Page 20 of Trick of Light

“You don’t just know those people,” Maxine said. “They’re your ghosts.”

Rod’s chest was tight. Unable to look her in the eye, he sipped his wine.

“Why did you let me come in here?” Maxine asked quietly, her eyes glinting with tears.

Rod shook his head. He understood exactly where she was coming from. She assumed Rebecca was an ex-girlfriend and that there was tremendous pain between them. She assumed Rod had brought her into a burning house of memories. She wasn’t wrong.

“I can explain,” Rod said.

But Maxine was already on her feet. “I have to go,” she said. “Goodbye.”

Maxine turned on her heel and disappeared down the staircase, leaving Rod with a mostly full bottle of wine and a busted heart. When Ben came out to take his order, Rod just shook his head, paid for the bottle, and hurried out before things got more complicated. He’d known better than to do this. He respected Maxine far more than he’d shown.

Maybe he was better off alone.

As he walked slowly through the dying light of the evening, his cell phone buzzed in his pocket. It was a text from his daughter.

RENEE: Dad? Are you around?

RENEE: Can you come over?

RENEE: I’m sort of freaking out.

Chapter Nine

It was difficult for Bethany to piece together the events of that horrible day. Nick had come home belligerent, drunk himself into a stupor, and disappeared into his office—and she’d hardly seen him since. Due to her incredibly difficult surgery schedule, Bethany was forced to ask for far more help from Amanda than she was accustomed to. She kept herself focused on her patients, knowing that when everything was squared away at work, she would be left with the mess of her family life. And that terrified her.

Three days after Nick returned home from the mysterious incident at the hospital, Bethany met with the ten-year-old girl she’d operated on to go over the results and talk about the next steps. The surgery had been a success, and the little girl’s mother sobbed openly as Bethany reminded the girl of how brave she’d been. “You stayed with it. You stayed so confident and positive.” The little girl thanked her and said, “I never want to come back to the hospital again!”

Bethany laughed and blinked back tears. She wished all of her patients could go home the way this one could. She wished Joel had been able to, too.

Bethany went to the break room to dig through the fridge for her salad. It was blocked by numerous lunch boxes, mini yogurts, and slices of string cheese. When she turned around, a few other nurses and doctors entered the break room to congratulate her on the little girl’s recovery.

“You’re the master,” Hannah, one of the nurses, said.

“I couldn’t have done it without you,” Bethany assured her. Hannah was one of her favorite nurses, incredibly organized and “with it” at the operating table.

“We should go out to eat,” Dr. Stevens suggested, wrinkling his nose at the salad she’d brought from home. “When was the last time you celebrated?”

Bethany laughed and waved her hand. “It’s not necessary.” She felt far away from celebrating. Not her. Not now, when her husband was practically a stranger, and her mother-in-law belittled her at every turn.

“Come on, Bethy,” Hannah said. “You have to celebrate your wins. They put you in charge of this hospital for a reason, you know. And I don’t think you ever celebrated that, either.”

Bethany hadn’t felt able to celebrate that win, as it meant rubbing her victory into Nick’s face. This was supposed to be his position.

But Nick hadn’t been back to work since “the incident.” And now that Bethany had gotten through two surgeries and learned that the little girl would fully recover, she felt ready to peer over the proverbial veil and learn the truth.

And what better way to learn the truth about Nick than by gossiping with her colleagues over lunch?

“All right,” Bethany said, returning her salad to the fridge. “Let’s go out.”

Dr. Reggie Stevens, Hannah, the nurse, and Dr. Gretchen Walters agreed to head to the local strip mall for Chili’s. It had been a long time since Bethany had eaten something so sinful, but she decided to indulge in onion rings and a big, greasy burger. As a doctor, she knew that moderation was key. She’d eaten enough salads for one week. And something was to be said about the healing properties of an enormous basket of onion rings dipped in a tangy yellow sauce.

They ordered beers because it was four in the afternoon, and none of them had to return to the hospital today. They clinked their glasses together, the hair on their arms raised in the air conditioner. Bethany inspected their faces, waiting for one of them to burst with news of what Nick had done. It was clear they all knew. She could feel the gossip bubbling around the hospital. Due to respect for Bethany’s position, the news hadn’t gotten to her yet.

But it was time to probe.

“All right,” Bethany said, putting down her glass of beer and clasping her hands together. “It’s time to tell me.”

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