Chapter 1 – Zane
The sound of the door opening got my attention and I sat up a little straighter. It was time to test the new tech. Camilla was out of her office and I had a few minutes to spare.
“Thanks for taking me out to lunch, Tyler. I really needed that.”
“No problem. I’ve been trying to get you to come out with me since we first met.”
I heard a chuckle and I knew that it was Camilla. I didn’t know who Tyler was, but I was going to have to find out why he was taking her to lunch. I didn’t know what I expected to hear, but not this.
“You’re a patient and there are laws against it. I could lose my license.”
“But what about…”
“Not here. I don’t know why I told you that, but you can never bring it up again, Tyler. Promise me?”
She was sounding a little too chipper, and it made me lean forward, pressing the sound closer to my ears, trying to envision what was going on in the small room.
“Yeah, I was just… I don’t know. Poor taste, sorry.”
“I’m not proud of what I’ve done, but you’re right. I need to handle it.”
“I think I have my own fences to mend on my end as well. It was a good talk. That’s why I still come to see you, Camilla. You always know what to say. And I’m still holding out for the chance that you’ll actually take me up on my offer for more than just a meal.”
The laugh was back, this time more of a giggle, and I could feel the heat rising in my face. The last thing I wanted to do was listen to this crap. It felt like some kind of slow torture, and I had an irrational urge to throw the headphones, just to stop from hearing her little giggle that was only supposed to be for me.
“You know I can’t, Tyler. You’re married, and I’m your doctor.”
Tyler sighed, and then I heard a shuffling sound. One of the plants was too low and picking up the movement of feet. I strained to hear through it, trying my best to envision what was going on in there. Now I didn’t think audio was going to be enough. I wanted to see what was going on, not just hear it.
“Tyler, I’m serious. You’re a nice guy, but…”
“I don’t want to hear the rest of that. Anything that starts with ‘you’re a nice guy’ can’t end well. I’ll take it as a no for right now, okay?”
“You can take it how you want, but I think that you’re confused about how it all works.”
“I know how it works. I’m just going to have to catch you in a mood. I’m a patient man, Camilla.”
Clenching my fist, I swore then and there that if I heard her giggle again I was going to end the charade right now.
“Good luck with that, Tyler. I’m not taking the bait, but I did enjoy lunch. Thank you for that.”
“I know, my time is up.”
“Yes, I have another patient coming in. I’ll see you next week?”
There was too much hope in her voice, and my teeth were clenched in my mouth as hard as my fists were by my side. My brilliant idea was quickly unraveling in my face.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, Doc.”
“Okay, Tyler. I think you’ve had one too many margaritas for lunch. I’m glad you’re not driving.”
There was that noise again, as I assumed Tyler got up from a chair and went to the door. I heard it open, but I couldn’t quite understand what else was going on. I tried to listen as intently as I could, but nothing more came to me. I wanted to hear Camilla’s answer to the bold man’s offers and innuendos. I knew then and there that I was going to have to learn more about this Tyler guy who made her giggle so much. Was Camilla like that with all of her patients?
Going back to the paper that I was reading, I waited for something more. I had a little bit of time to kill because work was slow, so I spent it how I’d envisioned from the start. It hadn’t occurred to me to bug her office until the incident with her lying. I wanted to know what was going on with her and what else she was lying about. Now I was overwhelmed with secrets, and I hadn’t even been listening for an hour.
It was a disappointment. The audio was not going to be enough. While I listened for her next patient to come in, I dreaded having to hear her flirt with someone else. I was going to have to lay down some rules when I saw her next.
My mind refocused and I turned away from the small cameras that I was searching for on my phone when I heard a knock at the door. Not my door, but hers.
“Hey, Camilla, your three o’clock just cancelled. Do you want me to fill it with a walk-in or leave it to the others?”
“Let them have it. I’m going to need a break before the afternoon is over.”
“I saw your four o’clock penciled in.”
“Yes.”
“Is that going to be okay?’
“What do you mean?”
“He’s been behaving kind of erratically. He’s scared a couple of the interns.”
I heard a big sigh, and I knew that what she said next was going to hurt me more than her flirting with another man.
“He’s harmless. He’s going through some things and it can get overwhelming for him. I don’t think he’s going to be seeing me too much longer. I don’t think I can help him the way that he deserves to be helped.”
I didn’t hear much after that. She was going to get rid of me. While she hadn’t said anything bad about me, not really, it was clear by what she was saying that she’d every intention of getting me off of her list. Did that mean that she was going to break up with me?
“Well, if you need anything, we’re right down the hall. Sometimes the patients scare me.”
“Don’t be afraid of them. They are just people like everyone else. We all go through hard times.”
“I know, I just…”
“It’s fine, really. There’s no need to be worried.”
“Okay, Camilla. I just wanted to put that out there.”
“Thank you, really. I’m glad that you care so much, but everything is fine.”
The door closed again and I heard a deep sigh that I knew had to be Camilla. Something was weighing heavy on her mind, and I had a feeling that it was the topic they’d just been talking about: me. Was it really that obvious to everyone that I was a little off? I’d heard it before, many times, actually, but I’d worked hard to hide it.
“What the hell am I going to do?”
The question rang out in my ears and bounced around for a time. She was talking to herself. There was no question in my mind that I was the thing she needed to do something about. Her voice was sad, and I had to wonder what made her so melancholy. The ideas that I had were not comforting, and I took the headphones off. I’d heard enough for right now.