know you are running from something, Julie. I don’t even know what or who,” he said. “I hope someday you’ll trust me enough to tell me,” Austin stated. Julie put her head down and tried to move away from him. Austin kept her close. She knew that she was being foolish. She should push him away; keep him out of the danger that went with knowing her. She looked into his eyes and couldn’t do it. She needed him. She needed the normality that he brought to her life. Need or want? She questioned herself. “Julie,” Austin whispered. He kissed her softly on the lips. Julie lost all resolve then. Need… want… it didn’t matter. All that mattered, at that moment, was that she was in his arms. After a few more stolen kisses, Julie found a way to pull back.

  “Can we continue this after work?” she laughed at her own casualness.

  Austin smiled, pulling her back against him. “Where? I thought you checked out,” he teased, then asked seriously, “Where are you staying? You said your apartment isn’t ready until tomorrow.”

  “Oh, Doctor Elsworth is letting me stay with him. He owns the apartment building that I’ll be renting in. He had heard about the murder and offered me his spare bedroom until the apartment is ready,” Julie explained.

  “He is, like, top gun here,” Austin commented.

  “Hey, you never told me. How did finals go? Wasn’t your last one today?” she asked.

  “Yes. It was. Good memory,” Austin answered and began kissing her neck. “You look really cute in this uniform,” he remarked.

  “Stop changing the subject,” Julie laughed. “How do you think you did?” she asked again.

  “At this very moment, I don’t care,” Austin breathed as his kisses became more passionate. Julie was pulled in by Austin’s amorous kisses, forgetting where she was until the door was pulled open.

  “Oh… um… sorry,” Joy said. Julie turned around, red-faced. She was glad to see it was Joy, and not someone else. “You didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend,” Joy said closing the door.

  Julie had trouble finding her voice and it didn’t help that Austin had a big grin on his face. Finally, “Joy, this is Austin. Austin, Joy,” she introduced.

  The door opened again and Neal stepped in. “Oh, cool, a secret meeting in the supply room. Count me in,” Neal said, slipping an arm around Julie’s waist, before noticing Austin. “Austin, dude. What are you doing here?” he asked.

  “Visiting my girlfriend,” Austin replied, pulling Julie away from him.

  “No way, I thought she was just trying to play hard to get when she told me she had a boyfriend,” Neal confessed.

  “Nice to know you told someone,” Austin teased, draping an arm around her shoulder. Julie smirked.

  “You two are friends, I assume,” Julie surmised.

  “Neal is Rick’s older brother,” Austin explained. Julie and Austin shared a knowing smile.

  “Explains a lot, actually,” she smiled.

  Before Neal could question the meaning of the comment, the door opened again. “Which one of you wants to tell me why you are hanging out here instead of working?” Nurse Hacher asked.

  “Busted,” Joy laughed.

  “Move along, all of you. Oh, Julie. Doctor Elsworth was looking for you,” she said.

  “He was?” Julie questioned.

  “He said when I found you to tell you Michele was awake.”

  “Oh, great, okay. Thank you.”

  Back out in the hallway, “I gotta go,” Julie said to Austin.

  “You’re off work in an hour. How about I take you out to dinner?” Austin suggested.

  “Sounds great,” she said and smiled.

  “I’ll pick you up out front,” he said.

  “What are you picking her up with, your skateboard? You don’t own a car,” Neal reminded.

  “Shut up. I borrowed my mom’s car,” Austin answered. Austin and Neal bickered back and forth down the hall.

  Julie and Joy looked at each other and rolled their eyes. “He’s cute,” Joy gushed. Julie blushed. “When we get time, you are so going to dish,” Joy warned. Julie laughed and made her way to Pediatrics.

  Chapter Six— To Be Normal

  A nurse was attending to Michele when Julie arrived. She waited for her to finish before approaching the child. Michele was lying on her back with her eyes closed. Julie lightly touched her head and the child’s eyes opened. Julie smiled down at the beautiful brown eyes staring up at her. “Hi, Michele. My name is Julie. How are you?” she asked. A small croaking sound escaped the girl’s lips. “Shh, I’m sorry. Don’t try to talk. Your throat is dry,” Julie advised. Still, the child tried to communicate. It sounded as if the girl was asking for water. Julie looked up at the IV’s hooked up to the girl. She was getting fluids and shouldn’t be thirsty. Julie wanted to be sure she was absorbing the fluids that she was getting. She touched the girl’s arm and explored. Julie found that she was absorbing some, but at a slow rate. Her body was still adjusting to its new role in healing itself instead of battling the cancer. She was about to help the process along when she felt a hand grab her arm. She was immediately pulled back out. Doctor Elsworth was glaring at her.

  “We need to talk, now,” he said quietly, mindful of other nurses nearby. Julie could tell he was angry with her. She followed him into an empty conference room and jumped when he slammed a chart down on the table. “What the hell do you think you are doing?” he barked. Julie was surprised. She had never seen him like this before.


  “I was just checking on her. I hadn’t done anything yet,” Julie informed.

  “Yet. Damn it, Julie, I thought we had an understanding. You are not supposed to do anything unless you tell me first. Did we, or did we not have that agreement?” Eli asked.

  “Why are you so angry with me? I’m still getting used to working with someone, okay? I just thought if I could make her more comfortable, she would heal herself faster,” Julie tried to explain. “Besides, you weren’t around,” she added.

  “Where were you, Julie? I went looking for you to tell you about Michele, myself. I heard some of the nurses giggling about you and some boy in a supply room,” Eli stated. Julie frowned.

  “Austin came to see me. He had heard about the murder and was worried about me. I hadn’t had time to call him. I didn’t feel like having everyone hear my conversation, so we went into the supply room. Big deal,” she said angrily. They stared at each other, neither one willing to back down. Julie caved first. “Eli,” she said, taking a step towards him. “Look. I’m sorry. I should have waited for you. I’m still new at this whole ‘teamwork’ thing. Truth be told, I am glad to have someone else who knows what I can do. I never got a chance to really talk to anyone about it, before you,” Julie leaned with her back against the table, “I never saw you get this angry before,” she added before looking away.

  Eli came and stood before her. “Do you know why I was so angry?” Eli asked her. She raised her eyes to look at him. “I was angry because of the danger you put yourself in. You know you are weak. What if you had passed out and I wasn’t here? What if another doctor tried to care for you? I remember how shocked I was when I tried. That would have jeopardized your safety here. I want you to be able to stay, Julie,” he touched her face lightly. He was moving his face closer to hers when his phone rang. His hand remained on her face as he answered it. He kept his eyes locked with hers. She watched him speak into the phone, but was not able to focus on anything that was said. She watched the movement of his lips. The sensations she was feeling now were different then his calming ones of before. She found herself taking deeper breaths. What happened next surprised her and the doctor. He had just hung up the phone when she reached for his jacket collar and pulled him to her. She kissed him hard and deep. At first the doctor was stiff, but within seconds he was responding to her just as aggressively.