Page 80 of Paging Dr. Hart
Warning sirens of alarm blare in the back of my head. I cough into my fist. “That…um, concludes my presentation. I’d be happy to answer any questions.”
A couple of hands shoot into the air, and I mentally curse them. Keepingmy false smile in place and deliberately not looking at either Rafe or Ethan, I answer their questions with brief responses.
Once that’s done, I say a hasty “thank you” and take my leave as the audience applauds. I barely hear them clapping, too overwhelmed by anxiety.
Heart in my throat, I rush down the aisle, heading to Ethan. As I approach, he stands with a huge smile and congratulations on his lips. Before he can speak, I mouth “bathroom” to him and veer off toward the back doors of the conference room.
It breaks my heart to see that beautiful smile fall from his face and to watch his arms drop by his side, but I don’t want to draw attention to him. I’m hoping Rafe doesn’t know who Ethan is and doesn’t know he’s here.
Once I’ve walked past Ethan, I look over to Rafe. His expression is openly hostile, causing my stomach to lurch heavily. We make eye contact, and he flicks his eyes at the exit, telling me to follow.
When I push open the doors, Rafe is waiting in the lobby.
“How did you find me?” My voice is suddenly hoarse.
To answer, Rafe grabs the badge from my chest and holds it up for me to see. There it is. My name and the name of the conference. I hadn’t thought about how easy it would be for him to track me down with that information.
Holding my badge, Rafe says, “I called your hospital in Columbus. They said you are here in Orlando for a conference. I didn’t know which one. I was figuring it out when I bumped into you yesterday. This told me the rest.”
“I don’t understand.” I’m confused, attempting to grasp how he ended up here. “What were you doing at Epcot? Did you decide to take a day off from stalking me to go to an amusement park?”
“I have an old contact, one who’s good at hacking into hotel reservation systems. He works at Epcot. I was going to have him figure out where you are staying, but then I saw you and this.” He tugs the lanyard lightly. His laugh is low and gravelly, fingers racked across wet sand. “Isn’t that quite the coincidence, Tiffany? For me to find you there? It’s like fate wants us reunited. To finish what we started.”
I yank the badge out of his hands and look around surreptitiously. Between gritted teeth, I hiss, “What the hell are you talking about?”
Fury grips me. This was supposed to bemymoment of victory. I successfully finished my presentation. Ethan and I are together. I was happy for once. Finally letting go of my fear, my pain, my past. But here comes Rafe, set to destroy all I’ve built. Ready to drag me down yet again.
A quick glance around the room shows that only one hotel worker is here, busy cleaning up the remainder of the breakfast buffet. He doesn’t appear to be listening to our conversation, but, just to be safe, I point away from the lobby where we stand. “Let’s talk over there.”
“Fine.” Rafe languidly picks up a black backpack that’s been sitting by his feet and throws it over his shoulder. He’s moving too slow for my taste, so I grab him by the upper arm and drag him away. It feels weird to touch him. His arm is so big and muscular that it’s foreign to me. I still think of him as the teenage boy I used to know. This new version of Rafe is disorienting and scary.
Earlier, I had noticed an alcove off the conference lobby, the kind where you go for privacy to make a phone call. This is where I take him. The space is small, forcing us to stand close together. It has two old-fashioned–looking telephones mounted on the back wall, with their cords dangling down.
Once we step in, I whirl around to confront him. “What do you want?” I snap, speaking quietly so people passing by can’t hear. There’s no door here. We can still be seen, but at least we’re out of the line of sight for people entering and exiting the lecture hall.
He doesn’t bother with the niceties. “Money or, more specifically, diamonds.”
“What?! Are you crazy? I don’t have any diamonds.” It’s a struggle to keep my voice down. I’m so outraged. “I’m a resident. I make less than minimum wage.” Rafe is barking up the wrong tree if he thinks he’ll get rich off me. I’ve got more student debt than anything else. After I pay for this trip, I’ll have less than $100 dollars left in my bank account.
He gives me a look like I’m stupid. “Not from you. From Shelly.”
“What do you mean from Shelly?” I glance around, out of my depth. “Is she here?” I wouldn’t be surprised to see Shelly waltz into the room at this point. If one ghost is back to haunt me, why not two?
Rafe runs a hand through his thick dark hair, looking frustrated. “Shelly’snot here, but she had diamonds, ones that we took from Johnny’s place. She hid them, wanted to keep them for herself.”
“Hid them? Where?”
“At the Starlight.”
The Starlight. A place I’ve visited in my nightmares so very often.
Little bird, where are you?
“I thought they destroyed that place. Weren’t there plans to implode it?” I picture the decrepit building in my mind. It was run-down back when I was in high school, so it must be a total disaster by now. How’s it even standing?
“The politicians couldn’t get their shit together. They’ve been battling over it for years, so the Starlight’s still there, just waiting for us.” There’s a greedy glint in his eyes.
I stare at him with bewilderment, trying to wrap my mind around his plan. “How do you know Shelly was telling the truth? If you guys were fighting, she could’ve been messing with you.”
