Page 12 of A Place Like You

I respond with a nod, understanding that her concern isn’t about my experience, but my origins. For all she knows, we could be part of an organized crime, and she’s afraid we’ll hurt her and the town.

We’re not. I still don’t understand exactly why Callahan brought us here. He says someone is trying to kill us—whoever killed our father. They don’t know the motive, but it’s best if we remain hidden.

Best for who? We lost everything, including our identities.

All I have left is the hope that Wren will recognize that I can be an asset. There’s nobody else working in this clinic, and from what Victoria told me, there are days she stays late to get through all the patients. She needs to be with her son and her husband—would her spouse convince her that she needs help?

“I hope you’ll reconsider,” I say, trying to keep the desperation from creeping into my voice. I know I’m a far cry from the small-town clinic she runs, but the possibility of something more meaningful has already rooted itself in my mind.

Wren glances at the clock hanging on her office wall. “You have that eight o’clock patient, Isabella Davis. After you’re done, please leave,” she orders, and the conversation is over. I hope this is my chance to show her I can handle her patients.

As I leave her office, I can’t help but feel an odd sense of dread mixing with hope. If she decides not to hire me, if I can’t practice medicine and . . . Well, I’d feel as though there was nothing left, and what would I do then?

Medicine is the only thing I know. It’s the essence of my being, the one thing I have truly excelled at. It transcends being a mere job or a career. It’s ingrained in me.

Medicine has been my lifeline and what saved me after I lost . . . them. I can’t imagine myself without this lab coat. As I walk out of her office and toward the examination room, I take a deep breath and square my shoulders.

I have an appointment to attend to, and perhaps, if I exceed her expectations, she’ll reconsider her position.

If I can show Wren the kind of doctor I truly want to be, then maybe, just maybe, she’ll reconsider.

But if not, what the fuck am I going to do in this town for the next unforeseen years?

Chapter Six

Drake

It’s kind of funny that the barn has become a refuge for me ever since we arrived at Heartwood Lake. The familiar scent of hay and farm animals fills the air, accompanied by the rhythmic sounds of chores being carried out. Surprisingly, this is where my mind wanders and imagines how I can improve my life once I’m out of here.

This isn’t a jail sentence, but it feels like something similar to it. We’re trapped here, cut off from the outside world, ready to fight tooth and nail against our inmates. In this case, our siblings.

Company aside, these past few days have taught me a valuable lesson: time is a fleeting gift, one we can never truly hold on to. It’s a lesson I should have learned long ago, but back then, I shielded my heart and numbed my mind, refusing to face the harsh reality—face the loss.

But at the moment, my thoughts are consumed by the modest charm of a certain clinic and captivated by its strong-willed, fiery doctor—Wren Lynch. There’s an undeniable beauty about her, a rare combination of grace and determination that exudes from every fiber of her being.

Her delicate features are complemented by a confident smile that dances across her lips, revealing a glimpse of her fierce spirit. There’s a certain appeal in the way she carries herself—with an air of quiet strength and unwavering determination. It’s as if she’s been through storms and emerged even more resilient, even when she carries multiple scars from them.

She might be beautiful, smart, and strong, but she’s also not willing to give me a chance. After I finished with a patient, she dismissed me without even a courtesy “I’ll consider you for the job” to soften the blow.

To drown out my frustration, I immediately went back to the ranch, throwing myself into the task at hand. Yet, no matter how hard I toil, the nagging annoyance refuses to dissipate. Beside me, my brother, Callahan, moves with a purpose, mopping the sweat off his brow with a grim determination. We’ve been cleaning the stalls side by side for hours, each harboring our own thoughts. He’s probably trying to accept his fate because CQS didn’t hire him either—or did they, but he doesn’t want to tell me?

“You’ve been oddly quiet,” he remarks, his gaze studying me with concern.

“I wasn’t aware we had an ongoing conversation,” I retort, my gaze drawn to the horses grazing contentedly in the paddock. “And you’re not exactly a chatterbox yourself.”

“That’s not the point,” he insists, his brow furrowing. “You left the house early and dove straight into work without saying a word.”

“I went to the clinic,” I confess, trying to figure out if by telling him I’ll be able to just let this go and resign myself to working on this fucking ranch for the rest of my sentence—whatever that might be. “I thought maybe if I showed her my skills, proved that I’m a capable doctor, she would reconsider.”

“You went to the clinic, huh?” Callahan’s voice echoes with surprise. “I thought you would give up on that after last night’s rejection.”

“I couldn’t just give up,” I say, letting my gaze wander around the barn. “Seemed like the right move—show her that I’m a good fucking doctor. I don’t understand why she won’t or can’t hire me.”

“A job at the clinic?” Gael, appearing seemingly out of nowhere, raises an eyebrow. “And how do you suppose that’ll work out, given you’re now Drake Kershaw? Dr. Drake Thorndale shouldn’t be allowed to practice and using your current identity is unethical.”

“Finnegan’s working out the finer details,” I reply, caught off guard by his unexpected appearance.

“I had no idea you were here.” Callahan turns toward Gael, sounding half-joking, half-serious. “Maybe we should put a bell around your neck to warn us that you’re coming through.”

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