Page 40 of Gone Before Goodbye
“—I can refuse to do the surgery.”
“Then Oleg would bring in someone else.”
Maggie lowers her voice. “If you don’t want to stay—”
“Who says I don’t want to stay?”
“—I can get you out.”
Nadia looks almost amused. “Do you really believe that, Doctor McCabe?”
“Believe what?”
“That you can get me out.”
“I’ll find a way.”
Nadia mutters something in a foreign tongue. “How? You, like me, are totally at their mercy. You can’t call anyone. Your phone won’t work. Oh, and your bedroom? It will be bugged. Just so you know—this is one of the few rooms in the house that doesn’t have cameras and listening devices. So how do we make our escape? Will you hide me in your suitcase?”
“Listen to me,” Maggie says, moving closer. “I can find a way.”
“You’re being naive.”
“Nadia—”
“And I don’t want you to,” Nadia says, her tone firm now. “I am here by choice. I can leave anytime I want. I understand the surgery. I know the risks. They are minimal, no?”
Maggie nods. “Most studies report a one to five percent chance of a complication.”
“Between one and five percent,” Nadia repeats. “That’s an average.”
“Yes.”
“But I don’t have an average doctor, do I?” Nadia says. “Oleg only hires the best.”
They lock eyes.
“It’s an easy choice for me,” Nadia says. “I want to do it.”
Maggie nods, giving herself time to think. “That’s fine. It’s up to you, of course. I just want you to know that I’m here for you. That I want to help you.”
“Many girls,” Nadia continues, “beautiful girls, would give anything to be in my place.”
“I understand,” Maggie says.
Nadia flashes the smile again. “I know what I look like, Doctor McCabe. I know the effect I have on men. But after this surgery, I will be, let’s be honest, irresistible.”
“You already are, Nadia.”
“Don’t be patronizing.”
“I don’t mean to be.”
“You heard what Oleg likes. That’s what I need to be.”
“Got it.”
“Will you help me?”
